Battery Fuel Gauge [RE-wrenches]

[Art Weaver]

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Indeed, we may be seeing a similar (same?) problem with a grid-tied, 
series-stacked SW5548 system installed in a rural area with a weak 
utility grid.  Our working hypothesis is that low grid voltage 
(<215VAC) triggers inverter shutdowns with *NO* error reported in the 
Errors menu.  Typically, one or the other of the pair of inverters 
shuts down, not both.  We've *never* seen an error code on either 
inverter.  Batteries are in good shape - only a year old, showing 
good (dis)charging characteristics.

In an attempt at diagnosis, we're now datalogging AC+DC voltage and 
AC+DC current in and out of the inverters.  Any insights among those 
more experienced with grid-tied Xantrex equipment would be much 
appreciated.

~art weaver
Renovus Energy Inc.
Ithaca NY

Joel Davidson wrote:
> 
> Wrenches,
> 
> I had another SW4048 inverter shutdown last night and had to switch the 
> inverter bypass breakers. Grid power was 108 VAC. I think (in addition 
> to worn out batteries) the inverter menu 11 AC Inputs > Set input low 
> limit VAC 108 default may be too low. Has anyone else with grid-tie 
> systems experienced regular "light brown-outs"? What corrective action 
> did you take?
> 
> Joel Davidson
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Joel Davidson" 
> <joeldavidson at earthlink.net>
> To: <RE-wrenches at topica.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, November 01, 2006 5:00 PM
> Subject: Battery Fuel Gauge
> 
> 
>> Wrenches,
>>
>> So where's this going? Last Sunday afternoon, I experienced a Southern 
>> California Edison (SCE) power outage followed by 3 evenings and 
>> counting of grid power brownouts (101 VAC). My SW4048 line-tie 
>> inverter saw the low grid voltage and went to stand-alone mode, but my 
>> four old Johnson Controls GC12V100B batteries did not last long and 
>> the inverter did its low-voltage shutdown. So I flipped the inverter 
>> bypass switch and put up with low grid voltage (thank you SCE for 
>> shortening the life of my home equipment). Trouble-shooting and 
>> flipping switches by flashlight and re-programming the inverter the 
>> day may be interesting for techno-guys, but the average on- or 
>> off-grid PV system owner (our customers) would be frustrated and angry 
>> if their battery bank ran out of juice leaving them in the dark.
>>
>> Finally, the question: What "battery fuel gauge" do you think is the 
>> most non-technical customer-friendly (easy to use, intuitive, 
>> reliable, etc.)?
>>
>> Joel Davidson 


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