We live in a world where electricity is at the helm of things. Everything from essential appliances to gadgets and other electronics is vital to our everyday existence. Bring summers to the equation, the mercury rises, and power cuts start to become a regular thing. However, having a power backup isn’t only a respite from summers. It’s important throughout the year because the moment electricity cuts off, our lives come to a halt.
Since we are all dependent on electricity for most of our day, having an adequate inverter for home with enough battery backup becomes inevitable. The type of inverter is undoubtedly important, but it’s the battery that’s the workhorse. A battery can make a day and night difference between the kind of output you’re getting and hence is the most critical buying component. There are all sorts of batteries available in the market, and it can be quite confusing to zero down on the one you should buy.
To ease out and help you make an informed decision, here are things you need to know before buying an inverter battery.
- Load Requirement
Load requirement is the power demand from the battery i.e., the total power your appliances will consume when using the inverter. It’s different for each household, and you need to calculate yours.
Let’s take an ideal case scenario to calculate the load requirement for modern homes. Suppose you need to power 3 ceiling fans, 3 tube lights, 3 LEDs, 1 laptop, and 1 television on your battery.
| Appliances | Power |
| 3 Ceiling Fans | 75*3 = 225 watts |
| 3 Tube Lights | 40*3 = 120 watts |
| 3 LEDs | 5*3 = 15 watts |
| 1 Laptop | 100*1 = 100 watts |
| 1 Television | 60*1 = 60 watts |
| Total | 520 watts |
570 watts is the total load, and hence buying a battery will be based on this requirement.
- How Much Backup is Required?
When buying a battery, you also need to know the backup time. It’s critical to buy a battery with enough capacity that can provide backup the entire time during a power cut. The backup time is calculated in Ampere-hours (Ah) and is decided by the capacity of the battery.
Now let’s say your area gets a power cut of 3 hours and that too at a critical hour when you use all the appliances mentioned above. So, you need 3 hours of power backup from your battery and inverter for home.
Battery Capacity, Ah = (Power Requirement * Back-up Time * 1.25) / (Battery Voltage x Battery Efficiency)
Where 1.25 is the oversizing factor.
Oversizing Factor – When calculating battery capacity, oversizing factor is included to account for decreased efficiency as the battery ages. Hence, it’s recommended to buy a battery with slightly more power than required and oversizing factor helps in calculating that.
(520 * 3 * 1.25) / 12 x 0.8 = 203 Ah
A battery rated at 203 Ah or more will best fit in this scenario.
- Battery Lifecycle
Battery lifecycle is another crucial parameter to consider when buying an inverter battery. It is defined as the number of charges/discharges cycles in a battery’s life and depends on how much the battery’s capacity is used over time.
The lifecycles of the battery are variable, and the variance factor is DOD (Depth of Discharge). It indicates the percentage of battery that can be discharged and is relative to the overall capacity of the battery.
For instance, if you regularly discharge the battery at a lower percentage, it will leave more useful cycles. However, if you drain the battery to its maximum percentage, the battery will have less useful cycles, and your inverter for home will switch off sooner.
Reputed brands like Luminous have technologically advanced batteries with exceptionally long cycles (1500 @80% DOD and 5000 @ 20% DOD) that ensure longevity.
- After Sales Support
You don’t want to buy inverter batteries from a manufacturer that has non-existent or inadequate after-sales support. Batteries and inverters are appliances that are best managed by professionals, and it’s good to leave the servicing to them. Look for brands with a high footprint that have a vast service network. Furthermore, it’s also important to consider the warranty on the battery as it maximizes your return on investment.
Be Aware and Make the Right Decision
The things mentioned above are crucial when buying an inverter battery as it will reflect highly on performance during a power cut. Always choose a reputed brand that offers superior products and excellent after-sales service. Brands like Luminous are known for their batteries and inverters for home and offer a technologically advanced range of products. With exceptional warranty, high life cycles, excellent load capacity – the batteries are rugged and made to last!
