NorthStar Battery Information
NorthStar NSB Batteries: What Happened, and What Replaces Yours
If you came here looking for a NorthStar datasheet or a place to order an NSB part, the reason you came up empty is that the brand no longer operates under its own name. EnerSys acquired NorthStar Battery Company in 2019, folded the telecom line into its PowerSafe SBS family, and discontinued the NSB range in Q3 2024. The old NorthStar site content went with it.
This page covers what happened, how to tell which of the three NSB lines you have, what the vendor documents actually say about each one, and what replaces your part number. We stock remaining NSB production and the EnerSys PowerSafe successors, and a specialist confirms the correct current part in writing. That remaining stock is finite: as of this writing it is expected to run out by the end of 2026, and some part numbers are already down to their final units.
What Happened to NorthStar
Why the links you followed are dead. EnerSys removed or redirected NorthStar's old site content when the brand was retired, which is why datasheet links from a few years ago now resolve to nothing. Those documents are not coming back at their old addresses. The current range summaries are self-hosted here and linked further down this page.
A discontinued line is not a recalled line. NSB batteries already in service run out their design life normally, and the NorthStar warranty statements still govern units purchased under them. What changes is availability: what is on the shelf is remaining production, and once it is gone the replacement is a PowerSafe part.
Which Line You Had: RED, HT RED and BLUE+
This is the part the old NorthStar literature never made easy.
RED and HT RED are both float standby batteries. They sit on charge for years and have to deliver when the grid drops. The difference between them is heat tolerance, and the warranty that follows from it.
BLUE+ is a different job entirely. It is a cycling battery, built for partial state of charge work in hybrid gensets, renewables and energy storage, with no charge current limit and a published cycle rating. Choosing between RED and BLUE+ is not choosing between good and better. It is choosing between two duty profiles, and putting a cycling battery on pure float duty buys you nothing.
The -40F to 149F operating range and the "extra long life at 104F" line are HT RED specifications. The standard RED range summary puts RED at -40F to 122F and carries no 104F line at all. Those two figures have been repeated on RED listings across this industry for years, including on some of ours, and we are correcting ours. If a listing shows you 149F on a standard RED part, it is quoting the wrong document.
RED is temperature banded. Three years full replacement where the average day ambient the batteries sit in is at or below 77F, and 18 months where that average runs above 77F and up to 95F. Coverage is void outright if cell temperature exceeds 95F for more than 30 days in any 365 day period. A flat three-year claim on a RED part is only correct for the cooler band, which is why we ask for your site ambient before quoting.
HT RED is four years flat, and heavily conditioned. The term is not banded by site class, but it is gated behind twelve conditions, several of them physical: a minimum 6 mm gap between batteries, at least 250 mm from any major heat source, daily operating temperature between 15C and 40C, under 100 hours a year between 40C and 50C, and never above 50C. Claims are assessed at block level and require written commissioning details plus proof of site operating conditions. The four years is real. It is also the kind of term that decides whether a claim pays, so it is worth reading before you rely on it.
BLUE+ has no warranty statement on file. We have not located one, and the RED and HT RED statements are series specific on their face, so they cannot be stretched to cover it. We publish no warranty figure for BLUE+ and confirm the applicable term in writing with the quote.
Design life is a separate thing from warranty in all three cases. Design life is the manufacturer's engineering estimate under ideal float conditions. The warranty is the period they will replace a failed unit. Any seller quoting a 15-year design life as though it were a warranty term is either careless or counting on you not to check.
The Number in the Part Number Is Not the Capacity
Worth knowing before you size a replacement string. NSB part numbers are a family designation rather than a capacity rating, and the published capacity is lower than the number in the part across most of the range.
First figure is the 8 hour rate to 1.75 VPC at 77F. Second is the 10 hour rate to 1.80 VPC.
RED and HT RED quote their 10 hour capacity at 68F. BLUE+ quotes its at 77F. Different reference temperatures, so those numbers are not like for like. If you are sizing a string against a reserve-time requirement, work from the 8 hour column or ask us for the discharge tables at your actual rate.
What Replaces Your Part Number
We publish a cross only where the manufacturer's own succession is documented. For the rest we confirm against your label rather than print a mapping we cannot stand behind, because a front-terminal battery that is a few millimetres out on a tray or a torque spec is a wasted freight charge in both directions.
Remaining production, priced on each page. Availability changes, so the page is the current answer.
For any part without a confirmed successor above, send the label photo and the tray dimensions and a specialist returns the correct current equivalent in writing. Voltage, terminal type and footprint are the three that have to match, and terminal hardware is the one most often missed.
How These Were Built, and Why Pure Lead Mattered
The NSB line was a thin plate pure lead design, and both halves of that phrase did work.
Compliance set. The NSB range is built against Telcordia SR4228, IEC 60896 and Bellcore GR-63-Core, is UL approved and UN2800 certified, and ships classified as non-hazardous cargo for ground, sea and air. EnerSys is registered to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. Containers and lids are UL94 V-0 rated flame retardant material.
That transport classification matters more than it sounds. A battery that ships non-hazardous moves on ordinary LTL freight rather than under dangerous-goods paperwork, which is a real difference in cost and lead time on a multi-unit order.
Buying NorthStar and PowerSafe Batteries Now
We are a stocking distributor for both the remaining NorthStar NSB production and the EnerSys PowerSafe range that replaces it. That means two things worth knowing before you call.
NSB stock is finite. What is listed is remaining production. We quote against live availability rather than a catalog, so the answer on a Tuesday is not guaranteed to hold for a month. As of this writing, remaining stock is expected to be gone by the end of 2026.
These move by freight. Minimum order is 4 units. The NSB190FT class runs 132 lbs apiece, so these ship LTL to a commercial address. A residential or limited-access delivery adds $100, which is the liftgate and access charge the carrier bills us rather than a markup.
- The part number from the label, and the quantity
- Your delivery ZIP
- Your requested-by date
- The average day ambient where the batteries actually sit
That last one is not a formality. On a RED part it decides which warranty term applies to you, three years or 18 months, and we put the applicable figure on the quote in writing rather than leaving it to be argued later.
Browse the full NorthStar range or the wider telecom battery selection.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who makes NorthStar batteries now?
EnerSys. It acquired NorthStar Battery Company from Altor Fund II in 2019 and folded the line into its own catalog, with the telecom range aligned to the PowerSafe SBS family. The NSB telecom range was discontinued in Q3 2024, and the EnerSys PowerSafe SBS line is the current front-terminal equivalent. NorthStar-branded product still in circulation is remaining production rather than new manufacture.
Where can I buy NorthStar NSB batteries?
Here, while stock lasts, and we also carry the PowerSafe parts that replace them. We are a stocking distributor rather than a marketplace listing, so availability on a given part number is a real answer rather than a backorder. Send the part number and quantity with your delivery ZIP and a specialist confirms what is on the floor and prices it in writing.
Is the NSB170FT still available?
The NSB170FT is listed in all three lines, RED, HT RED and BLUE+, and stock is remaining production, expected to run out by the end of 2026. The direct replacement is the EnerSys PowerSafe SBS 170F, and we confirm fit against your label and rack dimensions before anything ships. Send a photo of the unit you are replacing with your quantity and we will come back with the part and the price.
Is the NSB210FT still available?
The NSB210FT is listed in RED, HT RED and BLUE+ from remaining production. The direct replacement is the EnerSys PowerSafe SBS-210 series. The 210FT is the largest part in the family at 204 Ah on the RED line, so tray clearance is usually the binding constraint on a substitution, and we confirm it before quoting. Send the tray dimensions with your request.
What is the difference between the RED and the HT RED?
Heat tolerance and the warranty attached to it. RED is rated to 122F and carries three years at a site averaging 77F or below, dropping to 18 months above that. HT RED is rated to 149F, carries extra service life at a sustained 104F, and carries a flat four years subject to twelve installation conditions. If your cabinet runs hot, HT RED is the line that was built for it. If it does not, you are paying for headroom you will not use.
Is BLUE+ an upgrade over RED?
No, it is a different battery for a different job. BLUE+ is built for cycling and partial state of charge duty, rated at 2050 cycles to 50% depth of discharge with no charge current limit, which suits hybrid gensets, renewables and storage. RED is built for float standby. On a pure standby string BLUE+ has a shorter published design life than RED, 12+ years against 15+, so it is not a straight upgrade.
Which warranty term applies to my site?
On a RED part it turns on the average day ambient where the batteries actually sit, not the room's design temperature or the thermostat setpoint. Take a reading across a full duty cycle in the warmest season. At or below 77F you are in the three-year band; above that and up to 95F you are in the 18-month band. Coverage is void if cell temperature passes 95F for more than 30 days in a 365 day period, so a cabinet with a failed fan can cost the warranty before it costs the battery. Send us the figure and the applicable term goes on the quote in writing.
Send the part number from the label, the quantity, your delivery ZIP, your requested-by date and the average ambient at the site. A specialist confirms availability, the correct current equivalent, the applicable warranty term and freight in writing, with no obligation to buy.
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