Inverter fault

[oregon_phil]

Recruit your brother to help you figure this out.

[Veger70]

Ok I’m not going to open them but I believe by the ink making at the top, that these are the backup breakers in pic 2 with the emergency shutoff next to it, and the transformer in pic 1. My brother informed me there was 4 breakers in each 1D9FD27B-1A9D-4AD6-AC8E-804E0E593760.jpeg4805F13D-1AA6-4BEC-B93B-29C333586B53.jpeg

[oregon_phil]

No that isn't what you have. To find out what is inside of the backup breaker panel box it is simply looking inside the box if you are comfortable with doing that. I have to assume you are not comfortable with AC power and/or high voltage DC power so I respect that. It's better to be alive and wondering than dead and knowing.

I haven't jumped back into this thread for a long time. Instead of shotgunning potential solutions that aren't working, you really need a systems troubleshooter. Do you know somebody that can fill that job description for you?

[Veger70]

They could be the transformers
is this what you would expect a backup breaker panel looks like?

D6BFBD35-BFBE-4B3B-BEDA-2C8E77E32EF2.jpeg

[oregon_phil]

What is inside the backup load panel?

-----------------------------------------------------

Veger70, how you state the problem to Vivent will define their solution as you have found out. Solar Edge has a checklist, but you should make a list of questions that you want answered from Vivent. If you tell Vivent how to fix the problem, then responsibility shifts to you as Vivent works through issues. In essence, you need to come up with a specification of your system requirements as you understand them from your original point of view.

Basic problem: One system doesn't work correctly. One system does work correctly.

Potential Solution: After much bantering and discussion regarding your system with the service tech, gently ask Vivent how they commission new systems of this complex nature. Oh, Solar Edge has a checklist. Can vivent produce the checklist for the system that does not work correctly? No? What do you think, since we are having problems with System X, can you start working down the checklist to verify correct installation/commissioning? What do we have to lose?

And finally, after System X works: Can we verify that both systems are working correctly together before you leave? I don't want to waste anymore of your time. Make sure you get all your questions answered before the service tech leaves.

System integration issues are often the most difficult to resolve. But Solar edge has a commissioning document that is current and is being revised. Your components are from reputable companies. Compared to other "exact" installs of your equipment, there are differences: the inverter, the battery, the person wiring the equipment, the person commissioning the equipment, etc.

[Ampster]

The box labeled Smart Energy Management meter confirms there are CTs that measure current and report loads and production. Reviewing the earlier pictures I see the CTs attached before the main panel breaker. Still unknown is whether they are configured correctly. I am not clear about the devices labeled Backup Load Panel? Typically it would look like a grey electrical panel with breakers. Those breakers should be labeled with the circuits names you described earlier. Perhaps those boxes are the autotransformers that feed the load panel(s). Is there a load panel on the inside of your garage with those circuits?

I also see the Inverters look like they have screens like mine. Can you scroll through those and correlate any data with the Vivent display? I assume that is where you got the error codes you reported earlier?

[Veger70]

Here are the pictures of my system I believe I have the smart meter as well as two backup panels


035C8061-ADE6-418F-8BD9-0E53E4229FD8.jpegEE6B4BEB-DDB9-4CE7-B370-B720F9DF338C.jpegBB34F44B-263D-4D09-9A10-075933497AD0.jpeg

C2F8337E-AF2C-41BF-8035-5262DDDB1E85.jpeg

[Ampster]

I agree with @oregon_phil, you need a system level troubleshooter. This list of issues is long and growing. An additional one, is the system is reporting 6.1 kWh of production from 6PM to 8PM. My south facing system shut down at 5:30PM 15 miles away. That is confirmed by your screen shot taken at 5PM which shows no production and battery discharge of about 3kW. A system level troubleshooter should be able to tell if a current sensor is placed wrong or misconfigured. The data is also inconsistent and contradicts one another.
I am still not clear if battery percentage changes from hour to hour. That 6.1 kWhr reported production after sunset had to come from somewhere? It is clear from the screen shot the battery was discharging.
Do you have any way to verify what your PGE meter is seeing? I looked and I don't think hourly detail is available from the website. It takes a day for the daily detail to be updated and that is only Net.
The only good news is that if your lease agreement requires you to pay for system generation, your payments should be lower. If so does it specify DC generation or AC generation? That could be significantly different in a DC coupled battery system like yours, since much of the DC generated would go to charging the batteries and never get inverted to AC. That may be an explanation for some of the data we are seeing which is inconsistent with what we would expect.

[oregon_phil]

Solar Edge has an inverter checklist (inverter with LG chem battery)

StorEdge™ Wiring Guide & On Site Checklist for North America (storedge_wiring_quick_guide_and_on_site_checklist _na.pdf). Vivent should at lease follow this document.

It seems to be pretty thorough. It must be OK since Solar Edge posts this for installs.

[Veger70]

If only one inverter is communicating I believe it would be the one directly connected to the meter and the one per design plan to have 23 PV MODULES PER INVERTER = 7360 WATTS STC. The one that should be in slave mode and may not be communicating has 11PV MODULES PER INVERTER = 3520 WATTS STC
so if that inverter isn’t communicating we would generate about 2/3 of the power possible although 26 adding 1/3 power only is 34.7 kWh which is sill less than I would expect

[oregon_phil]

If you look at the plans I attached to the thread, I don’t believe they show any connection to the house, only battery to inverter to meter panel to grid. I believe we can do 4 circuit per battery so we had to choose what parts of the house to power we choose the kitchen and living rooms and the downstairs bedroom

If you look at the schematic, the AC backup power goes from the StorEdge to the backup load panel. The quad outlet for backup extension cord is wired into the backup load panel. The thing to check: do you have a backup load panel?

February 11th the tech came out and updated the software on one LG battery it wasn’t communicating with SolarEdge inverter. Now all is working.

Their sending out a specialist in batteries on March 5th. So maybe will find out in three weeks lol if I can get both batteries working.

Here's what I don't get. They have virtually two identical systems sitting side by side. System #1 inverter and battery is commissioned correctly and works fine. System #2 inverter seems to be commissioned correctly, but LG chem battery is not commissioned correctly (wrong firmware). Installer leaves.

Leasee notices discrepancy. Notifies Vivent.

Vivent returns to install, downloads new battery firmware. Green light comes on battery. All must be well. (Can't they check firmware remotely?)

Leasee notices discrepancy. Notifies Vivent.

Vivent to send battery specialist.

System #1 that works is a known good system. System #2 has something wrong with it. A battery expert will focus on the battery, an inverter specialist will focus on the inverter, etc.. I believe a system level troubleshooter is required. In other words, somebody higher up on the food chain that is responsible and accountable for the install. They have to check every nut, bolt, wire connection, etc. Having a working system (control) right next to a troublesome system is a much better scenario than just working on a troublesome system.

[Veger70]

Did the battery percentage change?
Does it report the same 19 kWh every day?
A screen shot for morning might provide some insight. It would be useful to know how Vivint gathers and consolidates data.

the battery charging stays pretty constant if there’s enough solar energy to charge it to full. At least this time of of year the total charging varies but I’ve not seen it charge more than 26 on a sunny day. I can’t show you the same info because that’s the current info window, but can show you a by hour consumption/production for the day EA93BA19-AED2-49FA-A3FC-B10D60AE1086.jpeg2F64E4FA-89CB-47D2-ABF8-F378E84384F6.jpeg

[Ampster]

Did the battery percentage change?
Does it report the same 19 kWh every day?
A screen shot for morning might provide some insight. It would be useful to know how Vivint gathers and consolidates data.

[Veger70]

I don't know enough about that screen shot to be able to interprete it. What time was it taken? Does it reflect both Inverters and batteries? Something does not look right for a 10 kW system, even one that faces east and west. It says it only generated 19 kWh. I have a 5.7 kW system and I generated 30 kWh on Feb 21 in Sonoma. It was a pretty clear day today here and you are not that far from me.
Does the battery percentage change from days to day or from the morning to the evening?

This was somewhere after 5:00PM after generations of the panels but before battery discharge the day ended up generating 26.53kWh for the day. Still 3.5kWh under your smaller system. So I don’t know. It’s conceivable that since one battery isn’t charging, it could be be caused by one inverter not communicating.

[Ampster]

I don't know enough about that screen shot to be able to interprete it. What time was it taken? Does it reflect both Inverters and batteries? Something does not look right for a 10 kW system, even one that faces east and west. It says it only generated 19 kWh. That is the same number as your first post. I thought that the inverter problem was fixed? Is every day the same number?

I have a 5.7 kW system and I generated 30 kWh on Feb 21 in Sonoma. It was a pretty clear day today here and you are not that far from me.
Does the battery percentage change from days to day or from the morning to the evening?