Solar Assistant EG4 Lifepower

BuckeyePower · Oct 22, 2022

I have (6) EG4 Lifepower batteries daisy chained up to solar assistant. I can see them all just fine using EG4 BMS software. However, when I hook up to solar assistant one battery shows up funky. Also, I only see (5) of the (6) batteries.

Any ideas?

wattmatters · Oct 22, 2022

Check dip switch settings?
Replace the cable for the missing one?

But yeah, interesting battery stats! Maybe the BMS on that unit is toast?

bones1 · Jan 15, 2023

What was the outcome?.

Bripromo solar · Feb 7, 2023

Hi Friends, can anyone help with solar assistant. I got 4 EG4 BATTERIES With LCD screen I am trying to see all the packs cells information. I have connected these batteries Daisy chain up to solar assistant I cannot see the packs information. Do I need to change dip switches settings? I am able to see Batteries, grid information. But not the cells information.

bones1 said:
What was the outcome?.

EPicTony · Feb 8, 2023

How is the other end of the black 485 cable connected to the Raspberry PI ? Maybe take a picture for us. I'm trying to set it up like your setup but can't get it communicating past 1 battery. Thanks

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

No it is USB END

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

My Batteries are communicating fine,But the thing is I can't see each Batteries cells information. Iike the picture I have enclosed

Brightside · Feb 8, 2023

You need to use a RS485 cable on each battery, by using a RS485 Hub or splitter. Then hook up to the hub or splitter with your Pi cable.

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

I tired that didn't work, do you got a picture?

EPicTony · Feb 8, 2023

Bripromo solar said:
No it is USB END

So it's a USB to RJ45 cable ? Where did you get that from?

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

It comes with solar assistant raspberry pi, from solar assistant website. Do I have to make any changes to the dip switches? Or changes to the solar assistant raspberry pi? Please send a clear picture as how to connect.

Brightside · Feb 8, 2023

You have to hook up like the manual shows:

EG4 battery setup in SolarAssistant

How to connect an EG4 battery to SolarAssistant.

solar-assistant.io

I used the cable that came with the batteries.

The batteries need to be in order from Addresses 2-5 for your batteries.

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

That's not a good explanation, can you post a picture?

TomC4306 · Feb 8, 2023

Bripromo solar said:
That's not a good explanation, can you post a picture?

Did you actually click on the link provided and scroll all the way through that help screen? There's even a video in there showing you how to do it with your batteries

TomC4306 · Feb 8, 2023

None of the dip switches set to battery one.

EPicTony · Feb 8, 2023

A little off topic but similar...... Regarding direct connection to Raspberry PI of multiple EG4 inverters, would this be accomplished the same way (using rj45 splitters). Thanks

TomC4306 · Feb 8, 2023

EPicTony said:
A little off topic but similar...... Regarding direct connection to Raspberry PI of multiple EG4 inverters, would this be accomplished the same way (using rj45 splitters). Thanks

I'm not using eg4 gear but if it were me, I'd use a USB hub and home run all the inverters and all the batteries to the Raspberry Pi

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

EPicTony said:
A little off topic but similar...... Regarding direct connection to Raspberry PI of multiple EG4 inverters, would this be accomplished the same way (using rj45 splitters). Thanks

TomC4306 said:
Did you actually click on the link provided and scroll all the way through that help screen? There's even a video in there showing you how to do it with your batteries

I can't see the link, where is it?

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

TomC4306 said:
Did you actually click on the link provided and scroll all the way through that help screen? There's even a video in there showing you how to do it with your batteries

I did this connections exactly the same way,But the only thing I didn't do is disconnect the batteries communication cable

TomC4306 · Feb 8, 2023

See link in post number 12 of this thread to the solar assistant help page.

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

I didn't disconnect the batteries communication cable, I left it the same way, I connected a regular internet cable RS485 to RJ45 splitter from each Batteries Straight into Solar assistant raspberry pi and then from solar assistant to inverter.

TomC4306 · Feb 8, 2023

Bripromo solar said:
I left it the same way

And yet you expected a different outcome.

Bripromo solar · Feb 8, 2023

TomC4306 said:
And yet you expected a different outcome.

So you are saying disconnect the Batteries communication cables. And connect the RS485 to the splitters up to the solar assistant Raspberry pi,and from the solar assistant to the inverter. No changes to the dips switches? My (master)Battery DDDU,and the others are different settings and it should work.

TomC4306 · Feb 8, 2023

Bripromo solar said:
So you are saying disconnect the Batteries communication cables. And connect the RS485 to the splitters up to the solar assistant Raspberry pi,and from the solar assistant to the inverter. No changes to the dips switches? My (master)Battery DDDU,and the others are different settings and it should work.

Again, I don't have any EG for gear and I haven't watched that installation video on solar assistant's help page.
That being said if it were mine, I would take all the green connection cables off the batteries, I would put all the dip switches down, I would run a 485 to USB cable from battery one to a USB hub.
I would then run a 485 to USB cable from battery two to the same USB hub and battery three and battery 4 etc.
Then I would run a cable from the USB hub to the Raspberry Pi.
Then I would run a cable from each inverter to the Raspberry Pi. And see if that works.

It seems to me that you're trying to have both monitoring setups working simultaneously.
You've bought solar assistant so just surrender yourself to it.

Male Human · Mar 1, 2023

TomC4306 said:
Again, I don't have any EG for gear and I haven't watched that installation video on solar assistant's help page.
That being said if it were mine, I would take all the green connection cables off the batteries, I would put all the dip switches down, I would run a 485 to USB cable from battery one to a USB hub.
I would then run a 485 to USB cable from battery two to the same USB hub and battery three and battery 4 etc.
Then I would run a cable from the USB hub to the Raspberry Pi.
Then I would run a cable from each inverter to the Raspberry Pi. And see if that works.

It seems to me that you're trying to have both monitoring setups working simultaneously.
You've bought solar assistant so just surrender yourself to it.

I am still working on getting my system to communicate fully so I'm not an expert. But. The addressing scheme for the batteries is kind of important for any functionality at all. If the addresses are wrong, nothing works, and you will get error 60 and 61 on eg4 inverters. Solar Assistant reads the batteries in order, and therefore also relies on addressing. EG4 addressing is odd to me, but the scheme is easy.

up is on, down is off. add the digits together to create an address. Example below.

switches are read from right to left. (8,4,2,1)

Address 1 = down down down up
Address 2 = down down up down
Address 3 = down down up up
Address 4 - down up down down ...

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