On Wed, 16 Feb 2011 20:47:29 -0500, Nate Nagel
wrote:

Got an *ancient* (and I do mean ancient) APC UPS... all it does is back
up my wireless router. Battery is done. new one I expect to cost
$30-40 (which I find extortionate as I buy them for work at about $10
all day but still.)

options:

1) buy a new battery. Be happy for another 5 years or so. Cost $40 max.

2) buy a new true-online UPS for my PC, and rotate the old, sorta-decent
one currently serving PC to wireless router duty. Would cost $266 for a
750VA unit with trade in (smallest one that qualifies for trade in
credit) or $252 for a 1000VA unit (yeah, I don't understand that either.)

which would you do? This is an old UPS that I scavenged from a previous
employer something like 7-8 years ago, and at that time it was being
discarded because the battery was dead then, so it now could conceivably
be as many as 15 years old.

I want to go true online but worth the cost? Have had no problems with
my setup so far. (touch wood.)

nate
I definitely prefer the on-line, and I DETEST APC, but that's
personal. If you buy the batteries for $10 at work, buy one for
yourself and pay the boss.

The low-end UPS units I service for one of my customers go through a
battery about every 18 months or so - and generally outlast 6 or more
battery replacements. (have actually only had one non-APC unit and 3
APC units actually FAIL)