[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by mithun

I'm in the lookout for a pure sine-wave UPS for my home.

I'm confused between Sukam Falcon+ & Zelio+ 1100 because both are having near to same features although Sukam wins by a slight margin.

My priorities are:

1. Product Quality
2. Service Support
3. Efficiency
4. Fuzz-free Ownership

Please help me to choose. I'm also open to other manufacturers.

I can also recommend the Exide inverters - they are also quite good. What I would recommend is that you go for an inverter like Sukam Brainy 1100Va which is also Solar capable. You can add solar panels later whenever possible!

[Thad E Ginathom]

For what it worth, my Zelio+ burnt out and had its main board replaced (under warranty) within a few months of purchase. I'd lke to say that it has been fine since then: Mostly, yes, but it very occasionally throws a hissy fit and just cuts the power output.

It looks smart.

[mithun]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

For what it worth, my Zelio+ burnt out and had its main board replaced (under warranty) within a few months of purchase. I'd lke to say that it has been fine since then: Mostly, yes, but it very occasionally throws a hissy fit and just cuts the power output.

It looks smart.

Shocked to hear about your incident.

I've heard that Luminous is not having the quality of the older APC Home UPS'es.

How is their A.S.S and how old is your UPS?

Originally Posted by Behemoth

I can also recommend the Exide inverters - they are also quite good. What I would recommend is that you go for an inverter like Sukam Brainy 1100Va which is also Solar capable. You can add solar panels later whenever possible!

Thanks for the advice. I'll add Exide inverter to my list.

[Thad E Ginathom]

I suppose I must have had my UPS more than a year now. The focus have happened two, maybe three, times.

Next time, I will buy something solar-ready, so I can add panels as and when I can afford them.

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

I'd lke to say that it has been fine since then: Mostly, yes, but it very occasionally throws a hissy fit and just cuts the power output.

It looks smart.

These days every gadget 'looks' smart. Appearances are deceptive. My Sukam inverter had conked off a couple of months ago and the Toll free phone number glued on the top didn't work.

One solar panel representative told me that they can fit a solar panel to any Inverter 12 V or 24 V. Solar panels come with a charger module which actually does the job of providing charging current to the battery. The inverter's mains charging circuit 'realizes' that the battery is fully charged and so reduces the charging to trickle mode in the presence of the Solar panel and sunshine.

[Thad E Ginathom]

A separate separate charger module is available to convert any inverter to solar. If buying new inverter, might add as well get built-in.

With Luminous, I was able to report fault online. Sounds like that beats Sukam with a customer-care line that doesn't work!

[manim]

Here is my new addition, a Luminous-Cruze 2kva with two Exide 200ah IM2000 batteries. It is mainly to run my fridge.

I'm still keeping my old nearly seven year old APC-BI850sine as an emergency standby.

I'm expecting trouble-free operation from Luminous. And expect prompt service from them in the event of any complaints.

[Thilak29]

This monsoon resulted in three burnouts among UPS (one standby and both Luminous branded). Are these highly prone to voltage surges? I've safety net of good earthing, fuse and MCBs and no other electric equipment took hit. I wonder what is wrong with inverter boards, should I add a surge protector?

[laluks]

Hey guys, a small pointer please. Off late we are having massive power cuts, and the inverters just die out. Was thinking of a portable generator to a generator that takes over on power cuts fully. My research is going in loops, if you guys have some prior notes to share with me it'd be helpful to narrow down.

One idea is to just get the lighting lines served, as our UPS. Max of 3 fans concurrently, plus a few LED lights. Our 1KVA UPS serves this okay, but since the power cut duration is getting longer, the battery getting fully charged is becoming an issue. So a portable one which can run for say at least a night, 8- 12 hours would be ideal. Is there anything auto switch on and off here?

Greed idea is to have auto switch over, but would like to know the investments for this too.

Any known guys in Bangalore to make a purchase will also be helpful.

[manim]

Originally Posted by laluks

Hey guys, a small pointer please. Off late we are having massive power cuts, and the inverters just die out. Was thinking of a portable generator to a generator that takes over on power cuts fully. My research is going in loops, if you guys have some prior notes to share with me it'd be helpful to narrow down.

I was looking at this earlier:
https://www.hondasielpower.com/product-detail/eu30is
And you are already an experienced 'Honda-guy'

Since power-cuts are not so long these days, I haven't bought one myself.
Thad had bought the higher kva model, I remember postings earlier on this thread.
https://www.hondasielpower.com/product-detail/eu70is

I thought power-cuts must be low in big cities like Bangalore.

[laluks]

Thanks manim. The honda ones are definitely in the list. I am trying to figure out if I am making a right direction.

This side of Bangalore has a peculiar problem due to industrial/domestic borders. hence the long cuts I guess. And once it rains, then god help us! Also in summers! UPS with higher AH batteries would do the trick, but what if I don't get enough duration of power to charge them in between the blackouts?

Still contemplating

[NPV]

Originally Posted by laluks

Still contemplating

Do you want to try renting a genset before you actually invest in buying one ? I have no idea if the portable mini gensets will be available as rentals, but you may want to give it a shot

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by laluks

... but what if I don't get enough duration of power to charge them in between the blackouts?

Have you thought... solar?

But one thing about the generator: when ours is running, then, among other things, it is also recharging the inverter battery.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by laluks

Hey guys, a small pointer please. Off late we are having massive power cuts, and the inverters just die out. Was thinking of a portable generator to a generator that takes over on power cuts fully. My research is going in loops, if you guys have some prior notes to share with me it'd be helpful to narrow down.

One idea is to just get the lighting lines served, as our UPS. Max of 3 fans concurrently, plus a few LED lights. Our 1KVA UPS serves this okay, but since the power cut duration is getting longer, the battery getting fully charged is becoming an issue. So a portable one which can run for say at least a night, 8- 12 hours would be ideal. Is there anything auto switch on and off here?

Greed idea is to have auto switch over, but would like to know the investments for this too.

Any known guys in Bangalore to make a purchase will also be helpful.

Please search the net for a generator of around 10KVA with auto mains switch.
https://wap.clickindia.com/listing.php?id=729
https://koelgreen.com/5-kva-125-kva
http://www.sunbeampower.com/dg/chott...ationery/10kVA

There are few drawbacks to a generator
1. Petrol ones are expensive to run, about Rs40+ per unit.
2. Diesel generators are good for 5KVA+, ideally 7-10KVA
3. Mains switch over are very expensive and cost as much as a small generator, so are viable only for larger sets.

All said and done, it would be financially more viable to
1. Increase the number of batteries (say from 100AH to 300AH), that will give you more duration
2. Boost the charging current of your UPS or get an external higher power charger and modify the charging circuit to either accommodate it or to fully bypass the internal charger.

You can also consider getting
1. A powerful charger
2. A standalone inverter
and configure an online UPS.

One thing to consider now a days is the excessive rainfall that results in flooding of low lying areas. So a generator or inverter is best situated high up in the building, preferably on the terrace and not in basement or ground floor.

[Thad E Ginathom]

I have thought about putting the generator on the terrace, but it works take some sort of crane to get it there. Would also have to build some shelter for it.

Yes, all that might be better than seeing it go under water