EG4 18kPV Q+A general thread

[ckenny]

The fact that it runs normally for a few minutes after its reset is what confuses me. Have you tried disconnecting one string to see if that helps? It shouldn’t make any difference really. But what you’re experiencing is really odd in the first place.

I haven't tried disconnecting one string, but I certainly can tomorrow. I just can't wrap my brain around why the inverter is acting this way. Hopefully someone with more experience and expertise will be able to help me figure it out and fix it.

 

[Zapper77]

The fact that it runs normally for a few minutes after its reset is what confuses me. Have you tried disconnecting one string to see if that helps? It shouldn’t make any difference really. But what you’re experiencing is really odd in the first place.

Sounds like a bad connection.

 

[42OhmsPA]

Thanks for the reply. I have checked the strings and don't find anything loose. The strings are both going through the same pattern together, so it doesn't seem to be a problem with one string. The batteries are at a fairly low state of charge and the house pulls over 10kw most of the time in the middle of the day, so there is plenty of demand for the power. I see really good current, over 10 amps, and sometimes over 4kw per string, but it lasts for 3-5 seconds and then back to zero followed by a gradual climb back to 10 amps over about 20 seconds, then back to zero again, rinse and repeat, all day long. It seems abnormal to me. What do you think? Attached is a photo of the string connection. I can screenshot the pv string data tomorrow, but a single photo doesn't tell much about the situation because it is 8kw one second and the next zero. The voltage of course rises when the the current drops. Voltage at zero current tends to be about 400 and drops to maybe 360 during peak current. I have done resets, and this sometimes makes it run normally at a steady state for about 5 minutes, and then it reverts back to cycling from full power to zero every 30 seconds. Thanks again

How many batteries are you running?
How many amps are you charging at?
Are you using battery communications?
What is the battery voltage when the mppts drop off and when they start acting normally again?

 

[ckenny]

The fact that it runs normally for a few minutes after its reset is what confuses me. Have you tried disconnecting one string to see if that helps? It shouldn’t make any difference really. But what you’re experiencing is really odd in the first place.

I haven't tried disconnecting one string, but certainly can tomorrow. I just can't wrap my brain around why the inverter is acting this way. Hopefully someone with more experience and expertise can help me figure it out and fix it.

 

[Markus_EG4]

I will wait for SS to supply a general release version, thanks for the offer though.

He’s one you can trust he’s on our team as well

 

[Markus_EG4]

I haven't tried disconnecting one string, but certainly can tomorrow. I just can't wrap my brain around why the inverter is acting this way. Hopefully someone with more experience and expertise can help me figure it out and fix it.

This sounds really weird I will have someone contact you soon

 

[ckenny]

How many batteries are you running?
How many amps are you charging at?
Are you using battery communications?
What is the battery voltage when the mppts drop off and when they start acting normally again?

Hello,
Thanks for the reply. I'm running one battery. It is 560 amp hours. I am not using battery communications. The battery voltage during most of the middle of the day is between 49 and 50 volts. I have been having the battery charged from the grid during the night starting at 8:00pm and then discharged starting at 6:00am because I have free electricity at night. The battery is mostly discharged by about 11:00am and stays at a low state of charge until it is charged again at 8:00pm. I have limited charging at 170 amps. The mppts cycling through 0 to 8kw every 30 seconds does not seem to have any relation to a high or low battery voltage.

 

[timselectric]

He’s one you can trust he’s on our team as well

Until he's identified in namesake, here.
He's just a random stranger on the internet.
Asking for private information.

 

[42OhmsPA]

Hello,
Thanks for the reply. I'm running one battery. It is 560 amp hours. I am not using battery communications. The battery voltage during most of the middle of the day is between 49 and 50 volts. I have been having the battery charged from the grid during the night starting at 8:00pm and then discharged starting at 6:00am because I have free electricity at night. The battery is mostly discharged by about 11:00am and stays at a low state of charge until it is charged again at 8:00pm. I have limited charging at 170 amps. The mppts cycling through 0 to 8kw every 30 seconds does not seem to have any relation to a high or low battery voltage.

Very interesting. I was leaning towards something with the battery, thinking the BMS was disconnecting causing the mppts to cycle.
So you aren't charging the battery from solar? It doesn't sound like it if the voltage is so low at mid day, I'm a bit confused and low on remaining brain power for the day.
It's really tough to troubleshoot without data... It would be super helpful if you could post some graphs of what's going on. I'd also contact SS, see comments above and let them help tomorrow.
I'm sure you'll get it resolved quickly.

 

[Quattrohead]

Can you remove a panel or 2 from each string....maybe try 1 string at a time.
Also is PV1,PV2,PV3 setup in the menu.

 

[Tech707]

Hello All

I apologize in advance if this has already discussed but I have two odd DC voltage issues with my 18Kpv and am curious if they are normal or if something is wrong with my inverter. The first is the data tab on the web interface under "PV side" it showing voltage spikes on Vpv1, Vpv2 and Vpv3 .1 with a peak of 2.1 despite not having anything connected to the PV input. The second is when I throw my utility breaker at the poll and simulate a grid outage I measure 75v to 90v DC on the L1 and L2 of the Grid input on the 18K so it appears to be backfeeding DC voltage to the grid input when the grid is down. L2 is positive and L1 is negative.

 

[Wes975]

@ckenny
Is it possible that you don't have enough insulation stripped off the pv wire that you might have wire insulation in the connection points? I had a similar experience with a PLC analog input displaying the same symptoms. One of the reasons I'm not excited about this connection style. It would make sense that it "works" and then don't. With one "fur" touching the input you would have voltage - until a load is requested and the voltage drops - and returns once the system tries again.

Everyone here wants to help - take one simple step at a time, document and share your results.

-thinking out loud

 

[Farm Boy]

I got my eg4 monitor app working today on my computer thanks to Brayden F. video on you tube. I'm not an IT guy at all and after a few hours of head scratching and a few Coors Lights, all the green lights went solid. Theirs plenty of info there to satisfy me. Hope fully china don't invade my computer now. It was close to the end of the day so tomorrow will be exciting to see some of the graphs of solar if it's sunny out. Have a charge verter on the way, hated to buy one but for now figured it was best to insure no feed back till all the great updates are proven.

 

[Zapper77]

I got my eg4 monitor app working today on my computer thanks to Brayden F. video on you tube. I'm not an IT guy at all and after a few hours of head scratching and a few Coors Lights, all the green lights went solid. Theirs plenty of info there to satisfy me. Hope fully china don't invade my computer now. It was close to the end of the day so tomorrow will be exciting to see some of the graphs of solar if it's sunny out. Have a charge verter on the way, hated to buy one but for now figured it was best to insure no feed back till all the great updates are proven.

The monitor website (link below) or something else?
EG4 18KPV Monitor

 

[Eddie_LuxPowerTek]

Until he's identified in namesake, here.
He's just a random stranger on the internet.
Asking for private information.

@GRV0423, his name is Gilbert, and he lives in Hawaii. Gilbert is part of our US team as a "Luxpert" for the US market.
As one of the "oldest" Luxpower users, I have found Gilbert to be very professional in operating our inverters, just like the experienced engineering folks in my company. He has provided us with valuable advice on product improvements, and his qualities make us believe that we can work together effectively.
Therefore, please don't be surprised if Gilbert reaches out to offer help. It is important to note that, similar to all other team members and our business partner EG4, Gilbert will only check or change settings if the user shares the serial number and agrees to accept remote assistance.
I must emphasize that this product is relatively new and not as straightforward as a TV or an air conditioner. We are continuously striving to improve and provide greater service support, both from our end and through our local distribution partners, to ensure that every user and installer has easily accessible technical assistance. SERVICE is the key to gaining respect in this market, and we really care about each and every user's experience with our product.
Keep sharing your experience, please. THX

 

[ksmithaz1]

Hello All

I apologize in advance if this has already discussed but I have two odd DC voltage issues with my 18Kpv and am curious if they are normal or if something is wrong with my inverter. The first is the data tab on the web interface under "PV side" it showing voltage spikes on Vpv1, Vpv2 and Vpv3 .1 with a peak of 2.1 despite not having anything connected to the PV input. The second is when I throw my utility breaker at the poll and simulate a grid outage I measure 75v to 90v DC on the L1 and L2 of the Grid input on the 18K so it appears to be backfeeding DC voltage to the grid input when the grid is down. L2 is positive and L1 is negative.

I don't understand this. The grid connection is an AC tie point. If the inverter is on it should have AC on unless the breaker is off. I see a few volts on my unused MPPT lines as well from time to time. If the breaker is off, it's off. Check the battery in your meter? It probably has something to do with the way MPPT works with sliding voltage, it's trying to figure out if anything is there.

 

[Farm Boy]

The monitor website (link below) or something else?
EG4 18KPV Monitor

That's it.

 

[Eddie_LuxPowerTek]

Hello,

I'm new to the forum and have spent a lot of time in the last couple of months designing and installing a solar system with an 18kpv. Everything has gone well until I hooked up my solar strings to the inverter, but I have had big problems with the charge controller since I hooked them up. The setup at this point is 2 series strings of 9 x 460W panels on controllers 1 and 2. Total wattage should be about 8kw and about 10 amps on each charge controller. When the sun comes up in the morning the wattage slowly increases like it should, but then as the wattage goes over about 2kw, the charge controllers start acting really strangely. It will drop to zero and then increases to full amperage, maybe 8-10 amps in the middle of the day, and then immediately drop to zero again. It does this every 30 seconds for most of the day. I have verified this with my clamp meter. The kWh I'm getting from this over the course of a sunny summer day in south texas is ~24kwh which in my understanding is probably less than half of what it should be producing. The panels have no shading except for early morning and late evening. I have been on the phone with signature solar three times today and yesterday (Including over 2 hours of wait time) and have not been able to help me with this. In fact the last rep tried to tell me this was normal, which seems absurd to me. That really frustrated me after I have just spent $17K with this company. Anyone have any ideas, or anyone from signature or EG4 here that can help me? Thanks Colin

For sure EG4 team will cover it, and I hope @ckenny can be happy with the performance in the end.
I will share a comment from my colleague Andy in the tech-support team. he started to support Luxpower users in the EU and Africa in 2018.
as below:
Regarding the tech support question from Colin, I can offer him my experience.
If there was a problem with 18kW MPPT, then it should be common among all machines. This is not the case, so it means we have to find the solution in the client Installation.
9 x 460w string in series = 4140w/string, which is well within the MPPT range.

The fact that the power increases then suddenly drops, to me indicates that the current carrying capacity of the cable connections (between Mc4 connectors and the bootlace ends going into the terminal block) is compromised somewhere.
The client might check the following:
Are all the Mc4 connections good, especially the terminations he made? It's important to bare the cable ends properly and make sure the metal part is pushed all the way up into the plastic housing.
Also check that the pv cable ends going into the terminal block is good.
Voltage (potential difference) can be measured on one strand of copper, but current cannot.
In other words, a weak connection will show voltage but will not be able to carry full current.

Thanks. @Markus_SignatureSolar

 

[ckenny]

For sure EG4 team will cover it, and I hope @ckenny can be happy with the performance in the end.
I will share a comment from my colleague Andy in the tech-support team. he started to support Luxpower users in the EU and Africa in 2018.
as below:
Regarding the tech support question from Colin, I can offer him my experience.
If there was a problem with 18kW MPPT, then it should be common among all machines. This is not the case, so it means we have to find the solution in the client Installation.
9 x 460w string in series = 4140w/string, which is well within the MPPT range.

The fact that the power increases then suddenly drops, to me indicates that the current carrying capacity of the cable connections (between Mc4 connectors and the bootlace ends going into the terminal block) is compromised somewhere.
The client might check the following:
Are all the Mc4 connections good, especially the terminations he made? It's important to bare the cable ends properly and make sure the metal part is pushed all the way up into the plastic housing.
Also check that the pv cable ends going into the terminal block is good.
Voltage (potential difference) can be measured on one strand of copper, but current cannot.
In other words, a weak connection will show voltage but will not be able to carry full current.

Thanks. @Markus_SignatureSolar

I thank you all for your time and suggestions. I think the mc4 connections I made are good and would be surprised if the 10awg wire and connections weren't carrying 10 amps easily. I have put together a lot of wiring that carries many more amps than this and never had a problem. I will go back through them and might even replace the terminations since it is such a common theme brought up here. I can also check the resistance on the cables and see if there is any issue there. I also doubt this is the issue though because I have 2 separate strings on 2 separate controllers mirroring the same behavior at exactly the same time, which would be hard to attribute to a fault in one cable on one string. I really feel this is a fault in the inverter. Thanks again.

 

[timselectric]

@GRV0423, his name is Gilbert, and he lives in Hawaii. Gilbert is part of our US team as a "Luxpert" for the US market.
As one of the "oldest" Luxpower users, I have found Gilbert to be very professional in operating our inverters, just like the experienced engineering folks in my company. He has provided us with valuable advice on product improvements, and his qualities make us believe that we can work together effectively.
Therefore, please don't be surprised if Gilbert reaches out to offer help. It is important to note that, similar to all other team members and our business partner EG4, Gilbert will only check or change settings if the user shares the serial number and agrees to accept remote assistance.
I must emphasize that this product is relatively new and not as straightforward as a TV or an air conditioner. We are continuously striving to improve and provide greater service support, both from our end and through our local distribution partners, to ensure that every user and installer has easily accessible technical assistance. SERVICE is the key to gaining respect in this market, and we really care about each and every user's experience with our product.
Keep sharing your experience, please. THX

None of that means anything to the members, here.
He is just a random stranger on the internet.
And actually breaking the rules of this forum.
His validity should not have to be explained continuously.