My experience is after about 4 years the Growatt inverter went faulty only partly working. I then installed a replacement Fronius inverter. That unit has been running with no issues for over five years. In other words getting a quality inverter is important. Maybe by now Growatt has improved, but be careful. Solar systems are about the long term and if your system is made of poor quality components it won’t last and won’t payback the initial investment.
I studied your videos and products that you use for 3 months before designing and buying. I've basically got the exact system that you have except I do need more panels. Just moved the ac air handler iver last week. The heat pump has been on there for a month. I've been moving things over a little at a time and testing their limits. I really appreciate you taking the time and explaining each step in a way we can all understand. Outstanding work!
So no problems for you? I see a lot of complaints online about items bought from signature Solar but no real issues from you tubers with affiliate links
@Chimpmunk Boy I have had very few small issues and those were operator errors in programming. I got the help from signature solar and a few people I met on FB. After that I've been coasting along. One more inverter and 20 mor 445watt panels and I'm set for complete off geid!
I bought my Growatt inverter and panels from Signature Solar, and my reason was because of information and content from David Poz, and I must say I have no regrets. Thank you David, for well researched ,tried, and executed content.
@@DavidPozEnergy hey David with the 10kw inverters total have you done a normal load test for what you use in your house. Ie a typical day where you would have max load. Heater or ac on water boiler on and cooking dinner etc.
My little MPP LV2400 w/5KWh battery also telegraphs an ever-so-brief light blink when switching between battery & grid. No problems with tv/stereo/network gear so far.
Even mains powered electrical system drop voltage with a high surge instantaneous load, so the flicker is definitely not a problem. Regarding the fan noise, it might be helpful to remove the standard fans & duct larger fans through the units, or supplement the originals with a cheap external pedestal fan so they won't need to work as hard. 👍 BTW, I love the system that you've put together mate & would love to do the same, but unfortunately everything's either super expensive or unavailable here in Australia.
I’ve noticed even putting all your circuits behind an inverter in grid pass through (with 6 AWG wire in my case) limits surge current enough to cause the split second light dims. It made me start noticing it in other older homes that are pure grid too.
I ended up getting ac capacitors and putting them on my heavy load things like fridge, air conditioner, washer and dryer. They're like $10-$15 and they stop the voltage sag issue entirely.
This is interesting. I was looking into a Soft starter for my A/C condensing unit. This is actually a great idea and much more cost effective? You mind sharing a link and an idea of how to size/setup?
NO,you should NOT write those lies here< The motor would overheat and shut off or destroy itself>. look here *from quora* . . Can I connect a capacitor in parallel with the Mains of my air conditioner? Sure! Go for it! But what, pray tell, do you hope to accomplish by it? Best case: the voltage rating is high enough and the capacitance value is low enough that nothing whatsoever happens. Next best: the voltage rating is too low, the cap self-destructs is a mild way, and nothing happens. More irritating case: the cap does not explode, but it’s value is high enough to draw current from the line, and the breaker trips. Yeah, well , that didn’t work so good. Don’t do it. Just don’t.
Your hair and beard really compliment your appearance and confidence in your video. Including your family in the video is a nice touch and gives us, the viewer, insight into your character and integrity. I'll keep a closer eye on future videos and know I'll learn more about trying to tell these energy providers to take a hike
I also bought this same inverter after watching your review and it had been running well since i installed it on 1st April 2022. It had a little problem connecting the wifi device but later figured it out.
I noticed Amazon sales GroWatt inverters. The reviews are not good. I bought my 48v Growatt 3000 from Signature solar. For my needs it works great 7 months 24/7. I do need to reboot it sometimes but that’s no big deal.
All components from Signature solar came in around $62k for the batteries, battery racks, inverters, panels, and most of the wiring etc for the solar part. Another $4k for solar racking made out of wood (treated lumber) similar to what they have on the signature solar website As a sample with concrete footings. I paid $3k for electrical engineering plans just in case to double check and make sure my design was solid. Wiring and bus bars and additions fuse boxes and fuses for everything was expensive (huge wire gauges between battery bank components etc) maybe another $3k. I also bought a 20kw Cummins propane backup generator that runs through 3 more inverters to charge the bank if needed. So I have my 6 inverters in parallel handling my 96 panels (6 strings of 16 x 395 w panels) for a total of 96 panels and nearly 38kw of solar, there will be losses and the inverters of 36kw (charge controller part of inverters) do fine. I have 30kw of inverter capacity to produce 240 a//c which is 125 amps. 2 auto-transformers which create the 120v for my main panel.
@@atomp153 i just posted more comprehensive on my previous post. I have 3 units of mini splits I’m running. 2 units with 2 heads each for my garage and an apartment above my garage. And one with 12heads for my main house. Total living space is 6000 sft. They’re supposed to be super efficient and use about 1/3 of the regular a/c electricity. They’re soft starts and variable so they don’t suck as much Ake tricota but I’m just getting ready to fire them up now. (Been building our home)
FYI Did you know high voltage DC is extremely hard to insulate. Tried it early on with MC 3 connectors. Couldn't keep it in, Solar City had the same problem. Several Walmarts burned down. We encountered plasma arcs in the panels themselves, also some of the connections. Tried isolation by placing wire runs in non conducive conduit still had problems. This was early high voltage SMA 480 volts. Fred
Wow! Grizzly Adams , can't believe its been sooo long that you've turned into a sasquatch... I always enjoy your videos! thanks for the update. Long term testing/results are important to me. Thank you.
Hi, your cons are on all battery system and even utility also, thr heavy load do cause that flicker and go units it is what you saw, one blink. I have Schneider context sw 4024 fault stack and I have had outages due to software problems. They have not fix those issues and even the retailer didn't know they stopped supporting dual stacking. I use tesla module 80 with a BMS board and they are 24volt. Presently I have 8 with 7 in use, so 1565 amph soon adding 233 amphs I do have 4 charge controller 2 midnite classic 150 one victory 150/100 this thing is a beast, lord it rocks with the shunt, I love that it follows it and works harder than any controller I have and a flexmax 80, it is shit, free so it is there doing very little. My system before being built out was a single and the classic 150 and it took me through Irma and Maria. I came online August 2017 and I am grateful I have this unit, I had running water, light and refrigeration. The island of St. Thomas was struck Sept 6, 2017 and two weeks later Maria, utility power was not restored to my house until January 8, 2018! Thank you if you have read this we are on the same path, mine is for survival, the grid here is shit in every sense of the word.
I don't live in the 48 states, I reside in the USVI St.tThomas to be exact. I love your UA-cam channel and I also have a victron 150/100 and love this thing. I am flattered,but I would have to send it to my freight company and they would ship it to me at my cost if that would be okay with you?
Nice setup. I found a used whirlpool heat pump dryer for $50. The lady said it wouldn't dry anymore and probably needed a disassemble and thorough cleaning of the coil. I was able to clean it without too much trouble and it draws around 1000 watts on a 240 volt circuit. I still have my conventional electric dryer and it draws 6000 watts.
I installed the 24v growatt in RV trailer. The on grid off grid switching from battery to shore power and back again was flawless. The entire trailer was 100% live 100% of the time. Set Growatt to use AC shore power first, then batteries if not detected to power trailer. I removed my tv from the televator and mounted the Growatt on to the televator. Could not hear fans. Way more quite then this model. Installed my batteries back there too. Upgrading trailers now and need to upgrade inverter. Would mount this in heated pass through now. Betting I would not hear fans, unless they’ve upgraded them since this video. Great review
I'm so glad you put this up. I think that's fantastic that that battery bank held up that well. I'm sure it helps a lot that you really know what you're doing as well. I've enjoyed all your videos.
Thank you David for sharing your experience. One thing I want to share with you is about flicker at starting heavy load this issue because the sine wave of Voltage and the sine wave of Current is not a same at this moment you started your heavy load you can test it by using oscilloscope at output from inverter. Any way this issue can be improves from factory by adding some large capacitor..to improve Power Factor..
I am running four of these in parallel with a single auto transformer for my entire house and it's a great setup. Since I have four in parallel, the load is split among all four and the most I have seen is 20% per inverter with my AC running. Due to the low duty, the fans are not as much an issue as I thought they would be. As for con #2, I have the same issue, when the AC compressor starts, some of the LED lights in the house blink just enough to notice them, but not enough to kill any electronics running in the house. Some older LED bulbs I have don't blink, but I noticed those also fade off when turned off as opposed to the newer LEDs which are a decisive off as soon as you turn them off.
@@corba197 the auto transformer is hooked up to the electrical panel that all the inverters are connected to with breakers. That then feeds into my main house panel which is off grid.
I have to add a huge thank you to DAVID for all of your videos. I have learned a lot from your videos and others who have posted videos on the subject of solar, inverters and batteries.
Awesome setup! I'm 100% off grid now using a 8kw Growatt low frequency inverter and 40 KW of storage. I've noticed some brands of LED lights don't do the inrush blink.
"I can't believe it has been an entire year..." I can't believe it's been an entire year since you had a haircut and a shave. :) I kid. I've been watching your channel for quite a while now, and I'm glad that you did this follow-up. There are tons of install videos, but very few after a long time, showing how the system has performed. Thanks!
BTW your videos were super helpful when we did our system and it's been running super smooth for about 5 months now. Also I have UPSs on all of my important electronics in the house. The noise isn't an issue since we built my solar array with a solar shack under the back side of it. I also have a mini-split dedicated to the solar shack to maintain a year round temperature in it.
I’ve enjoyed your channel over the last few years. I’ve purchased my last set of lead acid batteries for my off grid setup and am looking very seriously at EG4 batteries for my next set. I’ve got two schneider 4024 inverters and 2 midnite classic 150 charge controllers running my system now. I was pleased to see that Signature Solar is working with Schneider these days. When that eg4 purchase goes through i’ll be certain to use your affiliate link! keep up the good work!
I have exactly the same setup but connected to the grid too. It is working seamlessly, the only con I discovered is when I restart the whole setup the 300 mA RCBO (that is protecting the input) is shutting down. The workaround for that is to start the inverters with a 5+ sec delay between. No regrets for the investment. Many thanks for your videos, cheers!
@@kelgadeke5102 Hi, I have 8.6 kWp project, mounted at south in 2 strings of 8 panels of 540w (so 16 in total). Each string has an inverter of 5 kw (Growatt 5000ES). The inverters are working in paralell so in theory they can provide 10 kWp. I have LiFePo rackable batteries in a nice rack (3 pieces of 48V/100A each, Nifeitor chinese stuff). It is totally off-grid and the grand total of cost (including the mounting system, cables, etc.) is 56000 RON that is around 11400 EUR.
I'm glad to see the Growatts are holding up. I have the 3KW versions and I'm running 4 of them in off grid as well. I have been 100% off grid for 3 1/2 months with zero issues from mine. I do however have the same problem as you when a big load is placed on the system...my LED lights dim of flicker for a short second but then everything is good.
I just bought similar 3kwg inverter for my small cabin just to run fridge tv lights phone charger just wondering how many lifepo4 batteries you are using? For 100percent off grid?
@@piterex7 Hello......I have twelve- 24v batteries with 2 each in series to create one 48v. So that would be six and then I have two- 48v batteries for a total of eight 48v batteries. I wasnt aware of the single 48v batteries until I had already bought the 24v ones. When I built my system I wasnt sure what I would need so I bought a few then kept adding. In the future if I need more batteries Ill buy the 48v ones. Idea for your cabin...I always like to plan for a little more than I think Ill need. You may want to add more lighting outside or add something else...I would go with 2 Growatts just so I could have split phase capability and know you can power anything needed for your cabin. The good thing about these is you can add as you go, so start small and if there is a need for more than just add. Make sure when you wire up your system that its setup in a way so that you can add another Growatt if needed. I had to re wire my system a bunch of times because of that. I have a large house with my work shed out back and two kids that like to turn everything on so we use a decent amount of power. I get about 5 hours of power per battery but the more batteries add that number seems to grow. Let me know if there is anything more I can help you with.
Good video. Looking at the issue again as PG&E has again shut off our power for no legitimate reason other than that CalFire asked them to shut off transmission lines within 15 miles of a small fire that was mismanaged. Problem is that when they shut off power we lose all ability to fight a fire ourselves or have reliable communication. Great to hear your system is so successful. I have already purchased new EG4 batteries and will make decision soon.
Been running 2 24 volt 3k growatts in split phase to run my shop 100% heavy duty 240 volt casting equipment and sizing machines. 60% of my house off grid. No problems. Oh I get a little flicker too.
I had a huge lighting strike and it took out my GROWATTS. I am using the grid for shore power. Fortunately insurance covered my loss. I've since put a couple of surge protectors and old style glass fuse between the grid and inverters. Oh and I attacked one inverter with a screwdriver while it was active, don't ever do that! Other than the lighting and the screw driver attack these thing have worked flawlessly. I'm awaiting my replacement that will give me 3 total. I can charge my car with just 2 but that puts the inverters at 90%.
Glad this is working out so well for you David. By the way, your daughter scared me when I saw her with a screwdriver at the bus bars. Then I realized the bus bars weren't connected...lol
We finally pulled the trigger on 3 of these batteries for our Gro watt 5000ES inverters. Im tired of fighting lead acid junk. We used the affiliate link so hopefully it helps you out. Your videos have helped us tons David. Thanks!!
I like your videos. I have learned a lot from watching. Side note. Just a personal choice. Not a fan of face fuzz. Soup strainer. Crumb catcher. Your videos are fun. 👍 Thanks.
6.27.22 Great information David on your setup. Question: Please please could you do a setup and install and load test of the growatt MIN 6000TL-X grid tie 240v inverter. Thanks again for talking the time to make these videos. I have asked signature solar however have not done it yet.
Thank you for the update. It is something my wife and I wondered about how they would hold up. We are building an off grid home stead in Wyoming. So if you have any more pointer’s let me know
Insulate and air seal. I built my house 10 years ago with double stud, super insulation, etc. It makes all the difference. I can cool it all summer with a small window AC instead of needing some monster 5-ton unit. That keeps the Amps low, which means smaller inverter and more cost affective.
I am happy for you. We probably got unlucky with our spf5000es batch. we ordered 10. sold 9. had various issues on 7 out of the 9 ! I know some are happy with these. BTW the one with no issue is fully off grid with no AC IN. The others do !
Wow that's quite the anecdote with a sample size of 10. The fact that all of the ones that had AC in were the ones having issues is telling. Thanks for the info
I'd definitely recommend a soft starter to stop those voltage drops. Many of them don't seem that expensive and there might well be DIY solutions possible that would probably be a LOT cheaper
@@davefroman4700 the problem isn't the voltage change but the voltage sag caused by overloading the inverter. He needs big, beefy capacitors to charge before starting then to dump current, taking the strain off the inveeter
Awesome dude!!! I just bought mine!! Thats the growatt inverter but I cant access those lithium batteries here in my country but so far so good the inverter works so lovely!!! Thanks for your help and reviews Dave!!!
Areas I’m curious on are: • Your panels, quantity & their size; • Why did you use an external (Victron) charge controller; • What’s been total investment cost & expected return on your investment?
The panels are a mix of ones I bought used on Craigslist, but the total is 12kW I have 3 arrays, each array needs 1 charge controller I don't know, probably something around $15-$20k, but it's been over so many years I've lost track.
@@DavidPozEnergy but with 3 strings of panels, would each have worked going into the built-in MPPT of each inverter, or reconfiguring your strings to still fit into the 2 inverters or is your VOC too high. Am just trying to figure out why you use an external MPPT, Victron being expensive as it is, but being good though.
Max Voc of the Growatt charge controller is 450Vdc (if memory serves). The Voc of some of my panels are 47.7V. I have 7 in series per string. 2 strings in parallel per Growatt, which puts my Imp at 19A. The Growatts clip this to 18A. If I add more panels in series I'll be over the Voc (with temperature compensation) and if I add more in parallel the power would just get clipped. I had the Victron charge controller from my previous system so it didn't cost me anything more to use it.
@@DavidPozEnergy thanks for the speedy response. I’m in Africa where every cent counts, making the move to Solar uneconomic for the average household, yet we enjoy copious amounts of all year round sunshine in most parts of the continent. Lithium batteries are still not cheap enough nor quality inverters or MPPTs for the average home, sadly.
Now if I could only get Signature Solar to answer the phone or return calls, I think I'm on week two (or is it three?) waiting for them to return my calls. Too bad for them, I dropped over $10k with someone else this week after throwing in the towel!
I’m waiting on 2 orders from them… I think they must be swamped… I am also looking at ordering around another $10k worth of stuff… might not be from them if they don’t deliver soon!
I've been very happy with my Growatt SPF 3000's, I have a pair of them providing 6kw of split phase and they've been running since March of 2020 now. No issues other than occasionally the wifi loggers will drop out recording data for a few hours. Only ever overloaded them once and they came right back up automatically after. Only downside is they don't support very high MPPT string voltage. Looking to add one of these ES inverters dedicated to my 240 volt loads though I see they are out of stock right now. I have a heat pump dryer arriving on Monday that will eliminate my last gas appliance after which I will have the utility company cut off the gas so I can stop paying the base fees for it and run everything off of solar.
Great plan. I have a gas drier and gas cooktop to replace so I can get rid of the gas company's list of nothing fees. Good to see others doing the same.
how would you integrate the capacitor into the system? I may want to do this for a friend if it's a reasonable solution at her place. Thanx for bringing that up.
Hi mr.David The beard looks pretty cool on you. I've also have a growatt inverter 12kw system and it is really nice and very powerful. thanks for all your help.
I'm glad this project has worked out so well. I'm also very interested in hearing an update regarding your solar hot water tank. Has it held up? Would you go through the effort of doing it again? I've considered making one for years, but I find it hard to justify because I have a natural gas utility.
The solar thermal has been running fine. I've never had to do anything. The automatic controller turns on the pump when the sun is available and it's just that simple. However, I would not do it the same way again. These days I'd probably have a 100 Gallon electric tank with the bottom element connected as a diversion load when the batteries get full. I'd rather use the roof/wall space for solar PV (electric) panels.
Will this run your whole house with using all appliances and ac,heaters? What was your light bill before going off grid? How many kwh per month? How many watts of solar to power this system?
Hi David, great video. I see that you still have the pair of SMA in the background. Can you contrast your overall experience with the 2 new Growatt vs the pair of SMA? I also have 2 SMAs running 48V Fork Lift Lead Acid Batteries. I have been thinking about upgrading to Lithium with the EG4 but I am not sure if the SMAs will be able to handle these. Can you comment about this or do a video on upgrading the SMAs you with the EG4? Thanks.
I have a newer DC solar trailer that I just moved the components into my off grid place and added two more strings of panels along with an additional charge controller and it’s been working well. Amazing cost savings finding those trailers. Edit: the SMA’s can do lithium. Midnite Solar has a whole batch of info regarding a setup with lithium, a classic, and SMA’s.
Planning to get a piece of land so I can stop telling people I'm homeless after this winter and hopefully put down a big 5th wheel camper from Craigslist glad to see my options for power are there eventually good video brother
If you've been using this exclusively without the grid, how has it been on extended cloudy days? Are you over-paneling the system? Have you had lean days where there hasn't been any sun for a few, and you have to ration the use of the stove and dryer?
I have a manual transfer switch at the main panel. If my batteries run out, I can switch the house back onto the grid. When I do that the inverter system is completely disconnected. I did that just for filming this video so the fan noise wouldn't be distracting. There were a few days in February when I had to switch back to the grid, but it was pretty rare.
Hi Chuck B, Yes, my house is heated using electric. I was using the Mr.Cool Heat pump to heat my house, but it died last year so the past season I had to switch back to my baseboard. Right now I have a window AC in the house so I'm looking at getting a new heat pump for the house.
I would install those wires and switches into a cable raceway so it is covered from curious fingers. Other than that that setup is awesome! Good work man.
LED Light Flicker when load is high, This is noticed with My inverter as well. This happens mainly in Solar Battery Utility Mode. Not happening in Solar Utility Battery Mode. The Brand of the Inverter is not Growatt. Thanks this video is useful.
Love the 1 year difference in hair/beard growth too!
Saved loads on razors
I thought I tuned into the wrong show
I was like who’s this cat ⁉️
@@cowboymcq6711 LOL, I thought he was wearing a wig & fake beard to show the passage of a year. 😂
Needs a trim
My experience is after about 4 years the Growatt inverter went faulty only partly working. I then installed a replacement Fronius inverter. That unit has been running with no issues for over five years. In other words getting a quality inverter is important. Maybe by now Growatt has improved, but be careful. Solar systems are about the long term and if your system is made of poor quality components it won’t last and won’t payback the initial investment.
I studied your videos and products that you use for 3 months before designing and buying. I've basically got the exact system that you have except I do need more panels. Just moved the ac air handler iver last week. The heat pump has been on there for a month. I've been moving things over a little at a time and testing their limits. I really appreciate you taking the time and explaining each step in a way we can all understand. Outstanding work!
So no problems for you? I see a lot of complaints online about items bought from signature Solar but no real issues from you tubers with affiliate links
@Chimpmunk Boy I have had very few small issues and those were operator errors in programming. I got the help from signature solar and a few people I met on FB. After that I've been coasting along. One more inverter and 20 mor 445watt panels and I'm set for complete off geid!
I bought my Growatt inverter and panels from Signature Solar, and my reason was because of information and content from David Poz, and I must say I have no regrets.
Thank you David, for well researched ,tried, and executed content.
Glad to help.
@@DavidPozEnergy hey David with the 10kw inverters total have you done a normal load test for what you use in your house. Ie a typical day where you would have max load. Heater or ac on water boiler on and cooking dinner etc.
Thanks for the update! My lights dim for a split second too on my AIMS inverter when starting heavy loads.
Hi LithiumSolar. Seems to be common, but I thought it was worth mentioning.
My little MPP LV2400 w/5KWh battery also telegraphs an ever-so-brief light blink when switching between battery & grid.
No problems with tv/stereo/network gear so far.
I noticed that approximate 5 years ago with I installed two mppsolar 2424lv-msd inverters
Even mains powered electrical system drop voltage with a high surge instantaneous load, so the flicker is definitely not a problem.
Regarding the fan noise, it might be helpful to remove the standard fans & duct larger fans through the units, or supplement the originals with a cheap external pedestal fan so they won't need to work as hard. 👍
BTW, I love the system that you've put together mate & would love to do the same, but unfortunately everything's either super expensive or unavailable here in Australia.
I’ve noticed even putting all your circuits behind an inverter in grid pass through (with 6 AWG wire in my case) limits surge current enough to cause the split second light dims. It made me start noticing it in other older homes that are pure grid too.
I ended up getting ac capacitors and putting them on my heavy load things like fridge, air conditioner, washer and dryer. They're like $10-$15 and they stop the voltage sag issue entirely.
This is how I want to set up
my system. Do you have any pic that you are willing to share and links to the caps?
This is interesting. I was looking into a Soft starter for my A/C condensing unit. This is actually a great idea and much more cost effective? You mind sharing a link and an idea of how to size/setup?
NO,you should NOT write those lies here<
The motor would overheat and shut off or destroy itself>. look here
*from quora*
.
.
Can I connect a capacitor in parallel with the Mains of my air conditioner?
Sure! Go for it! But what, pray tell, do you hope to accomplish by it?
Best case: the voltage rating is high enough and the capacitance value is low enough that nothing whatsoever happens.
Next best: the voltage rating is too low, the cap self-destructs is a mild way, and nothing happens.
More irritating case: the cap does not explode, but it’s value is high enough to draw current from the line, and the breaker trips. Yeah, well , that didn’t work so good.
Don’t do it. Just don’t.
I didnt expect the hair and beard. Made me look twice and check the name of the channel. Good to know the inverters are holding up well!
Your hair and beard really compliment your appearance and confidence in your video. Including your family in the video is a nice touch and gives us, the viewer, insight into your character and integrity. I'll keep a closer eye on future videos and know I'll learn more about trying to tell these energy providers to take a hike
I also bought this same inverter after watching your review and it had been running well since i installed it on 1st April 2022. It had a little problem connecting the wifi device but later figured it out.
I noticed Amazon sales GroWatt inverters. The reviews are not good.
I bought my 48v Growatt 3000 from Signature solar. For my needs it works great 7 months 24/7. I do need to reboot it sometimes but that’s no big deal.
I was not expecting the beard....
Makes "An entire year" seem much much longer.
Based on your videos and my own research I bought and set up 6 of these in parallel for off-grid. And added a 92kwh (18) batteries setup.
Wow, 92 kWh. That's awesome!
What did your setup cost???
I'm curious on the total cost as well. Are you running a big AC?
All components from Signature solar came in around $62k for the batteries, battery racks, inverters, panels, and most of the wiring etc for the solar part. Another $4k for solar racking made out of wood (treated lumber) similar to what they have on the signature solar website As a sample with concrete footings. I paid $3k for electrical engineering plans just in case to double check and make sure my design was solid. Wiring and bus bars and additions fuse boxes and fuses for everything was expensive (huge wire gauges between battery bank components etc) maybe another $3k. I also bought a 20kw Cummins propane backup generator that runs through 3 more inverters to charge the bank if needed. So I have my 6 inverters in parallel handling my 96 panels (6 strings of 16 x 395 w panels) for a total of 96 panels and nearly 38kw of solar, there will be losses and the inverters of 36kw (charge controller part of inverters) do fine. I have 30kw of inverter capacity to produce 240 a//c which is 125 amps. 2 auto-transformers which create the 120v for my main panel.
@@atomp153 i just posted more comprehensive on my previous post. I have 3 units of mini splits I’m running. 2 units with 2 heads each for my garage and an apartment above my garage. And one with 12heads for my main house. Total living space is 6000 sft. They’re supposed to be super efficient and use about 1/3 of the regular a/c electricity. They’re soft starts and variable so they don’t suck as much Ake tricota but I’m just getting ready to fire them up now. (Been building our home)
Would be awesome to see you do a COMPARE between the NEW EG4 6500EX and the Growatt 5000ES
This looks pretty spammy to me… be careful
FYI Did you know high voltage DC is extremely hard to insulate. Tried it early on with MC 3 connectors. Couldn't keep it in, Solar City had the same problem. Several Walmarts burned down. We encountered plasma arcs in the panels themselves, also some of the connections. Tried isolation by placing wire runs in non conducive conduit still had problems. This was early high voltage SMA 480 volts. Fred
I wish I knew more about your comment. I don't understand
Blinking lights on heavy loads: every house and apartment I have lived in does that on grid too. Sometimes even my neighbors' loads can do it to me.
Wow! Grizzly Adams , can't believe its been sooo long that you've turned into a sasquatch... I always enjoy your videos! thanks for the update. Long term testing/results are important to me. Thank you.
Hi, your cons are on all battery system and even utility also, thr heavy load do cause that flicker and go units it is what you saw, one blink. I have Schneider context sw 4024 fault stack and I have had outages due to software problems. They have not fix those issues and even the retailer didn't know they stopped supporting dual stacking. I use tesla module 80 with a BMS board and they are 24volt. Presently I have 8 with 7 in use, so 1565 amph soon adding 233 amphs I do have 4 charge controller 2 midnite classic 150 one victory 150/100 this thing is a beast, lord it rocks with the shunt, I love that it follows it and works harder than any controller I have and a flexmax 80, it is shit, free so it is there doing very little. My system before being built out was a single and the classic 150 and it took me through Irma and Maria. I came online August 2017 and I am grateful I have this unit, I had running water, light and refrigeration. The island of St. Thomas was struck Sept 6, 2017 and two weeks later Maria, utility power was not restored to my house until January 8, 2018! Thank you if you have read this we are on the same path, mine is for survival, the grid here is shit in every sense of the word.
I don't live in the 48 states, I reside in the USVI St.tThomas to be exact. I love your UA-cam channel and I also have a victron 150/100 and love this thing. I am flattered,but I would have to send it to my freight company and they would ship it to me at my cost if that would be okay with you?
Nice setup. I found a used whirlpool heat pump dryer for $50. The lady said it wouldn't dry anymore and probably needed a disassemble and thorough cleaning of the coil. I was able to clean it without too much trouble and it draws around 1000 watts on a 240 volt circuit. I still have my conventional electric dryer and it draws 6000 watts.
Those fans look like standard 120mm. You could try some Noctua fans to cut down on the noise.
"Can you hold it up dad or daddy?" hard to tell. That's the most priceless line in the whole video.
Could you maybe do a comparative with the SMA inverters?
I installed the 24v growatt in RV trailer. The on grid off grid switching from battery to shore power and back again was flawless. The entire trailer was 100% live 100% of the time. Set Growatt to use AC shore power first, then batteries if not detected to power trailer. I removed my tv from the televator and mounted the Growatt on to the televator. Could not hear fans. Way more quite then this model. Installed my batteries back there too. Upgrading trailers now and need to upgrade inverter. Would mount this in heated pass through now. Betting I would not hear fans, unless they’ve upgraded them since this video. Great review
I'm so glad you put this up. I think that's fantastic that that battery bank held up that well. I'm sure it helps a lot that you really know what you're doing as well. I've enjoyed all your videos.
This looks very spammy to me… be careful
@@daleatkin8927 it is. Hate these scammers. 🙄
Thank you David for sharing your experience. One thing I want to share with you is about flicker at starting heavy load this issue because the sine wave of Voltage and the sine wave of Current is not a same at this moment you started your heavy load you can test it by using oscilloscope at output from inverter. Any way this issue can be improves from factory by adding some large capacitor..to improve Power Factor..
Man I love all the info and little projects you always work on like your golf cart 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽
Congratulations with your setup. I am not there yet. Hopefully soon.
I am running four of these in parallel with a single auto transformer for my entire house and it's a great setup.
Since I have four in parallel, the load is split among all four and the most I have seen is 20% per inverter with my AC running. Due to the low duty, the fans are not as much an issue as I thought they would be.
As for con #2, I have the same issue, when the AC compressor starts, some of the LED lights in the house blink just enough to notice them, but not enough to kill any electronics running in the house.
Some older LED bulbs I have don't blink, but I noticed those also fade off when turned off as opposed to the newer LEDs which are a decisive off as soon as you turn them off.
Sounds like a nice setup. Thanks for sharing.
Hey Inxpro: would you please share how your 3 inverters are wired to the 1 auto transformer? Sounds helpful! TIA ;)
@@corba197 the auto transformer is hooked up to the electrical panel that all the inverters are connected to with breakers. That then feeds into my main house panel which is off grid.
@@corba197
PIP5048MG Parallel & communication cable: ua-cam.com/play/PLSNjIRSnUPDLhovCCynw6iW6AIeHto9g-.html
I have to add a huge thank you to DAVID for all of your videos. I have learned a lot from your videos and others who have posted videos on the subject of solar, inverters and batteries.
Awesome setup! I'm 100% off grid now using a 8kw Growatt low frequency inverter and 40 KW of storage. I've noticed some brands of LED lights don't do the inrush blink.
"I can't believe it has been an entire year..." I can't believe it's been an entire year since you had a haircut and a shave. :) I kid.
I've been watching your channel for quite a while now, and I'm glad that you did this follow-up. There are tons of install videos, but very few after a long time, showing how the system has performed. Thanks!
BTW your videos were super helpful when we did our system and it's been running super smooth for about 5 months now. Also I have UPSs on all of my important electronics in the house. The noise isn't an issue since we built my solar array with a solar shack under the back side of it. I also have a mini-split dedicated to the solar shack to maintain a year round temperature in it.
That's an ideal setup. Well done.
Gives a TLDR for those who don't want to watch the whole thing? Top notch. Still watched it all.
Thanks for sticking through it.
@@DavidPozEnergy like i would miss a video. Your channel has got me interested in my own DIY attempt
I’ve enjoyed your channel over the last few years. I’ve purchased my last set of lead acid batteries for my off grid setup and am looking very seriously at EG4 batteries for my next set. I’ve got two schneider 4024 inverters and 2 midnite classic 150 charge controllers running my system now. I was pleased to see that Signature Solar is working with Schneider these days. When that eg4 purchase goes through i’ll be certain to use your affiliate link! keep up the good work!
I had one growatt inverter running my entire home for 1 week, no problems
It's been a beards growth since your last update :) Glad you are back posting enjoy your videos
Thanks for the update David
I have exactly the same setup but connected to the grid too. It is working seamlessly, the only con I discovered is when I restart the whole setup the 300 mA RCBO (that is protecting the input) is shutting down. The workaround for that is to start the inverters with a 5+ sec delay between. No regrets for the investment. Many thanks for your videos, cheers!
Hi, would you estimate what you have spent on setting up your system? Regards Kel.
@@kelgadeke5102 Hi, I have 8.6 kWp project, mounted at south in 2 strings of 8 panels of 540w (so 16 in total). Each string has an inverter of 5 kw (Growatt 5000ES). The inverters are working in paralell so in theory they can provide 10 kWp. I have LiFePo rackable batteries in a nice rack (3 pieces of 48V/100A each, Nifeitor chinese stuff). It is totally off-grid and the grand total of cost (including the mounting system, cables, etc.) is 56000 RON that is around 11400 EUR.
I would love to see signature solar loan you the new EG4 6548 and the 48 volt 3000 , lets see if they will start that big saw.
That would be cool.
Almost didn’t recognize you! Nice makeover.
I'm glad to see the Growatts are holding up. I have the 3KW versions and I'm running 4 of them in off grid as well. I have been 100% off grid for 3 1/2 months with zero issues from mine. I do however have the same problem as you when a big load is placed on the system...my LED lights dim of flicker for a short second but then everything is good.
Do you use soft starters for high load motors- electric dryer, mini split compressors, etc?
@@bigbob3772 No I dont use any soft starters.
Semiconductors are very sensitive to voltage fluctuations... It's to be expected, even with lifepo4, when surge load occurs.
I just bought similar 3kwg inverter for my small cabin just to run fridge tv lights phone charger just wondering how many lifepo4 batteries you are using? For 100percent off grid?
@@piterex7 Hello......I have twelve- 24v batteries with 2 each in series to create one 48v. So that would be six and then I have two- 48v batteries for a total of eight 48v batteries.
I wasnt aware of the single 48v batteries until I had already bought the 24v ones. When I built my system I wasnt sure what I would need so I bought a few then kept adding.
In the future if I need more batteries Ill buy the 48v ones.
Idea for your cabin...I always like to plan for a little more than I think Ill need. You may want to add more lighting outside or add something else...I would go with 2 Growatts just so I could have split phase capability and know you can power anything needed for your cabin.
The good thing about these is you can add as you go, so start small and if there is a need for more than just add. Make sure when you wire up your system that its setup in a way so that you can add another Growatt if needed. I had to re wire my system a bunch of times because of that.
I have a large house with my work shed out back and two kids that like to turn everything on so we use a decent amount of power. I get about 5 hours of power per battery but the more batteries add that number seems to grow.
Let me know if there is anything more I can help you with.
Glad you succeeded in building your energetic resilience.
Yes, I was looking forward to the review and love the new look.
Whose's that hairy guy? I didn't know you!!!
Good video. Looking at the issue again as PG&E has again shut off our power for no legitimate reason other than that CalFire asked them to shut off transmission lines within 15 miles of a small fire that was mismanaged. Problem is that when they shut off power we lose all ability to fight a fire ourselves or have reliable communication. Great to hear your system is so successful. I have already purchased new EG4 batteries and will make decision soon.
That sucks they shut off your power.
These systems are expensive I wonder if there is a way to protect them from fire. Like Mabey a fire proof server rack box
Been running 2 24 volt 3k growatts in split phase to run my shop 100% heavy duty 240 volt casting equipment and sizing machines. 60% of my house off grid. No problems. Oh I get a little flicker too.
It's been long i watched your videos, this new look is awesome
I had a huge lighting strike and it took out my GROWATTS. I am using the grid for shore power. Fortunately insurance covered my loss. I've since put a couple of surge protectors and old style glass fuse between the grid and inverters. Oh and I attacked one inverter with a screwdriver while it was active, don't ever do that!
Other than the lighting and the screw driver attack these thing have worked flawlessly. I'm awaiting my replacement that will give me 3 total. I can charge my car with just 2 but that puts the inverters at 90%.
Very good job David . I like this sistem. Congratulations
Glad this is working out so well for you David. By the way, your daughter scared me when I saw her with a screwdriver at the bus bars. Then I realized the bus bars weren't connected...lol
We finally pulled the trigger on 3 of these batteries for our Gro watt 5000ES inverters. Im tired of fighting lead acid junk. We used the affiliate link so hopefully it helps you out. Your videos have helped us tons David. Thanks!!
Great. Thank you for using the affiliate code.
I like your videos. I have learned a lot from watching.
Side note. Just a personal choice.
Not a fan of face fuzz. Soup strainer. Crumb catcher.
Your videos are fun. 👍 Thanks.
Maybe some one is in the closet.
6.27.22
Great information David on your setup. Question: Please please could you do a setup and install and load test of the growatt MIN 6000TL-X grid tie 240v inverter. Thanks again for talking the time to make these videos. I have asked signature solar however have not done it yet.
Thank you! Your videos are always informative and interesting. Take care.
Thank you for the update. It is something my wife and I wondered about how they would hold up. We are building an off grid home stead in Wyoming. So if you have any more pointer’s let me know
Insulate and air seal. I built my house 10 years ago with double stud, super insulation, etc. It makes all the difference. I can cool it all summer with a small window AC instead of needing some monster 5-ton unit. That keeps the Amps low, which means smaller inverter and more cost affective.
I am happy for you. We probably got unlucky with our spf5000es batch. we ordered 10. sold 9. had various issues on 7 out of the 9 ! I know some are happy with these. BTW the one with no issue is fully off grid with no AC IN. The others do !
Wow that's quite the anecdote with a sample size of 10. The fact that all of the ones that had AC in were the ones having issues is telling. Thanks for the info
Dude! I felt like I have not watch a video on your channel in ages! What is this awesome stuff on yo face!!! Awesome follow up video as always!
I've been backpacking in the mountains the past few months.
It would be nice if you included the cost of the items you review.
That’s quite a head of hair and beard you’ve got now David. Love your videos.
Almost didn't recognize you with that much hair and beard! Keep the great content coming!
I’ve been really enjoying what you offer in your channel.
Thanknyou
Definitely the most knowledgeable grizzly bear on UA-cam when it comes to solar 😂
LOL. Thanks
i can attest on fan noise, i have the growatt 12.5k inverter and its fans spin up to something wild at anything over around 3kw of incoming solar.
I'd definitely recommend a soft starter to stop those voltage drops. Many of them don't seem that expensive and there might well be DIY solutions possible that would probably be a LOT cheaper
I concur chris, that's what I came on to say. it's just the high initial startup current to drive the motors.
He has a LV transformer in line.
@@davefroman4700 the problem isn't the voltage change but the voltage sag caused by overloading the inverter. He needs big, beefy capacitors to charge before starting then to dump current, taking the strain off the inveeter
David....the hair man. Nice. I didn't recognize you at first.
System looks smooth. 100% SOH
As always David great work
God bless you David, keep the good work nice beard 👍🏻
Awesome dude!!! I just bought mine!! Thats the growatt inverter but I cant access those lithium batteries here in my country but so far so good the inverter works so lovely!!! Thanks for your help and reviews Dave!!!
Areas I’m curious on are:
• Your panels, quantity & their size;
• Why did you use an external (Victron) charge controller;
• What’s been total investment cost & expected return on your investment?
The panels are a mix of ones I bought used on Craigslist, but the total is 12kW
I have 3 arrays, each array needs 1 charge controller
I don't know, probably something around $15-$20k, but it's been over so many years I've lost track.
@@DavidPozEnergy but with 3 strings of panels, would each have worked going into the built-in MPPT of each inverter, or reconfiguring your strings to still fit into the 2 inverters or is your VOC too high. Am just trying to figure out why you use an external MPPT, Victron being expensive as it is, but being good though.
Max Voc of the Growatt charge controller is 450Vdc (if memory serves). The Voc of some of my panels are 47.7V. I have 7 in series per string. 2 strings in parallel per Growatt, which puts my Imp at 19A. The Growatts clip this to 18A. If I add more panels in series I'll be over the Voc (with temperature compensation) and if I add more in parallel the power would just get clipped. I had the Victron charge controller from my previous system so it didn't cost me anything more to use it.
@@DavidPozEnergy thanks for the speedy response. I’m in Africa where every cent counts, making the move to Solar uneconomic for the average household, yet we enjoy copious amounts of all year round sunshine in most parts of the continent. Lithium batteries are still not cheap enough nor quality inverters or MPPTs for the average home, sadly.
@@DavidPozEnergyi thought the grow what inverters didn’t need extra charge controllers, they are built in?
great beard, had seen you since you built this system. very good content .
Are the fans changeable, a couple of high efficiency noctua fans will make this system interesting
That's a good idea. Do you happen to have a link to the type of fans you like?
Thanks for the update, Wolverine.
Now if I could only get Signature Solar to answer the phone or return calls, I think I'm on week two (or is it three?) waiting for them to return my calls. Too bad for them, I dropped over $10k with someone else this week after throwing in the towel!
I’m waiting on 2 orders from them… I think they must be swamped… I am also looking at ordering around another $10k worth of stuff… might not be from them if they don’t deliver soon!
@@gemrough current Connected is a great option!
@@gemrough Good luck with the wait! I still haven't heard from them... Either way, I won't be giving them my business anytime soon at this point!
Tripping me out with the mountain man look!
I've been very happy with my Growatt SPF 3000's, I have a pair of them providing 6kw of split phase and they've been running since March of 2020 now. No issues other than occasionally the wifi loggers will drop out recording data for a few hours. Only ever overloaded them once and they came right back up automatically after. Only downside is they don't support very high MPPT string voltage. Looking to add one of these ES inverters dedicated to my 240 volt loads though I see they are out of stock right now. I have a heat pump dryer arriving on Monday that will eliminate my last gas appliance after which I will have the utility company cut off the gas so I can stop paying the base fees for it and run everything off of solar.
Great plan. I have a gas drier and gas cooktop to replace so I can get rid of the gas company's list of nothing fees. Good to see others doing the same.
The nat gas distributors have ruined their growth plans by really loading up on the fixed charges on their bills..
SUPER IDEA . SUPER POMYSŁ . POZDRAWIAM .
Ever thought of adding a capacitor in the system to help with the slight blink of the lights, you are seeing?
how would you integrate the capacitor into the system? I may want to do this for a friend if it's a reasonable solution at her place. Thanx for bringing that up.
@@aboveallthingslove6349 Simple solution that I'm sure you could find searching UA-cam versus me trying to explain it. Two wires and you're done.
Hi mr.David
The beard looks pretty cool on you.
I've also have a growatt inverter 12kw system and it is really nice and very powerful.
thanks for all your help.
Even with a high powered Inverter Generator my Led Lights blink as well. Led Lights must be prone to blink no matter what is used..
David I really enjoy your channel and have learned quite a bit from it, for that I thank you. Liking the captain caveman look,👍🏽.
I'm glad this project has worked out so well. I'm also very interested in hearing an update regarding your solar hot water tank. Has it held up? Would you go through the effort of doing it again? I've considered making one for years, but I find it hard to justify because I have a natural gas utility.
The solar thermal has been running fine. I've never had to do anything. The automatic controller turns on the pump when the sun is available and it's just that simple. However, I would not do it the same way again. These days I'd probably have a 100 Gallon electric tank with the bottom element connected as a diversion load when the batteries get full. I'd rather use the roof/wall space for solar PV (electric) panels.
Will this run your whole house with using all appliances and ac,heaters? What was your light bill before going off grid? How many kwh per month? How many watts of solar to power this system?
@@GaHullbillyRanch new to this guys channel. Would appreciate an answer to your question. It’s probably covered in other videos but T I M E
Nice to know things went great!
Hi David, great video. I see that you still have the pair of SMA in the background. Can you contrast your overall experience with the 2 new Growatt vs the pair of SMA? I also have 2 SMAs running 48V Fork Lift Lead Acid Batteries. I have been thinking about upgrading to Lithium with the EG4 but I am not sure if the SMAs will be able to handle these. Can you comment about this or do a video on upgrading the SMAs you with the EG4? Thanks.
I would love to see this review as well. Which is better Growatt or SMA if you take the cost out of the picture?
I have a newer DC solar trailer that I just moved the components into my off grid place and added two more strings of panels along with an additional charge controller and it’s been working well. Amazing cost savings finding those trailers.
Edit: the SMA’s can do lithium. Midnite Solar has a whole batch of info regarding a setup with lithium, a classic, and SMA’s.
What is an SMA
Planning to get a piece of land so I can stop telling people I'm homeless after this winter and hopefully put down a big 5th wheel camper from Craigslist glad to see my options for power are there eventually good video brother
Scares me that you let your daughter mess with the batteries… what if you forgot to lock it?? Really do enjoy all your videos on your channel
great review....everyone needs follow up to one builds....
If you've been using this exclusively without the grid, how has it been on extended cloudy days? Are you over-paneling the system? Have you had lean days where there hasn't been any sun for a few, and you have to ration the use of the stove and dryer?
I have a manual transfer switch at the main panel. If my batteries run out, I can switch the house back onto the grid. When I do that the inverter system is completely disconnected. I did that just for filming this video so the fan noise wouldn't be distracting. There were a few days in February when I had to switch back to the grid, but it was pretty rare.
@@DavidPozEnergy do you heat your house with electric heat
Do these not have the settings where you can run SBU or SUB like the EG4’s?
Hi Chuck B, Yes, my house is heated using electric. I was using the Mr.Cool Heat pump to heat my house, but it died last year so the past season I had to switch back to my baseboard. Right now I have a window AC in the house so I'm looking at getting a new heat pump for the house.
Would that be the single electric baseboard in your crawlspace that you discovered heats the entire first floor?
Holy cow, I didn't even recognize you at first lol
Plot twist - the only thing his system won’t run is the electric razor.
@DavidPoz Can you confirm the above is spam?
👍 Thanks for sharing!
Wow Nelly, well butter me up and call me biscuit!! I did not know you were lost in the jungle
heya, it's good to see that after a year your still happy with your own install
Ek is geweldig beindruk en staan op die punt om n stel te bekom
Nice to see you back.... Big fan from Libya - north Africa
Im getting 2x 5kw growat inverter in the next week or 2. I'll be staring with a 1x 10kw battery. Very excited.
Sounds good.
All I needed to know how the year is gone is look at your beard.
Magnificent!
Wawwww buddy
I couldn't recognize you
Thanks for all your great information about solar energy
AWESOME VIDEO, hopefully will be building in the next year.
Great ! hope to see an update mid 2023 👍
I would install those wires and switches into a cable raceway so it is covered from curious fingers. Other than that that setup is awesome! Good work man.
I agree with you. It's on the list.
LED Light Flicker when load is high, This is noticed with My inverter as well. This happens mainly in Solar Battery Utility Mode. Not happening in Solar Utility Battery Mode. The Brand of the Inverter is not Growatt. Thanks this video is useful.