AC Hydro and battery support [RE-wrenches]

[Christopher Freitas --- OutBack Power]

Tump wrote:
> I have an installation here in Maine & I would like your input as far as 
> what I have proposed.Site is a remote trail "HUT" situation running 2 
> fridges, commercial kitchen,circulating pumps for radiant heat & 
> domestic H2o max occupancy of 40 people.

Sounds like a great application.  

> System; quad stack FW1000 3524VFX ,15 EG190s W/ Apollo CC + an AC 5kW 
> 240 v hydro. Inverter 1 = L1 AC source is a 15 kW generator Inv,#2 = L2 
> AC is gen, inverter 3 = L1 AC source Hydro Inv 4 L2 w/AC hydro. I am 
> hoping that the hydro keeps my battery bank charged as well as  feeding 
> loads, in the event that my loads are more then the hydro can support 
> then the #1&2 battery/inverters will add additional current.

Yes - this should work fine - although the AC output of the first pair 
of inverters (1&2) needs to be kept separate from the output of the 
second pair of inverters (3&4) since the two AC sources will not be 
synchronized to each other. This requires a separate AC load panel.    

> Should I have 2 hubs , inverters #1&2 on one & 3&4 on the other?

Yes - one hub will be connected to the inverters 1&2 while the second 
hub would be connected to inverters 3&4.  The MATE should be on the 
first HUB along with the FLEXnet DC monitor.  Inverters 1 and 3 will 
need to be programmed as MASTERs while inverters 2 and 4 will need to be 
programmed as SLAVEs L2.  The MASTERs must be plugged into port 1 of the 
HUBs  

> Load dump is AC contactor w/ 12 VDC coil  off inverter 3, this will be 
> dumping AC to a hot water heater. The 2nd load dump will be a baseboard 
> heater, configured off 4th inverter.

Sounds great.  

> I would like to know if this will work, will inverters 3&4 support 
> additional loads? 

Yes - the AC hydro will charge the battery through the inverters 3&4 and 
the DC power will be used to power the loads.  When the fuel powered 
generator is running the AC hydro will charge the battery.  

> Suggestions  for setting inverters?
 
See above for stacking instructions.  The rest depends on the battery 
type and is pretty standard stuff. 

> I am also installing a DCFX monitor, will this need an additional shunt 
> if my PV is the only DC source aside from the inverters DC Charging?

It is not required but is recommended.  With a separate shunt for the PV 
source you can see what the PV is doing separate from just the "NET" 
current the battery is getting - which is all you get with a single 
shunt.   

> Does the FW1000 have a 1KAmp shunt installed at the time of shipping?

No - the FW1000 comes with a single 500 amp DC shunt with two SBUS 
terminal plates on each end that allows connection of four large cables 
to each side.  This is enough for a set of four 48 volt DC inverters.  
With your four VFX3524 inverter you should install a second shunt and 
have each pair of inverters on their own shunt.  

The FW1000 includes mounting holes for a total of three 500 amp shunts 
which can be connected together to form a "T" configuration using the 
FBUS plate.  The third shunt would be for the PV input.  We do not 
require a "NET" shunt as with the old trimetric/pentametric systems - we 
do the math in the FLEXnet DC to make it all work.  

> Did Greg ever finish the AC coupling /battery charging software?

No changes have be necessary - we have well over 50 AC coupled systems  
operating all over the world with PV, Wind and Hydro sources.  We have 
done them with just about every grid-tie inverter sold in the US - 
including SMA, PV powered, Fronius, Magenetek, and yes, even Xantrex.

We advise using our standard "off-grid" inverters with AC coupled 
systems BTW.    

The only challenge has been what to do with the excess power when the 
battery is full - most of our customers want to use it for something 
useful rather than throw it away by turning off the PV array by sending 
it to a dump load via a diversion control system.  We are working on 
some new advanced AC diversion schemes to make this work even better and 
will include those in future versions of the FX once they have been 
tested in the field.  

Christopher


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


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