Might try contacting SolarAssistant. He might be happy to help if it's an issue on his side.
4 MWh SRNE ASF48100U200-H 10kw.
- Thread starter 42OhmsPA
- Start date
Kenny_
Solar Addict
Yes, they have been very responsive to my queries.
have I tried unplugging it and plugging it back in? of course not. who would dream of such fastidious troubleshooting?
I have determined that my USB-B port has failed. I believe there must have been some voltage discrepancy that also damaged my Raspberry Pi. I have removed the communication board from the inverter and it seems it may be an easy fix. I have contacted both Solar Assistant and the seller on Alibaba but I do not expect much help from either. I have now spent several hours troubleshooting this and its very frustrating. I also tried making a cable from the RS485-1 port to Solar Assistant, but it did not work. If anyone knows where I can find a replacement board, that would be very helpful. I have included a picture of the board. The inverter itself works perfectly fine, but lets be honest, the reason we all do this is for the graphs. PS: my apostrophe key does not work.
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42OhmsPA
What's in a title?
This is the email I used to contact SRNE for the random fault 12.
Aftersale：service@szshuori.com
service@szshuori.com
Thank you very much for this. It is very, very helpful. Hopefully they will help me. You truly are a pillar of the SRNE ASF48100U200-H lifestyle. Would you mind testing the voltage coming from your USB-B port? If not, I understand completely.
42OhmsPA
What's in a title?
I should be able to check it after work.
Two outermost pins are hot / ground, correct? What else should I check?
marionw
Solar Enthusiast
One possible issue with using the SA Pi if you are powering it from the 48 vdc battery bus is possibly creating a ground loop between the Pi and the inverter. Normally devices connected via a USB cable have independent power supplies (i.e. printer, cell phone etc) and do not share a common positive. If you have one or more working USB ports on the Pi you can extend it with an USB Hub.
You can connect SA/Pi to the Wifi port on the AIO using pins 7&8 of the Wifi port connected to SA with an USB to RS485 Converter.
The one with the brown and brown/white is connected to the inverters Wifi RS485 port. Pin 7 is brown/white and pin 8 is brown. I used an extra ethernet cable, cut the RJ45 connector off one end, stripped the outer insulation off and expose the 4 twisted pairs. I use one wire pair for the inverter and the other wire pair for battery monitoring
USB-RS485 Converter
You can connect SA/Pi to the Wifi port on the AIO using pins 7&8 of the Wifi port connected to SA with an USB to RS485 Converter.
The one with the brown and brown/white is connected to the inverters Wifi RS485 port. Pin 7 is brown/white and pin 8 is brown. I used an extra ethernet cable, cut the RJ45 connector off one end, stripped the outer insulation off and expose the 4 twisted pairs. I use one wire pair for the inverter and the other wire pair for battery monitoring
USB-RS485 Converter
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Yes those pins.
Thank for for this but my pi is powered from an outlet. Should I still try this?
marionw
Solar Enthusiast
Yes, The USB to RS485 also provide optical isolation between the inverter and the Pi or a computer. I have been using these with my SA for several months with no loss in comms to either the batteries of the inverter. Just verify the correct pins to use as per your inverter manual.
In the past few days, I have felt as though I was missing a part of myself without being able to see my beautiful graphs. You, sir, with your sagelike wisdom, and what I envision as long-flowing beautiful hair, have once again allowed me access to my glorious graphs. I sincerely cannot thank you enough. I have spent MANY hours struggling with this. I am very glad that smart people like you exist on the internet.
Kenny_
Solar Addict
Wow! This is great to know. I don't particularly need it at the moment but excellent information!
So one pair is from the Inverter's Wifi Port (which is apparently RS485) and then you are connecting the second pair to an RJ485 port on the/a battery? Is that right? You're not monitoring the batteries via the wifi port are you?
marionw
Solar Enthusiast
Pins 1&2 on the Wifi port are +5 and ground for power to the dongle. I believe OP was using the Inverters USB port to connect to SA. There have been other mentions on this forum where EG4 I believe does not like the USB port being connected to SA
Kenny_
Solar Addict
Yes, EG4/Signature Solar seem very anti-Solar Assistant. I've yet to understand why. It's just usb communication, unless it has something to do with that Ground Loop thing you mentioned which is the first I've heard of that. Certainly possible but just as certainly not happening with all or even most systems from what I've seen.
42OhmsPA
What's in a title?
Something doesn't add up...
I still need to test usb voltage... Next time I'm downstairs.
I still need to test usb voltage... Next time I'm downstairs.
Kenny_
Solar Addict
Ha! Restart SA! Reek!
42OhmsPA
What's in a title?
Efficiency...
Speaking of efficiency, those 3,180W of NE Solar seem to be very efficient, assuming the SRNE is accurate...
Can you tell when I went up on the roof and cleared the other panels off?
Getting back down when the ladder slid on the deck covered in snow was fun, fortunately I caught it with my foot and was able to stop it without sliding off the roof... I told myself it was a bad idea before I started and thought about screwing a stop board into the deck but that would have meant walking back down the snow covered stairs... It was worth the extra photons even at the shitty panel angle.
Kenny_
Solar Addict
Double Eeeek!
where are you getting this info?
42OhmsPA
What's in a title?
Page 41 of the manual.
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