While I do believe the OP had less battery power than would be ideal I also think the EG4 has some issues with tripping to easily when loaded down. This is certainly not the first post where a user has had overload issue and yet another battery pack worked perfectly. I also remember a thread where a few guys just changed out the BMS in the EG4 to a different brand and the problem was solved.
What would be nice is to hear of a warranty issues being solved by Signature Solar that did not involve pages of Drama and an unhappy customer. Personally I think this whole "It works for us so your out of luck" warranty policy absolutely sucks. Maybe I missed the post where someone sent back something to SS and they actually said it did not work and just refunded them or replaced the item.
I'm at the Signature Solar office today for a few reasons, and just looked at their ticket status and back room. We have hundreds of tickets and items (for a number of reasons) where a customer received a full refund including shipping. I have personally dealt with tons of tickets where that's what we did for one reason or another. In fact, there are lots of times where a customer likely damaged the product, but they don't have a way to prove it so they still replace the unit. In this case we have a battery where they tried to troubleshoot this remotely, and even stated that they had a strong suspicion that it was something about the vacuum causing the issue. We have a tablesaw, huge shop vac, and tons of other equipment for testing that it just wouldn't make sense that the vacuum has a larger inrush current. We are talking about a little dirt devil vacuum - meanwhile the customer states the batteries are operating flawlessly otherwise with large loads, and devices we have to assume has a larger inrush current. The testing shows the battery operating to specs - the continuous amps held for an extended time period, and every over current fault met or exceeded the amperage listed for the timeframe listed per the manual.
Personally I think this whole "It works for us so your out of luck" warranty policy absolutely sucks.
This isn't specifically the policy. But during troubleshooting we tried to have the customer test the battery and it passed all our tests - we even suggested that it was likely something about the vacuum specifically that is causing the issues, and that we believed the battery was performing to specs. When going through the RMA, we clearly outline the outcomes: it's faulty and replaced or repaired at no cost (including shipping), or it's not faulty and performs to specs, and will either be sent back at cost for shipping or refunded less shipping incurred and a possible restocking fee. It is the choice of the customer which option they would like to select.
understanding and being okay with the consequences
This 100%. Signature Solar has a design team that will put together a system - in those circumstances, if an issue like this happens it's another story. They take responsibility 100% for overlooking something like requirements for an inverter etc. You can't have it both ways where you are paying DIY pricing and putting your own system together, then getting upset at a distributor when the system you designed doesn't work because the specs are incorrect.
before suggesting something may be wrong with his battery
Signature Solar didn't suggest something was wrong with his battery. They stated that there was something tripping the short circuit protection (exceeding 250a), that they believed it was the vacuum, and tried to have the customer test another vacuum. The customer said he didn't want to get another vacuum to test with, and the customer replied that he knew it wasn't the vacuum 100% and that he wanted to know the next steps in replacing the battery. It was at this time we sent him the RMA form (which outlines the outcomes for the customer depending on whether an issue was found or if it performed to specs), and he decided to continue with that process.
their responsibility to investigate, re-spec and troubleshoot every DIYers setup
100% this. We do everything we can to help people make decisions. Signature Solar sells all the equipment you need to set up a solar system, and has a design team dedicated to helping with this. As soon as someone opts to DIY and put their own system together, they are also
accepting the responsibility to ensure it is compatible and within specs for operations.
agreed that his tech team came up short here in their assessment of this situation
He agreed that
if the tech team
did the research the customer should have done and found this information for him, that the disappointment could have been avoided. He didn't state that the tech team came up short, and regardless, they advised the customer that they believed the battery was operating to spec and that there was something tripping the short circuit protection (likely the vacuum somehow plus the inverter), but it is
the customers decision on how to proceed.
In the time that I have been dealing with Signature Solar, I've never seen a company so engaged on public forums nor willing to go so far out of it's way to help customers at every stage of the process. Help designing a system, selling products without constantly upselling where it's not required, assisting with freight issues and claims , technical support, a very generous RMA process that for most is painless, and more. No matter what they do, they can't make everyone happy. There is always room for improvement but I really think we've done a great job and Signature Solar's customer service far exceeds what you will experience with nearly any other company.