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| Thread ID: 109762 | 2010-05-22 00:49:00 | This has gotta be some kind of record... | Billy T (70) | PC World Chat |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 887083 | 2010-05-22 00:49:00 | Having installed a new and higher rated UPS, that moved the old 450VA down the food chain and has freed up an even older 250VA APC that has been holding up my monitor (old IBM G96 19") and a few other minor bits and pieces. I have another use for it, so I decided to install new batteries as I didn't remember ever replacing the old ones, though it had been at another site for several years and I thought they might have been changed during that time. I did a test first and it held up for nearly 5 minutes, which isn't bad at all for a 250VA unit, but it turns out the batteries are the originals and were installed in February 1994, so that is over 16 years and still going strong. They are 6 volt 4.5Ah types, branded CSB and made in Taiwan. They show no swelling, leaks or any other signs of old age. I wish all my other SLA batteries would last that long! Cheers Billy 8-{) |
Billy T (70) | ||
| 887084 | 2010-05-22 01:32:00 | Can you still get Taiwanese-made SLA batteries these days, or has all of the manufacturing been outsourced to China? | somebody (208) | ||
| 887085 | 2010-05-23 09:40:00 | Probably China! At least. that's where we seem to import from, regardless of brand. I nearly spoke too soon on the UPS, after fitting the new batteries it was dead as a Dodo and after much head scratching and not a few curses, I finally found that the physical stress of removing the circuit board in order to change the batteries,a nightmare exercise in itself that took 30 minutes to achieve, a tiny and very strange-looking fuse made of yellow plastic had gone open circuit. They obviously didn't think anybody would keep the UPS long enough to need to change the batteries, and getting the fuse out was difficult too, as it was a double sided/plated-through PC board, but I successfully replaced it with a normal miniature fuse stood off on wire legs and finally it was back in operation. Cheers Billy 8-{) :groan: |
Billy T (70) | ||
| 887086 | 2010-05-23 11:12:00 | The battery must have been extremely good, but the charging circuitry must have been something special too. Don't worry about the fuse failing; - isn't that the whole point of a fuse's existence? A neighbour has an old Phillishave cordless that he bought in Singapore 16 years ago second hand after his luggage was stolen. It has the original batteries and can still manage 4 days of shaves on a charge. It must have used about 100 times the price of the razor in cutters by now, and it is on it's third charger. |
R2x1 (4628) | ||
| 887087 | 2010-05-23 23:51:00 | Don't worry about the fuse failing; - isn't that the whole point of a fuse's existence? Yeah, but it failed with no power on, and it wore a disguise to make sure I wouldn't find it in a hurry. Fuses are not meant to be that sneaky. I might have found it faster with a circuit I guess, but that was the way the cards fell. See the image? It looks like a small cap or inductance etc, but never a fuse!! Cheers Billy 8-{) :dogeye: |
Billy T (70) | ||
| 887088 | 2010-05-24 00:25:00 | Dang! That's sneaky. | R2x1 (4628) | ||
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