[RE-wrenches] SMA 1800u not generating power

[Jason Szumlanski]

Someone contacted me off list and said this company does out of warranty
SMA repairs:

http://www.shop.solarcowboyzoutlet.com/Inverter-Repair-Service-Inverter-Repair-Service.htm

Looks like there is a risk in how big the repair is, but apparently they
are willing to talk about the diagnostics before you send it in, and fix
minor problems for a flat rate.

One bad part about these small systems is that labor to repair or replace
failed units can easily turn into a cost equivalent to years of energy
production, not to mention the hardware cost itself... I've only sold a few
"tiny" systems over the years, and never really considered this. It makes
much more financial sense for an owner to replace a failed 5kW inverter
when the labor is basically the same as a 2kW.

Jason Szumlanski


On Fri, Jul 24, 2015 at 10:04 AM, Sky Sims <sky at ecologicalsystems.biz>
wrote:

> This is a known issue. I've come across a bunch of their inverters that
> have had this problem. In addition to seeing this issue on their 1800's
> I've seen it happen on their 2500's as well. Shows a solid green light but
> isn't putting out power.
> The first time I came across this issue they had a refurbishment program,
> where they would rebuild the inverter and send it back with a one year
> warranty for under $400. The refurbishment program was a great program that
> I hope they bring back someday.
> The last few times I contacted SMA about one of these defective inverters,
> they said the product was not under warranty and they no longer supported
> it. Only option they gave was to buy a new unit.
>
> Sky Sims
> Ecological Systems
>
>
> On Jul 24, 2015, at 5:49 AM, Jason Szumlanski <
> jason at floridasolardesigngroup.com> wrote:
>
> I am looking at a 1800u from 2004 that has a green light and in mpp mode,
> but Pac is zero. Grid and DC voltage are good.  No other indication of
> problems. I saw Pac tick up to 2W a couple of times,  but that's it. It's
> just not delivering AC power.
>
> Any thoughts?
>
> Sadly, it doesn't make much financial sense for the owner to replace it
> with a current model, as the replacement cost would take almost 10 years to
> recover with the small BIPV array connected to it. I'm hoping for a field
> repair option.
>
> Jason Szumlanski
>
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