Charging EG4 Power Pro batteries in parallel with EG4 Chargeverter in a emergency

[muaddib721]

Theoretical question... I have 3 EG4 Power Pro batteries in parallel connected to two Sol-Ark 15k's in parallel and was wondering if in a emergency situation could I disconnect the batteries from my inverter, and connect the EG4 Chargeverter to the internal bus bar in one of the batteries to charge all three? Here is the basic diagram of the batteries in parallel and I would be connecting the charge to the slave battery on the left that has 3 connection points available via amphenol connectors that I will install on the charger cables. I don't see why it would be an issue if its not connected to the inverter when I'm charging. I know some of you will instantly say why don't I charge the batteries via the inverter but I'm proposing this as a emergency protocol for after a disaster and there isn't enough sun to recharge. I should also mention that I have a rack of EG4 LL V2 batteries in a rack setup as a reserve as plan A if the sun doesn't do its job and I can would be connecting those first to keep the system running in a grid down situation. Yes, I would change the BMS setting on my two Sol-Ark 15k's and the two battery banks will NEVER be connected to my main battery bus bar at the same time.... this would void the warranty on the Power Pro batteries. I work with emergency management in the area after hurricanes and any other disasters so I don't have the luxury of leaving town when the storm is coming. And yes the diagram is not exact so don't beat me up about the quick diagram I put together for this thread.

Thoughts on if this will be a problem would be greatly appreciated from the collective wisdom of this forum.

 

[SignatureSolarJames]

Looks good

 

[muaddib721]

Looks good

Thanks James.... just looking for reassurance because the last thing I want to do is damage my investment. Keep up the good work brother.

 

[LakeHouse]

I have 3 EG4 Power Pro batteries in parallel connected to two Sol-Ark 15k's in parallel and was wondering if in a emergency situation could I disconnect the batteries from my inverter, and connect the EG4 Chargeverter to the internal bus bar in one of the batteries to charge all three?

I don't see any problems with this. I also don't see a necessity to disconnect the inverter, though it won't hurt anything.

 

[n2aws]

Yes, I would change the BMS setting on my two Sol-Ark 15k's and the two battery banks will NEVER be connected to my main battery bus bar at the same time.... this would void the warranty on the Power Pro batteries.

Is this real? You can't connect a different type of battery to the bus without violating the warranty? If so, thats a no-go for me.

 

[SignatureSolarJames]

Is this real? You can't connect a different type of battery to the bus without violating the warranty? If so, thats a no-go for me.

We are making the server ones compatible, there is an issue of cell manufacturer mismatch so we are not democratizing upfront. you'll see things loosen up in the future I think

 

[n2aws]

We are making the server ones compatible, there is an issue of cell manufacturer mismatch so we are not democratizing upfront. you'll see things loosen up in the future I think

Good to know. I appreciate the info. I have a stack of Lifepower4's, and was considering the wallmount power pros to conserve space.. but, maybe I'll just plan on a second stack of Lifepower4's now.

Appreciate the info and insanely fast reply!

 

[muaddib721]

Is this real? You can't connect a different type of battery to the bus without violating the warranty? If so, thats a no-go for me.

If you read my description carefully the two battery banks will not be connected at the same time to the inverters that’s why I would need to disconnect the power pro batteries prior to connecting the rack so as not to void warranty. Hopefully the guys at EG4/SS can get them compatible at some point and I will already be setup to connect them all together if and when that happens.

 

[muaddib721]

I don't see any problems with this. I also don't see a necessity to disconnect the inverter, though it won't hurt anything.

The disconnect of the PP batteries is so I don’t void the warranty on them. It seems that some time in the future that will change. They should be able to tweak the software to accommodate this situation. If you watch any Will Prowse videos his current shop setup is very similar to mine but he obviously has deeper pockets than me and doesn’t care that his warranty is no longer valid on his Power Pro Batteries.

 

[muaddib721]

We are making the server ones compatible, there is an issue of cell manufacturer mismatch so we are not democratizing upfront. you'll see things loosen up in the future I think

That would not only help me with my setup but I’m sure it would be a great way to increase sales with cross comparability. If it were my company I’d be pushing for it… instant marketing too.

But I’m sure sales isn’t an issue right now
???

 

[TOU47]

This does NOT make me happy, I do care about warranty & have invested heavily in EG4 via SS!

I currently have a rack of Lifepower4's with my 6500EX's. I took advantage of the "trade in program" & bought an 18kPV (delivered) as well as bought my first of 3 PowerPro's (waiting delivery). I did this with the express intent of going to the 18kPV & ALL my batteries together rather than buying more Lifepower4's. No where did I understand they wouldn't work together. I thought that was the point of staying all EG4.

Not happy with SS at all at the moment...my investment, full utilization & warranty matter to me off-grid. ?

@SignatureSolarJames

 

[Brucey]

This does NOT make me happy, I do care about warranty & have invested heavily in EG4 via SS!

I currently have a rack of Lifepower4's with my 6500EX's. I took advantage of the "trade in program" & bought an 18kPV (delivered) as well as bought my first of 3 PowerPro's (waiting delivery). I did this with the express intent of going to the 18kPV & ALL my batteries together rather than buying more Lifepower4's. No where did I understand they wouldn't work together. I thought that was the point of staying all EG4.

Not happy with SS at all at the moment...my investment, full utilization & warranty matter to me off-grid. ?

@SignatureSolarJames

Cancel the powerpros and get more LP4s?

 

[timselectric]

I'm calling bs on this one.
You can do anything you want, without voiding the warranty. As long as what you do doesn't damage anything under warranty.

 

[Brucey]

I'm calling bs on this one.
You can do anything you want, without voiding the warranty. As long as what you do doesn't damage anything under warranty.

Except we've seen numerous horror stories of ss trying to weasel out of their warranty obligations ...

 

[n2aws]

Except we've seen numerous horror stories of ss trying to weasel out of their warranty obligations ...

Before you get your panties too twisted, make sure you read this thread and saw the reply from Markus at EG4, saying that the support for pairing with other batteries is coming. They have something to work out first.

As for SS trying to "weasel out of warranty", I'd take a deep breath man. Yes, they had some issues a while back. Since then, they've done a pretty decent job with ramping up support, warranty claims process and other such things. Don't let the "SS of old" cloud your judgement today. Like any company that grows very fast, they had some growing pains, and have been working to address those issues.

And finally: Take a moment to read and understand the magnuson-moss warranty act. the TL;DR is: to deny a warranty claim, the manufacturer has to prove that it was improper use, modification, or installation of something (and that was the root cause of the problem) to deny warranty. In other words, there are federal laws to protect consumers from "bogus warranty denials" by shady vendors. As near as I know, SS has never has a magnuson-moss claim against then.. so apparently it hasn't been bad enough for people who've made "significant investments" to persue what would easily be a "slam dunk" case.

This is the internet and 2023. People rarely praise things that work. But they are quick to complain about problems. So, the perception one gets on the internet (of any company, honestly) is generally going to be more negative than the reality.

 

[TOU47]

Cancel the powerpros and get more LP4s?

Thinking very seriously on this. This is seriously wrong. ?

Over all, I've been pretty happy with all my dealings with them over the last 18 months and things have worked well. For those of us that have stuck with them & even doubled down in investing in them early AND late...stuck with them through thick & thin they really need to address this.

@SignatureSolarJames

 

[Quattrohead]

You will need to seriously calm down. You're not going to blow up planet Earth by mixing battery types as long as you follow a few simple rules.
What EG4 are saying is this, they have not tested mixing their battery types with communications yet. There is more to this testing than just will it catch fire, there is getting all the packs to communicate correctly and complete control of the RSD for example.
Also remember these latest inverters and battery systems are all designed towards complying with current and Future UL regulations for ESS systems in homes.

Yes I have mixed various pre-made and DIY battery setups and have not come anywhere near to finding a significant or dangerous problem yet, certain things haven't worked so well together but that has been it. I will continue to do this.

 

[timselectric]

They may not communicate with each other.
But, that's not a big deal to a lot of people.
They're definitely not going to damage each other. Unless there's a catastrophic failure.
And communications won't save it, at that point.
OCP will be the only thing to save it, in this situation.

 

[muaddib721]

We are making the server ones compatible, there is an issue of cell manufacturer mismatch so we are not democratizing upfront. you'll see things loosen up in the future I think

James I need your help with figuring out what is the specs on the Amphenol connectors used by the Power Pro batteries. I can't find answers in the manual and the parts have the manufacturers name Degson but no identafying numbers. Are they the 8mm or 8mm EMI amphenol connectors? I'm trying to get different screw in receptacles vs bus bar receptacles so I can screw them into my existing 1000 amp Blue Sea buss bar and have the connection facing the front when installed in my wiring trough. I ordered the screw in receptacle in 14.3 mm and its the wrong size... its the red one in the pic. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Bdaalex]

I don't see any problems with this. I also don't see a necessity to disconnect the inverter, though it won't hurt anything.

hello all. this chat seems to have moved to a discussion of warranties and different battery types but I'm interested in the original question and particularly the comment i am replying to.

on the EG4 18k or sol-ark inverters, AC coupled solar is connected to the gen port, meaning no generator can be used. I am considering wiring a chargeverter directly to my battery bank for the simple purpose of generator hookup in an emergency. If the panels get ripped off my roof or my batteries are just too low because its cloudy as hell, i would like to be able to run the generator for a few hours to top up the batteries while still using the inverter to power my house. i don't see an issue here because the chargeverter will stop charging if the batteries are full and the inverter should just interpret that power as a fully charged battery, right?