EG4 6500 Problem Troubleshooting

[solarhi]

We hooked up 4 EG4 6500 inverters, along with 8 PV strings and 2 EG4 battery racks. 3 of the inverters were working, along with the batteries, PV input, and AC output. When we turned on the last inverter, we heard a pop and then everything shut down.

I have been trying to test the other inverters individually and as pairs. Whenever we do, we hear a clicking sound from the batteries and then the batteries get a fault-short circuit output protection. The inverters do not turn on. If PV is turned on, the inverter stand by mode comes on with a bP error.

Tech support has not been very helpful at Signature Solar. They will let us send in all 4 inverters (and a PV switch that doesn't work), but we have to pay the shipping because we live in Hawaii (this was not mentioned during the sales process or on the website). Is there any more troubleshooting we can do before paying the cost of shipping?

Thanks,
Carrie

 

[Adam De Lay]

- Are you precharging the inverters before you turn them on?
- Are you using both the gray parallel cables between all 4 inverters and the red current sharing cables between the inverters on the same phase?
- Are you using EG4 (option5) on 1 inverter and USE on the other inverters for battery communications?

 

[solarhi]

- Are you precharging the inverters before you turn them on?
- Are you using both the gray parallel cables between all 4 inverters and the red current sharing cables between the inverters on the same phase?
- Are you using EG4 (option5) on 1 inverter and USE on the other inverters for battery communications?

For now, I am avoiding the last inverter.

I am currently trying to troubleshoot inverter 1 and 2 as split phase (2P1 and 2P2). Inverter 1 is EG4 and Inverter 2 is USE. I am using the gray parallel cable but no current sharing cable.

How do I go about precharging the inverters? I am following the procedure of turning on DC breaker and then turning on the batteries. The batteries are about 65% charged.

Thanks for responding!

 

[Adam De Lay]

Ok, so when you have inverters set up in a split phase pair, they need to be turned on together. I believe if they're not, the'll eventually error out because they're not able to sync up.

The current sharing cables should only be used between inverters on the same phase.

It sounds like you're precharging correctly, as long as all the inverter breakers are turned on at the same time.

At what point in the startup procedure do you hear the clicking coming from the battery?

Do you have the communication cable on Inverter 1 going to the battery bank?

 

[Gavin Stone]

The clicking is usually a result of a dead short. So it’s a protection from the rack battery. Sounds like you’ve got a real issue with that inverter.