Saturday, August 19, 2006

What's the Difference Between UPS Battery Voltage and Amperage?

Question: What is the difference between voltage and amperage in relation to replacement UPS batteries?

Answer: When replacing a battery in a APC UPS also known as RBC pack, we must always maintain the same voltage that we started with. The voltage of the battery is the push, or pressure, as one would relate to the pressure in a water hose. Amperage, on the other hand, is the amount of energy use as measured in amp hours, similar to the amount of flow in a water hose. So, to summarize, we must always use the same voltage in our replacement batteries, but we can change the amperage slightly to increase our run time. If this is done in small amounts, the effect on longevity of the APC UPS unit will not be adversely compromised.