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APC H15 Power Conditioner - review - Page 5

post #121 of 294
4/10/09 at 6:47pm
Ok so I got a Silver H15 but if someone is willing I'd be up for swapping my silver for a black one if anyone is interested. Lemme know. If I don't hear anything after some time then I'm going to paint it black.
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post #122 of 294
4/10/09 at 7:08pm
You might as well start painting it. The black unit has been so much more sought after than the silver that nobody is giving it up. If you want to buy a black unit on the open market it's more than 3 times the price of a silver.

After seeing how easy it is to disassemble and paint myself it really isn't a big deal at all.
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post #123 of 294
4/10/09 at 7:45pm
Figure I'd give it a shot since right now I'm testing it to make sure it works and doesn't blow up in case I need to return it or something.

Actually are you guys painting the bottom too? Any chance of picture of the bottom? Figure if I paint it might as well paint as much as I can't (sadly can't easily paint the back though).
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post #124 of 294
4/12/09 at 1:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alkaar View Post

Figure I'd give it a shot since right now I'm testing it to make sure it works and doesn't blow up in case I need to return it or something.

Actually are you guys painting the bottom too? Any chance of picture of the bottom? Figure if I paint it might as well paint as much as I can't (sadly can't easily paint the back though).

I didn't bother painting the bottom or the back of the unit. I painted the top, side covers, and front of the unit. It disassembles pretty easily and is easy enough to paint. I was kind of surprised at how smoothly it went to be honest. Mine looks like it came from the factory that way. If a person were to look at it they'd never know it was painted in my garage with a can of satin black Krylon.
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post #125 of 294
4/12/09 at 4:34pm
I just opened mine. It has a rattling screw. Time to perform some surgery.
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post #126 of 294
4/12/09 at 5:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by hammick View Post

I just opened mine. It has a rattling screw. Time to perform some surgery.

Mine had the same problem and it turned out a screw was loose from the corner of a circuit board in the front. Very easy to put back in place though. Seems very common and alot of other people just send them back for a new one but I didn't want to deal with that.
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post #127 of 294
4/12/09 at 7:30pm
I had the same thing. There was a small screw that was supposed to be in the corner of the circuit board rattling around in the chassis. I just re-attached the screw in its port and it stayed put like it is supposed to. No reason to send back for a replacement, certainly.
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post #128 of 294
4/12/09 at 7:34pm
I couldn't get the screw to bite. It was stripped and another one was turning as well. Replace them both with slightly bigger screws and all is well. Not a huge deal but they need to ramp up their quality control.
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post #129 of 294
4/13/09 at 11:01am
I just ordered this to go along with my SONY 4400es. I'm paranoid of my 1000 buck investment getting whacked.
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post #130 of 294
4/14/09 at 6:57pm
Haven't painted mine yet but looked at painting the bottom and it seems tough. There are holes on the bottom that need to be covered which would require taking the motherboard out of the case then painting it which seems like a pain.
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post #131 of 294
4/14/09 at 11:02pm
Hey guys, just set up my first HDTV and items today, including a APC H15. I have a couple questions as im not sure. First of all, I have my PS3 plugged into the auxillery plug, does that sound good? Also my 50" plasma is plugged into the TV plugin, but I had read somewhere that is for older TVs and a plasma draws too much power and needs to be plugged in somewhere else?

My second questions is this, today earlier I noticed incoming voltage was 126 and it was on Line trim, it stayed like that for quite a while said it was outputting 117 I think. That was set on narrow so I switched it to normal and it said input 126, output 126. Will that much voltage harm my equipment? Right now I have it set back on narrow and I have 124 coming in, 124 going out it is not trimming. So my two questions about this are this: 1. If the voltage is as high as 126 can that harm my equipment. And 2. If it is trimming voltage for a long time, or all of the time will it wear out the APC H15?
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post #132 of 294
4/16/09 at 9:36pm
Just an FYI to H15 owners.

This morning my AFCI got tripped (has never done it before) and my H15 shut down. Reset the circuit and plugged it back in. A few minutes later, the H15 just turned off, AFCI wasn't tripped this time. Tried unplugging it, nothing, it's dead. I wait a few minutes, plug it back in, it works... Minutes later, it turns off. I find it odd that the unit just shuts off like that. But now it doesn't trip any circuits.

Anyways, I called up TigerDirect and they will not honor an exchange for the defective unit because I bought it by way of Amazon. They said that they can only issue a refund and that I have to repurchase it. Fine I said, but the kicker is that I have to buy it at the price it is listed now, $199.99 (got it from Amazon for a killer $99 deal).

So now I have to deal with APC directly and try and get this thing fixed/exchanged/whatever.

My worry is that I have a 2nd unit that has a lot of my higher end stuff hooked up to it and I'm worried that it would damage the equipment. The APC tech said that the H15 has a high warranty coverage but how often does a company honor that warranty?

Should I cross fingers with the 2nd unit or return it and swap it out with a Panamax? Granted it's a H15 thread but anyone have issues like this with Panamax?
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post #133 of 294
4/16/09 at 10:54pm
mike_c70, I would call Amazon first and see if they can help (don't hurt to try). And looking a TigerDirect it is showing at $149.99. Plus I have read nothing but good things about APC, just sent it in for warranty. If non of the above work, get your money back and get a Panamax Max 5300-EX.
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post #134 of 294
4/17/09 at 12:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JChin View Post

mike_c70, I would call Amazon first and see if they can help (don't hurt to try). And looking a TigerDirect it is showing at $149.99. Plus I have read nothing but good things about APC, just sent it in for warranty. If non of the above work, get your money back and get a Panamax Max 5300-EX.


Hmm. Interesting, it was $199.99 like an hour ago until I clicked your link, then it got stuck at $149.99. I'll try talking to Amazon tomorrow, you're right, doesn't hurt to try. For me it's more about getting a fast replacement.

Personally, this whole thing seems like a fluke. I have 4 APC battery backup units at work and have work flawlessly for a few years. Personally I like APC because of the voltage regulation at this price range. I just freaked out when the unit just shut off, wondering what happened to all my equipment. BTW, any idea on what would cause my AFCI to trip? That's probably what worried me the most. I was ready to replace the outlet plugs and everything.

I'm chalking it up as a bad apple.
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post #135 of 294
4/17/09 at 7:37am
I'm not an electrician but IMO AFCI detected an abnormal acring in the circuit which de-energizing the circuit and reduce the potential for a fire to occur. Things I think cause this is deteriorated and/or damaged wires and cords. Worn outlets or switches, maybe a furniture pushed against plugs in an outlet. Hope this give you an idea what to look for.
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post #136 of 294
4/17/09 at 10:00am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JChin View Post

I'm not an electrician but IMO AFCI detected an abnormal acring in the circuit which de-energizing the circuit and reduce the potential for a fire to occur. Things I think cause this is deteriorated and/or damaged wires and cords. Worn outlets or switches, maybe a furniture pushed against plugs in an outlet. Hope this give you an idea what to look for.

I'm probably still going to change out the outlets. What's odd is that I plug the H15 into another outlet (actually the same one where my 2nd h15 is plugged into), it turns on, but then shuts off minutes later without tripping anything else. I hope it's not bad wires, that would suck to change those as this is a newer built home (2004).
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post #137 of 294
4/17/09 at 11:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mike_c70 View Post

Just an FYI to H15 owners.

This morning my AFCI got tripped (has never done it before) and my H15 shut down. Reset the circuit and plugged it back in. A few minutes later, the H15 just turned off, AFCI wasn't tripped this time. Tried unplugging it, nothing, it's dead. I wait a few minutes, plug it back in, it works... Minutes later, it turns off. I find it odd that the unit just shuts off like that. But now it doesn't trip any circuits.

Anyways, I called up TigerDirect and they will not honor an exchange for the defective unit because I bought it by way of Amazon. They said that they can only issue a refund and that I have to repurchase it. Fine I said, but the kicker is that I have to buy it at the price it is listed now, $199.99 (got it from Amazon for a killer $99 deal).

So now I have to deal with APC directly and try and get this thing fixed/exchanged/whatever.

My worry is that I have a 2nd unit that has a lot of my higher end stuff hooked up to it and I'm worried that it would damage the equipment. The APC tech said that the H15 has a high warranty coverage but how often does a company honor that warranty?

Should I cross fingers with the 2nd unit or return it and swap it out with a Panamax? Granted it's a H15 thread but anyone have issues like this with Panamax?

If the MOVs in the surge suppression circuitry have started to fail, they will arc in a manner that would cause the AFCI to trip.

Things to look for:

> Sustained over-Voltage condition. What is your line Voltage? Is it significantly above 120?

> High levels of transients. Are you in an area where there are lots of lightning strikes? Do you have other equipment on your power line that could be creating transients? Are you very near to a substation or industrial facility (that might have switched capacitor banks)?

> Worn or frayed power cable, or loose connection on the 120V side.

Hope this helps.
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post #138 of 294
4/17/09 at 11:18am
Being a new home I would think maybe related to a poor electrical connection at the outlet. Poor connections generate heat that can cause power loss at the connection. If connections are good then possible chance are that the H15 may have cause it to trip.
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post #139 of 294
4/17/09 at 11:44am
These are great photos. This is exactly how clean the workmanship of my APC surge protectors are, and 2 other random APC brand surge protectors I dissected look like: the routings are clean, the parts well placed, the MOV leads short, the cables properly terminated and insulated etc.,

One reason APC is a top product for what they are designed to do.

If anyone has the skill, time and inclination, one should also look inside other models to gauge how well's its made.

You could be surprised to find how models like Monster, Belkin, could be made.



Quote:
Originally Posted by sbwoodside View Post

Thanks to AVS forum I just grabbed one of these from TigerDirect. Sweet!

Thought I'd take a look inside the case before I set it up... took some pictures. very impressive. Posted here: Pictures of inside of APC H15.


Edit: out of the box I had no issues. It looked like a never-opened box to me, I always check that.
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post #140 of 294
4/17/09 at 11:49am
I agree fully with MM. APC is very good at honoring its warranties. I'd give them a call, no question.

If your unit keeps tripping it means its internal circuit breaker is either bad or something has shorted inside causing a good circuit breaker to trip. Either way, its doing its job and is supposed to fail and protect your gear from bad power.

When APC receives a notice for warranty replacement, its usually exchanged very quickly; many report they ship a replacement out before you ship your unit to them, but this is usually for SPDs. They will post-mortem your unit too, and let you know what killed it. Now whether the fatal event was due to a brief surge in your home or a defective part that died prematurely, is hard to say. The chance of a defective MOV is extremely small but possible, given they are as primitive as resistors in their construction.


Quote:
Originally Posted by MauneyM View Post

If the MOVs in the surge suppression circuitry have started to fail, they will arc in a manner that would cause the AFCI to trip.

Things to look for:

> Sustained over-Voltage condition. What is your line Voltage? Is it significantly above 120?

> High levels of transients. Are you in an area where there are lots of lightning strikes? Do you have other equipment on your power line that could be creating transients? Are you very near to a substation or industrial facility (that might have switched capacitor banks)?

> Worn or frayed power cable, or loose connection on the 120V side.

Hope this helps.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mike_c70 View Post

I'm probably still going to change out the outlets. What's odd is that I plug the H15 into another outlet (actually the same one where my 2nd h15 is plugged into), it turns on, but then shuts off minutes later without tripping anything else. I hope it's not bad wires, that would suck to change those as this is a newer built home (2004).
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post #141 of 294
4/17/09 at 11:52am
Quote:
Originally Posted by sbwoodside View Post

Thanks to AVS forum I just grabbed one of these from TigerDirect. Sweet!

Thought I'd take a look inside the case before I set it up... took some pictures. very impressive. Posted here: Pictures of inside of APC H15.

You might want to revise your captions. The items that you identify as ceramic caps are, in fact, MOVs. They do not "store power", but rather act as surge suppressors. They conduct whenever the Voltage exceeds their threshhold.
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post #142 of 294
4/17/09 at 5:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by saturation View Post

I agree fully with MM. APC is very good at honoring its warranties. I'd give them a call, no question.

If your unit keeps tripping it means its internal circuit breaker is either bad or something has shorted inside causing a good circuit breaker to trip. Either way, its doing its job and is supposed to fail and protect your gear from bad power.

When APC receives a notice for warranty replacement, its usually exchanged very quickly; many report they ship a replacement out before you ship your unit to them, but this is usually for SPDs. They will post-mortem your unit too, and let you know what killed it. Now whether the fatal event was due to a brief surge in your home or a defective part that died prematurely, is hard to say. The chance of a defective MOV is extremely small but possible, given they are as primitive as resistors in their construction.

My unit isn't tripping, it just shuts off after a couple of minutes. It tripped the AFCI the first time around but now it just shuts itself off. My Vin has probably maxed out at 124V, so I don't see anything out of the ordinary. The unit behaves just like it should, just turns off a few minutes later.

Anyways, APC is sending me a replacement unit on Monday. Very quick turnaround 3-5 business days. Their customer service is top notch. They are going to check if they have silver units, if not, they are going to be sending a black replacement.
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post #143 of 294
4/23/09 at 11:33pm
Strike 1 for APC:
So I got my replacement in the mail today. Are they sending refurbished units as replacements? Sheesh! Mine had a big scratch/gash across the top cover, like someone pried the cover loose. Tons of rattles coming from the inside of the machine. This one is going back. Hope they give me a brand new one, not this clunker.
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post #144 of 294
4/26/09 at 8:42pm
GL with getting a working H15. Must suck to get a dud though maybe it'll work out for you and you'll get a black one.

Was wondering for you guys that painted yours is it really necessary to wear a filtered breathing mask or any mask? It's such a small project but wondering if I really need to get one.
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post #145 of 294
4/27/09 at 4:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alkaar View Post

GL with getting a working H15. Must suck to get a dud though maybe it'll work out for you and you'll get a black one.

Was wondering for you guys that painted yours is it really necessary to wear a filtered breathing mask or any mask? It's such a small project but wondering if I really need to get one.

As long as you are outdoors you should be fine. If indoors you might want to consider something.
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post #146 of 294
4/28/09 at 6:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fors View Post

Hey guys, just set up my first HDTV and items today, including a APC H15. I have a couple questions as im not sure. First of all, I have my PS3 plugged into the auxillery plug, does that sound good? Also my 50" plasma is plugged into the TV plugin, but I had read somewhere that is for older TVs and a plasma draws too much power and needs to be plugged in somewhere else?

My second questions is this, today earlier I noticed incoming voltage was 126 and it was on Line trim, it stayed like that for quite a while said it was outputting 117 I think. That was set on narrow so I switched it to normal and it said input 126, output 126. Will that much voltage harm my equipment? Right now I have it set back on narrow and I have 124 coming in, 124 going out it is not trimming. So my two questions about this are this: 1. If the voltage is as high as 126 can that harm my equipment. And 2. If it is trimming voltage for a long time, or all of the time will it wear out the APC H15?

I have the same exact power as you and am wondering the same thing, also What UPS would go good with this thats not to expensive, I need it for my Plasma, has to be at least 450 watts or more and preferably pure wave.
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post #147 of 294
5/1/09 at 2:59pm
It seems like everyone keeps them on all of the time...is that the general consensus?
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post #148 of 294
5/6/09 at 9:51am
It doesn't consume that much power with everything off. My APC reads 30 watts with everything off. I don't think that's including the APC which i heard somewhere it uses less than 50? I turn it off anyway just because I'm not using it and it doesn't hurt to turn it off.
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post #149 of 294
5/8/09 at 4:28pm
I keep my H15 "On" all the time. (With the display on the lowest lit setting.)

What Version Number does it show on everyone's Serial Number screen? Mine says "0.2.D".

Also, when going into trim or boost mode, is it normal for the H15 to output somewhere "around" 120V? I assume the narrow, normal, and wide AVR ranges are for setting bounds for when the unit kicks in, and it will not necessarily output exactly 120V when regulating voltage?

Thanks!
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post #150 of 294
5/8/09 at 9:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fors View Post

... And 2. If it is trimming voltage for a long time, or all of the time will it wear out the APC H15?

According to the APC AV brochure, "APC AV’s units can operate indefinitely in AVR mode without overheating or causing undue stress to the unit."
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