$60 ATS vs $230 ATS? What am I missing?

[pdgmedia]

I'm in the hunt for a manual or automatic transfer switch between my inverter & shore power and a little confused by the options. Searches have led me to Go Power, a massive 10" x 7" x 5" version for $230 CAD and a DIN rail version at 25% of the cost and 1/6th the size. (it can sit right next to the solar breaker on one rail). Are these two devices actually interchangable for my use case? Is there a reason an ATS needs to be in such a large enclosure, and what am I not getting in safety etc for the extra $180? Thank you so much for any clarity you can provide

Go Power 30A ATS
GEYA 63A ATS

 

[DIYrich]

More expensive one conforms to UL standard and certified by ETL.

 

[pdgmedia]

Thank you. So it's primarily the certification process that creates the massive difference in price and size but they're otherwise the same functionally? I took a look at the GEYA version and it conforms to an IEC 60947 standard but no idea how that translates to safety or reliability.

 

[kommando]

So it's primarily the certification process that creates the massive difference in price and size but they're otherwise the same functionally?

Depends, sometimes yes, other times its to cover up a totally dangerous product. Youtube is good for tech teardowns showing the internals and testing, one I looked at showed a 100A ATS with internal connections with wires incapable of 100A.

 

[Q-Dog]

If it matters to you and/or your insurance company, "Conforms to UL Standards" is NOT the same as being "UL tested" and having the UL stamp.

I wouldn't rely on either of those for something critical, and I want someone local (or at least in this country) that will take responsibility (repair/replace) when the thing fails.

 

[registered-bum]

One aspect of the above referenced "dangerous product" is a design in which it's possible during a failure mode for the power from both sources to be simultaneously connected to the load.

This is stupid and dangerous because the two power sources will be out of phase (like 99% likelihood) and power from the inverter will run head-long into power from the generator/grid. Much arching and sparking will result, with one or more devices losing their magic smoke, or a structure fire becoming serious possibility.

So for example - given the high level schematic of one such device, if the control circuit fails or the relays stay latched, then inverter power will collide with generator power. This is bad.

 

[pdgmedia]

So neither of those two units are considered safe? Which brands should I be looking at then?

 

[robbob2112]

To be safe and Manual ats needs to have a physical interlock so it is impossible to connect both sources at the same time.

For automatic ATS there are checks and extra circuits to prevent two at once being connected. This cost in engineering and size.. it means separate ssr ....

Cheap ats that aren't tested are just a few relays in a box and they are generally made cheap. The contacts can weld when making and they can arc when breaking contact...

Bad choice if used more than once or twice

This for house sized 200a or 100a.

For rv they are smaller and cheaper

 

[kommando]

So neither of those two units are considered safe? Which brands should I be looking at then?

I use a manual 3 position switch with the middle position being nil connection.

 

[tinyt]

Just an FYI. Here is partial tear down of an ATS similar to the GEYA. Right now I am testing eight 2 pole version (Tomzyn brand), not sure how long they will last.

 

[Crowz]

I wouldn't trust anything in that price point or size to actually transfer my main power.

That said I love em for switching things from solar to grid. I use them on my dryer for instance. I have two on the dryer circuit alone.

One switches the dryer to use either the grid or solar.

The other one switches between the dryer and the chargeverter getting power

 

[Q-Dog]

There used to be a made in USA version of the GoPower, and I found a couple new on ebay. And cheaper than the amazon version.

Go Power TS-30 Transfer Switch 30 amps 120 V 60Hz 1phase 30A/Pole 2 Pole | eBay

Go Power TS-30 Transfer Switch 30 amps 120 V 60Hz 1phase 30A/Pole 2 Pole

www.ebay.com

 

[pdgmedia]

For rv they are smaller and cheaper

To be clear this is for a 30 AMP service for an RV. Thank you everyone for the comments - still unsure what I should be buying here. If the assumption is anything that's UL listed will work I'll try and refine my search that way.

 

[Q-Dog]

The GoPower switch should be fine for an RV. I would get the USA made version from ebay instead of the more expensive china version from amazon.

edit: I forgot you are in the Great White North.

 

[pdgmedia]

Definitely Great and very White at the moment, although where where I'm at in Ontario we're actually south of North Dakota, Washington, Montana and most of Minnesota Thanks for the tip!

 

[Brett V]

I’ve been powering my primary circuits when on grid with one of the Geya units for almost 3 years without a problem. It’s been very good even under high loads, I’ve looked at it with a thermal camera and see no problems.

 

[tinyt]

I’ve been powering my primary circuits when on grid with one of the Geya units for almost 3 years without a problem. It’s been very good even under high loads, I’ve looked at it with a thermal camera and see no problems.

Thanks. I purchased a bunch of similar ATS (2-pole 110VAC, mix of 100A and 125A from Alie.. for $26 each.) I just recently connected them to switch selected house loads between grid and inverter. The grid circuit breaker for each load is only 20A, so I hope they will last years also.
Picture is during assembly.

 

[Oldphile]

If it matters to you and/or your insurance company, "Conforms to UL Standards" is NOT the same as being "UL tested" and having the UL stamp.

ETL is a certified testing lab that tests to UL standards. If it's a legitimate ETL mark, it's just as valid as UL.

 

[Piet_de _Pad]

I'm in the hunt for a manual or automatic transfer switch between my inverter & shore power and a little confused by the options. Searches have led me to Go Power, a massive 10" x 7" x 5" version for $230 CAD and a DIN rail version at 25% of the cost and 1/6th the size. (it can sit right next to the solar breaker on one rail). Are these two devices actually interchangable for my use case? Is there a reason an ATS needs to be in such a large enclosure, and what am I not getting in safety etc for the extra $180? Thank you so much for any clarity you can provide

Go Power 30A ATS
GEYA 63A ATS

Here is an example how I build ATS switches to interface to a split phase hybrid backup. About 100USD material costs. I make them for commercial projects, so they are a little higher I need to eat too. I'm planning to add some features. 1) and backup to main delay. 2) A switch counter that counts the switches it made. 3) V,I,P display in the door

 

[Piet_de _Pad]

Thanks. I purchased a bunch of similar ATS (2-pole 110VAC, mix of 100A and 125A from Alie.. for $26 each.) I just recently connected them to switch selected house loads between grid and inverter. The grid circuit breaker for each load is only 20A, so I hope they will last years also.
Picture is during assembly.
View attachment 277268

According to the specs that I have the last 2000 switch cycles. If you have 1 power outage and this is two switch actions per week, you will see them failing after say 20 years

 

[halexudson]

I personally decided to not risk it after researching what happens when the relay contacts weld together and you accidentally connect your off grid setup to the grid. Manual contactor switches are large, pricey, and usually too slow to work as a UPS. So I just did the next best thing and bought a separate charger powerful enough to handle the full DC input load of the inverter. Definitely not cheap, but neither is a proper and fast ATS.