Double battery Inverter setup

kartikoli

kartikoli

Skilled
I am using Microtek JM SW2000 along with 2 Exide Invamaster IMST1500 150ah batteries for almost 4 years but now one of the battery is on verge of death as per local technician so I am thinking to upgrade this system and buy new one. For me this setup have been a pain, both batteries have been changed within 2 years and now that I've approached another 2 years gap one of the battery is going to die so expecting second one will follow soon so these batteries are really bad where as I've used my old Luminus batteries for almost 5 years without any issue.
So should I replace only single battery or replace both in pair? since it will easily cost me around 30k is there an alternate solution maybe lithium batteries but my casual search shows those are very expensive. I can go for them if its within 50k range else there is no point spending more.

P.S. my Inverter motherboard died as well so I had to replace with a new one so all 3 components have/had issues so I am confused if to buy complete setup or buy 2 batteries or just a single battery then wait till the next one dies.
The price on this website are good but should I piss my local dealer and go online? even though I had issues with the setup he gave me but i got good service from him when needed in last 4 years and now he knows I will buy atleast a battery if not full setup. https://www.batterybhai.com/search_...tateID_inner=3&frmSearchCity_Wheeler_Inner=56
 
Are you sure your batteries are not under warranty?. Some models of Exide comes with 48 months warranty.

I recently put inverter in my new home. It costed 36K for inverter (MIcrotek 2350) and 2*150Ah batteries (Microtek( together.

Batteries come with 4 years warranty while inverter has 2 years.
 
As per batterybhai website these comes with 3+2 year warranty but on the label its written 3 year replacement warranty so I assume its just 3 also the dealer says its 3 years (maybe he is trying to sell me a new setup). Can you confirm the model no. of your batteries and if possible the separate prices so I can further negotiate with the dealer.
 
I have an exide invatubular 150ah battery. It has 5 years warranty.
Please check the remaining warranty period of your batteries.

My guess is your inverter may had some fault in auto cutoff or trickle charging function, which lead to premature failure of your batteries.
 
gokul.ece22 said:
I have an exide invatubular 150ah battery. It has 5 years warranty.
Please check the remaining warranty period of your batteries.

My guess is your inverter may had some fault in auto cutoff or trickle charging function, which lead to premature failure of your batteries.
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These batteries comes with 3+2years warranty so for first 3 years you will get free replacement where as next 2 years you will have to pay and thats almost close to the price of new battery. My dealer did a calculation and to avail warranty I was spending just 2000 less then the new battery. Suppose the new battery is 13k then you end up paying around 11k and the warranty is calculated from original purchase date. He also told that this Pro Rata warranty discount is based on MRP and not the purchase amount so if you buy a battery for 13k the actual money you need to pay will be calculated based on MRP which is somewhere around 17k in this case. Check youtube video about Pro Rata warranty, its just @#$%.... you pay around 80% money and get warranty for just 1~1.5yr.

Yesterday I've called few dealers and the price for Luminous Battery 150 Ah ILTJ18148 is 13k (3.5k discount when I exchange with my existing battery) where as my dealer was asking 11k for the same (a difference of 1.5k so clearly he was taking me for a ride). Exide InvaMaster IMST1500 would cost 8.4k from another dealer (12k battery - 3.6k discount for old battery)
Now I am confused if it was the inverter which lead to premature failure of the batteries? Should I buy a new one instead?
 
My suggestion is to get tall tubular batteries as they will outlast the normal plate & short tubular batteries.Their added volume of the electrolyte helps in keeping the battery cool in our climatic conditions.
The average lifespan should be around five to six years or more depending on their maintenence.Do check the output voltage from the inverter,this should not exceed 14.5V at the maximum during charging.
 
chetansha said:
If you are going for total new setup, why dont you explore solar with hybrid inverter
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one of the battery needs to be replaced and another one will follow so I am left with inverter only, Any idea about solar setup cost? I know it will be higher but with benefits in long run. but shouldn't be too costly either.
 
Why not look into Li-ion based setup(cost will be higher, but no headache). For solar there are Li-ion based setup solutions available in India. APC have options of Li-ion based UPS not sure about availability.

When using PbAcid battery for a setup calculate the requirement at 50% capacity of battery. Ex if you need n AmpHour backup then your PbAcid battery should be atleast 2n AmpHour. Cause each time you discharge PbAcid battery to less than 50% you reduce it's global lifespan by some factor.

You can follow below guidelines for long lasting setup :
  • Always buy tall tubular batteries if possible, by design they will have better internals compared to short batteries.
  • Try to buy 36Volts or higher system(inverter cost will increase). The higher the battery voltage lesser the wear on the battery. I have used both 12V based system and 96V system using similar loads.
 
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kartikoli said:
one of the battery needs to be replaced and another one will follow so I am left with inverter only, Any idea about solar setup cost? I know it will be higher but with benefits in long run. but shouldn't be too costly either.
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I am in the market for an inverter setup now, thinking of solar as well. Please do share the options you are considering and the price, if possible.
 
kartikoli said:
So should I replace only single battery or replace both in pair?
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When we set up dual battery inverters in our house, Calibre Power technicians adviced us to use 2 new batteries, not 1 old and 1 new (we had an old one rom the older setup). We got some discount for one new battery in exchange with the old one
 
jtd3 said:
Yes definitely it pays off in the long run.
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Sadly there aren't any models that have 36month replacement warranty, mostly its some months + Pro Rata warranty for tall batteries.
valar007 said:
When we set up dual battery inverters in our house, Calibre Power technicians adviced us to use 2 new batteries, not 1 old and 1 new (we had an old one rom the older setup). We got some discount for one new battery in exchange with the old one
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Thanks for pointing out, I am also looking to go that road.

Yesterday I've called another guy (googled for Inverter dealers near my location with good ratings) and to my surprise his suggestion was completely opposite with what I've been told by my old dealer upto now. Its the inverter that is at fault the batteries are good with full 12V current when he checked, the old dealer is just trying to fool me to sell another set of batteries. He told that these batteries don't go bad in just couple of years they will last atleast 5~6 years so don't waste money on parts that are working great. Just 10 days back I've paid for inverter repair from the company so gave him a call and he promised to visit today or tomorrow.
 
kartikoli said:
Yesterday I've called another guy (googled for Inverter dealers near my location with good ratings) and to my surprise his suggestion was completely opposite with what I've been told by my old dealer upto now. Its the inverter that is at fault the batteries are good with full 12V current when he checked, the old dealer is just trying to fool me to sell another set of batteries. He told that these batteries don't go bad in just couple of years they will last atleast 5~6 years so don't waste money on parts that are working great.
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Always pays to get a second opinion. What he said makes sense. Wet batteries are more stress-tolerant than sealed batteries.

Did your old dealer even bother to come over and test the batteries?
kartikoli said:
Just 10 days back I've paid for inverter repair from the company so gave him a call and he promised to visit today or tomorrow.
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Keep us updated and let's see if this theory is right or not.
 
blr_p said:
Always pays to get a second opinion. What he said makes sense. Wet batteries are more stress-tolerant than sealed batteries.

Did your old dealer even bother to come over and test the batteries?

Keep us updated and let's see if this theory is right or not.
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Yes he came with his guy who tested both batteries and said that both have 12V so he tested himself, came up with slightly different reading 11.70 and 12.70 for both batteries and told me that one with low reading will go bad in just 2~3 months. He knows my job depends on constant power so I can't afford a power cut during that time. He gave me a solution that for these 2~3 months I will have to clean the terminals every 15 days and he will provide that service which is obviously very inconvenient as I will have to keep worrying when these batteries will fail.
Anyways I tried to call Microteck to register a complain but somehow the call get disconnected every time. I'll try again today.
 
kartikoli said:
Yes he came with his guy who tested both batteries and said that both have 12V so he tested himself, came up with slightly different reading 11.70 and 12.70 for both batteries and told me that one with low reading will go bad in just 2~3 months. He knows my job depends on constant power so I can't afford a power cut during that time. He gave me a solution that for these 2~3 months I will have to clean the terminals every 15 days and he will provide that service which is obviously very inconvenient as I will have to keep worrying when these batteries will fail.
Anyways I tried to call Microteck to register a complain but somehow the call get disconnected every time. I'll try again today.
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How do you maintain your battery terminals?
 
blr_p said:
How do you maintain your battery terminals?
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As I watched this method with lots of vehicle mechanic, I followed the same at home with my Exide IT500 single battery….which retired last weeks after providing backup for 10 years (installed 04/2012) - I read someone in this forum run the same battery for 12 years.

(1) use warm water (warm enough not able to touch by hand) to pour on top of battery terminal to clean the all paste like material if there is any,
(2) apply grease in both terminal, available at any auto spare parts shop. 150 to 200 + bucks for castrol brand tube.
(3) always top up distilled water once the level drop from any cell by looking at the floating stick indicator. Unbranded cost 60 bucks for 10 litres jarican.
 
jtd3 said:
Yes definitely it pays off in the long run.
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i dont think so. I consulted with the solar power dealers and i was told, the capacity of the panel should be more than 5kw to see some benefits on the electricity bill in the long run. Return on investment will take more than 5 years with that capacity. Expected cost was approx 1 lac per Kw totalling little over 5 lacs.

You also need good terrace space or empty ground without any shadows to get the maximum out of it during the day time.
 
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