UPS/Inverter recommendation for 750-850W PC

[rsaeon]

There's something called "jerk load" (sounds so wrong lol).

The terms they come up with in this part of the world are hilarious while also somehow make perfect sense in relation to real world experiences — likely this one was based on automotive/bike situations where the clutch is released prematurely.

Inrush current - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

For mostly non-inductive loads like electronics, 25% looks to be the most recommended value. For fans, motors it's several times more (200% or more).

 

[i_am _greedy]

I went the inverter route purely on the basis of members saying their inverters worked fine during switchover from mains to battery. So after receiving my Luminous Eco Volt Neo 1550 today that was the first thing I went on to test. I am using a 220 Ah Genus TT battery which was purchased just a few days prior. My computer power supply is CoolerMaster MWE Gold 750 v2.

First I tested the UPS mode which worked fine the 2-3 times I tried and then went on to try my ECO mode, which handled the switchover too. I even tried it under load running furmark, so around 500W-ish the switchover works. Will update results of higher loads after more testing.

So the switchover works for my psu + inverter combo under my expected workloads (for now).

However another of my concern was the frequent voltage fluctuations that my locality faces. I didn't find much info about auto voltage regulation in inverters, so some of your experience with it would be helpful. My computer did end up restarting, which raises a few questions for me:

1. Could the inverter be defective since it didn't beep and switch to battery power?
- Additionally there is a high pitch humming noise(not loud) which doesn't stop even after the battery is fully charged, is that normal considering they advertise it as noiseless.
2. could adding a stabilizer solve the problem?

 

[enthusiast29]

1. Could the inverter be defective since it didn't beep and switch to battery power?
- Additionally there is a high pitch humming noise(not loud) which doesn't stop even after the battery is fully charged, is that normal considering they advertise it as noiseless.
2. could adding a stabilizer solve the problem?

I have luminous inverter too and during voltage spikes/burnouts the inverter switches to battery depending upon the mode you selected.
If on UPS then 180-260V and Eco 85-290V. Anything outside that will switch to battery until power source is stabilized.
Your reason of restart could be anything such as a transient high power draw to a lag in switch over time.

Hence if your work is critical UPS is always recommended over Inverter.

Cheap stabilizers don't really stabilize voltage as they also work on same cut-off principle. You need to find an AVR system. Voltage regulation system (which any UPS offers).
For me, best way was hooking up my UPS to the inverter.

 

[i_am _greedy]

I have luminous inverter too and during voltage spikes/burnouts the inverter switches to battery depending upon the mode you selected.

Yes, for some reason mine is not doing that. Which is a bit odd since it does the switchover during a full powercut fine, so why not during a voltage fluctuation?
It could be a faulty unit or the model is not equipped to handle voltage regulation scenario.

Have ruled out transient high power draw, since just on battery heavy loads don't cause any restarting.

Cheap stabilizers don't really stabilize voltage as they also work on same cut-off principle. You need to find an AVR system. Voltage regulation system (which any UPS offers).
For me, best way was hooking up my UPS to the inverter.

Yea was hoping stabilizers would work, might test it if I happen to find a spare. Ups + inverter seems to be the most accepted solution here. But strange why inverters don't just add a "proper" ups mode, not like they come cheap.

 

[enthusiast29]

Have ruled out transient high power draw, since just on battery heavy loads don't cause any restarting.

My Luminous Eco Volt Neo 1050 inverter was also able to handle my 750W PC (12400F and 3070 on full stress) when running on battery BUT it cannot do so when switching. Hence my reason to buy UPS.

Use the inverter on UPS mode so that the voltage range for cut-off is small and how are you making sure you're getting the voltage fluctuations you say? Do you have a multimeter or anything always hooked up?

Inverters don't add proper UPS mode because they're not UPS and are meant for normal household electrical load which are not sensitive to voltage fluctuations or need super clean power.

 

[Emperor]

just off topic ...

someone told me that Inverter power degrade life span of ALL ELECTRICAL GADAGETS (AC/Fridge/Computer/Fan/Lights/Speakers/Mobile on charging etc. etc.) in long term, is it true?

 

[Aman1829]

just off topic ...

someone told me that Inverter power degrade life span of ALL ELECTRICAL GADAGETS (AC/Fridge/Computer/Fan/Lights/Speakers/Mobile on charging etc. etc.) in long term, is it true?

no... not at all... but make sure you use a good quality inverter and battery and yes also the fluctuations should be not very frequently...other than that no issue i suppose

just off topic ...

someone told me that Inverter power degrade life span of ALL ELECTRICAL GADAGETS (AC/Fridge/Computer/Fan/Lights/Speakers/Mobile on charging etc. etc.) in long term, is it true?

Not any worse than normal wear & tear over the years so in short, no.

https://www.flipkart.com/luminous-lb1000-pro-ups/p/itm813db98cb7e97?pid=UPSFTPHK5HMCYETY&lid=LSTUPSFTPHK5HMCYETYFPXAVC

using this for so long...i think this will be sufficient for u

 

[vishalrao]

@i_am _greedy check if your inverter has a "turbo" button to enable? From what I understand online docs it maintains better voltage levels on battery mode but I don't know if it helps with power fluctuations.

 

[i_am _greedy]

Use the inverter on UPS mode so that the voltage range for cut-off is small and how are you making sure you're getting the voltage fluctuations you say? Do you have a multimeter or anything always hooked up?

I didn't measure it with a multimeter or anything, there is a chance I am wrong. Who knows maybe it is my gpu or psu even, unlikely though since both are quite new. Voltage fluctuation seemed most likely, since in winters/holidays my computer works fine, it is worst during the evenings and then gets better at night. So yea, not very conclusive. Anyway thanks for your inputs.

check if your inverter has a "turbo" button to enable? From what I understand online docs it maintains better voltage levels on battery mode but I don't know if it helps with power fluctuations.

There is no turbo mode, infact there is nothing apart from the battery type selector. There should be a battery charging rate switch right? Or can inverters figure that out themselves now.

 

[guest_999]

Bug in forum? @puns

 

[rsaeon]

I went the inverter route purely on the basis of members saying their inverters worked fine during switchover from mains to battery.

There's a little detail to look out for that I learned of recently. If the inverter uses a mosfet for the switchover, it's near-instantaneous. If it uses a relay, there's a delay. It's easy enough to find out which is being used by looking at repair videos on youtube, and also by listening — if you hear a loud click on switchover, it uses a relay. Some luminous models use a mosfet, others use a relay.

However another of my concern was the frequent voltage fluctuations that my locality faces.

There's a 'low-tech' way to deal with fluctuations, I oversize my power supplies. I'm able to do this since most of my systems consume under 100w on average (no gpu) so they all have 450W power supplies. I have one system that draws 150W, it has a 650W power supply. I'm assuming the larger capacitors in the larger power supplies help smooth out most fluctuations.

There have been times when we were stuck at high voltage for a few hours, forcing the inverter to run on battery. For those situations, I got a mainline stabilizer.

But the best option for fluctuations, as @enthusiast29 pointed out, is to get a UPS with AVR and connect that with an inverter for longer backup times.

just off topic ...

someone told me that Inverter power degrade life span of ALL ELECTRICAL GADAGETS (AC/Fridge/Computer/Fan/Lights/Speakers/Mobile on charging etc. etc.) in long term, is it true?

That was true in the olden days (say ten years ago) when appliances relied on pure-sine wave input and most of the affordable inverters were square-wave.

These days, if the appliance has a display of any kind, it doesn't care if it receives a square-wave or sine-wave. If has a motor or compressor, it might need a sine-wave input. Most new ACs and Fridges do some kind of rectification for better efficiency, so they're okay with square-wave input. BLDC fans also don't need a sine-wave input.

But then most new inverters sold today around the 5K range are sine-wave.

 

[guest_999]

But then most new inverters sold today around the 5K range are sine-wave.

A small correction, they are not pure sine wave but simulated sine wave.

 

[Emperor]

That was true in the olden days (say ten years ago) when appliances relied on pure-sine wave input and most of the affordable inverters were square-wave.

These days, if the appliance has a display of any kind, it doesn't care if it receives a square-wave or sine-wave. If has a motor or compressor, it might need a sine-wave input. Most new ACs and Fridges do some kind of rectification for better efficiency, so they're okay with square-wave input. BLDC fans also don't need a sine-wave input.

But then most new inverters sold today around the 5K range are sine-wave.

with sorry to OP as again continued with off-topic as this may be somewhat related to original post/query also.

We at home have all appliances/Computer/Regular Ball-Bearing Ceiling Fan/Monitor/Mixer/Speaker etc. are 5-10 yrs. old.

Adani Electricity starts marking for MAJOR cable replacing work (new cable to supply heavy load/extra power to whole area/complex) and as per some workers there may be frequent or too much power cut going on while cable replacing/load testing work till monsoon.

So to avoid any damage to Refrigerator, Computer System/Monitor, Speaker, LED/Conventional Tublights, Bulbs & Ball-Bearing Fans and also to manage keep fans running in coming hot summer days ahead, any particular suggestion to buy Inverter + Battery Pack for back-up?

 

[Heisen]

A small correction, they are not pure sine wave but simulated sine wave.

Exactly.

Simulated sinewave is not considered the best for the products, it does create more heat in the rectifiers. Although they do work fine, but personally I don't like it knowing the nature of the wave.

 

[rsaeon]

That is true @Heisen @guest_999 which is why I mentioned the price bracket:

But then most new inverters sold today around the 5K range are sine-wave.

Because this is what I'm seeing on Amazon:



The simulated sine-wave and square-wave models are usually under 3k, some under 4k, some as low as 1500 for really small capacities like 250VA.

Physical stores will have much lower prices. Especially when you're buying second-hand — I usually see bundles of a pure sine-wave inverter with a 100AH battery for around 6k to 8k. Inverters are easily repaired and lead acid batteries have predictable chemistries so there's very little to lose when you're buying tested/used setups from a physical store.

 

[guest_999]

Because this is what I'm seeing on Amazon:

I am doubting those results as some models like sukam don't even exist anymore. Only that luminous eco volt neo looks a bit reliable. Amazon product description is not always accurate.

 

[rsaeon]

The Sukam is likely old stock, I had that exact model some years ago and it's the best inverter I've ever owned. Inverters are easily repaired by roadside technicians, just like UPS's, so I wouldn't hesitate to buy something used or out of warranty. Repairs, if needed, are usually between 50 to 250 rupees. I've never needed to repair inverters over the years, just UPSs.

Livguard is a brand of Exide, so it's not like an unknown brand with questionable marketing:



However, the Microtek is a little suspicious:



Technology usually becomes more affordable over the years, and you can buy DIY sine-wave controller for only a few hundred rupees these days:

https://robu.in/product/egs002-eg8010-ir2113-dc-ac-spwm-pure-sine-wave-inverter-module/

Something like that would need a supporting PCB with mosfets and relays, along with a transformer:

DIY Cheap 1000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter (12V to 110V/220V)

DIY Cheap 1000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter (12V to 110V/220V): Car batteries for powering you home? Build a low cost 12V to 220V (DC-AC) Pure Sine Wave Inverter from scratch! The project is based on the low cost EGS002 SPWM driver board module. The DIY inverter board can handle up to 1kW (depending...

www.instructables.com

So it's not unheard of a commercial sine-wave inverter being around 5000, if DIY ones can be done at half of that.

 

[guest_999]

Inverters are easily repaired by roadside technicians, just like UPS's,

Until their motherboard goes bad & then replacement will never be as good as original unless taken out from another dead unit of same model (experienced by a friend's relative recently).

 

[anmolbhard004]

@vishalrao which inverter have turbo mode??

 

[Abhi_Mahant]

What about this?

Exide Integra - An Enhanced Power Backup Solution

I bought it for around 34000 around 1 year earlier.