Brian916
Community Member
In my area late summer and fall are typically the windy season when we get planned backout for fire control, so it is time to get the battery backup freshened and ready. After finding my 5th replacement battery degraded to 8 volts in my IceCap battery backup (this time it lasted a year), I was looking for a more reliable battery type. The guy at the battery store hasn't seemed very surprised that these small Pb-AGM type sealed batteries only last a year or two. Not sure what other people's mileage has been with these? I think it is the same battery in the IceCap and the EcoTech?
I have just purchased and installed a UPS that is specifically designed to deliver DC backup power and includes 2 - 12V 5 amp ports (in addition to some lower voltage and USB ports) from a LiPo battery. I am wondering if anyone has tried this or similar devices? While not as powerful as the EcoTech or IceCap options, it was cheaper and I am hoping that the LiPo battery itself will be more reliable and therefore holding a charge when I need it.
I have set this up to deliver power via the Backup Power port on my Vortech MP10 QDW. Both the MP10 and the power supply for the UPS are connected to my Apex. I have verified that the battery will power the MP10, but I have not done a run time test. This model is advertised as 74 Wh. This should theoretically give me 6-8 hours of operation of the MP10 (in backup mode <1 amp) as my emergency tank circulation pump. I would hope that this is enough time to get my other batteries setup into the rotation and get my generator recharging the backups. I plan to do a rundown test soon to see what my actual run time will be off of the battery.
The documentation for this UPS is really basic, so I can't tell how smart the charge controller is with respect to tending the battery. I have set the MP10 to run on the battery for 20 minutes daily to pull a bit of the charge off the battery so that it doesn't sit at 100%. The outlet for the UPS is set to be on for 4 hours on Monday to recharge.
I would love any thoughts or ideas people have about this setup, my charging cycle, or similar solutions.
I have just purchased and installed a UPS that is specifically designed to deliver DC backup power and includes 2 - 12V 5 amp ports (in addition to some lower voltage and USB ports) from a LiPo battery. I am wondering if anyone has tried this or similar devices? While not as powerful as the EcoTech or IceCap options, it was cheaper and I am hoping that the LiPo battery itself will be more reliable and therefore holding a charge when I need it.
Shanqiu Mini UPS Battery Backup Uninterruptible Power Supply for Router, Modem, Security Camera with Input AC Output USB 5V DC 5V 9V 12V (74Wh)
I have set this up to deliver power via the Backup Power port on my Vortech MP10 QDW. Both the MP10 and the power supply for the UPS are connected to my Apex. I have verified that the battery will power the MP10, but I have not done a run time test. This model is advertised as 74 Wh. This should theoretically give me 6-8 hours of operation of the MP10 (in backup mode <1 amp) as my emergency tank circulation pump. I would hope that this is enough time to get my other batteries setup into the rotation and get my generator recharging the backups. I plan to do a rundown test soon to see what my actual run time will be off of the battery.
The documentation for this UPS is really basic, so I can't tell how smart the charge controller is with respect to tending the battery. I have set the MP10 to run on the battery for 20 minutes daily to pull a bit of the charge off the battery so that it doesn't sit at 100%. The outlet for the UPS is set to be on for 4 hours on Monday to recharge.
I would love any thoughts or ideas people have about this setup, my charging cycle, or similar solutions.
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