APC by Schneider Electric Smart-ups RT - UPS - External - Online - AC - SURT8000XLT-1TF3

APC by Schneider Electric SURT8000XLT-1TF3 8kVA Online Double-Conversion UPS

Overview

The APC by Schneider Electric SURT8000XLT-1TF3 is an 8000 VA / 6400 W online double-conversion uninterruptible power supply built for data centers, server rooms, and commercial critical-load environments where a single power event cannot be tolerated. Unlike line-interactive or standby designs, double-conversion topology means your downstream equipment never rides raw utility power — every watt passes through the inverter continuously, so voltage fluctuations, frequency drift, and transients are fully isolated before they reach your load. At 8 kVA / 6.4 kW, this unit handles dense server rack loads, multi-camera NVR clusters, or mixed IT/AV infrastructure that would overwhelm smaller 1U rackmount units.

The SURT8000XLT-1TF3 (often searched as SURT8000XLT 1TF3) accepts 120/208/240V AC input at 50/60 Hz, giving it the input flexibility to land on a standard 120V branch circuit or a 208V PDU feed without a transformer. The sealed lead-acid (VRLA) battery pack delivers 7.3 minutes of runtime at full 8 kW load and 20 minutes at half load — adequate for a controlled shutdown sequence or bridging a brief generator transfer, and the 2.2-hour recharge time means the unit is back to full capacity quickly after a discharge event.

Key Features

• Online Double-Conversion Architecture: Load is continuously powered from the inverter — no transfer time, no voltage notch on switchover. Critical for storage arrays, fiber channel switches, or any load sensitive to even a 4ms gap that a line-interactive UPS introduces.
• 8000 VA / 6400 W Output Capacity: Supports a full rack of 1U/2U servers or a dense NVR array with cameras. The 80% power factor (6400 W from 8000 VA) is typical for this class — size your load to 6.4 kW, not 8 kVA, to avoid oversubscription.
• Multi-Voltage Input (120/208/240V AC, 50/60 Hz): Deploy on a standard 20A/120V circuit in smaller facilities or wire to a 208V PDU in a collocated environment without retooling the UPS. Reduces installation friction when migrating between facilities.
• Emergency Power Off (EPO): Hard-wired EPO input allows the UPS to be cut from a building fire-suppression panel or emergency stop button — a requirement for UL 1778 compliance in many jurisdictions and standard practice for any NEC Article 700 installation.
• Diverse Output Receptacle Set: The output bank includes 8× NEMA 5-20R (standard 20A duplex for 120V devices), 1× NEMA L14-30R (30A 120/240V twist-lock for generators or transfer switches), 4× NEMA L6-20R (20A 240V for PDUs or high-density equipment), and 2× NEMA L6-30R (30A 240V for larger loads) — plus a 3-wire hardwire terminal. This matters because most competing 8 kVA units ship with a single receptacle type, forcing you to add PDUs. Here, a mixed 120V/240V rack can plug directly to the UPS.
• Smart-Slot Interface: The proprietary Smart-Slot expansion bay accepts APC management cards (network management, environmental monitoring, relay I/O) without replacing the UPS chassis. If you need SNMP or Modbus visibility into runtime, load percentage, and battery health, drop in a network card post-installation.
• RJ-45 10/100 Base-T and DB-9 RS-232 Interfaces: Native network port and serial port are present at the base configuration — no expansion card required for basic monitoring or PowerChute integration. The RJ-45 port supports direct connection to a NIC-enabled management network.
• VRLA Battery Technology: Sealed lead-acid batteries require no water maintenance, are valve-regulated for safe indoor installation, and are user-replaceable on most Smart-UPS RT chassis — reducing service downtime compared to units requiring field-technician battery swaps.
• Audible Alarms and 55 dB Noise Level: The UPS emits audible fault and battery alarms. At 55 dB, it's comparable to normal office conversation — acceptable for a server closet but worth noting if deployed in a noise-sensitive environment like a broadcast control room or open office equipment rack.
• Operating Range 0–40°C: Standard commercial temperature envelope. Adequate for conditioned server rooms and telecom closets. Not rated for outdoor or unconditioned-space installation — plan HVAC accordingly.
• CSA, FCC Part 15 Class A, UL 1778 Certifications: UL 1778 is the governing safety standard for UPS equipment in North America; FCC Part 15 Class A limits radiated emissions for commercial/industrial environments; CSA covers Canadian installations. These certifications are required by most enterprise procurement and AHJ inspections.

Integration & Compatibility

The power and UPS category spans a wide range of capacities — the SURT8000XLT-1TF3 sits at the high end of rackmount/tower UPS configurations suited for server and network infrastructure. The Smart-Slot bay is compatible with the broader APC by Schneider Electric accessory ecosystem, including network management cards for SNMP v1/v2c/v3 monitoring, relay interface cards for dry-contact integration with BMS systems, and environmental sensor modules. PowerChute Business Edition and PowerChute Network Shutdown software integrate via the native serial or network interfaces for graceful OS shutdown sequencing during extended outages — important for protecting open database transactions on NVRs or storage servers.

For network infrastructure deployments, pair with a managed PoE switch on a dedicated 20A 120V outlet (NEMA 5-20R) while running servers on the 208/240V L6 receptacles to separate load types and simplify circuit planning. If you're building out a network video recorder stack, the 20-minute half-load runtime provides enough bridge time to execute a graceful NVR shutdown and preserve video indexes without corruption. Consult a UPS sizing guide to match battery runtime requirements to your actual connected load before specifying this unit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the maximum runtime of the SURT8000XLT-1TF3 at full load?

A: At full 8000 VA / 6400 W load, the internal battery provides approximately 7.3 minutes of runtime. At half load (approximately 3200 W), runtime extends to about 20 minutes. For longer runtimes, APC offers external battery packs compatible with the Smart-UPS RT chassis.

Q: Does the SURT8000XLT-1TF3 support 208V input?

A: Yes. The unit accepts AC input at 120V, 208V, or 240V, 50/60 Hz, giving it flexibility for both standard North American 120V branch circuits and higher-voltage 208V feeds common in data center and commercial facilities.

Q: What output receptacles are included on the SURT8000XLT-1TF3?

A: The output bank includes 8× NEMA 5-20R (20A, 120V), 4× NEMA L6-20R (20A, 240V), 2× NEMA L6-30R (30A, 240V), 1× NEMA L14-30R (30A, 120/240V), and one 3-wire hardwire output terminal — supporting a broad mix of 120V and 240V equipment without additional PDUs.

Q: Is the SURT8000XLT-1TF3 UL listed?

A: Yes. The unit carries UL 1778 certification (the North American UPS safety standard), as well as CSA certification for Canadian installations and FCC Part 15 Class A for commercial/industrial emissions compliance.

Q: Does the SURT8000XLT-1TF3 include an Emergency Power Off (EPO) input?

A: Yes. A hard-wired EPO input is included, allowing integration with building fire-suppression panels, emergency stop circuits, or NEC Article 700 emergency systems — a common requirement in data centers and commercial facilities.

Q: How long does the battery take to recharge after a full discharge?

A: The internal battery recharges to full capacity in approximately 2.2 hours after a complete discharge event, minimizing vulnerability windows between power events.

Marty Allison

The SURT8000XLT-1TF3 is one of the few sub-10 kVA units I'd specify for a mixed-voltage rack without immediately reaching for an external PDU. The combination of 8× NEMA 5-20R plus four L6-20R and two L6-30R on a single chassis means a realistic server/NVR/networking stack can be wired directly — that's not trivial at this price tier. The double-conversion topology is non-negotiable for any load running open database transactions or active recording, and 7.3 minutes at full 6.4 kW is enough to execute a scripted graceful shutdown on most platforms before generator transfer completes.

Technical Highlights:

• 80% Power Factor (6400 W / 8000 VA): Size your connected load budget to 6.4 kW, not the VA rating. Oversubscribing to 8 kVA with high-power-factor modern server PSUs will clip the output — a common miscalculation when migrating from older, lower-PF equipment.
• 2.2-Hour Recharge Time: After a full discharge during a long outage, you're back to full battery in just over two hours. In facilities with recurring short outages (utility switching neighborhoods, storm-prone regions), this recharge rate matters as much as the runtime itself.
• Smart-Slot Expansion Bay: The base unit ships with RJ-45 and DB-9 interfaces, but the Smart-Slot is where this UPS earns its keep in managed environments. Drop in a network management card post-deployment to get SNMP traps, runtime-remaining telemetry, and remote shutdown commands without touching the UPS chassis or cabling.

Deployment Considerations:

• The EPO input requires proper wiring to a normally-closed dry-contact circuit — verify your building fire-suppression panel's EPO output is compatible (24V or dry contact) before assuming plug-and-play. Mis-wired EPO on a live load is a service call waiting to happen.
• At 55 dB operating noise, this unit is fine for a locked server room but will be noticeable in a wiring closet adjacent to occupied office space. Factor acoustics into your site survey, especially in retrofit installations.

For a mid-sized commercial surveillance installation running a 32-channel NVR, edge switches, and a management workstation — all on a single rack — the SURT8000XLT-1TF3 is the right UPS to specify: enough capacity headroom, the right receptacle mix, and the Smart-Slot path to grow into centralized power monitoring without a chassis swap.