AEI/Beacon M5 Fireworks II [RE-wrenches]
Gary Higbee
gary at windstreamsolar.com
Tue Sep 7 17:07:41 PDT 2004
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Wrenches,
Today a "new, improved" Multimode 5000 (remember AEI?) replacement inverter
failed spectularlarly at a "high-end" installation. Just before the demise
of AEI the earlier inverter failed in a similar fashion--lots of smoke, fire
alarms, fire department on-site, the call we never want to get, etc.
While AEI was falling I was shipped (freight collect) a replacement, being
assured that power board problems had been addressed. The new inverter
lasted almost two years, rather than the approximately 7 months the first
version lasted. The ultimate failure, however, was almost as dramatic. Did
we just get two lemons, or was the AEI inverter a problem beast? Did AEI
fold because there were other such failures?
After the first inverter fried I was assured that the problem with the power
board had been addressed, and that the "new" inverter was redesigned.
Apparently a fundamental flaw persisted.
Do any of you have stories about the AEI version, and more importantly do
any of you have firsthand knowledge of substantial improvements when Beacon
took things over?
At this point I hope that Beacon will take some responsibility for the
nightmare the AEI version has caused. And unless there is a very honest
dialogue with Beacon I would not touch any AEI-derived product, from any
manufacturer, for a very long time.
For me this is far beyond a specific manufacturer, as I feel that for my
client solar technology is somewhat on the line. Failures like this are
extremely rare, as we know, and I want to do everything possible to make
sure we've got a solution in place that is robust and durable.
We've all had equipment fail, though I will say that for me it has been very
limited. One bad SW a few days out of the box, and Trace was very good about
shipping a replacement. One bad MX60, and again expedient resolution. Many
bad KC120 modules of late (which I didn't install, fortunately). Speaking of
which I understand that Kyocera had a major manufacturing defect around
1999, so if any of you have KC120's out there from around that timeframe I'd
suggest going back for some testing (open-circuit voltage and short-circuit
current--and while it's hot, as this is a thermal cycling problem and I'm
seeing an intermittent failure mode). In this case Kyocera says they will
cover shipping both ways and replacement labor. This is very honorable, in
my opinion, and if things work out they earn very high marks by me (I'll
report on this after it's done).
Right now, though, do you have anything to offer regarding the AEI version
of this Multimode 5000 inverter, or substantiated reasons for why anyone
should ever consider using the Beacon derivative? My hope is that there has
been a major change in the inverter architecture, and that Beacon will honor
the AEI warranty--i.e., at the least replace the inverter (and hopefully
labor). If Beacon won't then we're looking at a substantial financial loss,
and we'll see where things go. If this is the case I'd lean towards Outback,
though my client and I would likely be very unhappy that Beacon didn't make
things work.
If anyone wants to visit the website for this system please see
www.oceansolar.com. There will soon be updates to the site reporting this
second major inverter failure. Please note that the near-realtime power
graphs will not be accurate, given this inverter failure.
Thanks,
Gary
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~ Windstream Solar ~
Gary Higbee (gary at windstreamsolar.com)
(541 ) 607-1818 (Eugene)
(541) 954-3881 (Cell)
Solar, wind, and hydro site analysis and system design
Components dealer and installation assistance
Energy Trust of Oregon contracted system inspector
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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