[PLUG] Batteries and UPSs

[Derek Loree]

On Thu, 2003-11-13 at 09:41, Kyle Accardi wrote:
> Trench Shoring wrote:
> > A few years ago I asked a similar question on a solar / wind power list.
> > Could I use a car battery for my UPS. The answer I got back stunned me. 
> > The person who responded wrote that after a few months after installing 
> > a car battery in his unit, his children got sick with a mysterious 
> > symptoms. His spouse was getting ill and after a few more months of 
> > torturous diagnosis someone did a lead test that came back positive.
> > A UPS uses SEALED lead acid batteries for a good reason.
> 
> Wonder how the lead got out since its melting point is over 600F and boils 
> at 3180F.

Even as a solid, it still has a small vapor pressure.  That is caused by
random energy distributions, and some of the atoms receive enough
kinetic energy to leave the surface of the material. Heavy metals cannot
be processed by the human body very well (if at all), and can build up
over time if the exposure is consistent.

Derek Loree