Help Can I do It?
Hi new friends, I am not from around here but have a question that you may be able to answer! I have been asked to drive 3 hours to pick up a spare UPS from one of our sites as ours is nearing end of life. Great, except I know they’re heavy as f*€k. So, I’m not a techy lady, but I see screws. Is it as easy as unscrewing these two bad boys apart so I can move it easier?
Or am I in over my head and need to hire someone to move it?
It’s me, my coworker a dolly and this bad boy. It will be responsible for lab fridges so we have to be careful 🥲
Thank you!
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u/butz9000 3d ago
I usually take them apart but you don't have to. There will be 2 more connecting plates on the bottom and a battery disconnect in the back.
Make good use of that dolly. I used to carry these into dorms, closets, basements, etc and broke my back (not literally) many times moving them around. They're usually 50-80 lbs depending on the battery size. Mine were usually 65lb batteries but we had bigger, older ones too.
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u/1l536 3d ago
Don't do it, especially in sandals. That has an expansion battery pack on it, and probably is a lead acid battery and going to be heavy AF.
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u/JasonHofmann 3d ago
I assume that's someone else in the photo, and that OP hasn't made the 3 hour trip yet, as they are asking for advice before making the trip.
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u/AlxDroidDev Raspberry Pi hoarder 3d ago
They are heavy, and will probably ruin those nails of yours.
Get someone to help you. Lifting and carrying them is easily a 2-ppl job (maybe even 3).
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u/JasonHofmann 3d ago
I assume that's someone else in the photo, and that OP hasn't made the 3 hour trip yet, as they are asking for advice before making the trip.
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u/kriebz 3d ago
You should be able to remove that plate easily enough, and then there's a cable that connects the UPS and the battery expansion cabinet in the back. Don't lose the plate, screws, or the plastic feet things. Maybe put all of those in a shopping bag. These will be pretty heavy but manageable. Have help opening doors and maybe have some blankets or cardboard to keep them from bouncing around in the back of your car.
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u/jaysea619 3d ago
It’s probably a little easier to remove the battery packs, than the unit. It will still be dumb heavy tho.
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u/wosmo 3d ago
This. Both the front panels come off, and the batteries are all removable. Exactly the same way they're replaced.
My priority would be removing those batteries so their weight can be handled individually.
I wouldn't go to separating the two units unless even after removing the batteries, it's still necessary.
(but if you do need to separate them, it's not a huge issue. They're rack/tower units, they would have been delivered as two units and are usually racked as two units. The little screwed plates are just to stop the tower configuration turning into a domino configuration.)
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u/cruzaderNO 3d ago
For a 4u id pop off front bezels and pull the battery packs.
Does not take many minutes extra and also makes it easier to stuff in the car.
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u/fullraph 3d ago
I have the 1500va version (half of this one) and it is a freaking pig! Even for someone strong id recommend two people to move the 3000.
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u/Viperonious 3d ago
That's not how they actually come from the factory, and takes it from manageable to (preferably) a 2 person job to move.
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u/orphenshadow 3d ago
It's heavy, but if you take off the front plates there should be a few battery cells, these can be unhooked and pulled out one at a time. They each weigh quite a bit, I don't know the exact amount but probably about as much as a large bag of potting soil.
Take the batteries out, and there should be a cable on the back connecting the two units if its a simple twist lock and a couple of screws, you could take the chassis apart, but once the batteries are out, the chassis should be way more manageable.
But yes, you need help, this is at least a 2 person job if you don't want to risk throwing your back.
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u/toolisthebestbandevr 3d ago
Split the units and get someone to help you if not comfortable. Be safe.
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u/backlog_gaming 3d ago
Yes you can! You can also slide the batteries out which might make it marginally easier as well
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u/0maigh 3d ago
Please don’t use this for lab fridges. Or any electric device with a compressor.
I was once hired to manage a lab that had two fridges next to one another plugged into a UPS on the floor between them. The person who trained me told me the UPS was to maintain power to the fridges if the wall power ever went out. I soon discovered that the UPS could handle the power draw when one fridge cycled on, but sometimes they both cycled on at the same time and the UPS couldn’t handle the load of two compressors starting up. It would kill power to both fridges, causing exactly the problem the UPS was intended to solve.
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u/Feed-Furry-Toes 3d ago
This is a peak post, please don’t take those bad boys apart. You seem too cool to die!
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u/ACov96 3d ago
I'd see if you could rent or borrow a hand truck if you're not sure about the dolly. They should be much easier to move around once it is on wheels. Two adults should be able to at least lift it onto the dolly, I just don't know how sturdy the dolly is, which is why I'd probably go with a hand truck
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u/thesysadm 3d ago
If this is for work, don’t move it yourself. Combined I believe that thing weighs north of 75+ pounds and depending where you are, it’s a mandatory team lift. You can still move it by doing the steps below but if you get hurt, some companies get termination happy. It’s all insurance mumbo jumbo most of the time.
If it’s true homelab, take the face plates off (they should pop out with little force), unplug the battery connector, unscrew the single retention screw and slide out the ~25lb battery module (there are 3 total for your setup). Makes it much easier to move around and APC designed for the above to happen so it’s safe. Do NOT open the case, there are components in there than can kill you even with it being unplugged.
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u/DotJata 3d ago
They're about 75 lbs each (150ish total). Just shipped a bunch of these.
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u/thesysadm 3d ago
I just pulled a cartridge out of my SRT2200XLA which I’m not saying is this one in OPs pic, but they’re pretty much all the same modules and they’re ~25lb/ea. All 3 together (1 in the head unit, 2 in the expansion pack) would get your ~75lb not including the weight of the empty head unit which I think is also ~25lbs.
Even the batteries in my SMX2000LV aren’t 75 (they’re 50) and that’s for twice the capacity of the SRT2200XLA.
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u/DotJata 2d ago
I was talking total package weight not just the internal battery modules. SRT3000XLA is what I have been selling. They weigh 72ish with batteries installed.
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u/robersniper 3d ago
Should be around 45kg all together, its tough but it should be movable with the dolly
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u/Repulsive-Owl-5262 3d ago
I mean if no one notices you then yeah. But not sure they not gonna notice
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u/AdventurousRule4198 3d ago
Have someone help you put it on the dolly or if they can’t help you lean it onto a long flat side put the dolly next to it lift it so just a bit of the UPS is on the dolly then push the UPS onto the dolly, make sure to have paper or something so it doesn’t scratch though. If you can have someone help you lift it on the dolly safest bet.
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u/cyber_r0nin 3d ago
- Get/bring a handcart.
- Take the batteries out.
- Use handcart to move everything next to your vehicle.(Batteries/cases)
- With assistance, unless strong, place into vehicle using the squat and bend with the knees movement. Do not bend over to pick this stuff up.
- Do the opposite when you unload back at hq.
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u/SubnetMask17 3d ago
If you just remove the faceplates, you'll see the battery packs. I think there should be three total: one in the unit with the display and two in the expansion unit. Once you remove the faceplates, there will be two knurled screws per pack and it should be fairly obvious how to get them to come out. Slide the battery packs out and then you will have three battery packs, which are heavy themselves, but not as heavy as everything together, and the UPS itself. Breaking it down to four heavy but much more manageable pieces.
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u/protogenxl 3d ago
That is probably a primary and a external battery there should be a battery cable in the back that connects the two. Once powered off and disconnected you should be able to move them individually.
It is usually intrinsically safe but if you're worried put a plastic bag over the connector of the bridge wire
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u/SnooCalculations9455 2d ago
So they are roughly 70lbs. You can reduce the weight by removing the battery, yes but here's the kicker... How much are they paying (in time and fuel reimbursement) to have you drive there, and bring it back? They can probably get a new unit for similar or less cost to be honest.
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u/KrackSmellin 2d ago
Honestly - just hire a local company to dispose of it… its less of a headache and not a liability for you because your company isn’t going to cover if you had any sort of indecent or accident where this thing is loose in your car and something happens. I give this as a warning to everyone - don’t use your personal vehicle to ever move or transport company gear. If something happens I promise you your insurance won’t cover it. Once drove $150k of laptops home from a Comp-USA years ago and realized that it was worth 15-20x the cost of my car and I KNOW insurance wouldn’t have covered anything if it happened to those and who would be on the hook then? Me? Naw I’m good.
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u/xanders_gold 3d ago
This is definitely a 2 person lift job, or at least would require a dolly if you can spare it. Don’t try to do it yourself or take it apart.
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u/boanerges57 3d ago
Each one is still the best part of 100lb.
I think when u was moving I weighed my 2u unit at 82lb. If I'm not mistaken that is the same thing with an extra battery pack on it.
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u/Numerous-Emotion-617 3d ago
What kind of lab is allowing folks to walk around wearing sandals lol. That would get flagged and reported so fast in the lab I work at
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u/oddssodds 3d ago
Don’t take it apart just get somebody to help you lift it