<br><font size=2 face="sans-serif">Hi Drake,</font><font size=3> <br>
</font><font size=2 face="sans-serif"><br>
I had not heard about this battery incident you mention below...do you
have any other details? So far there has not been any record of battery
problems on the XW that I know of and we obviously would like to hear if
there is something we should be looking in to.</font><font size=3> <br>
</font><font size=2 face="sans-serif"><br>
Hi Peter - as far as I recall we resolved the issue you mention below back
in January, and from our records the customer has been happy with the results.
It was a pretty unusual condition that our tech support team had not seen
before, and it took the senior designer of the XW product to finally be
able to understand what was going on. A learning "opportunity"
for all.</font><font size=3> <br>
</font><font size=2 face="sans-serif"><br>
Cheers,</font><font size=3> <br>
</font><font size=2 face="sans-serif"><br>
Mark</font><font size=3 color=#008000><br>
</font><font size=2 face="sans-serif"><br>
</font><font size=3 color=#008000>_____________________________________________________________________________________</font><font size=3>
<br>
</font><font size=1 face="Arial"><b><br>
Mark Edmunds</b> | </font><font size=1 color=#008000 face="Arial"><b>
Schneider Electric </b></font><font size=1 face="Arial"><b> | Renewable
Energies Business</b> | <b>CANADA</b> | <b>Senior
Director, Engineering</b> <b><br>
Phone:</b> +1-604-422-2609 | <b>Mobile:</b> +1-604-613-3285
<b><br>
Email:</b> </font><a href="mailto:mark.edmunds@ca.schneider-electric.com"><font size=1 color=blue face="Arial"><u>mark.edmunds@ca.schneider-electric.com</u></font></a><font size=1 face="Arial">
| <b>Site:</b></font><a href=http://www.xantrex.com/ target=_blank><font size=1 color=blue face="Arial"><u>
www.xantrex.com</u></font></a><font size=1 face="Arial"> |
<b>Address:</b> 8999 Nelson Way, Burnaby, BC V5A 4B5, CANADA <br>
</font><font size=1 color=#00a000 face="Arial"><br>
*** Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail</font><font size=1 face="Arial">
</font><font size=3><br>
</font>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<table width=100%>
<tr valign=top>
<td><font size=1 color=#5f5f5f face="sans-serif">From:</font>
<td><font size=1 face="sans-serif">Drake Chamberlin <drake.chamberlin@redwoodalliance.org></font>
<tr valign=top>
<td><font size=1 color=#5f5f5f face="sans-serif">To:</font>
<td><font size=1 face="sans-serif">RE-wrenches <re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org></font>
<tr valign=top>
<td><font size=1 color=#5f5f5f face="sans-serif">Date:</font>
<td><font size=1 face="sans-serif">09/20/2009 05:10 PM</font>
<tr valign=top>
<td><font size=1 color=#5f5f5f face="sans-serif">Subject:</font>
<td><font size=1 face="sans-serif">Re: [RE-wrenches] XW6048 parts problem</font>
<tr valign=top>
<td><font size=1 color=#5f5f5f face="sans-serif">Sent by:</font>
<td><font size=1 face="sans-serif">re-wrenches-bounces@lists.re-wrenches.org</font></table>
<br>
<hr noshade>
<br>
<br>
<br><font size=3>Hi Peter, <br>
<br>
Do you need the extra fan? The VFX has an internal fan. Are
there a lot of heavy loads that push the limits of the Outback? If
not, take out the fan or swap it for a cover with no fan. Many VFX
inverters didn't come with cover fans. I don't know if they are standard
now, or not.<br>
<br>
Or, have the fan go on whenever the direct grid tie inverter is being called
on to charge batteries instead of feed the grid. If loads are not
real heavy, battery charging, by back feeding the AC Out, may be the time
when the fan is needed the most. <br>
<br>
Before inverters started controlling generators, we used a device called
the Simple Switch, which was a voltage controlled contact. (We'd
use it with a GenWiz). I'm not sure what is out there these days.
You could use the Atkinson GSCM, generator start module, which senses the
voltage. If you need this solution, I'd call AEE. <br>
<br>
Thanks for the heads up on the Xantrex. I just heard another horror
story about the Xantrex 6024 system. According to the installer,
the owner shut off an AC switch and the array cooked a bank of Surrette
25CS 25 PS batteries. I don't know the new Xantrex line and don't
understand how this could happen. Is this really possible? <br>
<br>
-Drake <br>
<br>
At 06:43 PM 9/20/2009, you wrote:</font>
<br><font size=2 color=#000080>Hi Drake (and everyone else interested in
this thread),<br>
<br>
Armed with the information from my esteemed colleagues, we went ahead and
purchased a SunWise “Solar Ready-Grid Tie Battery System”, a SRB3.6 to
be exact. The heart of the system is a GVFX3648. I ordered it without the
Charge controller and purchased a SB3000 and 3150 Wdc of PV to go with
it. <br>
<br>
I also purchased a Grainger 2P2T relay with a 12 V coil in a NC configuration
(to disconnect the SB when the batteries are fully charged in off-grid
mode) and an Outback PSX-240 to transform the 240 Vac to 120 Vac (in order
to interface with the GVFX3648.<br>
<br>
When we looked into hooking the relay up to the AUX-OUT of the GVFX3648,
we discovered that it was already dedicated to the fan…<br>
<br>
So it looks like we will need to put something together to sense the battery
voltage and energize the relay coil, when we exceed the threshold. Any
recommendations for a add-on HVD? And exactly what threshold voltage should
we use for 8ea 6V 305 Ah (C/24) AGM batteries?<br>
<br>
And for Drake: I gravitated away from Xantrex because of a very unsatisfactory
experience with a XW6048. The system failed to work properly and Xantrex
“hemmed and hawed” for over six months. Bottom line: we made six service
calls, two firmware upgrades and probably two dozen calls to largely clueless
group tech supporters. Through it all, I lost the customer’s confidence
and he chose another integrator to do a follow on commercial project. The
last part of course was the worst part of the experience.<br>
<br>
- Peter </font><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><br>
<br>
</font>
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<p>