Hi Peter,
Do you need the extra fan? The VFX has an
internal fan. Are there a lot of heavy loads
that push the limits of the Outback? If not,
take out the fan or swap it for a cover with no
fan. Many VFX inverters didn't come with cover
fans. I don't know if they are standard now, or not.
Or, have the fan go on whenever the direct grid
tie inverter is being called on to charge
batteries instead of feed the grid. If loads are
not real heavy, battery charging, by back feeding
the AC Out, may be the time when the fan is needed the most.
Before inverters started controlling generators,
we used a device called the Simple Switch, which
was a voltage controlled contact. (We'd use it
with a GenWiz). I'm not sure what is out there
these days. You could use the Atkinson GSCM,
generator start module, which senses the voltage.
If you need this solution, I'd call AEE.
Thanks for the heads up on the Xantrex. I just
heard another horror story about the Xantrex 6024
system. According to the installer, the owner
shut off an AC switch and the array cooked a bank
of Surrette 25CS 25 PS batteries. I don't know
the new Xantrex line and don't understand how
this could happen. Is this really possible?
-Drake
At 06:43 PM 9/20/2009, you wrote:
Hi Drake (and everyone else interested in this thread),
Armed with the information from my esteemed
colleagues, we went ahead and purchased a
SunWise Solar Ready-Grid Tie Battery System, a
SRB3.6 to be exact. The heart of the system is a
GVFX3648. I ordered it without the Charge
controller and purchased a SB3000 and 3150 Wdc of PV to go with it.
I also purchased a Grainger 2P2T relay with a 12
V coil in a NC configuration (to disconnect the
SB when the batteries are fully charged in
off-grid mode) and an Outback PSX-240 to
transform the 240 Vac to 120 Vac (in order to interface with the GVFX3648.
When we looked into hooking the relay up to the
AUX-OUT of the GVFX3648, we discovered that it
was already dedicated to the fan
So it looks like we will need to put something
together to sense the battery voltage and
energize the relay coil, when we exceed the
threshold. Any recommendations for a add-on HVD?
And exactly what threshold voltage should we use
for 8ea 6V 305 Ah (C/24) AGM batteries?
And for Drake: I gravitated away from Xantrex
because of a very unsatisfactory experience with
a XW6048. The system failed to work properly and
Xantrex hemmed and hawed for over six months.
Bottom line: we made six service calls, two
firmware upgrades and probably two dozen calls
to largely clueless group tech supporters.
Through it all, I lost the customers confidence
and he chose another integrator to do a follow
on commercial project. The last part of course
was the worst part of the experience.
- Peter
Hi Peter,
The Outback inverter will not regulate battery
charge while AC coupled. The SMA is the only
system designed to give a regulated charge to
batteries in the AC coupled mode. The Outback
auxiliary relay can be used to drive a relay
that will disconnect the input to the inverter,
to regulate battery charge when grid is down. I
like an "Ice Cube Rely" (such as Idec) to
control a contactor. The coil of the Idec uses very little power.
Why did you gravitate toward Xantrex from Outback?
Drake
At 09:25 PM 8/4/2009, you wrote:
I would like to start a thread on AC-coupled
grid tied battery backup systems. We do a fair
number of GTBBSs (four to five a year) and I
have gravitated from the Outback solution to the
Xantrex XW solution. I am not happy with the XW
product and especially not happy with Xantrexs
post sales technical support. I know I have more
to learn about these puppies in general, so I am
genuinely disappointed with the uneven TS from Xantrex.
I also had this nagging feeling that the heart
of a GTBBS should be the tried and true high
voltage inverter. Enter the SunPower positive
ground requirement, and now an AC coupled system seems the best solution.
>From the white paper that Outback sent me,
there was no mention of a heavy duty relay.
Doesnt the Outback inverter regulate the battery charge control?
Has anyone tried to order a SunWize Solar Ready
Battery Assemblywithout the charge controller
(e.g. P/N SRB3.6). It would seem that this is a
nice package for small energy needs (13 to 26 kWh of battery backup).
- Peter
[]
Peter T. Parrish, Ph.D., President
California Solar Engineering, Inc.
820 Cynthia Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90065
CA Lic. 854779, NABCEP Cert. 031806-26
<mailto:peter.parr...@calsolareng.com>peter.parr...@calsolareng.com
Ph 323-258-8883, Mobile 323-839-6108, Fax
323-258-8885
----------
From: re-wrenches-boun...@lists.re-wrenches.org
[ mailto:re-wrenches-boun...@lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of William Miller
Sent: Tuesday, August 04, 2009 5:55 PM
To: jry...@netscape.com; RE-wrenches
Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] XW6048 parts problem
Jeff:
I have a spare. They are not kept in the socket
but are loose in a bag. Send me your mailing
address off list. I leave tomorrow for a week,
so I hope I see your address before I go.
William
At 04:59 PM 8/4/2009, you wrote:
Just completed a large residential
grid/gen/solar/battery system using a XW6048 inverter.
We are using a SunnyBoy inverter at the array
and doing an AC coupled backfeed. To do this we
have installed a heavy duty relay in the output
of the SunnyBoy, and are using the aux. relay
contacts on the XW unit to close this relay when
battery voltage is at high limit (during no load
power outage to prevent over-charging)
Not sure if we lost it during installation, if
it shook loose in shipment and fell out, or was
missing to begin with, but to connect to the
aux. contacts in th XW requires a very small
green flat 5-pin connector which is missing.
I contacted multiple people at Xantrex and their
service center, waded through their web site,
and finally talked to a service tech. He
advised that "he was looking for an extra one of
these connectors 6 months ago and still has not
received it, as these compoments are made and
assembled in China and they do not stock
anything that is considered an assembly part
used in China to build their units."
First, I did not realize these inverters were
being assembled in China, and second, who ever
heard of not stocking a replacement part just
because its made in China. If that were true,
95% of everything sold today in US would not be
able to order replacement parts.
Anybody out their know if there is a Radio Shack
type supplier where I can order a bag of these
and get on with the system startup and my life?
Thanks,
Jeff Yago
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Drake Chamberlin
Athens Electric
OH License 44810
CO License 3773
NABCEP TM Certified PV Installer
Office - 740-448-7328
Mobile - 740-856-9648
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Drake Chamberlin
Athens Electric
OH License 44810
CO License 3773
NABCEP TM Certified PV Installer
Office - 740-448-7328
Mobile - 740-856-9648
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