Update as of 30-August, 2009:
+++
It’s been 2.5 years now since we purchased the Inverter. In summary, no problems so far.
The local battery (Alight - 1F100 of 100 AH capacity) did not last for more than 2 years. I had to go for a replacement. This time I’ve decided to go for TATA Green batteries of 135 AH capacity - which means, more back-up time (approximately 7-8 hours on 25% (out of 500W) power consumption and roughly 3-4 hours at 75%.
It’s been 3 months now and things are looking good. As for the APC Inverter (HI800SQ), I’ve never had any issues so far. I should say that we’ve been particularly good at maintenance and probably that’s the reason why there are no issues. Do ensure periodic/regular maintenance and you should have no problems with it.
Update as on March, 2007:
++++++
I just got the APC inverter (Model # HI800SQ) installed in my house. My father and me are both Cricket-crazy and both of us were looking for a solution to get over the frequent power cuts in our locality. I did my research; I read through the reviews (of APC, Luminuous etc...) at MouthShut and also met a few dealers in the city (Bangalore). At the end of our exercise, we decided that APC was the one for us.
In addition, I’ve been using an APC UPS for my computer for 4 years now; except for 1 minor repair of the battery, it’s working absolutely fine. Importantly, APC’s service is quite laudable -- they’re a good lot and show concern for customer’s problems. This is my experience when I got the APC UPS repaired from them.
The Inverter (HI800SQ) + Battery cost me Rs 11, 500/-. In addition to this, the electrician who’d come to install the inverter checked the wiring in my house and informed me that the wiring was poorly done by the previous electrician (circuit-wise connections were not done and all loads were on one point) -- this needed some repair work. He had to separate the loads (Fan + Lights + TV into one and Geyser + Fridge + Washing Machines into another one). For the wiring work, it took him 2 complete days and he charged me Rs 3000/- (material + labor). So, the total cost of the APC Inverter installation was Rs 14, 500/-. You probably don’t have to worry about the wiring if the electrician of your house did a decent job.
In the end, the APC electrician would connect the Inverter’s INPUTS and OUTPUTS to your mains so that when the mains are off, the Inverter switches to the back-up power supply of the battery. When the mains are back on, the inverter automatically switches to the power supply from the mains.
The electrician has connected all the lightning points (about 16 Light points), 4 Fan points and 2 TVs for the inverter to supply back-up power to these points when the mains are off. The total back-up power that the inverter can supply from the battery is 500 Watts -- you can easily run 1 TV, 4 Lights (23W CFL lights) and 1 Fan for a couple of hours. If you cut down on the load and have only 1 TV, 2 Lights (23W) and 1 Fan on, you can extend that to about 3-4 hours. Please note that, these are my own rough estimates -- experts might give you better inputs. Based on how you load the inverter, you can extend the back-up power supplied by the battery to a maximum of 7.5 hours.
A few important points to note:
The Inverter hardly makes any noise -- the only feeble noise it makes is that of the fan that is there inside the Inverter to keep the components cool.
You have an "AWAY" mode that you can use to disable the inverter and preserve the battery charge when you’re away for a long time (on vacations perhaps). This will ensure that when the power is off and you’re not around in the house, the inverter does not supply back-up power to your equipments -- it instead preserves the charge of the battery. Once you’re back, you can again switch it back to the "HOME" mode and enable the inverter.
The load on the inverter is indicated by easy-to-understand LEDs on the front panel of the inverter. It indicates 25% when you have 25% load on the inverter (normally, a couple of Lights). It indicates 50% when you have 50% load on the inverter (normally, a couple of Lights + TV), so on and so forth.
Incase the load on the inverter is greater than the maximum load it can take (500W), the inverter beeps for 20 seconds when the mains are off. This will give you the time to switch off the additional loads on the inverter and once you bring it down to < 500W, the inverter automatically adjusts itself. Incase you don’t manage to control the load in time, the inverter switches off. You can then switch off some of the heavier loads and keep only the absolutely needed points ON and then power ON the inverter again by using a "Push to Reset" button at the back of the Inverter. You need to keep this button pushed for a while until you hear a blip and then release it.
Incase there’s a problem with the Inverter and you need to take the equipment to the service center, you can connect the INPUT and OUTPUT wiring connections (you’ll know what it is when the electrician arrives at your house to install the inverter) together and bypass the inverter to run your house on power from the mains, until you get the inverter repaired. Once it is again working fine, you can make the necessary connections again and there are no hassles here -- the connections are quite easy to identify and you will not go wrong since it’s fool-proof.
The battery that I opted for is a local one -- "Alight - 1F100" Inverter Battery. This one’s a good battery and in the electrician’s opinion, I believe it’s better than the branded ones, such as AMCO. The inverter works with any of the Inverter batteries and is not limited by the brand of the battery since it’s an externalized connection.
Advice: Ensure to get all points clarified from the electrician who’s at your house and ensure to understand all operations clearly.
In summary, I’m totally satisfied and I feel good that I don’t have to worry about the power cuts when my elderly parents are at home and I’m away.
The APC Inverter is definitely a worthy investment to mitigate the power problems in our country. Go for it -- you’ll feel the difference.