Why Sol-Ark didn't work for me.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ธ.ค. 2021
- Follow Up video to my first video on the Sol-Ark 12K inverter. This should provide everyone with more information. Personally, I don't need all the features so I don't think it's worth it for me. It's also worth noting that the Sol-Ark has a longer warranty than the Growatt.
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My videos are in no way intended to be instructional "how-to" lessons. I am simply documenting my project for informational purposes. Property damage, personal injury, or death may result, even when following manufacturer's instructions. I cannot be held liable for such damage or injury. It is YOUR OBLIGATION to ensure that you are complying with any local and federal laws as well as code and permit requirements.
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I think it would be hard to overstate just how valuable this video is for me and probably a large number of your viewers. The tests you've done are worth their weight in gold!
Thank you for the kind comment. I'm glad I could help.
I think it's hard to overstate how David's relationship with a rival manufacturer has rendered this video utterly pointless. Update the firmware and balance your legs. Really very easy.
@@OAK-808.
Agreed. It’s very partial. Imbalanced loads will prematurely shutdown any inverter. Not just Sol ark
@@xzibit8614 but they didn't shut down his growatt inverters.
@@OAK-808 he already tried bouncing his legs. Didn't you watch the video
Without a doubt, you are the gold standard for well-researched information backed up by live testing and experience. Thank-you for the excellent presentation and discussion. I learned a lot!
David, thank you for taking the time to do a follow up video and give even more detail to your methods. As always your videos are awesome and very helpful!
Kudos for keeping after it. I retired after 30 yrs as a facility electronics manager. I learned a long time ago, from the same kind of experience you just went through, that when the equipment I KNOW so well suddenly seem to misbehave after something NEW has been added I know to look at the NEW stuff. No problem, with your troubleshooting skills you got there. You'll remember that sucker forever. I'm sure the comments were pretty fierce. I choose to be grid tied, cheap backup for my welders and other monster loads. When that changes, I may go to some storage. Michael in Colorado.
Hi @DavidPoz!!!
Thank you for your video... in my modest opinion, you just set the record strait... you are an Off-Grider and what you want is the Best Off-Grid solution for your conditions... that's it!!!
So the Sol-Ark 12K is an awesome inverter but is not what you need... crystal clear... you don't want to overpay for an inverter that does not fit your needs or not suitable for your specific conditions; so those 2 Growatts with the SolarEdge AutoTransformer are what you need... and you already tested them, therefore, they are it!!!
I really appreciate that you took all that time and effort to clear up things... very honest gesture from your side!!!
I'll definitively keep following your channel to see what other great videos you bring to us...
Take care and stay safe!!!
Great video... No real surprises. I kinda figured these tests would go exactly as they did... Cool that you went ahead and made a video to display it all as well as the cost breakdown. All around good video for anyone watching. My situation is exactly like yours. I want to get rid of the grid at the cheapest cost.
Good, honest, explanation of your previous video on the SA. I too, had the SA puffed up in my head as the top dog inverter, but with the price difference and great reviews, I had to go with a pair of GW’s like you. Hoping to get them operational in the next week or two. I appreciate the time and effort you put into these videos.
Growatt is a Chinese company, I think we should prefer buying from American companies, even if some of the components come from China anyway. I'm also on the list of feeling a bit deflated about the SolArk though. Currently looking into the Outback systems..
I have a Sok-ark 12k inverter installed in my house and I wasn’t aware of the 4500 watt limitation. Now I know what to look for in the event mine throws an ac overload error. I very much appreciate your effort in tracking down the problem.
To be clear that is per phase. I can run my house ~600W and a 6000W 240V dryer at the same time as shoving ~3.6KW charging the batteries on my Solark and it doesn't break a sweat. There's a reason there are 240V appliances on the market, just like sizing the wire that you use for charging batteries a higher voltage means less current drawn i.e. power per phase.
Great video. A lot of time and energy go into these videos and we appreciate your time.
Very nicely done. I'm in a similar situation with northern sun in winter. Even adding battery's still requires a generator, which I can live with for now. Our grid is coop owned but still very expensive to connect to. Your critique of components helps me select and understand present technology available. Thank you for all you do here.
Thank you for your comment.
I appreciated your findings and videos on this inverter - it certainly helped inform me for my all electric off-grid build before I encountered the same problems.
More info is always good. You say “problems” I say “conditions” meaning the math of how loads need to not exceed call it 4,500 watts per leg is not the same as 9,000 total. I design solar for the conditions and if I don’t THAT is the “problem” because this inverter operates exactly as advertised, if you read all the info.
If I pay such a large price premium, I expect better error messages - convincing me the limitations are worth the price premium is a problem for Sol-Ark to solve for their misleadingly named 12K (actually 9K) inverter.
Yes ALL The INFO Help's ALL
@@tomkacandes8286 Right
Man those little auto transformers are crazy cool. I put in two for my system just in case one fails, but that was a really interesting experiment. Also the Sol-Ark is UL listed which is a big deal for people who care about insurance companies covering in the event of a fire or something like that. UL Listed things are always more expensive than non listed parts (like the GW5KES), so people also need to think about that. Don't listen to people drinking that hateraide David, you are doing great. I love watching your program, it's one of my favorites on TH-cam.
UL listings is NOT expensive. Just had a 2 million dollar piece of equipment certified and it was next to nothing.
@@onthelake9554 Well that is interesting because UL listed parts seem to cost quite a bit more than non listed ones
Solark needs competition, they think their product is a solid piece of equipment and its not. Not to mention they are way over charging their customers. I honestly believe they are providing hugh incentives for installers to recommend their product. David , did a fair assessment of their product, it basically tripped constantly. if the shoe fits wear it!
Thanks Dave for your efforts on this video. I appreciate so much the information and testing it to it's limits....
Dave, you're just so awesome in what you do. I was going to get a Solark 15K. But your video has me leaning towards 2 Growatts for my off grid system. Thx a lot
Glad to help.
Thanks for all the information! Your style of explaining is very understandable.
I am a newby, and planning on a system soon. Still in research phase.
Thanks again,
Tony
Thanks for the update David. Happy holidays to all.
Loved the previous video… don’t let the trolls get to you!
No kidding!
It's 4* the cost of a growatt 12kw and the fix is to spend more on an auto transformer and replace thousands in appliances and install propane with a biannual cost that's only going up every year
Very in depth video. On a Shire note we have gone from a daily average shaded 5.5Kw Hr to Now Over 8.0Kw Hrs a day in the winter with the Tree's newly cut down. Our Panels are dismally angled still in a temp set up until further funds. The Battery does Top up full most days! I'm moving the entire AC Mains panel, Inverter and battery into a cubby once we fabricate the Shower room and kitchen! 14Kw 240v Water heater going in soon. I have the #6 AWG and the 60 amp 2 pole Breaker. We also located a 8 ft Galvanized grounding rod ($14). Excited to make those videos' soon. Once the Battery is in Place i pray to never ever move it again! She's a beast and we'll see how long it'll last! Winter #3.
I have watched your vids and others . All politeness aside for all the features the solark has it doesn't outperform some inverters that cost 1/2 the price🤨in some critical areas. People are experiencing this with normal household loads not tools.thats Solarks problem that they need to fix. Lastly if Momma aint happy aint nobody happy. Thx for all you do.
Thanks for taking the time, energy, and $$$ to share this info!
I truly want to personally thank you for your hard work in all the details you've gone thru! it has changed my mind as well as I want to be electrical off grid and want fuel independence. and I too will be going with growatt!!-- Thank you David!! I was sooo much very sold on the solark and was totally planning on spending that much- but as you've shown I'm not gonna go out and spend money on extra petroleum based fed appliances which would add cost just to get what electric that I have in place and paid for- that money could be spent on a better inverter like growatt!!
Good call. If you need more than the 10KW that two 5KW Growatts can put out, you can always add another one or two. I think that the mid-point transformer will handle four or five Growatts, but you may want to check on that before trying it. One could always get anoter mid-point transformer for each new Growatt over the two.h
I am not sure how to put a picture on my comment. But the reality is that I have the growatt 5000es inverters. They are handling my power needs in awesome fashion. Of all the you tubers doing solar / power videos you are the most honest. I am extremely thankful that I saw your videos. I am also very happy that I teamed up with signature solar on my solar installation.
Great informative video. Really interesting and useful results using the autotransformer on a split phase inverter. Keep up the great videos.
Great video David. Thank you. I like how you said that you are aiming at going totally solar power off grid, not relying on a power company or other power systems. That to me makes sense to me. Cheers
Thank You. We are building a new home and are going solar from the start. Your videos helped me understand issues I would have with the Sol-Arc. There are other videos out there showing similar problems with Sol-Arc. One guy shows trying to start a air compressor. We do wood working so these heavy loads are common but typically one at a time. We will probably have to have two inverters or one that handles startup loads better such as the XW-Pro. Thanks again
Thank you for a very good video I think this could be the best video I’ve ever seen from you. I guess it was a lot of work to make it just to show us what and why it is like it is. I have just bought a growatt 5000 myself thanks to your videos and I have start to install it and it seems to be a very good product.
Good work. I was convinced on the first video but this one really cemented my decision to go with Growatts. Thanks. Ultimately zero dependence on the Grid is key.
Exceptional Video - Really helps to develop realistic use-case expectations and this certainly helps me to decide what will be best for my requirements/installation. Thank You!
David I did the same thing.. I bought the 12k and realized it does shut down when off grid but never when it is grid connected.. There are times where it will pull from the grid for a big load via passthrough to avoid shutting down.. I built it up in my mind too to be perfect to justify the price.
I'm installing a 12k and decided to get the Victron autotransformer (32A) for the load side after seeing this video. How are you configured and is it working for you?
Love your improvising work!
That is how I made my solar boat. Already in use for 8 years.
Next step wil be the house.
Your videos are very informative and very much appreciated. Thanks!
I'm so glad you took the time to post this. I was close to buying the 15k model which is superior to your 12k in many ways. But now I'm considering going to a Schneider inverter. I found another video where the sol ark 12k could barely handle a 6k continous load. That basically sucks. It also failed miserably at start up loads for motors such as well pumps and compressors. The Schneider was able to handle the loads. Based on price I can buy 2 Schneider for the price of 1 sol ark 15k. I will keep researching but I'm so glad I found this video because it helped me look at additional options.
I'm glad the video is helpful for you.
@@DavidPozEnergy Since the Separation of the Neutral from the Sol-Ark to the subpanel, using only the autotransformer seemed to solve the nuisance tripping, did you find out from Sol-Ark (or others) that explains WHY this made a difference?
Sol-Ark 15K is AMAZING. I replaced my two EG4 6500EX with Sol-Ark 15k. I run 200Amps through one Sol-Ark 15k :)
@@StevenCollar replaced the eg4’s already? They just hit the market a couple months ago.
We have two waiting to be connected
I’m off grid and for my use, the 12K has been faultless. (Literally). I also completely installed it myself.
Thank you for the videos i too am looking to be completely off grid and i do like the Sol-Arks just wished they had an inverter for off grid only and with you showing the differences hopefully they will be watching
I'm not anywhere near ready to take on a project such as this, but when/if I am, then I'll remember this video. Thanks!
Thank you for the follow-up video and adding much needed additional detail, as well as a nice test at the end! I hope that folks can see the difference between the two setups. It's a matter of what you want to do and how you want to do it, in the end. The Sol-Ark is a premium product that installs cleanly, likes to be grid-tied, has a long warranty and great customer support, whereas the Growatt setup is much cheaper but requires additional time and investment into setup, configuration, and is not appropriate for grid-tied applications.
I don't think those Growatt units will last, but who knows?
@@greenftechn They will last. Growatt didn't become one of the top 10 solar inverter manufacturers in the world by making garbage.
@@greenftechn I sure hope that they do, as I bought two like David has after watching his initial few videos on them. I live totally offgrid.
Great work David. Very comprehensive analysis!
Thank you so much for posting David! We will be operating an RV 50 amp until the off grid small home is built and this is definitely great information to use because we are beyond the grid...
Awesome analysis!! Thanks for the clear , easy to understand cost analysis! Might be doing something similar in Gilford NH
Thanks for taking the time to explain all of that.
Superbe explication direct et franche DAVID ! Merci et j'aborde parfaitement dans ton point de vu aussi bien financier que technique.
Hi David. Great video. I think there is an important takeaway from this experience. If you have a two-phase inverter with 9KW of total capacity, think that you do not have it. Actually, you have two inverters with a capacity of 4.5 KW each. And none of them can be overloaded. The same conclusion applies to a two-phase generator.
Yet he only had half his max with both phases combined? If I understand the conclusion he came to with 12K. The device’s 11000W output is being split between battery and grid power? And since he refuses grid hookup he only gets half the capability of the Sol-Ark?
Now there’s a 15kw and a 30kw SolArc out…so I wonder if they’d work
@@DrMJJr yeah for $10-15k!
@@CaseDadToo When I add it up I get 4,584W on L1. That is over the max 4,500 per leg. Over limit means over limit.
There's so many hybrid inverters like the growatt you can find from china. The play is pretty much a 240v inverter and then the auto-transformer. It's always gonna be cheaper and more efficient to do that because split phase inverters are just not as powerful, given that they have basically 2 inverters working in series, so a surge in one phase will be soaked by only half of the inverter and give issues like you had with the Sol-Ark. While a plain 240v inverter with an auto-transformer will handle 100% surge without a problem and even more with the transformer, given that the transformer is sized appropiately.
I'm currently building an inverter with retired wind turbine parts, to work without a boost stage, meaning a ~340vdc battery pack with a basic igbt full bridge. I already assembled the inverter portion just need to create a gate driver, because the IGBT's are so big that they can't be driven by off the shelf gate drivers. And then mate them with an EGS002.
According to my calculations since they are 1700V 1400A igbt's it should handle over 300kW CONTINUOUS with a 380vdc bus. Though of course I have no intentions of consuming even 10% of that, but it's crazy numbers.
It's been on the backburner cause of college but I really hope to finish it in the next few months. If I do get it up and running will deffo make a series about it.
I was told that Growatt model can pass through utility electricity when needed but is still considered off grid. My utility company in Tucson is having a hard time telling me if they'll approve it bc the guy can't see it doesn't back feed solar to the grid on the spec sheets. Is it true that it's off grid? Do you thinks my utility co needs to approve it?
So as I understand, these split phase high frequency (HF) inverters are basically two 120V inverters. So if you exceed the load on either side of the 120V inverters, it will shut down. My LV5048 5KW inverter, will shut down if I exceed 2.5KW from L1 or L2. Using the auto-transformer, connected only to L1 and L2 only with the neutral from the auto-transformer, it should be able to power to a 5KW 120V load and still keep the L1 and L2 legs of the inverter balanced.
Now the surge rating, or it's ability to support a high inrush current of electric motors, should be improved because of the stored energy in the iron core.
Adding a autotransformer to a high frequency (HF) inverter kinda converts it to a low frequency (LF) inverter. The LF inverters appear to be more tolerant of high inrush current devices like table saws or compressors.
Nice I want a big inverter and HV batt too
David,
You don't owe us an explanation. You did a GREAT JOB on the prequel. Glad for the additional content, but the 12K is a 9K, split phase. So only able to deliver 4500 watts per phase at a time befor overload.
Kind of like getting GIGABIT symmetrical internet, but you can only use half the speed at any time.... Or a wifi router that claims the theoretical lab speeds, and then when you go to test it, you find out it's an irrelevant number that only exists In lab environments with some over exaggerated marketing claims.
Helpful video, thanks David. Clothes dryer solution: I purchased a Meile heat-pump dryer (some other brands offer the same technology) which runs on just 120v without a lot of draw. Amazing efficiency! A bit slower to dry, but works beautifully and does not use a vent to outdoors, so air leakage into the house is avoided (plus no dryer fluff clogging issues).
It's been 4 months since your comment. I've been interested in those. Have you had any maintenance issues on your dryer?
David thank you for the very in-depth explanation.
Thanks for your honest review and keep it coming!
"Please allow me a minute to break down and cry." is what I was thinking you were going to say!
Liked both videos..... I wish Sol-Ark would make a version like the Growatts but keep their 120/240v like they have now.... Alot of people are looking at total off grid no generator etc..... I bought Victron but had to buy the charge controller and lynx to equal Sol-ark.....plus all that extra work in planning and install...... Glad you did this TH-cam to show the need for more efficient higher end in total off grid.......
Like what version of the growatt? Which growatt? The big 12k with built-in transformer?
Exelent video. I really appreciate the detail you go into.
The total capacity of any multi phase system is the sum of each one of the phases maximum capacity. Your split system is not exempt to this rule. It is not about imbalance but individual capacity (the ampacity of the wires of each phase). The only solution for your case would be an auto transformer with twice the capacity of your inverter, this way it would supply 100% to a single phase, but never anything above that. The best solution is to split the loads equally between the two phases, which is not easy to control. Load imbalance can damage the transformer core.
In my tiny shed/workshop fed by a 60A I installed different color outlets and switches depending on which leg it is. This way I could run the saw plugged into white outlets while the vacuum and lights are plugged into black.
Good follow-up, thank you for sharing!
Huge amount of useful information. THANK YOU!!!
Thanks for the follow up video. Appreciate your channel and research.
Professional installer here. You can stack these inverters in parallel, gives you 2x the power. I’ve seen sol-arks power complete houses with swimming pools and 5hp water pumps completely off-grid.
They make a 15k version now for even larger loads. You need to do a load calc to give you a general idea before you plan out how many inverters you’ll need
The 30kw comes out later this year!!!
It just sounds like an undersized system in some cases.
You obviously didn't watch the Video... That's 2 inverters for $14,000 for something that he can do with a Auto Transformer for a fraction of the cost..
Watch the Video before commenting... @@devinfraserashpole4753
Hi David, I am in the process of having solar installed and the installer provided a Sol-Ark 12k. I am very grateful for your review and it has given me a chance to think about future installation. At this time I am grid connected and will remain so until a later date, so I think that the grid tied functions will be a big benefit. I have to deal with the utility as well and that affects the equipment options that I can install which is a point that wasn't discussed. Thank you for all you do, it is much appreciated.
Thanks for doing this video which provided me more information about these units.
Thank you for doing the autotransformer test!
At the end of the day, this thing is designed as a hybrid, with AC passthru. Perfect for on grid with solar/ battery to reduce grid usage. It won’t overload because the grid will supplement the inverter. Running this off grid will result in hitting its inverter limits.
Yup. I am on the grid and our critical loads panel was designed to be able to run fully on the pass through a/c. If the grid is out we would have to load manage like anyone else.
@@av1204 this guy gets it. It’s why they are called critical loads, you don’t run an electric dryer off grid with a single inverter. Hybrid inverter isn’t meant to run an all electric house like Ben said.
I was just about to ask about having both legs connected to your breaker panel and basically self transform to maintain full output.
Thanks for your response
I love my solark 12k running off LTO batteries
Every sol-ark I have seen installed has been in an off grid environment. I can see how he would think it's the best.
Great stuff... can't wait for your next test. Awesome
ty you for sharing your experience ! Priceless.
Great to add up the investment pieces!
There is also more effort in extra wiring,
which is hard to quantify.
Another concept is if you experience excessive draw on your inverter, change appliances. I have natural gas, so first thing I did after moving in 2 decades ago was to replace the electric water heater and electric dryer with gas appliances. Motivated by the water heater failing, and installed a tankless gas in its place. Recently Installed a 6 kW inverter (EG4 6000XP) and about to commission. It powers a subpanel for one side of the house (kitchen, living room, garage). If the electric range proves a problem, I'll change to gas (wifey desires anyway). A similar idea is when I installed central heat/AC in my prior 1929 Atlanta house, I picked the smallest unit (1/2 ton), which pro's claimed "insufficient". Being an engineer, I calculated it would due to tree cover and insulation (blew R19 cellulose in walls, R30 attic). If it fell short, I could add more insulation (didn't need to).
I have 2 Sol-Ark 12Ks paralleled and I live totally off grid. All my heavy loads run off them. My well, my dryer, my ovens, etc. we got by with 1 12k for about a year and just upgraded to a second. For off grid, they’re awesome. I also have eight 130ah discover batteries and a 12kw solar system.
You got screwed...
Thank you for sharing this addition information. I will now have to go back and watch the other video. Haha. David I have enjoyed your videos for years and really enjoy your presentations. This was painful to see you need to explain how Sol-Ark is better for “some “ people.
Thanks for watching my videos. I would have preferred to make a video saying "it's awesome" or something. I was just very disappointed in it's performance.
David, you don't owe anyone shit.
Your last video was excellent.
Thanks for the information.
Can you tell me if the Growatt is CSA and or UL certified? I did not find the info in the documents I have. You have made my decisions easier so far so great job and thanks!
David a great video. I'm presently building a 4.3kw off grid solar system for my barn/greenhouse. Once down I want to do the same for our house. Our house uses around 22kw/grs a day and is ALL electrical and its staying that way. My house design was using the solarark 12k unit. Buying 2 units is $$$$$. I think your system is more robust for the off-grid.
very well done, start to finish.
For production usage of the Sol-Ark 12K, make sure you have sufficient horizontal clearance for the three fans on each side. My Sol-Ark's mounted outside (in a temperate climate) and the fans spin frequently, even on cooler days.
You installer friend is so right. 30 years ago solar panels were 5 dollars a watt. I couldn't afford an all electric house, so propane was the answer. Thanks for all the hard work testing. I think the convenience of the SOK-ARK as a plug and play unit is why many installers are going to it. I think Growatt or a secondary supplier needs to come up with a companion power distribution box. If that happens Growatt can be the go to system.
Growatt is already the number one inverter company in the WORLD.
I appreciate your enthusiasm in promoting off grid power generation and your videos have been informative. I think you will agree that the internet is full of solar energy offers that are rip-offs. The off grid community is growing but I would suggest that the overwhelming number of people looking at solar energy as a way of reducing their energy cost are not technically minded enough to do what you do. You correctly stated that Sol-Ark is not the inverter for your situation. The "power wall" with solar options and grid back up is probably going to be ideal for most people (turn key, with minimal monitoring and full house loads). I think that Sol-Ark is a company that could do that.
I am a subscriber and enjoy your videos keep up the good work.
Thanks for taking the comments in stride and revisiting this video. Well done explaining your reasons and I agree it's not for everyone. I still have it on my wish list for when I go off grid as the simplicity of the one unit means more to me than the cost. And it's true with most off gridders being light loads on their power systems as they have not had the access to the power we do now. My calculated loads are going to be in the order of magnitude smaller for the most part than the 15K can provide but will be able to handle the future loads as well. My plan is also to have a garage with welders and big woodworking tools so that would be on a separate system but that is yet to be figured out as I don't have the tools figured out yet ;) thanks Again
I suggest getting the midpoint transformer like he showed hooked up toward the end of the video, as that seems to have solved the unbalanced load problem. Still not sure how it has a limit of 4500W on each leg and they can still call it a 12000W unit, when the two leg limits only add up to 9000W!
With all those inverters around you ,I I'm jealous , great presentation's
Thanks for showing a good cost anaylsis. The problem with the grow watt system is that it requires someone to set up all the stuff.
Follow up the growatt, sometime, that would be great too. Thanks again.👍
This is a perfect video. Clearly verifies the inverter was not designed properly. Investing into an auto transformer the top of that? I wish you had one more small load connected it would shut it off at 8000W. I appreciate it, I’m glad I’m not the only one who has problems with this unit.
Thanks for checking it out. I'm glad to be done with Sol-Ark.
Another awesome review. I think the SolArk is targeted at installers and diy folk who want to minimize install time and complexity. Still has a place in those markets, if cost is not a factor.
Solarc is targeted if people who want to be on grid while having a complete backup
So I went reading through those comments also, the ATrans one stood out to me too because it made sense. Thanks for proving it out....Good info could help with someones system.
Such a good explanation. Thank you for sharing. I am thinking of getting a solar Arc 15K with grid assist in case my batteries go dead on cloudy days. I wonder if my system will have the same shuting down issues if i have grid assist.
Truly great content here. Thank you! For a city cat like me the Sol-Ark is gonna perform great, but I will have to be careful about a couple of large loads to avoid knocking it offline.
Thank you for showing and explaining your experience with the off grid experience and capabilities of the inverter. I was assuming the same thing you had inically on the off grid capability being similar to the ongrid setup. Will help on design of system.
Being candid about mistakes will halp everyone. Thank you. I try to do the same for others.
Hi David. While an auto transformer is a pretty common component used for load balancing between phases, some are not as good as others. I’m not familiar with the SEAUTO-TX-5000, but it looks like a great solution, especially for its small physical size.
I have a question about it though. Some auto transformers suffer a voltage differential on the phase outputs. For instance Victron’s autotransformer tends to have a 7V deferential, due to one phase having to travel through the winding.
On the SEAUTO-TX-5000 outputs (not inverter outputs) how well balanced is the voltage. Is one leg lower than the other? I’d appreciate it if you can find the time to check it.
Cheers.
The one I tested was L1 to N 120 L2 to N 119
Thanks David another informative video, please can you test an air con unit without and with a soft starter, so that we can see how the Solark inverter handles the inrush current? Stay safe and compliments of the season to you.
Happy New Year too
Very helpful explanations.
3800 less AND it doesn't shut off with your loads. Nice informative video ,although I felt like you explained your situation well in the first one .
We pay half that price in South Africa and we don't have the split phase headache. We get the sunsynk 8.8kw and that doesn't trip when used in spec
Great story David! Thanks!
Hey. I really like these type of videos. Have you answered those safety questions related to the auto transformer on a circuit breaker? Something about if the beaker tripped there would be 120 volt loads getting 240 volts and start a fire or damage to equitment. I don't know if I'm asking the question properly. But I hope you get what I mean?
Thanks for this David.
In your efficiency comparison you neglect to bring up that the pair of Growatt's will peak at around 15k watts before tripping and run constant at a full 10k watts where the Sol-Ark will trip at around 9k watts with 240v loads.
The Sol Ark will trip at around 4500w on L1 or L2 whether it is used on grid or off grid. I had problems with the first few installations I did based on the false assumption that a Sol-Ark 12k actually produced 12k. I believe this false assumption made by myself and many other has finally led Sol-Ark to come out with their new 15k unit that is "supposed" to supply a full 15k, just like the older 8k inverter produces close to 8k. The downside to their 15k inverter is that it will be much more expensive and it is as yet unproven. It's supposedly a new design but it's still from the same Chinese factory that produces a number of other hybrid inverters.
I think your testing says more about the Solar Edge center tap auto transformer than anything else. I have found that to be a very versatile piece of equipment that efficiently solves the issue that the European 240v inverters come with, i.e. no 120v or split phase. As a bit of clarification for energy consumption with the auto transformer it draws less as more load is applied to the system.
Another interesting use for the auto transformer is to use it (or several of them) in place of the utility neutral for straight grid applications. High utility bills are exacerbated by 120v high consumption appliances. This can be reduced considerably by a balanced 240v load. Since the electrical meter doesn't know where the neutral is in the system, records the lower amperage and wattage of the 240v consumption.
Overall a well done test. Thanks again for putting facts out there.
Sunsynk is dirt cheap in SA and i would take 2x 5kw Sunsynks over the Growatts any day. We dont even get a 12kw single phase here and I think Solark have made a mistake there. Lets do a comparison 2 vs 2 equivalent size units.
are you saying I can lower my utility bill installing the auto transformer right beside the main panel without any inverters?
@@mendohomepower7492 what are the risks of doing so?
The utility meter reads wattage. It wont care if a 1000 watt load is 120V or 240V or if it is a pair of balanced 500 watt loads 1 on each leg, they will all register (and be metered as) 1000 watts, so they will cost the user the same amount of money. Don't you think the electric company would be aware of any ways to "beat the system"? That is how they help protect their earnings/profit.
@@davidjames1684 thats what i thought
slight correction to your assessment... for Grid tied systems, (not necesarily grid FEED systems) Solark does not just drive the critical loads panel. It drives the main panel as well, unless the grid shuts down. So even if you don't want to feed excess power from PV to the grid, Solark still will take care of all your panels, and heavy loads too - IF you are grid tied - for those overload situations. So in affect you have trouble free PV with the occasional, as needed support of the grid.
Awesome video, great detail well presented to the non-technical consumer. Bottom line minus the legalize the sol-ark is not labeled as a "Consumer" would expect.
David both videos helped me to understand the limitations. Someone tried to explain it to me with a different hybrid inverter but it wasn’t clear. I didn’t end up buying that inverter as a result. I am currently using Schneider conext 4024 120/240 split phase and I can run full loads on one leg only. It runs my 12,000 btu a/c perfectly ( for over four years) with other loads. I was expecting that with some of these significantly higher priced inverters as well. I am currently thinking of upgrading but I might just go for the Schneider 6848 Pro . It is much cheaper, it is also stackable and can easily work off grid at full load with no issues. I am aware that I will have to add an additional charge controller and do more wiring.
I agree that the Schneider XW PRO is a great way to go.
Of course now everything you priced with the Growatt configuration, is at least $4000+, but great analysis and explanation. Very educational. I could not afford a SolArk regardless, but ultimately went with 2 x EG4 6500EX-48 (which I have not received yet).
Thanks for a great video. So serious question, why not just stick with the two Growatt inverters and the transformer? I'm slightly confused on why there would be a need to swap to something different. Are you doing this just for our education, or is there an extra benefit for you to use the sol-ark vs the two growatts?
Thanks. 2 GW's for me
Great info as always!
Another great video David
Thanks for the follow-up David! Not a fan-girl of the Sol-ark just for the record; But I do own one, and it's efficiency and feature set is why I purchased. From my last comment just reminding "indeed the Sol-ark won't be for everyone". But I do want to ask if you expanded the DC amp allowance to Max 185 discharge? I truly appreciate yours and Ben's honesty and videos as a whole so so very much!!
I had the same question and have seen other video reviews where the sol-ark's performance seemed limited because of that max amp setting for the battery was being left at the 100amp default.
🤔 Perhaps incorporating a SPAN smart panel would allow more precise programming, monitoring, and control. It would save you the laborious manual troubleshooting.
Increasing the capacity of the system and balancing the phase loads should allow operation with less challenging of the differential load limits and would increase reliability.
A discussion of EMP resistance would be useful. 😎
Awesome video! Great lesson learned. Call Sol-Ark support! Maybe you should have called the Engineers at Sol-Ark from the beginning and you could of save a lot of trouble.
They could probably save a whole lot of confusion if they renamed it the solark 9K
And took off the 'limitless energy' badge too :)
Yea
I am starting to agree with you. Maybe the 9 + 3 to highlight the ability to charge battery and still invert 4.5+4.5…or 4.5+4.5+3kW to avoid the confusion that spurred this video!
Actually the correct name should be "Unbalanced Sol-Ark 9k"