Some of the newer feature of inverters

[prhamilton]

I am in the design phase of my solar project. My original quote spec'ed a 6000PVI powerone inverter. Actually all 5 quotes I received spec'ed this inverter.

Poking around at the SMA site I found the 3000TL-US inverter and a couple of things stuck out as really nice to have.

First the emergency power feature seems really cool. In a prolonged outage I could keep things charged and have some basic access to electricity. If it were an option, I'd pay maybe $500 for it.

The second thing was the whole business around MPP trackers and maximize string power, so called opti-track. If it could boost my production by it's worth maybe a couple hundred bucks.

But the rub is that I would need 2 of these inverters instead of a single powerone 6k. The emergency power feature is only available on the 3K and 4K models right now.

Anyone have an experience with this inverter and maybe the pros/cons of switching from a single powerone 6000PVI to dual SMA3000TL? Are we talking a big price differential?

[Volusiano]

I thought the 5KTL also has the SPS feature, too. You may want to go on to the Sunny Design web page and input your configuration (for free) and see if maybe the 5KTL can handle your panels configuration or not. Even if the nominal power ratio is in the 80% range, as long as your energy usability factor is close to 100%, it should work out fine (you'll see green check marks in all areas if they say it'll work).

An advantage of going with the 2 3KTL instead of a 6K is that now you can have up to 4 strings with independent MPPT trackers (each 3KTL has 2 inputs for separate MPPT). This should help if you have any shading issue.

Is the 6K PowerOne inverter quoted transformer-less like the TL? If not, there's another incentive to go with the TL, especially if you plan to put it inside your garage.

[Naptown]

The 5000 tl also has the secure power.
It would be substantially more to go to 2 3000 tl's
The SMA's are a bit more than the P-1 to start and now you would use 2.
I would expect a price jump going this route.

[Mike90250]

If you are relying on Secure Power to keep Grandma's Iron Lung working, when the power goes off,
you have to flip a switch on the inverter to power up the special outlet.

[Naptown]

If you are relying on Secure Power to keep Grandma's Iron Lung working, when the power goes off,
you have to flip a switch on the inverter to power up the special outlet.

and hope the sun shines

[silversaver]

PowerOne PVI-6000 does offer TL version with dual MPP Tracker. Very unlikely you would install the panels on 3 or more roofs. No need for 2 X 3k inverter to increase the cost. If you like more inverters, then try micro inverters.