Your Emergency Power Inverter Buying Guide

Before diving into the advantages of using emergency lighting inverters, this guide will touch on basics including what inverters are, how they work, where they’re used, what they replace, and what some of their features are. If you’re already well-versed in this information, please feel free to skip ahead to sections on the advantages inverters have over traditional emergency units and other systems, the various inverters e-conolight offers, and inverter options.

Introduction

Power outages have increased dramatically in the U.S. – both in their number of occurrences and their duration – in recent years. Extreme weather is the main culprit, producing some 83% of blackouts. This includes hurricanes, tornadoes, other severe storms, high winds, flooding, ice, and excessively hot and cold temperatures.

Other causes include animals making contact with electrical equipment and chewing on wires, falling trees and limbs, traffic accidents, construction, vandalism, and even planned outages.

Keeping lights functioning at all times is a high priority for many businesses and homeowners. Backup power systems are essential for uninterrupted electricity flow, and many people have found that emergency inverters are the best solution for lighting needs during outages.

First let’s take a look at what inverters are, where they’re used, and how they work.

Inverters – What, Where & How

What: Inverters provide emergency power for both indoor and outdoor lighting during a power outage. They are smaller versions of AC power systems.

Where: Anywhere emergency lighting is needed, inverters can be used. This includes offices, schools, stores, warehouses, storage facilities, construction sites, campgrounds, and many others.

How: A simple explanation of how emergency inverters work is this: they convert battery DC power to AC power for use in AC loads.

What Inverters Replace

Emergency power inverters are excellent replacements for:

• Traditional emergency units
• Battery back-up ballasts
• Emergency generators
• AC power systems
• Hazardous environment emergency fixtures

Features Offered by Inverters

Emergency power inverters offer a wide variety of features that make them more efficient than other backup systems. Those features include:

• Pulse width modulation
• Soft start to eliminate high inrush currents
• Full light output of connected load
• When calculating load, it’s important to maintain the inverter’s full rating
• I/O connectors will fit 12-gauge wire
• Higher efficiency with smaller footprint for the same output power over competition
• Meets UL 924 (Section 28.1) requirement for derangement signal
• Surface, recessed or grid mounting available

Emergency Power Inverter Solutions From e-conolight

e-conolight offers a variety of emergency and general lighting inverters that keep lighting systems operational during power outages. They help large and small spaces remain illuminated and safe.

Here are two examples of e-conolight products in the High Wattage category:

C-Lite High Wattage Emergency Power Inverter System | C-INV Series

• Surface Mount
• Provides 1150W for 90 Minutes
• 120V or 277V
• Priced at $4,599.99

C-Lite High Wattage Emergency Power Inverter System | C-INV Series

• Surface Mount Four Output Circuit Switching
• Provides 750W for 90 Minutes
• 120V or 277V
• Priced at $3,199.99

Here are two examples of e-conolight products in the Standard Wattage category:

C-Lite Emergency Power Inverter System | C-INV Series

• Surface Mount
• Provides 20W for 90 Minutes
• 120V or 277V
• Priced at $449.99

C-Lite Emergency Power Inverter System | C-INV Series

• Surface Mount
• Provides 220W for 90 Minutes
• 120V or 277V
• Priced at $999.99

Advantages Over Traditional Emergency Units

Among the advantages emergency power inverters have over traditional emergency units are:

• Easy to install and maintain
• Improves aesthetics of the space by eliminating unsightly units and combos
• Lower ownership costs

Advantages Over Battery Backup Ballasts/Drivers

Advantages emergency power inverters have over battery backup ballasts/drivers include:

• Unlike ballast drivers, inverters can be mounted with a distance up to 1,000 feet
• Inverters provide full lighting output of the fixture and multiple fixtures can be run from one inverter, as long as the connected fixtures don’t exceed the total wattage of the inverter
• Only one point of installation and maintenance needed

Advantages Over AC Power Systems

Emergency power inverters have a number of advantages over AC power systems, such as:

• Smaller input and reduced costs
• Switching capacity
• No factory start-up costs
• No paid maintenance plan needed to sustain your warranty
• Replacement parts are less costly and easily available

Code Compliance

Maintaining compliance with local codes is essential for emergency power inverter users. Among them are:

• All models are UL924 listed and meet NFPA 101 Life Safety Code, NEC, OSHA, local and state codes. Optional T-grid models are plenum rated to UL2043 and meet City of Chicago CCEA requirements.
• UL listed for damp locations (200C-300C)
• FCC Part 15 Class B compliant
• Unit: (excluding lamps) Full coverage against defects in materials and workmanship for 3 years from date of shipment
• Battery: 3-year full warranty plus an additional 7 years of prorated coverage

Inverter Options

The following is a list of inverter options:

• AO – 0-10V bypass or adjustable load output (2.5, 5.0, 7.5 or 10 volt). Two dip switches allow two different settings on one load (55W-125, 110W-125, 110W-250, 220W-250, 375W, and 600W only
• 4C – 4 individually switched loads can be operated as switched, normally-on, normally-off or any combination (55W-125, 110W-125, 110W-250, 220W-250, 375W, and 600W only
• 4AO – Combines 4C and AO options to accommodate 4-line voltage devices or four 0-10V dimmers with adjustable output, or a combination of both (375W and 600W only)
• RTS – Remote test switch (20W, 32W, 35W, 55W, 55W-125, 110W-125, 110W-250, 220W-250 only)
• SDT – Self-testing/self-diagnostics
• SP – Special housing color

Conclusion

Emergency power inverters are crucial to keep the flow of electricity going during power outages that are occurring with increasing frequency. We hope this guide will help in your decision regarding which inverter to acquire for your needs. You’ll find our pricing very competitive. But to tip the scales even more in your favor, take an additional 10% off^* simply by becoming an e-cono+® loyalty program member! It's absolutely free to join!

Here's to your bright future!

*Excludes clearance products, poles and bullhorns, T8 tubes and Cree Lighting® Noctura® Series. All returned items must be new and include their original packaging. Light poles and bullhorns are custom made and cannot be canceled or returned. Discontinued and Clearance products cannot be returned.