A Voltage Stabilizer System is an electrical appliance that is used to feed voltage constantly to various electrical devices and prevent those gadgets from fluctuating voltage. The power supply may be erratic at most places, with voltage fluctuating in both directions up and down. These voltage fluctuations can damage appliances. When the voltage goes down, the electric current in the appliance increases, which can result in the burning of the appliance.
Voltage stabilizer systems are expected to be majorly used in building automation, HVAC systems, and communication systems. AC voltage stabilizers are classified into different types such as Coil rotation AC voltage regulators, electromechanical regulators and Constant-voltage transformers.
There is a marked difference between voltage stabilizer and voltage regulator. A voltage stabilizer is a device or circuit which is designed to deliver constant voltage to the output without changes in incoming voltage while Voltage Regulator is a device or circuit which is designed to deliver constant voltage to the output without changes in load current.
Voltage stabilizers also consume power. The electricity consumption of voltage stabilizers depends on the efficiency of the stabilizer. Typically they are 95-98% efficient. This means they consume about 2-5% of the maximum load. So if you have a 1 kVA (or 1000 VA) stabilizer, it would consume about 50 Watts (on peak load).
Sometimes a common question comes to mind is, does Voltage stabilizers increase Electricity Bill? The answer is No. Electrical Input = Output + Losses. If Losses rise for the same output, we require more input power to our equipment, so that we end up spending more on losses.
We come across the term automatic voltage stabilizer also known as an Automatic Voltage Regulator (AVR) or Voltage Regulator (VR). An Automatic Voltage Stabilizer (AVS) stabilizes the mains power supply voltage to a load. It is a feature of Line Interactive uninterruptible power supplies and provides protection from power problems such as sags, brownouts and surges.
Voltage Stabilizer System market: In 2020, the global Voltage Stabilizer System market size was USD 14820 million and it is expected to reach USD 19820 million by the end of 2027, with a CAGR of 3.8% between 2021 and 2027. According to “India Voltage Stabilizer Market, the voltage stabilizer market is forecast to surpass $ 550 million by 2023. Anticipated growth in the market can be attributed to rising government focus on the development of smart cities and increasing investments under ‘Make in India’ and ‘Invest India’ initiatives, along with surging sales of consumer durables such as air conditioners, refrigerators, televisions, etc.
Voltage fluctuations are changes in voltage coming to your home that make the lights glow dimmer or brighter than normal. They can damage appliances. Voltage Fluctuations happen because of bad wirings, overload, be it you using more power than your sanctioned load or your neighbours using more, sudden switching on of high powered appliances (like air conditioners, motors), bad earthing, or short circuits.
How voltage stabilizers fix voltage fluctuations: Voltage stabilizers stabilize the voltage, which means if the supply voltage fluctuates or varies, it brings it to the desired range. It does so by using electromagnetic regulators that use tap changers with autotransformers. If the output voltage is not in range a mechanism switches the tap, to change the transformer to move the voltage in an acceptable range.
How to choose a right-sized stabilizer: The sizing of a stabilizer is very similar to the sizing of a UPS or Inverter. The most important thing is to know the load connected to the stabilizer. First to note down the power or watts for all the appliances that will be connected to a stabilizer. The sum total of the power consumption will give you the load on the stabilizer in watts. But most stabilizer sizes are in VA (Volt Ampere) or kVA (kilo Volt Ampere which is equal to 1000 Volt Ampere). Although to get to actual VA (or Volt Ampere) from Watts (W) you will have to do some measurements, but to give a rough approximation, you can increase the Watts value by 20% to get the approximate VA size that you may need. So for e.g., if the sum of watts connected to your stabilizer is 1000 then you can take a 1200 VA or 1.2 kVA stabilizer. It is to be noted here that 20% is suitable for residential systems and may not work in industries if your power factor is bad.
Important things to notice while buying a voltage stabilizer: Before buying a voltage stabilizer the most important thing that you should make note of is the input voltage range that you get in your house. This is important because every stabilizer has a minimum and maximum input voltage to which it can stabilize the output voltage. If a voltage stabilizer has an input voltage range of 150 V (min) – 260 V (max) then if the voltage in your house goes below 150 V or more than 260 V, then the stabilizer will just cut off the power supply to your appliance. But if it is 160 V or 250 V (within the working range), then it will try to stabilize it to the desired output voltage range.
Surge Protection: (or spike guard) is another good feature in voltage stabilizers. This feature protects your appliance from sudden voltage rises such as those that can happen during lightning strikes or short circuits. Make sure that you buy a stabilizer with such features so that your appliances are safe during sudden surges.
Single-phase and three-phase voltage stabilizers: Three-phase voltage stabilizer is required only if voltage stabilization is needed for a three-phase motor or for stabilizing voltage for a full three-phase setup.
All appliances that are used at homes can work on single-phase voltage stabilizers, and a three-phase voltage stabilizer may not be required for residential use unless one is trying to stabilize the voltage of a complete house on a three-phase connection.
Is Voltage Stabilizer Required for LED TVs: Not Really. Most modern LED TVs can work between 110 V and 290 V and thus low and high voltages do not damage them. To protect your TV from surges you need a Surge Protector.
Do we need Stabilizer for Refrigerators: Most modern refrigerators are designed to handle large voltage ranges. They can work between 110 V and 290V as they use SMPS (Switch mode power supply).
ATO.com is a one-stop online shop to buy industrial automation equipment, electronics, and components. ATO manufactures a range of voltage stabilizers. The state of the art single-phase automatic AC voltage stabilizers with a capacity rating from 500VA to 50kVA, 140V to 260V input voltage range, high performance and compact size, ideal for the home purpose to 3 phase automatic AC voltage stabilizers with a capacity rating from 8kVA to 300kVA, 175V-265V (phase voltage)/304V-456V (line voltage) AC input voltage range, 380V output. They come with air-cooled full-automatic compensated voltage stabilizers designed for various industrial applications.
500 VA single-phase AC automatic voltage stabilizer is based on relay control system & programmed control computerized technology for domestic purposes.
1-phase voltage stabilizer is 50 kVA capacity, automatically stabilize input voltage range 95-125V/ 190-250V AC to 110V±6%/ 220V±3% output with small waveform distortion, high efficiency, high power factor, free from the effect or frequency variation of supply.
https://www.ato.com/50-kva-single-phase-voltage-stabilizer
15 kVA capacity full automatic voltage stabilizer, default 3 phase 380V output voltage, input voltage range is 380V±20% tolerance, high output accuracy up to ±1%. Input/ output voltage is customizable.
Industrial AC voltage stabilizer with 300 kVA rated capacity, air-cooled type, 3 phase 4-line with 175V-265V (phase voltage)/304V-456V (line voltage) input voltage range, 380V output voltage. This series automatic compensated power voltage stabilizer is specifically designed for the needs of the more demanding industrial applications where the need for a more robust and virtually maintenance-free solution is required.
