Recently Microtek, one of the prominent Inverter manufacturers in India has been sued by an unhappy customer for the fire accident triggered by an inverter/UPS.
Times of India, leading newspaper in India have published this interesting story about the Inverter Fire accident. You can read the full article here
This is not a joke; inverter/UPS is a common household appliance in India. If it is prone to catch fire and spoil the whole house, then we need to think twice about the safety of our family & children before installing it in our house.
It doesn’t mean that all inverters are prone to fire accidents. Only the cheap inverters and batteries are accident-prone.
Here we are going to list out some possible reasons for fire in inverters.
———————————————————————————
Possible Reasons for Fire in Inverter/UPS
1. Low quality Batteries with broken or non-ceramic fume filters are more likely to catch fire.
2. Input voltage fluctuation my cause internal component failure in the long run and result in MOSFET blast.
3. Inverter with Low Quality base in Printed Circuit Board (PCB) and Undersized tracks may create short circuit and lead to fire.
4. High Room temperature and Dumb inverter that gives constant high charge current even at 40°C temperature.
5. Inverter with Low quality Internal relay & no auto cutoff function when using excess load.
—————————————————————————
# Say No to low quality batteries
Now-a-days people want their inverters to charge the battery quickly in few hours to meet the intermittent power shedding problem.
For that reason, many inverter manufacturers are now producing inverters with high charge current.
High charge current is a boon when you have a sturdy branded tubular battery. It’s a curse when you have normal lead acid battery or low cost tubular battery from your inverter manufacturer.
These low quality tubular batteries will emit fumes during battery charging process.
If your battery vent caps are broken or non-ceramic which is not capable of filtering dangerous fumes from the battery, and then your Inverter is more likely to catch fire.
In branded batteries, the plates are thicker and good in quality. They don’t emit fumes beyond the security limit.
——————————————————————————
# Input Voltage Fluctuation and MOSFET burst
If your Inverter is not smart enough to handle voltage fluctuation, eventually the internal components of the inverter will fail and possibly the MOSFETS in the circuit board will burst.
Intelligent Inverter or Dumb Inverter?
Inverter companies with no R&D team are cheating people with giving fake names to their inverters like Intelligent Inverter or so.
Buyers should be careful in choosing the right inverter.
—————————————————————————-
# Inverter with Low Quality PCB
Low quality base in the Printed circuit board is one of the reasons for fire incidents in inverter. Some companies are making low Quality PCB’s to cut the cost and make big profit out of it.
That low quality PCB’s will contain under sized tracks which are incapable of handling excess load on inverter.
This undersized or low quality tracks will burn slowly whenever the inverter suffers excess load and one point of time it will create short circuit and lead to fire accident.
——————————————————————————
# Dumb inverter and High room temperature
We always recommend our readers to place your inverter and battery in well ventilated and cool space.
At the same time it should not be exposed to direct sunlight and rain. Which means, keep your inverter in a cool place to get better performance, life and safety.
Do you know the fact that lead acid batteries will deliver its full potential only when we keep it at 27°C room temperature?
Obviously, it is not possible in India during summer. And the temperature sometimes touches 40°C, in such case the inverter should slow down the charging process.
But some dumb inverters keep on pushing high charge current even at high temperatures. This will cause severe damage to the batteries and eventually create some fire issue or battery blast.
————————————————————————–
# Inverter with Bad Relay and NO auto cutoff function
Internal Relay is a very important component in an inverter/UPS. This is most common part that gets faulty in most cases.
Some inverter companies are making such a low quality internal relay which directly impacts the functionality of an inverter.
When your Relay fails, it continuously tries to change the inverter mode, after several failure attempts it triggers fire and smoke. In such case the inverter should be programed to cutoff the power supply from both grid and battery.
If your inverter is not smart enough to sense the problem, then fire accident is inevitable.
—————————————————————————
Conclusion
No need to panic!
Inverters/UPS are life savers, no doubt about it. But you need to choose the right brand and right model.
We always recommend you to go for Best Company Products with strong R&D facilities.
Also end users have the responsibility to take care of their most useful and most sensitive appliance (Home UPS/inverter).
Switch off your inverter when you go for vacation or any short trip.
Dear Sreejesh,
Choose the best inverter by spending some time in
this site. ———————————————————————————–
And the Answer for your question about two amaron battery models
Amron CRTT15000 is a 150 ah tall tubular battery with 36 months full replacement warranty
Amaron CRTU150AH is also a 150 ah tall tubular battery, but it has 30 months full replacement warranty.
Price difference between both models is around 500 rupees.
Both models are good for use with Inverters/UPS
Thanks for the prompt reply. Your website helped me a lot in knowing about UPS. Thanks for your effort in writing such wonderful articles. 🙂
Thank u for the Positive comments!
Dear admin,
I have purchased an Amaron 880VA UPS with Amaron CRTT150AH Battery for Rs.19000/-(Rs.6000+13000). Actually I have requested for a Amaron CRTU150AH. But only after few days I came to know that I have given a CRTT150AH battery.(They brought the battery in a CRTU15AH package with a small sticker with CRTT150AH label). I contacted the dealer & they said both are same batteries with same warranty(they said 48 months) only a difference in model name. Amaron customer care guys have no idea about these models features. I feel I get cheated. Do you have any idea about the general price tag of these batteries?
Dear Kart Technology,
First you need to accept the fact that Nixown is a small company based on Kerala.
May be it is good in quality, that is not the question here.
But how big the sales network of that company?
So, it is clear that we can review it, but we cannot include it in the top list along with Sukam, luminous or Microtek.
We want to clarify that, our recommendations are purely based on our lab results and customer feedback.
Leading Inverter Makers are sending their new Inverter models for Review, Test and Comparison purpose.
I think Nixwon won’t do that.
If they are ready to compete with Su-kam’s flagship inverter model Falcon Plus or Luminous latest model Ecovolt, they need to send it first.
Also i want to tell you that, we won’t publish biased reviews at any cost.
Hope you understand !
Hi admin,
We r constructing our new house it has 5 rooms, 5 bathrooms, 1 big hall and kitchen..
Coz of big setup we r planning 2 inverters, pls suggest each inverter wil handle atleast 3 fans and 6 lights.. The power cuts are mostly in summer season for 2hrs twice a day.
What would be the best recommended setup..
Dear Dhananjai,
If you want best in class solution, we would
recommend
Sukam Falcon Plus 1050 VA Pure sine wave ( this is new model, not yet listed in official site)
+
Exide IT500 tall tubular 150 ah with 3 years full replacement warranty + 1 year prorate warranty
———————————-
The inverter will cost around Rs.6300/- online
Battery price will be little higher side, this one is the top selling and most reliable battery model in this segment.
If your Local dealer refuses to sell Falcon plus for Rs.6300 or below, just buy the Inverter online.
Check out the price here
https://upsinverterinfo.com/recommends/sukam-falcon
————————————————————-
If you want two inverter setups in a single home, you need to setup two separate wiring lines for that.
Hire a good electrician!
Dear Aman Kumar,
Why still searching for copper wired transformer?
For your Information,
Su-kam
Luminous
Microtek
These are the top 3 companies manufacturing inverters in India.
All these three companies use only aluminium coil in their transformers.
To prove the reliability and longevity of their transformers, Su-kam is providing whopping 7 years warranty on it (only for transformers)
No worries, Go for it!
We recommend
Su-kam Shiny for cost effective solution
Su-kam Falcon Plus for its latest technology
&
Luminous Eco volt for its performance
Dear Narasimhan,
Su-kam Falcon Plus 1050 VA pure sine wave is better than other models in home segment.
Exide Inva master IM10000 is a good choice.
Hi Admin,
I am planning to buy an Inverter and 150AH battery for 2 tublelights + 2 fans + 1 TV (32 inch LCD) load,for 2hrs. power cut.
Could you please suggest me which is the better option in below ? If you have better option than below pls also suggest me.
Looking for early response.
Inverter:-
APC 850VA Sine Wave BI850SINE
OR
Su-Kam 850 VA Smiley
150AH battery:-
Amaron CRTT 15000 -12500 14000 – Price in Bangalore -Rs. 12000 (offline)
OR
Exide ‘Inva master IM 10000 – Price in Bangalore -Rs. 13000 (offline)
Thanks in advance for all your help !
Regards,
Sandeep
Dear sandeep, Sukam smiley + Exide inva master is good combination.
Hi Admin,
Thanks for quick response!
One of my friend is using Su-Kam 850 VA Smiley inverter and
he reported it’s giving humming noise.
Please suggest me a super silent inverter in this segment.
Is SuKam Falcon+ OR Luminous Zelio better choice ?
Go for Falcon plus……the most advanced and silent one.
Hi Admin,
I’m from bangalore.
Buying batteries from Snapdeal is good? I see the prices comparatively less compared to other websites like battery bhai etc.
Below are my requirements for backup.
3CFL bulbs
Two Cieling fans
Two laptop
Occasionally one mixer and one half hp water pump for 10-20 mins.
Wifi router
Need atleast 5-7hours of backup.
Have future plan to use solar panels, hence request to suggest ups which supports solar to.
Thanks
Dear Reader,
We recommend
Sukam Shiny pure sine wave 900VA + Exide Inva Master Tall tubular 200AH battery
or
Luminous zelio 900VA+ Exide Inva Master Tall tubular 200AH battery
Buying Inverters from Snapdeal is Highly recommended.
Battery sales in snapdeal is flourishing now, but most sellers are targeting their local customers only and not ready to ship to other towns. So, before ordering battery check whether the product is available for your location. ——————————————————————– Check the Inverter Prices here
https://upsinverterinfo.com/recommends/luminous-zelio-pure-sine-wave-inverter https://upsinverterinfo.com/recommends/sukam-shiny-850va-pure-sinewave-inverter
We can convert these models to solar with a simple automatic solar charge controller. No Problem! 100% compatible with solar.
Dear Admin,
Thank you very much for quick reply!
How much time would it take for battery to charge based on your above suggestion?
Adding to above my future plan is to use Solar for entire house. Therefore having higher capacity invertor would be better, right?
Dear Reader,
24V Inverter would be better in case you plan to
convert the whole setup into solar.
If you plan to buy double battery inverter, then we would recommend 150 AH batteries (two batteries)
*Exide Inva Master Tall tubular 150 ah IM10000* model would be a best choice.
*Sukam 1500 VA *Inverter shiny Pure sine wave model would cost around Rs.6200
*check the price here*
https://upsinverterinfo.com/recommends/sukam-shiny-1500va
Dear Admin,
Can I use single 150ah battery with SuKam 1500va or falcon+ model’s?
How much time would it take for battery to charge without solar?
Thanks
Dear Reader,
You cannot operate a 24V inverter with a single 12V
battery. Sukam 1500 VA inverter is a 24 V inverter, needs 2 batteries to operate.
Falcon+ 1050 VA is a 12V Inverter, you can operate it with single 12V 150AH battery.
Also we recommend you to read this article to learn some basics of battery backup time.
https://upsinverterinfo.com/how-to-solve-low-battery-back-up-problem-in-inverter.html
Dear Mulu Hasbara,
For your load preference, we would like to recommend 900 VA
Pure sine wave inverter + 150 AH Tall tubular battery.
We suggest
Sukam shiny 900 VA (sukam has upgraded the 850VA model to 900 VA now) – Rs.4600/- Online
Check the Price here https://upsinverterinfo.com/recommends/sukam-shiny-850va-pure-sinewave-inverter
Sukam Bazooka 150 AH tall tubular battery Price – Rs. 11500 to 12500/-
———————————————————–
This is good Combo !
Thanks Admin for such a quick reply !!
What do you think about the cute looking Su~kam Smiley 850 VA. Apart from the 50 VA is there any other major difference between the Sukam Shiny & Su~kam Smiley.
Also can I order the Su~kam Bazooka Tall tubular batteries 150 AH online. Pls give a link if any.
Dear Reader,
Sukam smiley is little advanced compared to shiny. Tech
savvy people would always prefer smiley because of its advanced features.
You can connect it to pc and monitor the performance of inverter and battery.
Sukam tall tubular batteries are available for online purchase in batterybhai site.
Hey..
I have a query, and I don’t know where to post it. I had recently bought an Exide IT500 battery along with Exide inverter for installation at home. IT was supposed to be installed at a slightly elevated level (about 4 feet above floor level). However, while attempting to shift the battery to this position, the guys dropped the battery from a height of about 3 feet. I would like to know what would be the effect of this fall on the battery’s performance and efficiency. Please someone let me know.
Dear Dropath,
You should check your battery with your battery
dealer.
You cannot do it yourself.
Thank you.
I had called exide dealer who sold me the battery to check it. They dropped in promptly, checked it, and thankfully the battery was not damaged in any way.
Good to know!
Dear Krishnan reddy,
Sukam Falcon + is the most advanced Home inverter available in the market. 200 ah battery is 100% compatible with Falcon+
Falcon + has no LCD display, that is the only drawback with this model. Sukam has already working on a new model called Falcon++.
Falcon ++ will be available with LCD display and it would be the most intelligent inverter of its class.
company has not yet launched the model in market, but showcased it in several Exhibitions.
Coming to service, Sukam is providing doorstep service in most part of the country. If you have any questions regarding about their service availability in your area, you can contact sukam toll free number and confirm the availability of service in your area.
Dear Rajesh,
yes you can, it is compatible to use with LCD and laptop.
900 va is compatible with 180 ah battery.
Sukam and Amaron, both are good brands.
Dear Narendra Babu,
We would recommend 1500 VA pure sine wave inverter with two 150 ah tall tubular batteries for your load and backup time requirement.
Thank you Admin ..
Dear Admin
whenever I connect my solar panels to a hybrid inverter it shorts the inverter and I’ve had to replace the inverter.
also if I use a solar charge controller to charge the batteries directly while been connected to the inverter it causes the inverter to malfunction.
i have now resulted in disconnecting the connection to the inverter while I’m charging with the solar charge controller, which is resulting in lost sunlight hours if i want to have power supplied.
What do you think the problem is
Thanks