APC UPS
Service, Support & Maintenance
in Canada

Intro

A UPS keeps your equipment running when the power fails, but only if it’s maintained. This is what a maintenance visit covers: the eight checks we do on APC, Eaton, Vertiv and other UPS systems.

Why it matters

Why does it matter? At one government office, the display said more than two hours of backup. When we tested the batteries behind it, six strings out of eight had failed. Here’s how we catch that before the power goes out. The plan, the room, the event log, the batteries, the parts that wear out, the tests, the yearly major maintenance, and the report.

Check 1. The plan

Check one happens before we arrive: the plan. We settle three things with you. When we can work, whether the UPS can go on bypass, and who signs off on any test. On bypass, your equipment runs straight off building power, with no battery behind it. A hospital in the Quebec City region asked whether the visit would put their UPS on bypass. Our advice: do it online, so their equipment stays protected. Most of the visit works that way.

Check 2. The room

Check two: the room. We look at the temperature, the airflow and the dust. Heat takes years off a set of batteries. At that same office, heat was building up in a poorly ventilated room.

Check 3. The event log

Check three: the event log. It shows the recent power failures, every switch to battery or bypass, and the alarms nobody saw. There, the log showed eight power failures in eight months. That UPS had been working hard.

Check 4. The batteries

Check four: the batteries. On APC, Eaton and Vertiv UPS alike, this is where we find most problems. We look for swollen cases, acid at the vents and corrosion on the terminals. Then we measure every block, one by one: its voltage and its internal resistance. Internal resistance tells us more than voltage does. A block whose resistance is much higher than its neighbours is failing, even when its voltage looks normal. The display only estimates runtime. It doesn’t measure each block the way we do. At that office, six of the eight strings failed the test. There was acid at most of the vents, and the batteries were only four years old. Standard UPS batteries last three to five years. Long-life ones can go eight years or more, in a cool room.

Check 5. The parts that wear out

Check five: the parts that wear out. Fans, air filters and capacitors. Before we open a door on a running UPS, we read its arc-flash label and suit up to match it. A clogged filter makes the UPS run hot, so we clean it or replace it. With the UPS carrying your load, and the covers off in full protective gear, we scan the connections with a thermal camera. A loose connection shows up hot long before it burns. The more load on the UPS, the better it shows.

Check 6. The tests

Check six: the tests. If the batteries passed, and you agree, we switch the UPS to battery for a short test. That shows it picks up the load cleanly. If the batteries failed, we skip it. We don’t gamble with your equipment. A short test doesn’t prove your full runtime. If you need that number, we plan a timed runtime test with you.

Check 7. The major maintenance

Check seven: the major maintenance. Everything so far is the minor maintenance, done with the UPS online. Most sites also need a major one each year. It’s the one time your equipment runs without the UPS behind it, so we plan the window with you. We move the load to the maintenance bypass, isolate the UPS and its batteries, lock them out, and test for voltage before anyone works inside. Then we check the torque on the power connections, clean out the dust and change the filters. Before your load goes back on, we run the UPS through each operating mode.

APC and Schneider Electric

Each brand has its own weak spots. On an APC Symmetra PX or LX, the batteries slide out as modules, so we can swap them with your equipment still running. Schneider Electric stopped servicing the APC Galaxy 3500 in 2023. We still maintain them, and we help you plan the replacement before parts get hard to find.

Eaton and Powerware

Eaton’s 9155, 9355 and 93PM often keep their batteries in separate cabinets, in several strings. We test every string on its own. On older Eaton and Powerware units, capacitors and fans wear out with age. We replace them on a schedule, before they fail.

Vertiv Liebert

A hospital can have a whole fleet of Liebert GXT units. We test every one, then plan the replacements by age and result. On three-phase units like the Liebert EXM, it’s the full eight checks. Mitsubishi, Toshiba, Tripp Lite: we service them all, and you get the same report.

Check 8. The report

Check eight: the report. You get it in writing. Every reading, photos and thermal images, and a green, yellow or red rating for each unit. Then a short list of what to do next, starting with the most urgent. For that office, the batteries came back red: replace them now. And since the UPS itself was seventeen years old, we told them to start planning a new one.

Recap: minor vs major maintenance

To recap, here’s what each visit includes. A minor maintenance keeps your UPS online. We check the room, the log, the readings and every battery block. Then the parts that wear out, a thermal scan, and a short test if the batteries pass. A major maintenance adds a planned window on bypass. The UPS and batteries are isolated and locked out, the torque is checked, the inside is cleaned, and every operating mode is tested. Both end with a written report. If your batteries are four years old or more and nobody has tested them, have them tested before your next outage.

Outro

GDF Technologies does this visit across Canada. We offer support when you need it, and when something fails, we’re there day or night. We also offer extended warranties on parts and labour. And when it’s time for a new UPS, we do the consulting and engineering with you, from configuration to delivery and installation. Call us, or ask for a quote at gdftech.com. You’ll hear back within four business hours.