Hi Ray,
Off grid solar has been pushed way back. Back in the day, I would set up
systems and walk away (until the client destroyed their first set of
batteries). After that, the systems would run smoothly. The equipment
did not need to be updated or replaced.
Now, battery based systems are only for backup, for people with lots of
money.
With the price of lithium batteries, it makes sense to me to stick with
AGM. They may only last half as long, but they are less than half the
price. The lead is reusable. Their environmental impact is far less.
Cheers,
Drake
_Drake Chamberlin_
_Athens Electric LLC_
_Ohio Electrical Contractor's License 44810_
_NABCEP Certified PV Installation Professional_
---
On 2024-11-08 16:04, Ray Walters via RE-wrenches wrote:
Just goes to my rule for off grid, forget the comms. Regardless of the
Manu, I've been advised during trouble shooting to disconnect the
comms, and it almost always fixes the problem. Honestly, I forgot what
comms were supposed to fix in the first place. I almost never even
bother now. Mate 3 with HUB? Only if I have to. Midnite "Follow Me"?
pulled the cables. All my systems are open communication. Even
battery to battery comms causes problems.
Oh, and I recently had to buy a $400 PC laptop, just to do trouble
shooting, and firmware updates on batteries. I don't miss the acid
burns in my jeans, but I'm not sure if I like my job as much, in the
twilight years of my off grid career. I'm spending as much time
installing, as I am babysitting LiPO4 batteries that are supposed to
operate maintenance free for 8000 cycles. Yeah. Just yeah. I'd be
amazed at 800 cycles without having to truck out there to F with them.
Haven't seen a brand yet that has worked without some kind of trouble.
Blue Ion, Simpliphi, Fortress, Homegrid, EG4..... major trouble with
everyone of them. Complete system shutdowns. Rotting food in the
fridge.
I've heard acid burned jeans are coming back in fashion.....
Ray Walters
Remote Solar
On 11/8/2024 1:42 PM, Chris Sparadeo via RE-wrenches wrote:
Hey wrenchers,
I have an off-grid customer with a pair of VFX 3648 inverters, a FM
100 charge controller and two eVault classics in open loop. The issue
is when the generator is charging the batteries, incoming amperage is
all over the place and periodically, gradually drops to 0A then ramps
back up. This is creating really long generator run times. When I turn
off PV input, same results. When I turn off both PV input and charge
controller output (turning off the CC entirely) the inverters hold a
steady charge. If I remove the charge controllers comms cable from the
hub, they both play nicely and charge cooperatively. This obviously
sounds like a communication issue, but unfortunately, without the help
of OB tech support, I am left speculating. I have checked all settings
with a fine comb and nothing looks to be out of place. Has anyone
experienced something similar to this?
Thanks!
Chris Sparadeo
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