ABB Aurora inverter fault code E031 fix / repair
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- Опубліковано 6 жов 2018
- A way of repairing an Aurora inverter with a E031 fault code. It means that the relays are not working correctly, see the investigation and finally finding the fault, what caused the fault is debatable as I do not know how big a system this inverter was connected to, and if it went through a regular over volts situation where it would disconnect under full DC load.
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Girlfriend's inverter showed error 31 at the weekend so found Mr. Reynolds' site, whipped the lump off the wall in the loft and found a really small dark spot and dry joint. Fantastic, resoldered the joint (I was slightly less agricultural with the cleaning...no offense Andy) and put it all back together and refitted it, confidence levels were high at this point.
The knight in shining armor skulked out of the loft and admitted failure, had a cup of tea and got back at it. The ABB now has a convertible relay and modified shape to the arm as in this video and hey presto we are generating wrigglies and my stock is running high again!
Four replacement relays are taking a leisurely cruise from china and will be fitted in due course (Convertibles are not great in this country long term).
Many thanks for your time doing these videos Andy, very much appreciated.
Great you were able to move this project on, the important thing is to keep the inverter cool, in the loft is exactly the wrong place, hot in summer. A time clock controlled auxiliary fan would be helpful, cheers
Thank you. You just saved me the best part of £1000. Like you said, It's already broken, so what's to lose!!
Took me about an hour to do the job. The two burnt terminals on the board were identical to the ones in your video!
Re soldered the joints, put it back together and away it went. Again, thank you for taking the time to help others.
Rob, thanks for the feedback. I've got plenty to tell you. First there is a coolong problem with these Abb inverters, see my video on inverter care (feb 2019) and check out my books on my channel page. Good to hear another inverter saved. I will be teaching solar for Brighton Permaculture this June, cheers
Thank you so much for making this. It saved me so much hassle/money. When I re-soldered the terminal it didn’t work the first time but after wiping it clean I noticed that the terminal had burnt out further down in the board. I soldered it again deep down inside the board and it worked a treat. Your instructions were spot on! Love your work
Steve, thanks for your appreciation, please see my channel page under the about button. Also see my recent video on preventing inverter failure (Feb 2019) cheers and thanks for your support.
Well Andy. Pleased to report your method worked a treat. Opened up - located two small burn marks on the solenoid pins. Cleaned , soldered and tested . The Aurora is back in service and operational. Five stars to you. Pretty chuffed for giving it a go as well. Its all a matter of seeing how long the inverter will keep on working for.
Joe, well done, the key here is to keep things cool and well ventilated. Sometimes I add an extra fan run from a plug in timer, just to blow air over the heat sink from 10 till 4. See my video on extending inverter life. cheers
Thanks heaps Andy, I am another Aussie fan, found 3 burnt out soldered joints, resoldered them and Magic, my 6 year old inverter is working again. You just saved me $2000. Great job.
Excellent, to keep the heat down I have a very small electric fan set up to blow air up the back of the inverter. This is controlled by a plug in timer and runs between 10 am and 4 pm. I used a snail fan from a fan assist oven. Check out my books, Subscribed? cheers
Many thanks for making this video Andy. I’ve just repaired my Power One inverter which is back in the loft exporting again. I had the same fault code and confidently looked at my relays. Three of them were burned with broken connections. Within 24 hrs I had four replacement relays via eBay fitted following your advice. Thanks again! Tim
Tim, great news, another inverter saved. Inverter in the loft can be a problem, see my video on extending inverter life. Hope you have subscribed, cheers
Our Aurora inverter came up with this code so we took it apart and sure enough there was damage to the board like in your video. My brother resoldered the damaged bit and sure enough it worked. So many thanks for showing us how to do it as I was quoted £800 for a replacement.
Hi, that's grand, another repaired, please see my video on extending inverter life and my Patreon link, cheers
What a star, saved me £850, these two fixes together worked for me. I'm now confident to buy a new set of relays (about £20) and will install these when it goes wrong next time - cheers Andy.
David, that's grand. Please see my video on extending the working life of inverters, and my book " Wind and Solar Electricity". Subscribed? cheers
I fixed my Aurora 5000 before finding videos like this. Ordered two relays online as I wanted to replace both and not just the one with the dry solder joint. 20 months later and the fix still works perfectly.
Thanks for the comment, I didn't want to change the relays as they were wroking and it is double sided board. I have since fixed a few of these inverters with the same problem and cleaned off some of the varnish from the large track and flowed extra solder over that area to inprove pin to board contact. See my recent video on extending inverter life. ua-cam.com/video/GaqHZU8bD0M/v-deo.html, subscribed? cheers
Thank God for people like you ! Your second video helped me fix my power One inverter. Had a huge burnt out solder joint on the board.. its now back up and running.
HI, thanks for the message, beware heat build up and improve cooling. Have you seen my video on extending inverter life? Many other fix it videos. Subscribed? cheers
I just repaired my Aurora using your instructions. Fantastic worked first time. I was going to be charged 1000 quid for a replacement. I can't really figure out their hourly rate for installation as the replacement inverter was 575 quid and the rest was labor & vat. I removed the broken inverter, cut off the top of the relays, bent the switches, re soldered the circuit board and re-installed within 2 hours. It's guys like you who take the time and effort to share you're expertise to help others that really gives me faith in the human race. I'm going to give 50 quid to charity on your behalf. Thanks, Sean Walker
Sean, thanks for your repair storey, I've got lots to tell you, first see my video (Feb 2019) on solar grid inverters, extending the working life, go to my channel page and search in videos. Whilst you are on this page there are links to my books and Patreon donation under "about", cheers
Thank you Andy. Great video to get me inspired to have a go at fixing my Aurora Solar inverter. My inverter was not throwing up any faults codes it was just reading Pout 0W. I called a local Solar repair company and the best they could offer was a $500 full audit and report of my solar system before they could do any fault finding....When I pulled the inverter a part I found a dry joint on the board you were working on (a joint under one of the those relays you cut apart). I scratched the burnt bits off the joint and threw some solder in, put the unit back together and it is now working a treat. Thank you once again from Mackay (Australia) for a great easy to follow video.
Well done, another unit saved (and loads of cash) please see my recent video showing how to prevent these problems (Feb 2019) and consider my books or Patreon, cheers
Hi Mates Rate.... I've got fault E031 and want to remove my existing unit. Was it dead simple to remove the existing unit ? Any electrical safety checks you did or just disconnected the input cables from the 2 black solar Panel switches, 1 Red Switch and the power input cable? Just want to check before I attempt :) Thank You
Thanks so much for this tutorial, l followed your instructions and found a burnt-out solder joint on the back of the circuit board.......repaired the solder connection and the inverter is now working fine 🙂. £500 saving 👍
Darren, brilliant, that's good news. There are some other things you need to do, firstly check my video on extending inverter life and see my Paypal link below this video, Cheers. ua-cam.com/video/GaqHZU8bD0M/v-deo.html
Another grateful viewer!
Got the E031 error on my 8 yr old Aurora Power One, accompanied by clicking relays and no output. I found it easier to remove the board completely by unplugging the fan and all the connectors and working on the bench rather than in the attic!
The relays are available in the UK from Rapidonline and eBay: the part number is:AZ2150W-1AE-12DEFT, made by Zettler.
Thanks again.
Richard, thanks for the message and the donation, much appreciated. An inverter in the loft, there's a problem. Please see my video on extending inverter life, and the improved E031 fix, cheers
Well done... 30 minutes and hot soldering later ... and my aurora is back online. Thanks !! Good work Andy
Brilliant, thanks for the comment. I hope you have seen my video on extending inverter lfe and have subscribed, cheers
Hi, I now have a paypal donation link, cheers
Thank you from Oz! My inverter had been working fine for 6 years until today when I noticed the "internal error E031" and the power light flashing continuously. I followed your repair procedure and found one solder joint that looked exactly like those in your video.
After resoldering the joint as you did, my inverter is now humming along like new again.
The manufacturer and their approved repairers will have you believe that the internal error is irreparable and that it you would have to buy a new one. As my inverter was a year out of warranty, I would like to thank you once again for saving me some money with your timely video.
Hi, thanks for your appreciation and info, another one fixed at no cost. Please consider my books shown on my channel page. Subscribed? cheers, Andy
Well done Andy! Can't believe I was about to bin my inverter and get ripped off for a new one. Many thanks
Brilliant, well done, I hope you have seen the next video in this series with an improved fix and the video about extending inverter life, subscribed? cheers
Andy, thanks so much for this. Just discovered the same fault ( E031) on our Aurora inverter.
Unfortunately I am not an electrician as such, but I followed your journey of discovery to the fault, which makes me think ours may have been caused by a severe thunderstorm last week. Having checked warranties etc I find that to replace this particular inverter will cost £700 + 20% vat.
A lot of money for such a small fault (wonder if they then repair and re-sell the old ones?) But as we have benefited financially from our system over the years it might be easier to go ahead and have it replaced.
However I would keep the old one and tentatively follow your vid to see if in fact a simple repair could make it suitable as a replacement. Thanks again for making the effort to do this video.
You will need a big soldering iron, but if you fix your unit you will improve your skills, self reliance, and confidence. Please see my video on increasing inverter life and see if any of these scenarios fit your system: ua-cam.com/video/GaqHZU8bD0M/v-deo.html . Subscribed? cheers
Thanks Andy. Got this fault in July 2018 during the heatwave in London so I bought a used inverter of same make n model and replaced it myself. Still have my old one lying around so searched here thinking what to do with it and found this. Wish I'd found this earlier. I'll now try and sell it with a link to this video rather than throwing it away! Cheers
Hi, thanks for the comment, my advice would be to fix it, test it and then keep it as a spare. Also I will be uploading a video shortly on increasing the life of a grid inverter. Subscribed? cheers
@@TheInfoworks Subscribed, thanks!
Another Happy Aussie. Found exactly the same burnt joints thanks to you. You sir are a LEGEND.
Adrian, thanks for the comment, lots to tell you. Check out my vid in mid Feb to make grid inverters last longer. I hope you have subscribed and look at my books or Patreon on my channel page. Hope to hear from you on other vid comments, cheers
Just want to add my vote of thanks to the others that are here. My UK Power One Aurora PVI 3.6 which was installed in 2012 failed with the e031 error last week. Your video and some internet research gave me the confidence to uninstall the unit and extract the motherboard, and sure enough I had three burnt pins on the relays. A little soldering later, and it’s back on the wall and working fine again.
Can’t say how pleased I am to keep this thing out of the landfill, and not have to pay for a replacement yet! I expect given my amateur soldering and any design flaws in this inverter, it won’t take 7 years to fail again, but I know I can take it out again next time, and probably take it to an electrical engineer and have the relays replaced and professionally soldered next time.
Thank you so much.
Dan, thanks for your appreciation. The cooling needs inmproving on these units, an external fan and time switch helps, see my video on this (feb 2019), cheers
@@TheInfoworks thanks - I did watch that video as well. My inverter is in the loft, so I'm not convinced an additional fan will add a lot more cooling, as I'm essentially blowing hot air trapped in the space over the heatsink/components. I'm toying with the idea of bring external ventilation in from the eves and routing it under the inverter to keep things cooler.
In fact, an additional thought - I might use a fan channelling air from outside hooked up to a smart plug. That means I could use IFTTT to switch the fan on only when the recorded weather outside reaches a specific temperature... So fan only on when temp >15 degrees C or the like...
Dan, good idea to the point of being essential, a shower fan and duct should work well, let me know how you get on, cheers
Dan, what ever you do keep it simple and so that you can easily check to see if its working. It only needs to work during max production time, so during the day and from spring to autumn, that's why I use a time clock as the fan runs in generation time so no energy is used from the grid. Hope you have subscribed. Cheers
Just followed your instructions and my solar panels are back up and running!!!!! thanks for the info
Brian, thanks for the comment, please see my video this February about inproving inverter durability, cheers
Thanks for getting back to me Andy - noticed that the error code is in fact E031 which now makes more sense. ( he says) 😄I'm going to attempt repair - thank you.
Joe, bit of numerical dyslexia there. See all the videos in this series before attempting the fix. The heat comes from poor relay contacts arcing. Hope you have subscribed and remember me when it's fixed, cheers
Thank you thank you thank you. Entertaining, informative and saved me £500!
No parts needed just re-soldering one of the relays.
John, I'm sure you can find a way to return the favour. Please see my other videos in this series, the improved fix and how to extend inverter life, subscribed? cheers
Well done sir, your persistence paid off.
Cheers
Thankyou so much! I have had exact the same Problem.
Now it works fine again!
Greetings from Germany
Brilliant, another inverter saved, see my video on extending inverter life, also see my Patreon link and my books, cheers
Hi Andy, many thanks. My inverter is working again. Cheers!
Stephanie, that's brilliant, well done, another skill learnt. Please see my paypal donation link to return the favour, cheers
Thanks Andy. You just saved me £500+ on a new inverter.
Brilliant, good news, that's what it is all about, check out my books with all that saved cash. Subscribed? cheers
I've just seem the E031 error thus morning on my Aurora. I thought I check it after noticing 2 dats if zero power during a heat wave 😢
I'll check for warranty first before I contact ABB but thank you for providing really good guide to the fault resolution 🙏🤟
Hi, yes inverters need to be in a cool well ventilated space, see my other videos on this inverter including extending inverter life and setting the relay contacts. Hope you have subscribed, cheers
@@TheInfoworks Thank you. My inverter is in the garage outside. we had it fitted in 2012 so just about 10yr old.
@@dineshmistry8902 I's an easy fix, but you may wish to change the relay instead of soldering and adjusting the contact gap, cheers
Well done Andy. It's a bit of a concern that there could be lousy solder joints in a mains inverter like that - those two circuit board pads were large area - suggesting high current through them - also they both look like they have overheated - let's hope the joints were the cause and not the result :o) Thumbs up for a saved item ! Cheers, Dave
Dave, thanks for that and yes I suspect the fault was caused by a huge current, only time and use will tell, cheers
Thank you so much! My Aurora Power One PVI-3.0-OUTD-S-IT had the same problem
Hi, I have 3 or 4 videos about this problem, best watch them all, they are in the grid inverter playlist, also see extending inverter life. If you have success you may like to say thanks through my Paypal, cheers
Thank you, I repair my inverter!!!
Thanks from Poland!!!
Hi, thanks for your comment,.see my recent video on preventing inverter failure (Feb 2019), also my books and patreon on my channel page, cheers and thanks for your support.
Brilliant video, My system went down with this fault code , Bright winter day with intermittent cloud, found a burned out solder connection soldered it up and happy days. quoted £575 + VAT for replacement but my local guy Steve at Halifax Eco Heat and Solar suggested Relay fault..... found your channel and hey Presto. The fact the cooling fan is sealed in the case is strange thought about fitting a bigger PC fan and vents in the case to let the hot air out, might keep the temperature down to prolong the life of the components? easier than a snail fan with thermostat???
Hi, thanks for the comment and story. I use an extrnal fan controlled by a simple plug in timer. I've produced a video on my thoughts to increse the working life of grid inverters, see my grid inverter play list, cheers
Just one of my relays seems to have failed. It's a bit more brown and one pin at the back has failed, just like yours.
I've ordered a relay off eBay for £5 and will have a go at replacing it .
Great videos 👍🏻
Dave, that's the spirit, see the improved fix video and the relay replace one in this series. If you don't already have one, get a solder sucker (just a few pounds) to help with removing the old one. Let me know how you get on. Is your inverter in a cool and well ventilated position? cheers
Hello Andy, thanks for the reply.
Fitted a new relay but it came up with a new code E013 . Not sure what this means . Your videos were a great help but feel I've done something wrong .
Keep up the good work 👍🏻
Sorted. It was a little black switch which changed the mode from parallel to independent . Must have tapped it by accident 🤦🏻
@@dave3130 , yes I had that once and it came up with a message "wrong mode". Easy to catch that little dip switch, well done for sorting it, cheers
just found your fix amazing it works thanks very much
Hi, I get the feeling that this fault is caused by running the unit to full wack with poor cooling. Check out the rest of my many videos, Subscribed? Cheers
Andy, you know since Oct, the solar people still have not resolved my issue with E018 error. They replaced the inverter and it work maybe 4 days then went back to the error. Now this inverter is also giving a E019 error. They recently came and checked the wiring on each panel to make sure there were no cracks but didn't check the voltage or resistance per panel. Now they suppose to come back in April and check that. They have no clue.
Please people, this is a multi layer board , and the relays are soldered both sides
underneath the relays the board is also damaged and makes a bad contact.
The current wil flow normaly on both sides of the board , but now the small bus that connects the upper to the lowerside of the board is burned because of the overheated bad contact.
If you solder the lower site only , then the current wil flow on half of the board contacts.
this will result in a new faillure after a few days of full power.
and it can even become so hot that it flames.
The relays are closed because of sparks that can occur when the unit connects ,
these sparks can lead to explosion in some places.
Also all kinds of dust wil come insite the opened relay and will lead to faillure.
These relays are very sensitive components and you can not handle them like a black smit.
To repair a unit like this you need to take the relays of the board with the proper soldering tools
and replace them for new ones.
also you need to make a connection to the other side of the board before you solder the new relays in.
Maybe you noticed that this mainboard has a battery on it.
by just lay it arround on iron parts you can damage the clock chip when the battery is stil in.
Kind regards
Cor van Houtum
Draaistroom Nederland.
Hi, relays can take some adjustment to take up wear. Chaging a relay on a double sided board with varnish is quite difficult and can damage the board. See my video on extending the life of grid inverters, cheers
Andy ain't a blacksmith, he has an enquiring mind and a certain degree of electrical knowledge. But thanks for pointing out the finer details of the mainboard.
so how would one solder both sides? I am looking to replaces the relay, but all the video i'm seeing show simply replacing and do the actual soldering on one side only. Thanks
Vitaliy Vishnevskiy sent me email and i will show you
cor@draaistroom.net
Good job Andy !! That's how I taught my son to work on everything around the house. I'd tell him its already broke, you can't hurt it so dig in and see if you can find the problem.
On tiny spot solder joints I use a 50 year old woodburners kit with the round point on it. It works wonderfully on those teeny tiny spots. Do you have a Sal Ammoniac block for cleaning/tinning your iron ?
Cheers, and yes I know the bit is a bit scabby and this large iron is only used occasionally, hence the state it is in.
Hello Andy, I have error 031 on my inverter. I have removed the suspect relays (the same pair as in your video).
I have opened one to see where the damage was, to my surprise the burned pin was not the one from the stationary contact but the one from the moving contact I think that the source of heat was the copper (possibly beryllum copper) spring at the section where it is split in two, it looks a very small cross section for the 20 Amps that the relay is rated for. I have replacement relays on order and expect to completete the repair soon.
Thank you for this video which was extremely helpfull
Thanks for the info, grwat you are fixing it. I have some questions for you. The board is double sided so are there any connections to the relay pins from the relay side of the board? and secondly was it difficult to remove the relays? Cheers
Thankk you for your reply Andy, it was not dificult to remove the relays as the hole in the pcb is larger then the contact pins . I removed the solder from the contact pins first using a combination of a solder sucker and desoldering braid, this freed the contact pins. For the solenoid pins I heated one and moved the relay slightly away from the pcb, then the same process for the other, then repeat until the relay is clear of the pcb.
(insert a thin piece of hard plastic or thin cardboard between the pcb and the relay and use this to gently lever up the relay I used a small screwdriver but scraped the solder resist off a thin track under the relay which I had to check with a meter to see that I had not damaged the track).
If not done carefully there is a danger of pulling the plating out of the hole. I have a lot of experience in repairing pcbs so fdor me this was an easy procedure.
Next remove the solder from the holes for the solenoid pins with the solder sucker. I have just checked on Ebay solder suckers an desoldering braid are available there.
Yes there are connections on the component side of the pcb. When the relay was removed I was anle to look into the hole and the plating was still there connecting the front and back layrers (and also any internal layers).
I have also seen your second video and have scraped the solder resist (varnish) from around the overheated pins to make a better connection (Ihope that this will prevent a problem in the future).
My inverter is now repaired and running.
Regards
Peter Bell
Peter, thanks for your brilliant and in depth reply. I have an aurora with 031 that I have done the solder fix and the fault remains. I now think the problem may be on the front of the board and needs relay removal. Maybe a video in that! Please see my video on extending grid inverter life, cheers, Andy
Hello Andy I have already seen that video, My system was bought from a now defunct instalation company, the inverter is in the loft and the panels are on the roof, 9 in all ( it was supposed to be 10 but there was insufficient space on my roof, so maybe a good thing) with the interconnections under the panels,. When I set up the inverter after repairinhg it, it showed 3.0 KW being generated. Changing this arranhement will not be practical for me, but I do agree with the points that you made in your video. I have a maximum minimum thermoneterwhich I will set up in the loft during the summer. fortunately the inverter is not in direct sunlight and mounted on a brick wall. One good thing that I have observed with Aurora inverters is that the heatsink temperature does not rise significantly above ambient. I will do some experiments on this now and in the summer also. Depending on the results i mat install a snail fan to cool the inverter.
My system was installed in December 2011 I think that I may look for a second inverter as a backup, The relays that I bought came in a pack of four so I now have 2 spare, I may be able to get an E031 unit for a cheap price and repair it.
I am also looking at and enjoying your other videos.
I like your idea of using ex fork lift batteries for energy storage. What inverter do you use with your battery system?
I like your system for testing inverters.
As a final comment I keep getting phone calls from people trying to sell me a battery system to use my solar energy at night, I tell them what I get per unit on F.I.T. and what I pay per unit, then tell them "Why should I buy a system from you fo x thousand to lose money on every unit that goes into the battery." I may look into battery storage when my F.I.T. agreement expires.
Regards
Peter Bell
Peter, on another issue, since we have been involved with renewable generation since the late 80's we have 2 systems. one battery based to run all the plugables and lights with 1800 Ah, a turbine and panels, and the other grid system with panels and inverters. Strange maybe but with mains chargers and UPS battery inverter it seems to work well, just the way it turned out as the technology developed, cheers
Hi Andy, thanks for this. Just fixed my Aurora which had the same dry solder joint fault. My concern is what causes the relay to overheat in the first place? I have checked that the cooling fan works ok and that my array is under spec for the inverter.
Thanks again and hopefully I will get some more years out of this unit. Don't think I will buy this company's products again.
Hi, I extended the solder on to the board track after scraping off the varnish to increase the contact area. The internal fan only comes on when it's too late. I have a video about extending the life of grid inverters, you may find that interesting. Hope you've subscribed and seen some of my other videos, cheers
Hi Andy
I have an old 1.5 KW 3-Phase Klne Grid Tie Solar inverter that was removed when I replaced the Klne system with a 3- phase 6.6KW Growatt Solar system. I wish to bench test the Klne grid tie inverter. My DC supply for bench testing it, is from the old solar panels. Is it ok to input AC supply from the standard wall power socket in the house to the 3 phase Klne inverter for bench testing whilst the the Growatt system is operating at the same time?
Hi, I assume your old inverter being 3 phase will need 3 phase power for it to wake up. If you wired it up as you describe and connect the DC of the right voltage the inverter I imagine will give a grid power error. Subscribed? Cheers
Thank you Andy! Just took it apart and found one burnt solder joint also. I haven’t done this kind of thing since high school which was a couple decades ago. Can I ask you what temp do you put the solder iron at, and what type of solder do you use for this? Thank you again, from California :)
Hi, I just used a big electric soldering iron about a foot long and lead flux cored solder. Takes quite a bit of heat. See my recent video on inverter care (feb 17th 2019) to stop this happening again. Please consider Patreon and I hope you have subscribed to my channel, cheers
Hi Andy, Thanks for the video. Very helpful. I have been facing different problem though. My inverter disconnects from grid supply after some time. The self diagnosis displays "Inverter OK", Riso 20Mohm before connection. I have reset few time already. Problem persist. The solar supplier suggest to replace the inverter with new one - without really knowing what's the problem with the current one. I am not convinced. I wonder if you have come across such problem. Any suggestions?
Hi, this could be the first sign of relay contact failure. Is the inverter in a cool well ventilated area or does it get hot? You could have the tops off the relays and reset the contacts, see my video on this. Is the RCD that supplies mains to the inverter working correctly? is there a no grid message? cheers
@@TheInfoworks Hi Andy, Thanks for your prompt reply. The Inverter is installed at well ventilated place - tropical weather (ie. warm through out the year).Mains(grid) is working properly. When I reset - i.e. switch off AC and DC isolators and ON again, power supply comes on for awhile - (about 10 -15 mins), then Pout is zero again. The intermittent nature of the fault is what puzzles me.
@@rsubra59 I still think you should inspect the relay contacts, they can give an intermittent effect as they warm up, cheers
Brilliant Andy. My first inverter failed after 4 years with E031 and was replaced by ABB. I'm now 6 years into the second inverter and getting worried! I like your fix and to be honest I would rather have fixed it than have it replaced. BTW, any idea why this solder connection fails? Too much heat perhaps? Peter Johnson
Peter, I think it is heat usually caused by a combination of things including position. See my videos on the E031 improved fix and extending inverter life, subscribed? cheers
hello ,i have the error E031 in pvi 3.0 and i replace the faulty relay. now when i restart the inverter i have the error Riso Low (0.56MΩ). Any ideas for this?
Hi, I think that is an earth fault, either on the AC or DC. Cheers
brilliant
Thank you, please look at the other videos in this series, especially setting the gap on the relay contacts. Subscribed? cheesr
Any idea what the error code E-103 on my aurora PV1-3.0-OUTD-UK is - I'd love to have a shot at repairing, if possible. Any help would be appreciated.,
Joe, I have a manual on one of my computers, I'll see if I an find it. As far as I remember it was down loaded from the Gold Coast solar website, cheers
@@TheInfoworks Hi Andy, do you know where can I get the service manual or the schematics of 3G83 aurora board. Thanks
@@daspase Hi, try looking at the recent upload from "buyitfixit" on Aurora service passwords, and ask the question
Hi Andy, i would just like to say BIG thank you for your videos .... Very helpful, I resoldered connections and still got E031 error so I have replaced the relay now as well ... However the inverter now doesn't boot up, but the GFI light is on ... Any suggestions how to resolve this ? Regards Adrian
Adrian, yes things like this can happen. The ribbon cable seems to be handed and has to be the right way round. It's often marked with a dot, otherwise have you checked all the spade connections are right and tight. If you get wrong mode there is a dip switch next to the mains input that can easily be flicked. Worth just going over the re-installation of the board to make sure all the screws are in place as each one I think is an earth. Cheers
Please see the Paypal donate button on my channel page, cheers
Hi there!! Any hint or procedure to fix a E49 on a ABB UNO? Thanks!
sorry no, but I'll willing to learn if you have any success, cheers
Andy, I am getting a solid red light on my GFI indicator. Do you have any troubleshooting suggestions? I have tried turning everything off and back on again but it still comes up the same. From what I read, its a ground fault on the dc side. Thanks
Wayne, I've loaded a video about isolation faults on the DC side. Many inverters are very sensitive to ground faults, the slightest hint of DC going to earth and it upsets them. This can be a leak through cable insulation. You will have to test the DC circuits on the meg Ohm scale to earth. See the video to get the scale of the problem. ua-cam.com/video/OlB8vFXykoI/v-deo.html please subscribe, cheers
@@TheInfoworks both banks are measuring good DC voltage from the disconnected wires inside the inverter.
Wayne, so you have two solar banks, have you tried to isolate the fault to one of the banks by running the inverter with only one bank connected. The resistance needs to be measured between one of the DC cables and earth as it's an earth fault. Cheers
@@TheInfoworks I measured about 8 to 10 volts dc from each leg to ground on all legs. The voltage for each bank leg dc+ and dc- is around 456volts dc
Good morning Andy Reynolds, my name is Romulo I'm Brazilian, I'm with problem Low laughter in an aurora power one inverter, this problem is not in strings since I connected an equal inverter in my system and it worked, I believe this problem should be in the inverter, I already switched the littelfuse P2T420M, it still did not work, can you give me any hints whatsoever?
Hi, low insolation is caused by a electrical track to earth in your solar cables. It does not take much, maybe water in a connection that can track down to earth. Check all your connections and see that the cable runs are not in damp vegetation and strapped up properly, cheers.
@@TheInfoworks, Hi, I actually have 2 inverters of this one, one is working normal with the same string that I connect that other one that is presenting this problem.
Could it be that bad relay contact gets hot and then unsolders itself?
Exactly, once the arcing between the contacts starts then gradually the problem gets worse and heat builds up and is transmitted down to the solder joints. Running the unit at full capacity breaks the second rule of solar, cheers
Definitely been arcing at those joints, most likely the relay contacts had got hot and the heat transferred through the pins and melted the joints.
Hi, the relay contacts showed no signs of burning and they had not changed colour. All 3 boards I have show the same fault so I assume the relay tab and the board hole are too small for the current which could be at 400 volts. Cheers
Go Andy 👍
Got there, but what caused it? cheers
@@TheInfoworks Ultimately heat caused by underspecification / poor workmanship at the joint caused arcing that eventually broke the circuit. What component was the connection holding on the board?
Jim, it was a relay connection, but the relay blade showed no signs of heat, it's obviously a common fault as all 3 boards I have show the same fault, cheers
Hello Andy , have you also get Internal error fault E021 ?
Hi, according to Gold Coast solar E021 is a relay fault, I would suggest taking the covers off the relays and looking for contact problems, also cleaning the contacts. Check the to see if all the coils have the same resistance. Cheers
Hello Andy, excuse me, I got a problem with an Aurora PVI 6000, it is used in my work, I was along programming that but I got to go so I left it alone programmed. But the problem was that it was a European inverter and gave 50 Hz, I live in Mexico and we use 60 Hz. So a work partner tried to change from 50 Hz to 60 Hz and by accident he activated "Amorphous Mode" in the inverter. Since it was activated, it got the error 037 "Riso Low". Since then the alarm still present and I cannot access to the options of the inverter and neither program it. In the manual got this....
Low value of the insulation resistance (only with the “Amorphous” mode activated): This error can occur only should the “Amorphous” mode be on. This function is on only in inverters equipped with a grounding kit and serves to monitor the voltage at the heads of the grounding resistance. The error occurs when the voltage at the heads of the resistance connected between ground and the pole of the photovoltaic generator exceeds 30V for more than 30 minutes or 120V for more than one second.
My questions are:
Can I change the inverter frequency from 50 Hz to 60 Hz? If so how can I?
How could I deactivate "Amorphous Mode"?
Greetings and I hope you could help me.
Whew what a nightmare, the only thing I can suggest is to power the inverter from an insolated DC supply and then maybe get rid of the riso problem, see my other videos on bench testing grid inverters using a variac, an isolating transformer, an high voltage rectifier with a smoothing capacitor, maybe that will help. What happens if you connect 60 Hz ac to the mains connection, can you get into the menu then? Cheers
@@TheInfoworksThank you Andy, I am going to try doing that then, and do you know if I solve the problem, that could I change the frequency of the inverter?
Hi, I have never had the need to investigate frequency change, so you are in new teritory, cheers
That´s ok, anyway I am going to try what you said before to see if it helps me repairing the inverter, if it so I will let you know so the experience could be shared. Thanks in advance and if I make it throught I will let you know!
Jesus Garcia Tamez
go into service
use the 6 digit second level password
set amorf off
sent me the serial number and production date
and the type of inverter
then i give you the password
and by the way do not repair the units like in this video
this is pure shit
just replace the relais
they are burned underneath on the board
Hello, I have the following problem: the inverter initializes but every time it will synchronize with the network and the process is in 2s, the inverter makes a strange noise in the relay and disarms the circuit breaker on the AC side. If you can help me I'm grateful !!!
Hi, First take the tops off all 4 relays and check for damage, then check for tracking or burnt connections on the board, cheers
@@TheInfoworks, could you send me your email so that I can record an email and have one more solution to the problem?
Just put it up on your channel so everyone can see it, cheers
@@TheInfoworks Okay, I'll record and send.
You saved him ! Good job !
Time now to test it for a couple of months, cheers
Hi sir how are you i have fault E013 WORNG MOOD how i can clear it i have pvi 12 kw on grid 3 phase
Hi, on the single phase units there's a dip switch to the right of the mains connection, cheers
Any advice for fault e010 and e012? Regards
Hi SAE group.com has a code list under their ABB manuals list, cheers
muito bom parabens
Thank you
@@TheInfoworks tenho um canal de rf escreveva-se la moro no brasil parana
Donde te puedo contactar para la reparación de un inversor aurora
Hi, I don't repair for people. The video is to show how to do it. You could get a local repairer to do this for you. Show them this series of videos. See my paypal link, cheers
dont't waste, start to view at 13min, thanks
Hi! There..!! Can you tell me how to fix error code E033.. !! Please..! Thanks..!!
I have ABB 4.2 OUTD won’t power up and giving me error code E033..??
Looks like an internal temp fault, try disconnecting the fan and looking for the temp sensor (PTC or NTC). Normally a pair of wires, commonly black and white, Subscribed? Cheers
Hi Andy, my Inverter was flashing E031 error code. I have switched-off the red and black Switches that provide inputs from the Solar panels. I'm planning to replace the Aurora 3.6kw unit with a refurbished unit (as its a cheaper option to swap it). Could I ask how easy is it to take the existing Inverter from the wall and what electric safety check I need to do as I start preparing to take the existing unit off the wall? ... Do you have a video showing switch-off and dismounting existing ABB Inverter? Thank You in advance
Hi, It's just a matter of switching off the mains power, then switching off the solar power. Then the inverters is electrically safe. Then I remove the rectangular plate at the bottom. The rest is obvious. Subscribed? cheers
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