Can I mix inverters for a split-phase off-grid?
- Thread starter Olibri
- Start date
svetz
Works in theory! Practice? That's something else
Only if the inverter is specifically setup up to allow that sort of operation. If it is, the manual will have specific instructions for how to hook two together so they talk to each other.
SalckwareRobert
New Member
- Joined
- May 28, 2020
- Messages
- 35
You have to have both inverters match phase or the stronger unit will eat the weaker one alive. Matching phases is probably proprietary by company. It's why you can't just use those micro inverters, they have to be told to stay in phase or they shut off, and they will not release how you do that. Just buy our expensive controller and it works.
Mirroring line phase is easy, but what if grid goes down and they can't reference it?
Then there is bonding the neutral and ground problem. Which company's inverter gets to decide to do it?
Since even the same companies different models can't do it, getting different companies to play nice will take an act of congress forcing it, like they did with the OBD car communications. And even that has huge holes with "proprietary" codes. Remember when they mandated all cell phones have the same charger port. Notice Apple still had their own plug type.
You might get lucky and there are no custom chips inside, and you can access the firmware to reverse engineer both units, you might make them play nice. But even then you have a long haul to get them working together.
Why would a company that wants to sell you another unit make it easy for a cheaper competitor to plug in and they lose a sale?
It's the same reason background checks fail. Why would the gun dealer tell the truth to you and lose a sale, when he can just lie, nope he can't buy a gun so he can sell a gun to him, or worse she is a mass murderer named HC, yep she can buy your gun, and you go to jail, and he has less competition.
Heck we can't even get UL and CE to agree and work together because they don't care about safety, they only care about getting paid to put their sticker on something.
Mirroring line phase is easy, but what if grid goes down and they can't reference it?
Then there is bonding the neutral and ground problem. Which company's inverter gets to decide to do it?
Since even the same companies different models can't do it, getting different companies to play nice will take an act of congress forcing it, like they did with the OBD car communications. And even that has huge holes with "proprietary" codes. Remember when they mandated all cell phones have the same charger port. Notice Apple still had their own plug type.
You might get lucky and there are no custom chips inside, and you can access the firmware to reverse engineer both units, you might make them play nice. But even then you have a long haul to get them working together.
Why would a company that wants to sell you another unit make it easy for a cheaper competitor to plug in and they lose a sale?
It's the same reason background checks fail. Why would the gun dealer tell the truth to you and lose a sale, when he can just lie, nope he can't buy a gun so he can sell a gun to him, or worse she is a mass murderer named HC, yep she can buy your gun, and you go to jail, and he has less competition.
Heck we can't even get UL and CE to agree and work together because they don't care about safety, they only care about getting paid to put their sticker on something.
Similar threads
