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Technical FAQ/Help

Need Assistance?
Feel free tocontact usshould your questions not be answered on this page. We understand that this technology is not fully understood by the general public and we are more than happy to offer you professional advice via phone or email.


What Warrantee Do I Get on My Purchase?
Please view our product warrantee here.

Why Not a Generator?
üNo Fuel
üNo Noise
üNo Fumes
üNo Maintenance
üAutomatic and Safe

I'm Not Sure What Equipment I Need. How Do I Work it Out?
If you would prefer some professional advice please contact us via email or telephone. If you would like to work it out yourself you need to look at your situation and make some decisions on what equipment you need backup for. Some people want EVERYTHING to work, some are happy with their TV,  DSTV and a couple of lamps.
Ask yourself the following question to decide which range and size you require;

a) What kind of System do I Want?
Do I want the Plug and Play option which I can directly plug my appliances into? The alternative is a larger Inverter and battery bank that you can have installed to your distribution board by an electrician. This can then supply backup power to certain parts of the house. For more info seedifferencesbetween the Inverex Inverter, PS Units and Inversine Inverter;

b) How many watts do I need to provide for in total?

Decide what equipment you wish to have backup for e.g. TV, Decoder, 2 Lamps etc.. then add up how many watts each item uses. Most electronic items will have the watts (or amps) printed on the back or within the manual. If not, you can consult the generalised table for guidance. If you have the amps, simply multiply by 240 to get the watts. If you have a number with a ‘VA’ – this is the same as watts.

Be aware that many types of equipment have a peak/surge requirement. For Example, TVs can require up to 3 times their normal requirement to start up. This peak requirement should be considered when calculating backup size. Consult the
General Power Requirement Tablefor guidelines.

c) How long do I want this backup to last for?

You need to aim to have an hour or two longer than the average power cut. This will ensure your batteries have a good lifespan and it will also give you that extra backup for when you need it. You can consult the backup time table to work out what you need. Remember that a TV that needs 300W to startup may only draw about 100W thereafter. A PC that needs 200W-300W to startup may only use 100w-150w thereafter. Therefore you should consider the average draw when calculating backup time.

Do I Need Pure Sine or Modified Sine Wave Power?

Pure sine wave inverters offer perfect power just like the power that comes from the mains. Modified Sine Wave power is slightly different but manages to fool most equipment successfully. Unfortunately there are some very poor quality modified sine wave inverters on the market. The cheaper variety provide ‘unclean’ power which is not recommended for your appliances. These inverters are OK for camping and watching TV on the odd occasion, but for more regular use it is advisable to invest in a better quality inverter.

The Inverex and PS Units provide modified sine wave power. However, this is a very good quality modified sine wave and should not be compared to the cheaper modified sine wave inverters which cause noise and lines to appear when used with TV’s and PCs. The Inverex  / PS Units work well with PCs, Printers, TVs, Decoders, DVD players, VCRs, Fans, Lights, Garage Doors, Electric Gates, Domestic Fridges/Freezers, Point of Sale Tills, Security Systems and Card Machines.

It is not advisable to use the Inverex / PS Units to run a motor such as a (pool pump) for extended periods. Medical equipment, certain lights, and other sensitive equipment may not work well on the Inverex / PS Units. In all cases the user should check with the equipments manufacturer to be sure as we cannot make recommendations on specific equipment. There are just too many types of electronic equipment, makes and models for us to be able to know about all of them!

How long will the backup last for?

Consult thebackup time tableto workout backup times.

What is the best kind of battery for backup power?

There is much confusion about battery types and uses. Many so called ‘experts’ are also mislead or uninformed and do not always offer the best advice. Deep Cycle batteries have thicker more solid lead plates and therefore offer the durability that is required when using a battery for long periods. Remember that when a battery is used in a car – it is used for very short periods for starting only. Also important to remember is that many backup systems are / were designed for the odd / occational power cut that did not last for very long. This is known as a ‘standby’ application. In these cases a High Cycle battery would suffice. However, were power cuts are frequent and lengthly (1hr+), this is known as a ‘cyclic’ application and in this case High Cycle batteries will not offer the same life span as a Deep Cycle.

What about installation?
Intellipowers
Intellipowers with 2 or less batteries do not need professional installation. Anyone can connect their appliances to the Unit. If you would like to connect more than one item to the unit you will need a multiple adaptor (just like you need when you have only one wall socket). For lights, you can plug in lamps.

Intellipowers with more than 2 batteries are too heavy to move safely once assembled and thus must be assembled on site. We can do this for you with a call out fee or you can have a suitably qualified electrician/wiresman do this for you.

You can also opt to have the Intellipowers connected to your distribution board. This must be done by a suitably experienced and qualified electrician. This will allow you to have backup for your built in lights.

Inverters on their own
Inverters need to be connected with a battery or batteries as well as with the equipment you wish to run. This takes some know how to connect but most men would manage this connection fine. The cables are not included so make sure you order those along with the batteries and or cabinets. You can also order complete battery banks that include everything. You may need to use an adaptor to plug into the unit as the socket is the universal type. If you would like to connect more than one item to the unit you will need a multiple adaptor (just like you need when you have only one wall socket). For lights, you can plug in lamps or have the unit connected to the light circuit on your DB Board.

NB:
Inverters larger than 3kVA
These must be connected to your distribution board. This must be done by a suitably experienced and qualified electrician. Your electrician will discuss with you which sockets and lights to backup in your home / office and set it up accordingly. You will need to have a suitable area to mount the inverter and store the battery bank.

Volts, Amps, Watts, VA, Ah – Terms Explained
AC
Alternating Current. This is the type of electricity that we receive in our homes.
DC
Direct Current. This is the type of electricity you get from a battery.
Volt
The Volt can be described as the speed that electricity flows at. In SA we get 220-240V AC power supply. In the USA they get 110-120V AC power supply. The type of batteries we use for backup power supply are 12V DC power.
Amp
Ampere. This is the strength of the current.
VA
This is simply Volts x Amps. E.g. You have an appliance that needs 1.5 amps at 240V. This appliance will need 1.5x240=360VA.
Watt
This is the VA which has been affected by efficiency. VA x Power Factor = Watts. If the power factor is 0.6, and the VA is 2000, then the Watts is 2000 x 0.6 = 1200Watts. Power factor can vary from 0.1 to 1.
kVA
This is 1000 VA.
kW
This is 1000 watts.
A/h
Amps / Hour. This is a measure used to indicate how much power a battery can supply. The A/h rating is generally given from the performance of a battery over a 20 hour period. Unfortunately even if a 100Ah battery can give 100 Amps / hour over a 20 hour period, it does not mean it will give the same performance over shorter periods of 3-4 hours for example. All batteries are different. We have a battery backup time table that can be consulted to determine how many hours backup can be expected at certain loads.

How Can I Get Technical Data on all the Products?
Technical Info is available in most of the product descriptions on this website.  If you need any product specs/brochures that you cannot find on this site, please contact us.
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