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What Happens When Your UPS System Fails

What Happens When Your UPS System Fails

Prevention is key to keeping a catastrophic event from occurring in your equipment. Not only can failure cause your equipment to disrupt your workflow, and can cost your company time and money, but having your UPS catch on fire is far worse than a small amount of downtime. We’ll show you what can happen to a rogue UPS system.

A UPS could be subject to severe damage by fire, thermal runaway, IGBT failure, capacitor, and fan damage. A capacitor could cause your system to spray oil all over your UPS or worse it could explode. If your fan stops working your system can overheat, causing numerous issues to your UPS. The batteries for your UPS are critical, they can overheat and cause thermal runaway.

Preventative maintenance is crucial to keeping your UPS working and not being another catastrophic event. A regular maintenance schedule will allow a technician to make sure your system is running efficiently, check parts, and make sure the batteries are in good working order. This should keep your UPS and batteries working well and effectively for several years to come.

Damaged blue capacitor with exposed metal and debris, mounted on a metallic frame with visible wiring and components.
UPS Capacitor Failure
Burnt and damaged wiring with charred insulation and residue, indicating electrical failure or overheating.
UPS Battery in Thermal Runaway
Damaged batteries with black residue and burn marks on a metal surface, indicating potential leakage or overheating.
Thermal Runaway
Damaged battery storage with charred and melted components, showing signs of fire and severe wear on multiple batteries.
Failed UPS Batteries
Severely damaged battery with charred, melted components and metallic residue on a wooden surface.
UPS Battery failure
Damaged electrical cabinet with exposed wires, circuit boards, and debris scattered on the floor.
Capacitor Failure
Stacked gray containers with handles, some labeled with red and blue dots, arranged on wooden pallets in a warehouse.
Swollen VRLA Batteries

Metal framework with exposed wiring and battery compartments, showing maintenance work in progress.

Damaged batteries with exposed wiring and debris, showing signs of wear and potential leakage.

Six damaged battery packs scattered on a floor, alongside pliers, a screwdriver, and a flashlight.

A row of gray battery packs with colored terminals, resting on a white plastic base, against a textured background.

If you have an example of what has happened to your UPS system, please let us know!