Don’t Let These Misconceptions Jeopardize Your Critical Infrastructure
Uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) are a vital line of defense against power disruptions. Yet despite their importance, there are still far too many misconceptions that could be quietly sabotaging your system’s resilience. Believing the wrong thing about your UPS could mean costly downtime, damaged equipment, or even a total system failure.
Here are four common UPS myths that may be putting your uptime at risk and what you should know instead.
1. “Set It and Forget It” Works Just Fine
Many facilities install a UPS and assume the job is done. Unfortunately, that’s a dangerous assumption.
Reality check: UPS batteries degrade over time. Firmware becomes outdated. Load demands shift. Environmental factors creep in. Without regular inspections, battery testing, and lifecycle planning, even top-of-the-line systems can fail unexpectedly, often when you need them most.
Pro tip: Implement a preventative maintenance plan and review your UPS lifecycle annually. This allows you to catch hidden risks before they become system-wide problems.
2. Proactive Maintenance Isn’t Worth the Investment
In tight-budget environments, it’s tempting to cut back on servicing costs. But relying on reactive repairs is the most expensive strategy of all.
The truth: Skipping proactive maintenance might save you money today, but the long-term cost can be devastating. Emergency repairs, unplanned downtime, and accelerated equipment aging add up quickly. Worse, they create uncertainty during moments when your systems must perform flawlessly.
Pro tip: Scheduled maintenance not only reduces long-term expenses, it extends equipment lifespan and provides confidence that your UPS will work when it matters most.
3. All Batteries Are Created Equal
Think all UPS batteries are the same? Think again.
Battery performance can vary drastically depending on chemistry (VRLA, lithium-ion, NiCd), environmental conditions, runtime needs, and discharge frequency. A mismatch between your system design and your battery type can result in degraded performance or premature failure.
Pro tip: Conduct regular battery health assessments and ensure your UPS is using batteries suited for your operational needs and environment. Partner with experts who understand the nuances of critical battery system design and maintenance.
4. Monitoring Your Environment Is Optional
If you’re not measuring your system’s conditions, you’re flying blind.
Why it matters: Real-time UPS monitoring gives you instant insight into temperature, humidity, battery voltage, load changes, and early warning signs of potential failure. Without it, small issues can escalate into outages before you even know there’s a problem.
Pro tip: Leverage remote monitoring platforms like Critical Labs to gain 24/7 visibility across all your UPS units so you can act before issues become emergencies.
Don’t Let These Myths Compromise Your Uptime
At Critical Labs, we help organizations move from reactive to proactive. Our cloud-based platform delivers real-time insights, automated alerts, and centralized visibility for your UPS systems so you can protect your uptime, reduce risk, and make smarter infrastructure decisions.
Ready to ditch the myths and gain peace of mind?
Request a today and see how Critical Labs can help you take control of your power systems.
