Run the numbers
What lithium actually saves you.
Pick the storage you need and see the ten-year cost of both technologies, including replacements, servicing and the energy lost to inefficiency.
Your requirement
Compared over 10 years at 300 cycles a year. Lead acid is sized for 50% depth of discharge and replaced every 2.5 years.
10-year total cost of ownership
Lead acid
₹2,83,048
4 purchases over 10 years
Zeltron lithium
₹77,296
1 purchase, zero servicing
You keep
₹2,05,752
over 10 years, including ₹25,000 of avoided maintenance
- Breaks even in
- 2.7 years
- Expected life
- 10+ years
- Annual maintenance
- Zero
Indicative only, based on typical market figures. Ask our team for a costed proposal against your actual load and tariff.
Where the difference comes from
Four things the sticker price hides.
Replacement cycles
Lead-acid is typically replaced every two to three years. Over a ten-year horizon that is three or four purchases against one.
Usable capacity
Only about half of a lead-acid battery’s rated capacity is usable. You have to buy roughly twice the number on the label.
Maintenance
Water top-ups, terminal cleaning and equalisation across the life of every lead-acid bank. Lithium needs none of it.
Efficiency losses
Roughly 15% to 20% of the energy put into lead-acid never comes back out, against about 5% for lithium. You pay for that every cycle.
The full written comparison, with the trade-offs stated honestly, is in our lithium versus lead-acid guide.
About this calculator
How does this calculator work?
It compares the ten-year cost of lead-acid against lithium for the same usable storage. It counts every lead-acid replacement over the period, annual servicing, and the grid energy lost to each technology’s round-trip inefficiency, then shows the difference.
Why does lead-acid need more capacity for the same result?
Lead-acid is conventionally discharged to about 50% to avoid shortening its life, so roughly half its rated capacity is usable. Lithium can be discharged to 95%. To match one lithium pack you generally need close to twice the rated lead-acid capacity.
Are these real Zeltron prices?
No. The figures are illustrative industry averages used to show the shape of the comparison, not a quotation. Zeltron pricing is quote-based against your actual load and backup requirement — contact us for a real number.
What is not included in the calculation?
Installation labour, freight, the inverter itself, and the cost of downtime during a lead-acid changeover. Including those generally widens the gap rather than narrowing it.
Want the real number for your site?
Send us your load list and backup hours. Our engineers will size the system and come back with actual pricing and lead time.