APC Replacement Battery Cartridge #18

SKU: RBC18

S$253.00
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PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

APC Replacement Battery Cartridge #18 (RBC18) - 2 Years Local Warranty

RBC18 Datasheet: a 12 V 9 Ah 1U Flat Tray for Smart-UPS SC and PowerStack

The RBC18 is the genuine APC replacement battery cartridge for the 1U rackmount Smart-UPS SC and PowerStack units — the slim 250 VA and 450 VA models designed to take up a single rack unit. Its shape follows from that: a flat tray only 36 mm high, 302 mm wide and 102 mm deep, holding two 6 V blocks side by side.

Schneider fills in the voltage field on this part outright: the cartridge is 12 V, 9 Ah. It is also one of the few in the range for which Schneider publishes an expected service life — three to five years.

Confirmed for the 230 V SC450RMI1U

Compatibility on legacy APC cartridges is usually a matter of inference. Not here. The Schneider product data sheet for the SC450RMI1U — APC Smart-UPS SC 450 VA, 230 V, 1U rackmount/tower — names "Replacement battery RBC18" in its own specification table, and we have read that same data sheet from two independent sources that agree.

That matters for a Singapore buyer. The SC450RMI1U is a 230 V unit, long discontinued but still working away in comms cabinets across the island, and this is its documented cartridge rather than a best guess.

A Light Cartridge in a Range Full of Heavy Ones

At 2.6 kg net the RBC18 is the exception on this page. Most APC cartridges are multi-block trays weighing ten kilograms or more; this one is two 6 V blocks in a flat 1U carrier and a single person can handle it easily. If you have been quoted a figure around 5 kg for this part, that figure is too high — an unusual direction of error in a range where weights are far more often understated.

Singapore is hard on lead-acid batteries. Ambient temperature sits near the top of the useful band all year, and every few degrees of sustained heat shortens a sealed lead-acid battery's service life measurably. A comms cabinet or riser room that runs warm will age a cartridge faster than an air-conditioned server room will. Plan replacement on the calendar instead of waiting for the UPS to fail its self-test, and keep the unit out of direct sun and clear of the warm-air discharge from whatever it is protecting. At three to five years of published service life, a cartridge fitted before the pandemic is already past its design window.

Genuine APC Supply, GST-Invoiced, from Singapore Stock

SourceIT supplies the RBC18 as genuine APC by Schneider Electric stock, sold in Singapore with a GST invoice and local warranty support. We hold this part on the shelf instead of ordering it in, so a failed UPS does not have to wait on a shipment. If you are not certain which cartridge your unit takes, send us the model number printed on the UPS rear panel and we will confirm it against Schneider's documentation before you buy.

Schneider Electric does not publish a UL listing or a CE marking for this cartridge, and we do not claim either. What Schneider does publish is a REACh declaration and a RoHS position, and those are reproduced in the specification table exactly as written.

APC RBC18 Datasheet — Technical Specifications

General

Part Number (SKU)	RBC18
Official Schneider Name	APC Replacement Battery Cartridge #18 with 2 Year Warranty
Product Type	Replacement battery cartridge for 1U Smart-UPS SC and PowerStack
Brand	APC by Schneider Electric
Cartridges per Replacement	1
Manufacturer Warranty	2-Year Manufacturer Warranty (APC by Schneider Electric)
Warranty Coverage	Local Warranty (Singapore)

Battery Specifications

Nominal Voltage	12 V — stated outright in the Schneider data sheet's voltage field
Capacity	9 Ah
Battery Blocks	2 x 6 V. Schneider's marketing text says "6V 9AH"; that is one block, and the assembled cartridge is 12 V
Battery Type	Lead-Acid battery. The legacy APC specification describes it as "maintenance-free sealed lead-acid battery with suspended electrolyte, leakproof"
Expected Service Life	3 to 5 years (published by Schneider for this part)
Recharge Time	Not a cartridge property — the SC450RMI1U is rated 5 h

Physical & Environmental

Dimensions (H x W x D)	36 x 302 x 102 mm — a flat 1U-profile tray
Packaging (H x W x L)	51 x 394 x 211 mm
Net Weight	2.6 kg
Shipping Weight	2.994 kg
Colour	Black
Rack-mountable	No (the cartridge itself; its host UPS is 1U rackmount)
Operating Temperature	0 to 40 °C
Storage Temperature	-15 to 45 °C
Humidity	0 to 95% operating and storage
Operating Altitude	0 to 10,000 ft
Storage Altitude	0 to 50,000 ft (0 to 15,240 m)
Carbon Footprint	19 kg CO2 eq. total lifecycle; Schneider publishes the breakdown as manufacturing 10, distribution 0.4, installation 0.2, use 1, end-of-life 7
Recycled Plastic Content	15%
Recyclability Potential	1%
Sustainable Offer Status	Green Premium product
RoHS	EU RoHS compliant
REACh	Schneider states this reference contains substances of very high concern above the threshold
GTIN	731304014003

On the 6 V figure. Schneider's marketing metadata for this part reads "6V 9AH", which is the rating of one block. Two of them in series make the 12 V cartridge that Schneider's data sheet states in its voltage field, and the host UPS data sheet independently confirms a 12 V nominal battery. The published width of 302 mm is exactly two 151 mm blocks side by side. Schneider publishes no charge time for a replacement cartridge. Recharge time is a property of the UPS that charges it, not of the battery tray, so look it up on your UPS model, not here.

Compatibility & Runtime

What the RBC18 fits

Confirmed by a Schneider product data sheet, read from two independent sources that agree:

SC450RMI1U — APC Smart-UPS SC 450 VA, 230 V, 1U rackmount/tower. Its data sheet names "Replacement battery RBC18" directly, with a 12 V nominal battery and a 5 hour recharge time. Discontinued by Schneider, which is why the cartridge is still wanted.

Named by APC's own channel and retail listings, which are less formal than a data sheet but are still APC's own words:

SC250RM1U and SC450RM1U — the 120 V siblings.
PS250 and PS450 — PowerStack, 120 V.
PS250I and PS450I — PowerStack, the 230 V builds.

Likely but not confirmed: the SC250RMI1U, the 230 V sibling of the SC250RM1U. Schneider catalogues the model, and several battery references map it to the RBC18, but we could not obtain its data sheet to confirm it. Send us the model number and we will check with the distributor rather than have you order on a guess.

Rack height

The 36 mm tray height is not incidental. These hosts are 1U units, and the cartridge is shaped to slide into that height. If your UPS is 2U or taller, this is almost certainly not your cartridge — the 2U Smart-UPS rack units take RBC22, RBC23 or RBC24 instead.

Changing the cartridge

Schneider's Smart-UPS hot-swap FAQ covers models with user-replaceable batteries, and the Smart-UPS SC and PowerStack hosts fall in that family: it states that the battery module can be removed and replaced without affecting the load. Schneider's own caveat is worth repeating — while the battery is disconnected there is no backup available, so do not do it during unstable supply. Schneider does not publish a hot-swap statement on this cartridge's own documents, so treat the guide shipped in the box as the authority for your particular unit.

Runtime

A fresh cartridge restores the runtime the UPS was rated for at a given load; it cannot exceed it. These are 250 and 450 VA units, so runtime was modest when new — long enough for a clean shutdown or to ride out a short dip, not to keep working through an extended outage.

The cartridge arrives assembled with its connectors already fitted. Schneider ships an installation guide in the box and that guide, not this page, is the authority on how the swap is done on your particular UPS and whether it can be done with the unit running. Read it before you start, and keep the old cartridge intact for recycling.

Sealed lead-acid cartridges must not go into general waste in Singapore. Bring the exhausted cartridge back to us with the replacement and we can arrange collection through a licensed recycler, or dispose of it through your own NEA-licensed collector.

Package Contents & Smart-UPS SC Ordering Information

In the box

One RBC18 battery cartridge, assembled with connectors fitted
Schneider Electric installation documentation
Protective packaging

Smart-UPS rack cartridges at SourceIT

RBC18 (this listing) — 12 V, 9 Ah, 2.6 kg, 1U flat tray. For Smart-UPS SC and PowerStack 250 / 450 VA.
RBC22 — 24 V, 7.0 Ah, 5 kg. For 2U Smart-UPS rack units.
RBC23 — 10 kg, four blocks, same 2U tray as the RBC22.
RBC24 — 11.96 kg, four blocks, same 2U tray.
RBC43 — 48 V, 10 Ah, a 2U Smart-UPS rack tray.
APCRBC123 — 24 V, 7.0 Ah, for the SmartConnect 2U generation.

Legacy APC cartridges are easy to confuse and the trays do not interchange. Send the model number from your UPS to sales@sourceit.com.sg and we will match it against Schneider's documentation before you order.

Datasheet & Downloads

Every link below is a Schneider Electric page we have opened and confirmed resolves.

We deliberately do not publish direct PDF links for this part. Schneider's file-download host redirects across domains and has repeatedly returned a different model's document than the one requested, so a direct link is not safe to rely on. Every link above is a Schneider Electric landing page that we have opened and checked. If you would like the PDF itself, email sales@sourceit.com.sg with your UPS model and we will send the current revision together with a GST-invoiced quotation.

Frequently Asked Questions — APC RBC18

Is the RBC18 6 V or 12 V?
The cartridge is 12 V, 9 Ah. Schneider states it in the voltage field of its data sheet, and the host UPS data sheet independently gives a 12 V nominal battery. The "6V 9AH" you may see in Schneider's marketing text is the rating of one of the two blocks inside the tray.

Which UPS does it fit?
The 1U Smart-UPS SC and PowerStack 250 and 450 VA units. The SC450RMI1U, a 230 V model, is confirmed by its own Schneider data sheet, which names the RBC18 directly. APC's channel listings add the SC250RM1U, SC450RM1U, PS250 and PS450 (120 V) and PS250I and PS450I (230 V). The SC250RMI1U is likely but we could not confirm it from a Schneider document.

Why is it so flat?
Because its hosts are 1U rack units. The tray is 36 mm high and 302 mm wide, holding two 6 V blocks side by side rather than stacking them. If your UPS is 2U or taller, this is not your cartridge — look at the RBC22, RBC23 or RBC24 instead.

I was told it weighs about 5 kg. Is that right?
No, and it is worth correcting because it goes the opposite way to the usual error on this range. Schneider publishes 2.6 kg net and 2.994 kg shipping. Most APC cartridges are understated in weight by a wide margin; this one has been overstated by roughly double, most likely by copying a figure from an unrelated part.

How long should it last?
Schneider publishes three to five years for this part, which is unusual — most cartridges in the range carry no published life at all. Treat the lower end of that range as realistic in Singapore's climate, particularly if the UPS sits in a warm cabinet rather than a conditioned room.

Can I change it with the UPS running?
Schneider's Smart-UPS hot-swap FAQ says the battery module on Smart-UPS units with user-replaceable batteries can be removed and replaced without affecting the load, and these hosts are in that family. Its caveat matters: while the battery is out there is no backup, so do not do it during a storm or building works. Follow the guide in the box for your specific unit.

Does it come with a local Singapore warranty?
Yes. Every APC RBC18 sold by SourceIT comes with local Singapore warranty and a GST invoice; APC backs the RBC18 with a 2-year manufacturer warranty.