mondo off-grid inverters [RE-wrenches]

[Christopher Freitas --- OutBack Power]

Marco - 

There are some large stand-alone inverters out there - but the 
performance is usually surprisingly poor from a efficiency standpoint.  
Often the idle power consumption is in the 10% of the full power rating 
(so 3000 watts for a 30KW unit) and they often weigh thousands of pounds 
- real fun to move...  Most of them also are not "hybrid" meaning they 
will not charge the battery either.  

We are fielding our first 36 KW three phase inverter/charger in the next 
few weeks and have many single and split phase 30 to 36 kW off-grid 
systems in the field now - some for several years already.    

Keep in mind that for 36 kW you only need TEN OutBack VFX3648 inverters 
- not the "dozens" you mentioned.  Our idle power draw will be as low as 
65 W DC for a 36 kW unit depending on the AC output configuration.  
Since we can turn on the additional slave inverters with increased load 
the efficiency is very good across the entire power range.  All of the 
parts can be carried by one person and even installed solo.  

>From my experience and research - all of the large military or 
commercial inverter you find will have a price that will be very high,  
less features and the lead time and service response unacceptable for 
most off-grid applications.  Most also will require high DC battery 
voltages which introduces lots of design issues and safety concerns.  

I would be very interested in hearing other people's experience. 

Christopher


Christopher Freitas
OutBack Power Systems, Inc.
cfreitas @ outbackpower.com  
www.outbackpower.com
Arlington WA USA
Tel 360 435 6030  


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