Lt.Dan
Solar Wizard
Granted, the LV6548 has turned out to be a pretty well built machine. I understand they are still relatively new though, so we will see.
DMI inc is using 4 of them and 3 DIY batteries to power his entire house. No grid tie. He monitors everything via raspberry Pi. 26KW of AC is not bad for $4400 worth of inverters, that also include a transfer switch, battery input, multiple 120a MPPT outputs, 32KW of PV input, and very simple cabling.Granted, the LV6548 has turned out to be a pretty well built machine. I understand they are still relatively new though, so we will see.
That's exactly what I am doing, but I'm slowly expanding my system. I saw it as the most feasible without grid tieDMI inc is using 4 of them and 3 DIY batteries to power his entire house. No grid tie. He monitors everything via raspberry Pi. 26KW of AC is not bad for $4400 worth of inverters, that also include a transfer switch, battery input, multiple 120a MPPT outputs, 32KW of PV input, and very simple cabling.
I am thinking of removing my SMA grid tie and doing what DMI is doing instead with the MPP LV6548's. It seems like a much better solution, as your solar is always available, even in grid down, and you can always just plug in the grid or a generator as an extra input to the LV6548's if there is no sun for a few days.
What am I missing?
So in a nutshell we're looking at $1150 directly via Peggy, or $1500 w/tax via Ian (through either watts247 or Ebay). 30% more for peace of mind works for some folks, but by the math, that would necessitate a >30% failure rate, and in just first year, to justify the "dollars and sense" of going local. Anyone read of any early failures on these? Even still, supposedly these newer Growatt/Victron/MPP units are serviceable if you believe Will's simple statement of as much. I hadn't inquired to either Ian or Peggy about this, but I'm tempted to.
Thats what I am struggling with getting at least one of his LV5048 s or all 3 and sell one or going ahead and change out to 2 LV6548 s now and ? add 2 more later another choice would be 2 LV6048s One could go with 2 or 3 LV6048 s if you can get by with 18 Kw or so continuous and you dont have as much PV input but the PV voltage is also lower at 145 V Already have 70Kw battery bank. The other difference is if you use LV6548 s one goes out then you basically have 2 units functioning except maybe for 120v instead of US split phase 240vDMI inc is using 4 of them and 3 DIY batteries to power his entire house. No grid tie. He monitors everything via raspberry Pi. 26KW of AC is not bad for $4400 worth of inverters, that also include a transfer switch, battery input, multiple 120a MPPT outputs, 32KW of PV input, and very simple cabling.
I am thinking of removing my SMA grid tie and doing what DMI is doing instead with the MPP LV6548's. It seems like a much better solution, as your solar is always available, even in grid down, and you can always just plug in the grid or a generator as an extra input to the LV6548's if there is no sun for a few days.
What am I missing?
It used to be a thing where you built a computer. Motherboard, Video Card, hard drive, etc.There are videos of guys doing just that. Swapping out modules. Not a process for the timid though.
This is what kind of forum? Oh, yea that's right, DIY! ?Defacto, we're all non-electricians working with voltages that could kill us. #upforit
You can't add just one LV6548 at a time like you can the LV5048.Thats what I am struggling with getting at least one of his LV5048 s or all 3 and sell one or going ahead and change out to 2 LV6548 s now and ? add 2 more later another choice would be 2 LV6048s One could go with 2 or 3 LV6048 s if you can get by with 18 Kw or so continuous and you dont have as much PV input but the PV voltage is also lower at 145 V Already have 70Kw battery bank. The other difference is if you use LV6548 s one goes out then you basically have 2 units functioning except maybe for 120v instead of US split phase 240v
yes I am aware the LV6548 s have to be paired thats why I said if you have 4 and one goes out then you only have 2 for 240 split phase and once you pair them you have to have battery anyway. With 3 Lv6048s or 3 LV5048 s one goes out you still have the other 2 so lose 1/3 of power not 1/2. i was referring to the PV voltage input of the LV6548 s being around 230v vs 145 for the LV split phase units. That makes for more panels per string and smaller wiring needed etc. Now if it was 400v PV input I would definitely change out to 2 LV6548 s but I dont think I can justify it at the present 16,000 watt PV is what I plan to increase to. I currently have 12,600 but I have different battery banks one bank charges with 5048MG used as charger only and I can swap the LV5048 from one bank to the other and I have 2 of the MG units (got used cheap) so right now I can support well over 16,000 watts PV anyway. I have 70Kw of battery a 40 Kw leaf bank and 30 Kw of new Bolt cells.You can't add just one LV6548 at a time like you can the LV5048.
I went from two LV5048's to two LV6548's. You have to have two LV6548's for 240V split phase.
If you do all 120V, then you can add one at a time.
If two LV5048's can power you and what you need, that's 16kW of PV possible. I ran my entire house with it and a big battery for a few hours a day every day for a year. I switched to the LV6548's for the feature of being able to set the battery charging to not use any grid power for a specific time.
It is all moot though when you set up for off-grid.
In hindsight, I should have just stayed with the LV5048's. It has two MPPT's in every box, just like the LV6548. The biggest difference to be mindful of is the need to have a battery or not, that by itself is the biggest feature to consider.
4000 watts is 4000 watts, either way, you add it up, more Volts and fewer Amps or Fewer Volts and More Amps, your battery doesn't care when it is getting charged.
The LV6548 cannot grid-tie(backfeed the grid). It can only take from the grid.Not sure if this has been answered but is the LV6548 compliant with whatever California Rule 21 is? I know they are UL certified and I asked Peggy about Rule 21, she said she was looking into it but no response yet.
What I'm trying to figure out is the cheapest but code compliant way to have an off-grid system, I don't even think off grid system must be Rule 21 complaint but you never know what an inspector may say. My county has a minimum design criteria to accept building an off grid home, but equipment must be "UL listed or similar". I can go the easy but way too expensive Sol-Ark 12k, or I can go with 4 LV6548 like DMI inc and still have around $2k leftover for UL listed or similar batteries. Sol-Ark is amazing and I would love to just go that route but $6.9k for a Built in China inverter sounds like a lot of money compared to 4 Built in China LV6548.
Off grid means screw the grid rules!That is what I thought but you never know what an inspector may say. I can easily see one saying it must comply with Rule 21 when there is no grid connection to begin with.
Once the electric company gets back to me with the estimated price for a new service I will make the decision to either be grid tied or off grid. Right now I'm leaning heavily towards off grid with a couple of LV6548 because they do Public Service Power Shut-offs events 2-5 times a year, they last for a day or more, my home will rely on well water for domestic and fire sprinkler use, and I don't qualify for their Self Generation Incentive Program.
I will go into more detail in a new post once I get they finally get back to me with a more accurate estimate, their website just says "$2000 to more than $22,000" and I'm guessing I will be closer to $22,000 than $2,000 because it's a rural area and roughly 500' away from the power lines.
You might want to consider the MPP LVX6048. They say they are grid injectable where allowed so they should meet your code but who knows .This would be similar expense and 450V PV input . In my above post I neglected the X in LVX6048.Not sure if this has been answered but is the LV6548 compliant with whatever California Rule 21 is? I know they are UL certified and I asked Peggy about Rule 21, she said she was looking into it but no response yet.
What I'm trying to figure out is the cheapest but code compliant way to have an off-grid system, I don't even think off grid system must be Rule 21 complaint but you never know what an inspector may say. My county has a minimum design criteria to accept building an off grid home, but equipment must be "UL listed or similar". I can go the easy but way too expensive Sol-Ark 12k, or I can go with 4 LV6548 like DMI inc and still have around $2k leftover for UL listed or similar batteries. Sol-Ark is amazing and I would love to just go that route but $6.9k for a Built in China inverter sounds like a lot of money compared to 4 Built in China LV6548.
Noted . Did she happen to comment on the availability of the LVX6048? I have not found it for sale unless its directly through MPP website/PeggyI actually asked Peggy about the LVX6048, her response was "We are sorry that LV 6548 is the only model that has UL certification ready at the moment , Not yet for LVX 6048 or LV 6048"
The county said "All equipment shall be listed (UL) or by another recognized testing/listing agency" so as much as I would prefer getting the LVX6048 because of the higher voltage, it lacks the certification right now.