UPS - which Models to use

Product Discussion BLUETTI Elite & EB Series
6

I did try to find suitable LifePO4 batteries but was not able to find any in Canada (where I am) … I did use some 7AH LifePO4 batteries for a smaller APC Smart UPS and it seems to be working fine for about the last 10 months or so. I’m not willing to buy anymore SLA batteries now.

Please tell me what brand & model of batteries did you use for your APC SUA1500 … I might be able to find out if these are available to me. I would like to be able to re-use the 4 APC SUA1500 units that I still have and not using because of dead batteries.

7

Thank you, Richard. I did sent a problem report to Bluetti by filling in the ‘after sales’ support request form on the local version of their website … if I don’t get a response in the next few days I will try posting (with the @Bluetti_Care data string included) here again.

Has your EB3A been getting unusually warm … some info on this forum suggests that leaving it plugged in all the time might cause it to overheat.

8

Wow! I read the forum thread from the URL in your post.

Now I feel blessed … my EB3A problems seem pretty minor by comparison.

I still want them fixed though. :slight_smile:

9

As stated in the video description: I use these batteries in my UPS:

2x 30Ah

You can also use 20Ah

As said, be aware that these batteries are not cheap. But quality comes at a price.

10

Thank you for this info. I did try to find out how to and from which seller I could buy PowerBrick batteries, but unfortunately I cannot get these in Canada. I did try to use EcoWorthy 30AH batteries which did have dimensions in the Amazon description that were the maximum size to fit into the SUA1500 … however when those batteries arrived they turned out to be about 1/2 inch taller and 1/4 inch wider than the spec in the Amazon description and could not be used.

I have since found some 19AH LifePo4 batteries that also indicate the size will fit … ordered them yesterday, I think these are the ‘Cheap Amazon’ batteries you warned about … but I cannot find any others that might fit and are available for delivery in Canada.

11

Those Eco-Worthy batteries are certainly on that “avoid” list. It is being tested here and fails many BMS protection tests:

Send them back. You should not buy random batteries hoping they are good. Most of them will work perfectly but leave your house on fire when something fails in your UPS. Also, many batteries do not support the amperage your UPS takes from the batteries in case of a power failure nor support charging them in series, what the APC UPS does. You need to check all of that if you want a DiY solution. As was as making very sure the BMS is up to the task of using it as drop-in replacement of your SLA/AGM (Lead-acid) batteries.

The video I linked here has some recommendations in the video description by that user who tested them. You can use that as a start. I came out by the PowerBrick+ batteries because I had the same problem as you: The listed batteries were not for sale in Europe. So I did my own testing and came out with the PowerBrick+ batteries. Which is a good but a very expensive solution.

12

Hi @BPR, It looks like you’ve already contacted our customer service team—could you please share your support ticket number with us? We’d like to investigate further based on the SN code, firmware version, and other specific details you’ve provided, so we can avoid asking you the same questions again. We’ll also prioritize your case for faster resolution.
Many thanks to @rgb and @TheQuickFox for their helpful responses!

13

@BPR I have some stuff sitting on top of the EB3A, which is not a good idea, however, even with that, it is warm to the touch, but not what I’d consider too hot. Note that I’m only running 100-200 watts though mine, much less at night.

14

I am not sure what the support ticket numbers are. I did see a ticket number after filling in the support request form … I think I filled in a total of 4 support requests.

if you can find them by Serial numbers here are the two older units:
EB3A2224000322650
EB3A2321001164714

On July 4, I received a 3rd EB3A … can’t read the s/n right now, it is being used as a UPS to support two Ooma Phone controllers, 2 Gbit switches and 2 PCs … and I cannot connect to it with Bluetooth. I also filled in a support request for it because of the Bluetooth issue … but it does seem to work as a UPS.

I searched my email inbox and did not find anything from Bluetti regarding the support requests except for this one [BLUETTI-Canada] Request Received #423592 which might be for the newest EB3A with the Bluetooth problem. I notice that its firmware contains 3 line entries … ARM, DSP, and IOT the two units that cannot be used for UPS do not have the IOT firmware entry.

15

Hi, I want to share my experiences with My bluetty EB3A and the aproach to use like regular UPS and the possibilities with old working UPS replacing the SLA bateries by LFP and also using brand new UPS with LFP bateries at factory.

Notes
the EB3A is a power station (to carry with you is the target-reason) but when you dont use as mobile power station you may use a a non critical interactive UPS.

First I hate the EB3A because i discover that didnt work as i wanted (UPS), issues auto shut down with no reason, full discharged batery, not charge with AP plug. After ask BLUETTI for a firmware solution this device works as It suposed to do at 90%. The 10% is now that (I guess is a toy that not like heat) sometime the device auto disconet from the grid with an alert of heat or something like that but just alone after it i guess slow down the temperature works . I use this EB3A for my nas (using the AC out) and my router and modem (using the DC port) more eficient .
I try using dc port direct to my 12v port of my NAS but I guess something dont like to the electronic of the NAS that is not possible.

You can check new brand od UPS like GOLDENMATE that comes with LFP bateries

You can also, replace the SLA baterires of your old working UPS and still using it with longer period of work because the LFP, i use nermak on my all old UPS and be happy.

Also I use one old UPS APC with 2 x 12V=24Vdc 10Ah behind the EB3A for have longer autonomy

For very eficient new equipments the time in ms that the normal cheal UPS 20a30ms is annoying and makes fail the PSU. For these equipments look for online UPS, looking for the most afordable in power (watts) for you and replace the SLA bateries for LFP same formfactor and maybe more Ah.
Also can combine external LFP bateries with more AH in you old UPS.

16

Thank you for the heads up.
I have 3 Eco Worthy 12V100AH batteries that have been in use for more than 2 years … put them in battery boxes and carry them out to the garden to power multiple IP cameras … no problem with them so far. I also have 3 Eco Worthy 12V30AH batteries … two work without any issues, but one has a charging problem … using a 5<>10<>20 selectable charger it will not charge above 50% SOC unless I use the 20A selection … hasn’t presented any other symptoms and I continue to use all 3 to power individual IP cameras.

I bought all of these batteries from Amazon Canada … and by the time I noticed anything of concern all were beyond the limited return period so I was unable to return any of them.

I have since switched to LiTime batteries which seem to be more robust and so far have not disappointed in anyway … 8 of these in use for about 14 months now.

17

3rd EB3A s/n is:
EB3A2436003936084
UPS function works as expected, does not seem to overheat … running in normal room temp (20~24C) with load range of 80~290W … capacity drops to 99% frequently and when recharging line input climbs to about 320~380W until capacity returns to 100% … charging is set to silent.

Bluetooth connection for this unit can only be connected to by the app for a period of a few minutes after the EB3A is powered up. Display panel does work normally though.

18

I have a brand new EB3A now … it also works properly as a UPS with no overheating.

I just received two 12V18AH (unheard of brand from Amazon, but the only ones I could find with the physical size that can fit into the APC_SUA1500) batteries that are nearly exactly the correct size to fit into the battery cavity of an APC_SUA1500 and I am prepping them to install and test in the next few days.

Not listed in the Specs on Amazon is the maximum current draw, it is listed on the battery label = 20A

So, it seems this will limit the output of the SUA1500 (rated @ 980W using SLA batteries) to about (25.6X20) 500W or less … which might be a problem. I don’t have a good idea of what will happen if the load surges about 500W yet.

Until I read about the new Elite 100 V2 and 200 V2 I was expecting to use a Buletti power station on a time to reduce Electricity cost by time shifting (Time of Use billing here is lowest time period = 2.8 Cents / Kwh and highest time period = 28.6 cents / Kwh) … so I am trying to minimize actual use of grid power during high cost time periods and maximize charging during lowest cost time periods.

I was planning connect the Bluetti power station to a timer to minimize use of high cost time periods and connect one of the APC UPS units directly to the load because I am concerned about the nearly continuous charging … but it might be possible to skip the APC UPS units if the Elite 100 V2 and Elite 200 V2 actually do what it seems the advertising suggest that they do … esp the ability to control charging by daily and weekly time settings. That would make thing a lot simpler for me.

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19

You have my sympathy, seems like you have had a lot more trouble than me. But, I think I should stick to Bluetti issues in this forum.

I agree there are lots of problems with Batteries and electronic components bought from Amazon, esp those that are shipped from China. The specs are often extremely overstated and many of them do present extraordinary safety issues. I have had to spend a lot of time doing ‘boundary testing’ and long duration (weeks) load tests before deciding which to use and which ones need to be put into the garbage to avoid potential fires or significant collateral damage to other components … all because the product descriptions and specifications are more like salesman’s exaggerated claims that accurate information needed to use them safely and satisfactorily meet their claimed performance specs. That is not Bluetti’s problem … these people at Bluetti are a lot better than nearly all of the other Amazon sellers that seem to have taken over the previous suppliers I have dealt with.

But, from my experience with Buletti products so far they provide very good function and excellent quality at a reasonable price and I cannot find any similar products that offer a better value. It is just a bit too difficult to figure out what to expect consistently that gives me some frustration with them.

The EB3A is an extremely good bargain for what it can do, even if there are a few surprises with missed expectations … like the UPS function that doesn’t seem to be able to work more than a few hours … but I suspect that this problem only affects some of the older production models … I would be happier if it either Bluetti did not indicate it could be used as a UPS or would give us the information needed to figure out which versions work and which won’t work … there is a possibility that even the older versions will provide a stable UPS function with a firmware update … but for now, I can’t tell why my older versions don’t work but the newest one does.

I have confidence that if this problem can be fixed, it will be done properly by Bluetti … and if it can’t I hope they will have the common sense needed to tell me the truth, I currently expect that they will.

A usable portable power station with cell phone wireless and wired charging ability, a USB power bank with enough capacity to power a USB C PD device, Sine Wave AC output, and genuine reliable UPS support for the price paid for an EB3A is remarkable … and still a bargain if the UPS is not reliable. I don’t hate it, I love the bargain price for all of the function that it does provide.

20

Hi @BPR, Thank you for providing such detailed information. Your understanding and feedback have truly touched us—they mean a great deal to us.

The random disconnection of AC output on the EB3A is indeed a known software policy issue, and we’ve developed a relevant firmware to fix it. While this firmware has been helpful, it doesn’t cover all device versions. Unfortunately, your device isn’t within the supported range.

Based on your EB3A details, we’ve located the corresponding service ticket #425506. Since the first two orders were placed on the Amazon platform, they will be handled by the Amazon team. There are no repair centers in Canada, so they will arrange a replacement service instead of repair. However, one of the orders is out of warranty, and we’ll need to apply for a repair discount for you. The other is still under warranty, and they will follow up via email.

The third EB3A with Bluetooth connection issues was ordered from our official store, so it will be handled by another department.

21

Seems better than I expected. Thank you.

Can you also let me know when I can expect to be contacted by whoever is expected to be taking these actions?

And by what type of communication … eMail? … if yes, what country will the eMail messages be sent from, I will probably need to edit my firewall to allow the messages to be received. For now most email from countries other than Canada and USA inbound email is being blocked because of excessive SPAM and messages containing Malware.

22

Elite 200V2 is the answer! At least for me :slight_smile: with a minor potential issue still remaining to test … not yet confident that the Transfer time is fast enough to prevent reboots of PCs if Grid Power suddenly goes down.

I recently received a new Elite 100V2 and an Elite 200V2 … have been using both now for about 3 days. The Elite 200V2 works just like I want it to for a Standby UPs and so does the Elite 100V2.

However the EL200V2 has an additional ‘Time Control UPS’ and a ‘Customized UPS’ mode that allow me to time shift Grid Power usage from a Peak rate time (10X the cost per KWh of lowest rate) which works very well … but only for 2 different TOU rates on a daily basis.

Here I have 3 different TOU rates from Monday to Friday and 2 different TOU rates on Weekends. I will ask Bluetti to expand the number TOU rate periods and allow for settings for each of 7 days within a week … I hope they will be able to do this. This is a great idea for any of us that have to deal with TOU rates … ours are set once per year depending upon historical loads by time periods for the previous year.

The Elite 100V2 has the same ‘Time Control UPS’ and ‘Customized UPS’ menu items … but unfortunately these both behave the same as a ‘Traditional UPS’ … with the result that they continue to use Grid Power during Peak TOU periods … while the Elite 200V2 actually does not draw Grid Power during TOU Peak periods .

Probably a bug, I will report it to Bluetti later @BLUETTI_CARE or maybe they will pick it up from this message.

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23

Hi @BPR, Thank you for your suggestion; we think it is very meaningful.
Could you please let us know the general region you are in? We have submitted this to the R&D department, and they will discuss the feasibility of setting up 5 different TOU electricity prices for 7 days a week next.

24

re: TOU pricing in Canada … there is much more variety of pricing plans than most people would guess. I hope the following will help others that want to take advantage of the substantial cost savings that TOU pricing provides.

Here is the current TOU rate table that is in use for the area where my Home is located.

Lakefront-TOU-2025
Lakefront-TOU-2025427×580 43.8 KB

These are the TOU rates in Cobourg & most of the Region around Cobourg, Ontario, Canada … for 2025.

Key rates High = 28.4 cents per KWh (was 28.6 last year) Low (overnight) =2.8 cents per KWh

I use the Ultra Low rate, and time shift the Electricity Usage for Heating, WebServers, PCs, all with a total of about 2KW consistent draw, peaking to about 4.5KW but seldom dipping below 2KW … using about 10 KWh of LiFePo4 batteries and 5 Inverter/Chargers which never run at more than 40% of load capacity. I now have about 20 KWh of batteries and multiple unused Inverter/Chargers that I intend to employ to expand the time shifting for more of the relatively consistent loads that I can re-organize with the still unused battery capacity.

I am now also considering migrating more of the time shifting load onto multiple Bluetti devices which seem to be much less susceptible to the over temp issues that I have been getting with too many Amazon supplied components. This is why …

I have found that there are unexpected safety concerns with DIY Inverter/converter installations … the most recently discovered issue was caused by a switch purchased from Amazon … SKU = https://www.amazon.ca/Ampper-Battery-Disconnect-Isolator-Vehicles/dp/B07JJSTFMN … the Inverter/Charger spec indicates a charging current of 35A @ 24V … but was measured at 34 ~ 38.5 V depending upon the SOC of the 24V200AH battery … temperature monitoring about 20mm from the switch contacts showed a daily range of low temp = 21C & high temp of 34C initially after first installed … rising to a range of 21C ~ 52C in about 30 days if not touched … switching it off then back on again reset the range to 21C ~ 34C … but the time period to measure the temp increase was shorter. At no time did the current going through the supposed 100A switch exceed 25A (after reducing the charger output to 70%) while charging … but during the times when the power was off and the output load was high it is possible that it could go as high as 85A which I am now convinced is a fire hazard.

A few days ago we did have a power outage of about 3~4 hours … I powered down one of the Inverters and consolidated the WebServer load on a single Inverter … increasing its load from 425W to 650W (Inverter capacity is 2KW continuous / 6KW short Peak) … within the 3 hours the switch temp had risen to 105C … I have decided to replace it with a different type.

A few months ago the same Inverter experienced an overheating of the 100A ANL fuse block (a few inches below the switch described above while the charger was still running at 100% capacity) that melted the acrylic cover and singed the wood that it was mounted on. It seems that the significant range in temperature was causing some loosing of the connections and increasing the resistance of the battery lug to connecting bolt connections … my initial reaction to that incident was to limit the charging current to 70% (<25A) add on some continuous temperature monitoring, and operate the switch at lease once per month to reset the progressively increasing high end to the temperature range … the recent power outage convinced me that is not good enough. Although I did not measure the actual current flowing through the switch my speculation is that it did not exceed 30A … and still it overheated what is supposed to be a 100A switch, the connections were tight when I switched over the load, I checked to be sure … but when I took it out of service were much easier to loosen than I think they should have been.

I recently tried a new tactic for time shifting the power draw … I used a EB3A as a UPS for a single PC and Cellphone charger, with a timer switch to disconnect the EB3A during the Peak rate time period … the run time using only the EB3A is inadequate, but can be increased to more than 4 hours by adding a 24V battery plugged into the EB3A charging port.

Except for the unexpected UPS output drops (only applies to older models), this idea works … some fine tuning of the external battery capacity is all that it will take to make this approach succeed without the unwelcome risk that comes with using DIY approaches … even when I am certain that I have the Specs and design right … the unreliable performance of too many of the DIY components is just too risky.

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25

Hi @BPR, Thank you for sharing this with us. The information you’ve provided is extremely valuable—it not only gives us a clearer understanding of the needs and feedback from real-world usage but also serves as an important reference for us to optimize our products and services moving forward.

We have already reached out to the app department again promptly, conveyed your needs to them in detail, and emphasized that they must attach great importance to this situation, conduct careful research, and push forward with relevant improvement work. Thank you for your concern!