Why use distilled water for inverter battery?

Maintenance of inverter battery

Inverter battery has internal plates that are covered with water, which makes it work. During operation, water goes through chemical reaction and breaks down into hydrogen and oxygen gas. These gases evaporate from battery and with time water level drops. This way plates remain no longer covered with water. In order to keep the battery perform efficiently, it is important to use distilled water for inverter battery.

Why use distilled water for inverter battery?

Water from faucets, wells and other natural resources usually has dissolved minerals, salts and impurities. These minerals and salts fill the pores and form a layer on the plates, affecting the normal electro-chemical reaction that generates power in the battery. Presence of such chemical ions may drastically reduce the lifespan of the battery. Filtering tap water merely removes the suspended matter but not the dissolved minerals and non-ionic compounds. Advanced filters like ion-exchange or activated carbon filters remove most of the ionic and larger non-ionic compounds leaving smaller molecules in solution.

Distilled water contains no dissolved minerals, salts, organic and in-organic compounds that may harm the battery. Therefore battery manufacturers recommend distilled water for better performance and longer battery life.

Where to buy distilled water for the batteries?

You could check your local markets or order distilled water on Amazon :-

  1. EUSURE Distilled water- 5 ltr 
  2. Disto Pure – Distilled Water 99.9% pure (5 Liter) Water for Battery, Inverter 
  3. Shloka sales Distilled water 99% pure Water for Battery, inverter (5 ltr) 
  4. Spirit distilled water 99% pure 5 ltr 

Can RO water be used in battery?

Reverse osmosis is a different process from distillation. RO water is also considered mineral-free like distilled water. The process of reverse osmosis removes all kinds of unwanted impurities, salts and ions from water, making it fit for human consumption. Regular service and maintenance of RO keeps the hardness, pH and TDS under permissible limit.

Many inverter service centers use and suggest RO water for the battery top up, but they keep a check on TDS level, hardness and pH of water used to ensure that battery function is not hampered. But it is always recommended to use distilled water for your inverter batteries.

Too late to realize the impact of using tap water in batteries? Don’t worry, below are some great batteries available on Amazon through good sellers:

  1. LUMINOUS RC 25000 200AH TUBULAR BATTERY 
  2. LUMINOUS RC 18000 150 AH Tall Tubular Battery 
  3. V-Guard VJ145 135AH Flat Tubular Inverter Battery 
  4. Exide Powersafe 65AH SMF Battery 
  5. Amaron Inverter 150Ah Tall Tubular Battery
  6. EXIDE INDUSTRIES 150Ah Insta Brite Inverter Ups Battery 
  7. OKAYA HT 7048 (150AH) Tall Tubular Inverter Battery

For more ideas on inverter battery maintenance, read 8 useful tips to take care of your inverter battery

(Cover Picture Source: www.wikihow.com)

You might also like

13 Comments

  1. 1

    This post provides valuable information on why it is important to use distilled water for inverter batteries. The explanation of how impurities in tap water can affect battery performance and lifespan is enlightening. The suggestions for buying distilled water and compatible batteries are helpful for readers.

  2. 2

    We recently bought an Amaron Solar battery. It arrived fully charged with no need to add distilled water. I am concerned that the battery is not good as once the sun sets it seems to be not holding power and the inverter red light is coming on. Last night the warning siren also came on. Is it normal for a new battery to arrive fully charged? In the past when I bought a new battery they filled up the distilled water at my home.

  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5

    Using distilled water is recommended because it is free from additional minerals you would find in water such as regular tap water. Adding chemicals and minerals can significantly decrease the life of batteries. That is why it is recommended to use distilled water in batteries.

  6. 6
  7. 7
    • 8

      I have never shut down my inverter for distilled water filling. However from a safety perspective, it’s always recommended to pull transmission side cable and switch off Inverter/UPS

  8. 9
  9. 10

    Inverter batteries has internal plates that are covered with water, which makes it work. During operation, water goes through chemical reaction and breaks down into hydrogen and oxygen gas. These gases evaporate from battery and with time water level drops. This way plates remain no longer covered with water. In order to keep the battery perform efficiently, it is important to top it up with distilled water. Check the water level regularly and add distilled water only when necessary. To know the water level in the inverter battery, we can use a float indicator to find the water level. Fix the float to the inverter battery at its allocated space before connecting the battery to the UPS. Never add simple water to your battery as it contains minerals that will reduce the battery capacity and increase its self discharge rate. Neither should you add acid. Use only distilled or de-ionized water to achieve the recommended electrolyte levels.

  10. 11
  11. 12
  12. 13

    Inverter battery is essential needs for home,because without power backup we can’t spend more time in home. Time to time we try to change water in inverter battery for long life performance.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>