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Choosing The Best Inverter & Batteries For Your Home

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Inverters are the best solution for uninterrupted power backup, especially if you live in localities with frequent blackouts or unannounced power cuts.

Being an expensive and long-term investment, you cannot blindly choose an option. It is very important to consider whether power configurations of the inverter match your backup requirements.

If you are unaware of how to analyze the inverters, then follow the below guide thoroughly. The detailed information mentioned below will help you make an informed decision.

How Inverter Works?

5 Major Factors to buy best inverter & batteries for your home

Factor 1. Calculate your power requirement for inverter

Before choosing an inverter, the first thing to consider is understanding the load requirement for your home or office.

Power Requirement = Total electricity required for operating the necessary appliances during a power cut.

Calculate the power requirement
Step 1: Calculate your total power requirement from the inverter

Suppose you want 3 Fans, 3 Tube lights, 1 television & 1 refrigerator to operate at the time of power failure. The power consumed by these items will be total of the power consumed by these individually:

1 Fan – 70 Watts
1 tube light – 40 watts
1 led television – 100 watts
1 Refrigerator – 140 Watt

Therefore your total power requirement is:
(3 Fans x 70W) + (3 Lights x 40W) + (1 TV x 100W) + (1 Refrigerator x 140W) = 585 watts.
+
+
+
=
585 Watts
Step 2: Convert ‘’Total Watts’ into ‘VA’ to identify the best inverter for your requirement

So, How to convert from Watts to VA?


VA = Power Requirement (Watts) x Power Factor
Where,Power Factor range 0.7 from 0.8 (the effective battery power output is around 70-80%)

Therefore, total VA for 585 Watts of power requirement of is:
VA = 585W / 0.7 = 836 VA
So, you should prefer an inverter of minimum 900 VA or above, which will best suit your needs.

Factor 2. Choose the Best Inverter Type

Inverter is similar to a converter whose job is to convert the AC power to DC power or vice-versa. When power is present at the home, the inverter will take the power and charge up the battery.

During this process, AC power will be converted to DC power to store in the battery. During a power cut, the inverter will supply the store power in the battery to operate different appliances and electricals. In this process, DC power will be converted to AC power.

Inverters are categorized into two categories: sine wave and square wave. We have mentioned a clear description below to understand which one is the best option for your needs.

1. Sine Wave (Best For Sensitive Appliances)

Sine wave inverter is responsible for converting and releasing DC power to operate the appliances. The output power is similar to that of utility supply. This is one of the biggest benefits of sine wave inverters as all the appliances are designed in the similar wave pattern only.

Another benefit is that the output is reliable and cleaner form which prevents any voltage damages to the appliances. Because of the sophisticated technology used in these batteries, they are suitable to power up heavy electrical appliances like LED TVs, Refrigerators, Laptops, and others. However, they are a bit expensive.

2. Square wave (Recommended Non Sensitive Devices)

Similar to sine wave, square wave also converts DC power to AC for powering up the lights and appliances.

However, the only difference is that when the inverter is turned on, it will directly take the voltage from negative to positive. This makes the voltage unbalanced and unstable, leading to voltage related issues in appliances.

If you are using the inverter for powering up lights and fans, then you may not observe any difference. However, if you use the square wave inverter for powering up heavy appliances, then it can damage them. So, it is recommended for only powering up non-sensitive devices like lights and fans.

Sine wave vs square wave inverters
More Safe & Trending
Sine wave inverter
Best for
Sensitive devices like Computers, laptops, Smart tv, refrigerators, ovens etc
Noise level
Yellow
Normal
Appliances safety
Green
Sine wave inverters are reliable and highly safe to use.
Pricing
Yellow
Comparatively costly that square wave
square wave inverter
Best for
non sensitive devices Like Motors, lights and fans etc,.
Noise level
Red
High, creates humming noise in inverter as well as in appliances
Appliances safety
Red
less reliable and unsafe to use for sensitive appliances.
Pricing
Green
Relatively cheaper than sine wave inverters
Our Recommendation For You
Sine wave inverter is an expensive option. However, it is an efficient and safe option for powering up heavy electrical appliances at home like refrigerators, microwave, laptops and others. Square wave inverter is a cheaper option but it is only suitable for powering up motors and non-sensitive appliances like lights and fans.

Factor 3. How many hours of Battery backup do you need?

Battery is like the heart of an inverter. It is the place where power is stored and supplied during a power cut. The capacity of the battery represents how many hours of power backup it can provide. It is usually measured in Ah (Ampere Hours).

You have to choose an inverter battery based on the power and back up required. To help you understand, we have provided a table below. Using it, you can calculate the necessary battery capacity for your requirements.

let’s calculate which battery is suitable for our power backup requirement:
Specifications 
DisplayFull HD
Smart TVYes (Linux)
Audio20 Watts
Refresh Rate60 hertz
Ports2 (HDMI) and 2 (USB)
Model Year2020
Warranty1 year

Factor 3. Choose the best Battery type

Batteries are categorized into two different types: flat plate and tubular. Though they look similar, their internal technology is different which shows a major impact on weight, price, efficiency and lifespan of the battery.

Flat plate batteries are designed using a combination of positive and negative plates that are made using pasted grids. Tubular batteries are often referred to as improvised versions of flat plate batteries. The difference here is the positive plates are made using spines which are placed under tube packets.

Flat plate vs tubular inverters
Flat plate battery
These batteries are available in small height containers. They are suitable for low power cut areas as their cycle life is low.
Battery Life
Low (upto 3 Yrs)
Yellow
Maintenance
High
Red
Water toppings
High
Red
Safety
Low
Red
Releases harmful gases
Yes
Red
Ventilation requirement
Yes
Yellow
Weight
Low
Green
Price
Rs. 9,000 to Rs. 15,000
Green
Tabular battery
These batteries are available in small and tall containers. They are suitable for frequent power cut areas as they have longer cycle life. This is the reason; they are becoming a preferred option than the other.
Battery Life
High (upto 5 Yrs)
Green
Maintenance
Medium
Yellow
Water toppings
Medium
Yellow
Safety
High
Green
Releases harmful gases
Yes
Red
Ventilation requirement
Yes
Yellow
Weight
High
Red
Price
Rs. 9,000 to Rs. 25,000
Yellow
Our Recommendation For You
Flat plate batteries are inexpensive. However, they are not suitable for areas with frequent power cuts. It is recommended only if you are going to use it occasionally. And they require a lot of maintenance as well. When it comes to tubular batteries, they are expensive. However, they are suitable for areas with frequent and longer power cuts. They are the most reliable option in terms of efficiency, maintenance and lifespan.

Factor 4. what other features to look out for?

The below-mentioned features will ensure you choose the best in quality, easy to maintain and long lasting inverter.

1. Water Level Indicators

These indicators will help you identify and re-fill the batteries when the water levels become lower. This helps in maintaining the battery health properly. If the water levels are not refilled, then it will lead to less back up and also reduce the battery lifespan.

Water level indicator in battries

2. Fast Charging / Rapid Charging

This technology enables the inverter to charge 60% faster than regular levels. It is suitable for areas with longer power cuts and low voltage issues.

3. Bypass switch:

It protects the inverter and batteries from overload, reverse polarity, short-circuit, deep discharge, short-circuit and input mains protection.

Bypass Switch to prevent damage

4. No of. Battery support

For shorter power cuts, a single battery is sufficient. However, for longer power cuts, you need at least 2 batteries. So, check whether the inverter you chose can support 1 or 2 batteries based on your requirement.

5. Best Inverter Brands in India

6. Warranty

A warranty is a guarantee which is provided by the manufacturer to give you an assurance that the thing you buy from them are of good quality and do not contain any manufacturing defects. For inverters it ranges up to 2 years of warranty, But For battery you should look for at least 3 years of warranty for better performing battery backup

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