There are many types, sizes, brands, and models of inverters and batteries. Choosing which ones are best to be used to accommodate your needs & budget can be overwhelming. There is no such thing the “best” inverter or battery for all purposes. What may be best for a house may not be what is best to be used in a caravan!
Many factors can be in play when selecting an inverter and batteries. Questions like – are these going to be used in conjunction with solar panels, must the inverter have a charger incorporated or will the batteries be charged independently as well as the type of equipment and appliances to be powered, will all make an impact when choosing an inverter and batteries.
E4Electrical is able to source and supply many different brands, types, sizes and makes of inverters and batteries to suit every need.
Some of the brands of inverters we can supply include the following:
- Victron
- Rentech
- Sungrow
- Luxpower
- Deye
We are able to supply batteries in sealed Lithium Ion Phosphate (LifePO4). We cannot supply lead based batteries like Lead Gel, Lead Acid, Lead Carbon, etc, as we do not get covering guarantees for these by the manufacturers/importers when this type of battery is used to support load shedding power backups.
Freedom Won Lithium
Rentech Lithium
Pylontech Lithium
There are three different types of inverter, classified in terms of their electrical wave form that they produce at 230volts AC. Each one of these will have its own “best-suited-to” applications. Below is a brief explanation of the three different types of inverter.
- Pure Sine Wave Inverter
A sine wave is what you get from your local municipality (or ESKOM) power and from generators. This is because the power is generated by rotating AC machinery and sine waves are a natural product of rotating AC machinery. The major advantage of a pure sine wave inverter is that ALL of the 230 volt AC equipment which is sold is designed for a sine wave. This guarantees that the equipment will work to its full specifications. Some appliances, such as those with motors, as well as microwave ovens will only produce full output with sine wave power. Some appliances, such as bread makers, light dimmers, will not work at all if there is no sine wave power driving it! An important thing to note here is that Pure Sine wave inverters are always more expensive than others – possibly as much as 2 to 3 times higher priced. - Modified Sine Wave Inverter
A modified sine wave inverter actually has a waveform more like a square wave, but with an extra step or so. A modified sine wave inverter will work fine with most equipment, although the efficiency or power will be reduced with some. Motors, such as refrigerator motor, pumps, fans etc will use more power from the inverter due to lower efficiency. Appliances with electronic timers and/or digital clocks will often not operate correctly. Many appliances get their timing from the line power – basically, they take the 60 Hz (cycles per second) and divide it down to 1 per second or whatever is needed. Because the modified sine wave is noisier and rougher than a pure sine wave, clocks and timers may run faster or not work at all. Something like variable speed drills will only have two speeds – on and off. - Square Wave Inverter
There are very few of these in the market these days and when you can find them they are usually quite cheap. E4Electrical does NOT recommend the use of this type of inverter.
Investing in an inverter and proper batteries is not a decision that should be made in haste. There are many questions that you need to ask around your needs and a correctly matched solution needs to be selected.
The staff of E4Electrical are trained and are able to assist you in making the decision on which inverter and batteries to invest in, to suit your needs and budget. Please visit us or contact us so we can advise you further.