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  • Post in thread: Intro, EMPs, and Obstructionism

    I don't worry much about EMP for a couple of reasons. The main reason though is that I think we will have much bigger problems should an EMP event happen. Technically, the rise time of induced EMP currents is very very fast, making common, readily available, semiconductor devices ineffective in...
  • Post in thread: Pulling 17 wires through 230ft of conduit?

    It is "doable", but... a couple of points: 1. 16 current carrying conductors drops the NEC ampacity to 50% of the "3 conductors in raceway values", so assuming that is OK given your Isc values from the panels, then go for it! 2. The friction will become a beast as more wire is pulled in. Use...
  • Post in thread: Ferrite ring on battery cables

    The inverter generates a lot of RFI because of relative fast (very short risetime) switching. A lot of current flows during those switching events and as a result a lot of RF power is generated. External ferrite toroids or beads are always an indicator to me that the unit has a hard time meeting...
  • Post in thread: Trying to understand the sub panel and how 120/240v work

    They need to be 180 degrees out of phase to be "in sync". Need to be the same frequency to but that's not your problem here. If it is wired as I read it, you have one side of your panel supplied with 120V from your inverter but the other side (leg) is supplied by the utility. That's a serious...
  • Post in thread: Electric dryer power reduction ???

    The power has been reduced by a factor of two. But it should now take twice as long to boil the same amount of water out of the same clothes! Total energy consummed will be (ideally) the same. Is the intent to reduce the demand by 2 and allow for smaller inverters?
  • Post in thread: Would you do Eg4 or something different?

    I agree with SolArk being a better choice for your system. Yours will be large, around 65kWh per day in the summer. I have two 6500's operating in split phase and their history is a little rocky. Mine operate well but others have reported seemingly random problems ranging from short drops in...
  • Post in thread: You won't believe how much power it takes to do laundry

    Just a willing wife. In all fairness, mine is on-board but she has a limit. That's a dark place i try not to go!
  • Post in thread: Terminology.. phased power, apparent power, active power?

    I'm not really sure what is going on with the SmartESS App, but a couple of things: 1. Voltage * Current does not equal energy. The product of voltage and current is power in DC and apparent power in AC. DC power is measured in watts and apparent power is measured in VA. There are three...
  • Post in thread: Ohm test a battery?

    You're not doing anything wrong, your meter is responding exactly as it should! An "ohms test" between the terminals of a battery is nonsensical. If that is what they are asking for, the tech has no idea what he/she is doing.
  • Post in thread: Electric dryer power reduction ???

    Sounds like an energy star appliance - runs longer and uses more energy! Toilets too - just flush 6 times!!?
  • Post in thread: 2 AWG 2 wires vs 4/0

    You might look into welding cable for flexibility. As far as running two #2 in parallel, I wouldn't. I realize this is a mobile install, but the NEC prohibits parallel conductors when the overcurrent protection (400A) exceeds the ampacity of any paralleled conductor. The reason is one will...
  • Post in thread: Will power company notice?

    In Arkansas, yes. Doing so violates the inter-tie agreement and would subject you to a hefty penalty ($180 in my case). Again, Arkansas law calls this "gaming" and allows the utility to yank your meter.
  • Post in thread: EG4 new AIO rated 12K output and 18kPV aka "EG4-18Kpv-12LV"

    As far as wierd voltage on the 485 and 232 ports with these units goes, there is. The 232 port has some 30 volts common mode to ground on my units anyway. I resolved it in my case and anyone can message me if they are interested. James and I have sparred in the past here and I don't want to...
  • Post in thread: No earth grounding?

    I certainly don't "know it all", but have dealt with grounding/lightning protection for years-mainly communication towers and cell sites. Grounding the panels is for personal protection, not lightning protection although lightning protection does require good grounding-so they are related. In...
  • Post in thread: EG4-6500 losing clock and MPPT issues

    My time issues have gone away (haven't lost time in close to a month of operation) as well but I'm in USE mode. This is with 79.63/61.10. Both inverters have been replaced after they blew up during a firmware upgrade. Both units show a manufacture date of 10/22.
  • Post in thread: EG4 6500kw system won't provide 240V

    If the leg to leg voltage is not staying at a steady 240V and seems to move around, then it sounds as if the two inverters are not phased correctly. There is two variants for the L2 inverter, 2P2-120 and 2P2-180. You want the 180.
  • Post in thread: EG4-6500 losing clock and MPPT issues

    Do you have information suggesting that these specific issues are addressed in the revision? Since bricking a unit is always possible with a firmware upgrade, I don't want to do it if my specifics are not addressed.
  • Post in thread: Got a mess

    It seems like there is an increasing number of cable overheating/insulation melting/wires smoking reports on the forum. The NEC ampacity charts may seem overly conservative, but it is all about safety. I've used them (been required to) for 30 years and have never had a conductor burn or catch...
  • Post in thread: EG4-6500 losing clock and MPPT issues

    Also, is there a pdf somewhere that indicates specific bug fixes associated with each firmware release?
  • Post in thread: (4) EG4 6500ex inverter install

    If it is a common neutral it needs to be sized for 135A ampacity, aka #1 copper. This allows the neutral to carry the full 108A of one pair of inverters loaded at 100%. It will probably never see that much current since it would be worst case, but ...
  • Post in thread: EG4 6500kw system won't provide 240V

    Nice catch-forgot about that one! maybe thats the F86 fault.
  • Post in thread: EG4 6500kw system won't provide 240V

    Not saying this is the issue but some units have apparently shipped with bad EEPROM chips where I believe the settings are stored. Given the proceedure for setting parameter 28 is more than a little arcane, I would review the proceedure and just make sure sure you're doing it correctly.
  • Post in thread: What cable temperature to use for determining cable ampacity for sizing circuit breaker? 60C?

    Yea, looks like one big circle! There may be some confusion here, kinda like the chicken and egg. The steps for determining this are: 1. Determine maximum continous input current for the inverter. Say it is 200A for arguments sake. 2. Multiply that by 1.25, so we now have 250A. That number...
  • Post in thread: Breaker / fuse help needed

    Problem with the faraday cage is the wiring that has to penetrate it. The wires are still carrying the switch current and they will radiate the RFI. Feedthrough capacitors at every penetration would be absolutely necessary and even then, there will likely be objectionable RFI. The best...
  • Post in thread: 6500ex 2P1/2P2 L1/L2 Blk/Red?

    It doesn't matter at all, just keep it all consistent to help out with troubleshooting. In other words, don't mix black and red. Just adopt a standard, like L1 on the left/top and L2 on the right/bottom for lugs and breaker wiring. You can assign L1 the color black and L2 the color red, or the...
  • Post in thread: You won't believe how much power it takes to do laundry

    Pretty cool how solar energy changes our habits! I built a clothes line - wife used it religiously for a week or so but infrequent now. I use it, she prefers the electric drier. Summer brings excess generation, so I installed an electric water heater only for use from February through November...
  • Post in thread: Question a out hybrid voltronic

    The 48V DC input has nothing to do with the PV input voltage. Your panel voltage needs to be within the MPPT input range for power point tracking to work, 120-450V. If you put your 24V panels all in series, you'll have 96V which is below the MPPT working range. In short, you need at least 5...
  • Post in thread: Terrible Signature Solar / EG4 18Kpv Experience - Returning and Replaced with Sol-Ark 15k

    Is this for a EG4-6500? If so, the manual says 2/0. Use that and you won't be sorry or risk a fire in that section of the wiring. I know someone is going to chime in about voltage drop and total length, but nothing in the NEC allows for smaller wire than that dictated in the ampacity tables. You...
  • Post in thread: I'm in the city,but !

    One thing to watch out for is that you can't really say that only one of the 240V loads would be used at the same time. The HVAC is going to come on while the electric stove/oven is in use, I guarantee it! Also, given the above, you might easily exceed the peak output capability of the...
  • Post in thread: I'm in the city,but !

    You can control this to some degree by using interlocks or a "partial" house automation system, but you'll soon have a rube goldberg machine that only you can understand, troubleshoot, and maintain. I would recommend not assuming only one heavy load at a time and buy an inverter(s) that can...
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