The Disinfotainment server was down for the last couple of hours due to the complete failure of my Belkin UPS. It died and shut down with absolutely no warning. I test the battery every month and it showed no signs of any problems, and then suddenly, poof, everything in my office shuts down all at once. This is not how a UPS is supposed to work, if the battery fails, it shouldn't take down the main power circuit, it should just fail to provide power during a blackout. I don't understand how this could happen.
I pulled the UPS and had to plug everything back into the wall sockets, which is a bit risky since thunderstorm season is approaching. I've got to get this unit back up and running as soon as possible. And now I discover this expensive UPS doesn't have replaceable batteries, which is the whole reason I bought it in the first place. So I guess I'll have to rip it apart and find some aftermarket batteries. I'm sure these batteries aren't unique, someone has to manufacture them for Belkin. What a pain in the ass.
Update: I changed the title of this item from "Belkin Sucks" to "Belkin Doesn't Suck" based on new information. I opened up the UPS case to look inside, and the batteries are not replaceable. That sucks. But the batteries apparently aren't the problem, it looks like the transformer overheated and partially melted. That really sucks. Then I called Belkin, and it turns out my unit has a 3 year warranty, they're honoring the warranty just on my word, without me even having to dig through my files to find my original receipt. My old UPS is discontinued, so they're replacing it with a brand new model and giving me another 3 years warranty. Best of all, they're shipping the new unit today, I'll have it in a few days, then I can send the old unit back to Belkin for recycling and full credit against the new model. Yay!
Update Again: The replacement UPS arrived today, a week after I contacted Belkin. That time in transit is typical for shipment by ground (I don't think you're allowed to ship lead-acid batteries via air). It cost me $26 to send the dead UPS back, ouch. Anyway, the server should go down for a few hours sometime soon while I rewire the power plugs.
I pulled the UPS and had to plug everything back into the wall sockets, which is a bit risky since thunderstorm season is approaching. I've got to get this unit back up and running as soon as possible. And now I discover this expensive UPS doesn't have replaceable batteries, which is the whole reason I bought it in the first place. So I guess I'll have to rip it apart and find some aftermarket batteries. I'm sure these batteries aren't unique, someone has to manufacture them for Belkin. What a pain in the ass.
Update: I changed the title of this item from "Belkin Sucks" to "Belkin Doesn't Suck" based on new information. I opened up the UPS case to look inside, and the batteries are not replaceable. That sucks. But the batteries apparently aren't the problem, it looks like the transformer overheated and partially melted. That really sucks. Then I called Belkin, and it turns out my unit has a 3 year warranty, they're honoring the warranty just on my word, without me even having to dig through my files to find my original receipt. My old UPS is discontinued, so they're replacing it with a brand new model and giving me another 3 years warranty. Best of all, they're shipping the new unit today, I'll have it in a few days, then I can send the old unit back to Belkin for recycling and full credit against the new model. Yay!
Update Again: The replacement UPS arrived today, a week after I contacted Belkin. That time in transit is typical for shipment by ground (I don't think you're allowed to ship lead-acid batteries via air). It cost me $26 to send the dead UPS back, ouch. Anyway, the server should go down for a few hours sometime soon while I rewire the power plugs.
We bought a load of Belkin UPS's and are gradually replacing them with APC ones as they go pop. Belkin's customer service is excellent but there manufacturing quality sucks.
After opening up the Belkin UPS and seeing the cheap components and construction, I would tend to agree with you. But APC models that offer equivalent features like remote voltage monitoring are about 4x the price of Belkin. I'd probably upgrade to APC if I had a big investment in a major rackmount system. But Belkin seems to have covered me adequately under the warranty terms, extending my warranty for another 3 years beyond the 2 years I already had. Belkin is good enough.. barely.
The joy of Belkin is you just keep getting replacements :)
I find it odd that you didn't know about the warranty. I sometimes choose one brand over another based on warranty alone.
I'm sure I considered the warranty when I purchased it, but after a couple years of use, I had forgotten the specific terms. So I was pleasantly surprised to hear the 3 year warranty. I was even more pleased to hear Belkin didn't even ask me for proof of purchase, obviously the unit first shipped less than 3 years ago so ALL the units are still under warranty.
Anyway, I still haven't had time to even plug in the unit, and it looks like I'll be moving soon so I may not get it in place until I get all my equipment relocated to a new site.
belking sucks i just bought it and it was the worst mistake of my life. oh my god first time i hate a company. the name of the company is belkins i hate themmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm! i wont buy their shit again
[OK, now I agree with you. My replacement Belkin UPS died the first time I had a 1 second power outage. It won't power back up. I guess I'll have to try some premium brand with replaceable batteries and repairable circuits, like APC. --Charles]