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The Inspector I'm working with requested pictures sent to him first. That way, if he sees anything, I can get it fixed before he comes out so I won't be charged for multiple inspections.

There was a power outage and the utility discovered my solar when they were driving around checking power was restored.

Thanks everyone for the feedback. Today, I changed the settings on the inverter for AC power max amps. It was defaulted to 40A. I was able to change it to 25A and connect via the 30A plug on the generator. The inverter only allows the amps to be changed in increments of 5, so 25A is the highest...

One funny thing about their meters, they often don't read usage for several days even when you are using the grid. Then they will suddenly "catch up" and you'll be charged all those days' worth of power on one day. I'm running into problems finding an electrician who will agree to inspect my...

I tend to agree with you. I am an off grid solar household using the grid solely as Backup. Yet, my electric company is now requiring me to have my setup inspected or else they will shut off my grid connection. I will not pass inspection since it was a DIY build I did myself. Even though I know...

Same here. They know my inverter is connected to the grid; they've seen it for themselves and I submitted a drawing to them per their request. I will wait a few days or so and then let them know I have decided to go fully off-grid. That was my longterm plan all along but wished to have grid as...

Perfect! I just ordered their 600V SPD arrestor. I appreciate your help with this. I reached out to MidNite Solar a couple of days ago, but still have not received an answer from them. I was just confused about whether I should go with the MCOV of the arrestor, or the voltage at which the...

I never exceed even 40A load from my house at any given time. My entire house is 110V; no 220V appliances at all. So my inverter easily handles all the power I could ever need; I never exceed 5000 watts of power, even if I had everything running in my house.

Has anyone connected their DIY solar system to the grid to take advantage of net metering? I am connected to the grid, but also have built my own solar power system complete with battery. I only use the grid power when there are several days of clouds and my battery gets low. Rather than sinking...

Right! But I travel a lot for work, so I'm not always home to run the generator if my battery is low / sun not shining. I'll see how the inspection goes. My backup plan is to buy more batteries so I have more than enough power on the ready!

Exactly. I don't understand why they just can't check for themselves that it doesn't backfeed and forego the inspection.

Yes. I'm in Arkansas. I've explained to them that my system is really no different than someone connecting a generator to their panel for power outages. But they're reasoning is that since the grid is connected to my inverter (as the AC input only, mind you), they want the system inspected...

Hey, GLC! From my calculations over the course of today, my PV array produced around 8.9kW (between 9am and 3pm). So, I am guessing that means my panels are only producing approximately 1481 watts per hour? And as you said, if the amps being drawn out of my inverter are only 6-12Amps, and my...

They haven't given me a timeline. They just asked that I keep my solar turned off until inspected and they have tested for back feeding. Great to meet another Arkansan! It's a great state, and a lot of out-of-staters are realizing that. hahaha

Thanks for all the comments. I live in a very rural county of Arkansas and there are not any electric permit requirements for electric permits to install solar for off-grid... which is what I currently have: off-grid solar. But maybe I am safest just to steer clear of grid-tie to avoid any...

Thanks for the info and the additional questions! I'm testing the volts and amps from the wires coming from the PV combiner box into the MPPT; so, I'm getting the reading from the PV array, not from the all-in-one hybrid inverter. On the inverter's LCD panel, it reads... PV input = ~80 volts...

Thanks for your response and sharing which arrestor you are using in comparison with the voltage of your PV input. I just ordered their 600V model. Much appreciative!

Hmmm... My all-in-one inverter doesn't seem to have a setting in order to make that adjustment. Do you remember which setting you found that under on your MPPT?

I must have recently had a lightning strike nearby because it fried my inverter (did not have an arrestor anywhere on my system). So, I'm now awaiting the new inverter I just ordered to arrive, and I have learned my lesson and this one will be protected with a lightning arrestor. I'm going...

I'm not exactly sure. The inverter's LCD panel reads... "PV output" and will read anywhere from 3 to 12 amps throughout the day. So I have been assuming this means how many amps are going to the battery to charge it. I know the PV array is giving 25 amps when I test the voltage and amps at...

My PV array = 470Voc and 9.63amps (10 panels in series). I'm wanting to add a MidNite Solar lightning arrestor from the PV array to where it connects to my all-in-one inverter / charger (that has a max PV input of 500V and 16A). Should I get their 300VDC or 600V SPD? From researching each, I...

I am wanting to connect my Easun 5000-watt all-in-one solar inverter with AC input to take advantage of it automatically switching between PV or battery to Grid power when the PV or battery is unavailable. However, I'm a little confused about the breaker required according to the inverter's...

I'm having it inspected this week by an electrician recommended by the power company. If it doesn't pass and is going to be too much of a headache bringing it up to their specifications, I will invest in more batteries and disconnect from the grid completely. That is my ultimate long term goal...

Thanks for confirming what I thought was correct - but only confused by the manual's instructions. Now, my only issue is finding a Square D Homeline single-pole 60A breaker for the subpanel I am using. Or, can I use a 2-pole 60A breaker and only wire one side of it? The subpanel which will be...

Thank you for the clarification on wire sizing!

My inverter is the... Easun Power 5KW Off-Grid Solar Inverter 110VAC/120VAC 48V Pure Sine Wave Inverter MPPT. https://easunpower.com/products/easun-power-5kw-off-grid-solar-inverter-110vac-120vac-48v-pure-sine-wave-inverter-mppt I don't see anywhere that it is UL listed. I do have an...

First and foremost, I'd like to say that I want to be in compliance and NOT cause any problems to the grid, such as back feeding, which is why I have agreed to an inspection. My initial query was simply asking for "what to expect during the inspection process". In no way would I want my solar...

Setup (I have attached the spec sheets / manuals for each of the following components in my system)... 1) EcoWorthy 48V 3500W All-In-One Inverter 80A MPPT 2) 48V 200ah LiFePO4 9.6kWh battery 3) Six Heliene 380W solar panels (41.2V max / 9.23amps) set up in 2s3p Problem... The MPPT charges...

My solar shed where my inverter and batteries are kept are not in my home nor even attached to my home. But this doesn't mean if they caught fire that the fire wouldn't spread to my house. I live in a remote area, so if a fire broke out, even if it were a forest fire, my house is a goner. But...

The loads are only on the main panel.