MPP-Solar LVX-6048

[houseofancients]

My LV inverters back off on charging when the float voltage is hit. Makes me want to add more batteries though.... as all that PV power goes to waste.

you could redirect that power tona waterheater, using a cheap sonoff and relay for ac

 

[Sun in Lithium]

My LV inverters back off on charging when the float voltage is hit. Makes me want to add more batteries though.... as all that PV power goes to waste.

Yes I believe all inverter chargers do that.
I'm thinking of dumping excess solar into a 400 gallon tank which should take care of 4+ days off domestic hot water use. Than I can justify a bigger solar array.
And out last the cloudy days.

 

[eabyrd]

Yes I believe all inverter chargers do that.
I'm thinking of dumping excess solar into a 400 gallon tank which should take care of 4+ days off domestic hot water use. Than I can justify a bigger solar array.
And out last the cloudy days.

Oh to have enough land for an expansive array. We are now empty nesters so hopefully with a few years

 

[Sanwizard]

Oh to have enough land for an expansive array. We are now empty nesters so hopefully with a few years

Yeah, I am with ya on that one! I live in NYC now. Way too cramped. I just bought a place in South Carolina that has a couple acres, and my own personal palm tree and a pool. Freedom. My kids all moved down there, due to the high taxes and prices in NY, so I will be following them down. It already has two 600V LG arrays feeding SMA inverters. I turned off the grid tie. Not for me. I want off grid, so those will be replaced by four LVX6048WP inverters, and 52KW of lifepo4 batteries. Two of the LVX's can handle the 600V arrays that are already there, but I will install a new ground mount with more panels to feed the pool house and dock.
Then kick back and have a mint julip.

 

[eabyrd]

Yeah, I am with ya on that one! I live in NYC now. Way too cramped. I just bought a place in South Carolina that has a couple acres, and my own personal palm tree and a pool. Freedom. My kids all moved down there, due to the high taxes and prices in NY, so I will be following them down. It already has two 600V LG arrays feeding SMA inverters. I turned off the grid tie. Not for me. I want off grid, so those will be replaced by four LVX6048WP inverters, and 52KW of lifepo4 batteries. Two of the LVX's can handle the 600V arrays that are already there, but I will install a new ground mount with more panels to feed the pool house and dock.
Then kick back and have a mint julip.

No, I’m not jealous at all. My spot is just south of Rapid city in SD.

 

[SolarPrep]

Yes I believe all inverter chargers do that.
I'm thinking of dumping excess solar into a 400 gallon tank which should take care of 4+ days off domestic hot water use. Than I can justify a bigger solar array.
And out last the cloudy days.

Self sufficent: I don't think you would need a 400 gallon tank if you will consistently divert excess energy. About half that size, with really good insulation should work just fine. Of course, if you happen to have access to a really big tank, sometime more is better! You might also want to consider a hot water solar panel, especially if you go with 400 gallons.

 

[Sanwizard]

Self sufficent: I don't think you would need a 400 gallon tank if you will consistently divert excess energy. About half that size, with really good insulation should work just fine. Of course, if you happen to have access to a really big tank, sometime more is better! You might also want to consider a hot water solar panel, especially if you go with 400 gallons.

Interesting. I just bought a house that has one of those hot water panels on the roof. It feeds into an 80 gallon tank, which feeds another electric watee heater.
First time I ever saw one, and I have no idea how it works. I called three differnt plumbers, and they could not figure it out either. The house was vacant for a year, and I dont know how to turn it on. No model numbers anywhere.

 

[Sun in Lithium]

Well I live in a household of 12 people so 400 gallons isn't really that much.
Yes the plan would be to super insolate and have a coil at the top that heats the domestic water. So the tank doesn't need to be food grade.

I have worked with solar flat plat and vacuum tube panels. Both work but have there disadvantages you need to use a glycol or drain back system so they don't freeze. If you lose power to the pumps they will over heat and blow off glycol, and than get air locks and a host of other problems.

Maybe a good design would remedy those issues.

But although PV is less efficient but in my opinion simpler and more cost effective.

 

[Capt Bill]

We will have a new UL certified model ready to release in OCT.
It will call LVX 6048WP

from my youngish experience with a few MPP LV2424s networked together for 240vac split phase; that LVX 6048WP looks awesome. Re: UL certified. ... It would blow my mind if that unit had enough certifications for a California level hoop jump for a legal grid tie. ... I am expecting that to happen someday, but would bet this one is not quite there (got to get on the CA list of approved equipment, from what I understand). ... though sure it has the anit-island ability down pat for turning off grid feeds when the grid goes down. In other countries, and/or possibly other states with older mechanical meters, I understand one can attempt the gorilla type grid tie that is not authorized. I have heard folks could get away with in the older days of early California experimenting. That worked for some old timers as long as you did not end up with a surplus grid feed tally on your meter at end of the month. I hear Red flags for that nowadays in California can piss off grid suppliers to point of yanking your grid connection permanently (though one buddy feeding via microinverters without legal permit just got a warning letter from PG&E in California to STOP; about 8 years ago). Bet it works in other countries, and possibly some usa states (????). ... I wonder who is turning their meters backwards when the sun is shining with legal MPP Grid Ties (do any states in the usa allow this????) , or via gorilla grid feeding cycles ??? Always open to learning more about what I don't yet know about ;+) Bill

 

[SolarPrep]

Interesting. I just bought a house that has one of those hot water panels on the roof. It feeds into an 80 gallon tank, which feeds another electric watee heater.
First time I ever saw one, and I have no idea how it works. I called three differnt plumbers, and they could not figure it out either. The house was vacant for a year, and I dont know how to turn it on. No model numbers anywhere.

Sanwizard: first thing to do is determine if it is a drain back system, or a closed loop system with glycol. I was just going to type that it should be fairly obvious, but then it occurred to me that most people don't know anything about solar hot water, or even boilers, for that matter! Drain back is the simpler of the two, and is commonly used in cold areas. The problem, as mentioned by self sufficient, is what can happen if you lose power, or the system freezes. Of course, there are other things that go wrong too, like stagnation. But basically, a drain back system has a line going up to panels, and drains into a tank that receives the hot water. There will be a pump to circulate the water back up to the panels, where it will trickle back down. The idea being that if the power goes out, sun goes down, etc...the water just drains back by gravity, and doesn't freeze. There is normally a controller that monitors the temperature, and can turn the pump on and off. This is what I have, and it feeds into the same tank as my boiler. (Buffer tank) I have a heat exchanger mounted on that tank hooked to the panels, so that water never mixes with the rest. The heat exchange is done by the two fluids passing each other in the plate exchanger. Your 80 gallon tank is likely to have a coil in it that allows the solar heated water to heat the other water in the tank. Water to water heat exchanger.

A closed system will look very similar, but a lot depends on how it was set up. If they did a closed system, and you are in a cold area, it will have glycol. The glycol cannot mix with other water in your system, unless you have a boiler and are using glycol in the entire system. Very unlikely. If your tank has a couple sets of ins and out pipes, it is probably a heat exchanger tank with a coil in it. There will almost certainly be some sort of control, and temperature gauges to monitor the panels. A system that freezes with glycol is a real mess, and all it takes is one day, like where we had -50 temps, and you are screwed.

There are a slew of other possibilities, like a prior owner disabled the system, didn't finish it, had a leak, etc. Generally speaking, you are wasting your time with most plumbers. They don't know boilers. I do all my own work, because even when you hire a "pro", they often don't know what they are talking about. It just depends. There are some really smart, talented guys working with controls, etc. I'd call around to your local HVAC places, and ask for tips on a local guy who is good at radiant heat. That will be your best bet.

Properly done, boilers are awseome, and solar panels can be very effeciaent and effective. But frankly, it probaly makes more sense overall to add solar capacity and do a divert load.

 

[Sanwizard]

Sanwizard: first thing to do is determine if it is a drain back system, or a closed loop system with glycol. I was just going to type that it should be fairly obvious, but then it occurred to me that most people don't know anything about solar hot water, or even boilers, for that matter! Drain back is the simpler of the two, and is commonly used in cold areas. The problem, as mentioned by self sufficient, is what can happen if you lose power, or the system freezes. Of course, there are other things that go wrong too, like stagnation. But basically, a drain back system has a line going up to panels, and drains into a tank that receives the hot water. There will be a pump to circulate the water back up to the panels, where it will trickle back down. The idea being that if the power goes out, sun goes down, etc...the water just drains back by gravity, and doesn't freeze. There is normally a controller that monitors the temperature, and can turn the pump on and off. This is what I have, and it feeds into the same tank as my boiler. (Buffer tank) I have a heat exchanger mounted on that tank hooked to the panels, so that water never mixes with the rest. The heat exchange is done by the two fluids passing each other in the plate exchanger. Your 80 gallon tank is likely to have a coil in it that allows the solar heated water to heat the other water in the tank. Water to water heat exchanger.

A closed system will look very similar, but a lot depends on how it was set up. If they did a closed system, and you are in a cold area, it will have glycol. The glycol cannot mix with other water in your system, unless you have a boiler and are using glycol in the entire system. Very unlikely. If your tank has a couple sets of ins and out pipes, it is probably a heat exchanger tank with a coil in it. There will almost certainly be some sort of control, and temperature gauges to monitor the panels. A system that freezes with glycol is a real mess, and all it takes is one day, like where we had -50 temps, and you are screwed.

There are a slew of other possibilities, like a prior owner disabled the system, didn't finish it, had a leak, etc. Generally speaking, you are wasting your time with most plumbers. They don't know boilers. I do all my own work, because even when you hire a "pro", they often don't know what they are talking about. It just depends. There are some really smart, talented guys working with controls, etc. I'd call around to your local HVAC places, and ask for tips on a local guy who is good at radiant heat. That will be your best bet.

Properly done, boilers are awseome, and solar panels can be very effeciaent and effective. But frankly, it probaly makes more sense overall to add solar capacity and do a divert load.

Thanka for the detailed answer! I will check with local HVAC folks in the area. Its South Carolina, so not a cold area, and most likely a drain back as you said.

 

[SolarPrep]

Sanwizard: if you don't get freezing temps, you should definetely consider using that tank and set up. It can provide a lot of hot water, at a very dependable rate, and low cost. ALso, you could use it for your divert load for excess PV.

 

[Mickey PR]

Hi to all,

Do some one have a copy of the service manual for the LVX 6048

 

[BMcL]

Hi to all,

Do some one have a copy of the service manual for the LVX 6048

MPP Solar manuals are at watts247.com

 

[Mickey PR]

Hi and thanks, what I am looking is for Service Manual not user manual manual,

Thanks

Miguel

 

[Bobthemechanic]

Does anyone know if miltiple LVX6048 hooked up parallel puts the slaves to sleep when the load lowers to what a single inverter can handle? Or they all just take a lower load all the time?

 

[Sanwizard]

Does anyone know if miltiple LVX6048 hooked up parallel puts the slaves to sleep when the load lowers to what a single inverter can handle? Or they all just take a lower load all the time?

I sont think they are that sophisticated. They use the load share sense cable to coordinate. I have my LV6548's set up to handle L1 or L2, and I balance at the breaker box.

 

[BMcL]

Does anyone know if miltiple LVX6048 hooked up parallel puts the slaves to sleep when the load lowers to what a single inverter can handle? Or they all just take a lower load all the time?

You do have the parallel kit installed ? I would call Ian at watts247.com

 

[Sun in Lithium]

Does anyone know how to clear error faults on the lvx6048 without disconnecting all the power to the inverter?

 

[COMpuLANdia]

You can also edit your own posts by clicking on the arrow beside report, on the bottom lefthand side.

All the functions of the app are working for me today. Except viewing history.
But yes very buggy app

Magic. History is working now.