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Every year, many UPS units are thrown out due to dead batteries. 700VA/XL to 1500VA size APC Smart-UPS's are high quality units and battery replacement is economical if you assemble your own battery pack. With a bit of work, you can replace the battery pack for about half the cost of buying the original replacement from APC.

This instruction is for assembling RBC7 type battery for use in (but not limited to) American Power Conversion/APC SU700XL, SU700XLNET, SU1000XL, SU1000XLNET, BP1400, SUVS1400, SU1400, SU1400NET, SUA1500, SUA1000XL and SUA750XL

Warranty is not even a matter of consideration, because APC covers the entire unit, including battery for two years and after that, warranty is void, so there's no warranty complication from using a self assembled battery.

1. Remove the dead battery pack from the unit. ^[1] You do you nave to power off the UPS to replace the batteries.
2. Check new batteries with a digital voltmeter. If either is less than 12.55v, they've been sitting around too long and are likely ruined already. Return to supplier.
3. Carefully remove the two plastic covers on two ends. Remove the plastic block(100A fuse)joining the two halves together, then remove the cable.
4. Save the removed parts!!
5. Lightly sand the face of both batteries on the side closer to the terminals. This is a step that should be performed per Plastic Weld® instruction manual.
6. Squeeze about 1/4 the content of the Plastic Weld® and prepare the adhesive per packaging. Evenly apply adhesive to one battery as pictured.
   

   
   

   Preparing the batteries to be glued together.
7. Stand up the batteries on a flat surface and join the two batteries together with terminal side facing each other. Let it cure for 30 minutes.
8. Install the cable, then the fuse, as pictured. Do not install the fuse first as doing so increase the chance of shorting out the battery while installing the cable.
   

   
   

   Joining the two batteries together and adding fuse and cable
9. Use double sided tape or packaging tape to attach the terminal covers.
   

   Preparing the batteries to be glued together.
10. Put the UPS back together following the instructions from step 1.
11. If you want to avoid the hassle of glueing the batteries, you can purchase pre-glued and harnessed RBC7 compatible replacement battery cartridges.
12. Turn on the UPS, pull the plug and make sure it runs on battery power.
13. Let the new batteries charge overnight.
14. Now, you need to calibrate it, so the runtime and capacity indicator reads accurately. The UPS should be loaded to 30-50% of the rated watt capacity. For 1000VA/~650W and 1500/~950W model, 300W halogen floor lamp works well.
15. Connect a 30-50% non-varying load to the UPS and disconnect power to the UPS. (Rather than pull the plug, it's best to disconnect power with your circuit breaker or a power strip. See below in Tips.) Let it run until it shuts off completely. Ignore all beeping. It should take about 45 minutes to an hour.
16. Immediately start charging. Let it charge overnight. The UPS is now ready to be put into service.

Tips

• Make sure you set the batteries on a level surface when you join the two together and line up the sides at the same time. You have about four minutes to adjust the alignment. If Plastic Weld® sets misaligned, you will not be able to correct it.
• Removal of fuse and cable from dead pack: Remove fuse first, cable second.
• Installation of fuse and cable to newly assembled pack: Cable first, fuse second.
• For testing and calibration, throw your circuit breaker, or plug the UPS into a power strip that does not disconnect ground and turn the power strip switch off. Doing this ensures the UPS maintains ground, which is important for calibration.
• For really long run times, use car/marine batteries from your local auto parts place (deep cycle are the best). You are looking for max RA (Reserve minutes).I have an APC 700 that has been running for several years from two $48 car batteries. I made special cables to go from the car batteries to the spade terminals, and put each connector in vinyl tubing to prevent welding.

Warnings

• The batteries have enough current capacity to cause a fire and serious injury if you accidentally short them.
• If you don't let the batteries charge up immediately after use, they will be ruined in a short order.
• This type of battery is mostly made of lead and dangerous acid. It is unlawful to dispose of them in the trash. Many auto parts stores, battery stores, and recycling centers will accept spent batteries for free. If you're replacing a large amount of battery packs, arrange the disposal of dead batteries with your battery distributor.