EG4 8k vs Sol-Ark 12k

[Lt.Dan]

Another big difference is "idle draw" - some applications this is going to matter a lot.

I built my first system using MPP LV6548's, with a lower idle draw than the EG4 models, and the idle draw alone is what drove me to a Sol-Ark on the next system I built. The wasted power in high idle draw, and lower efficiency is not worth it in the long run.

 

[629658]

Guilty myself… it’s the too good to be true phenomenon…. They lay out ( and often even lie ) about specs and certification with a low low price that is almost too good to be true. So people fall for it. Honestly The only eg4 product I have never had issues with is the battery rack. That’s it and I’ve bought almost everything because I fell for the games. Jeez even the “30amp” 48v charger I bought from them turned out to be a fraud and only charge at half that,

You are not alone my friend. That was my main reason for buying Trophy batteries. I almost went with. EG4’s but I just couldn’t get over all the issues mentioned on here. Now that I have over 1800Ah I’m glad it did.

 

[Lt.Dan]

You are not alone my friend. That was my main reason for buying Trophy batteries. I almost went with. EG4’s but I just couldn’t get over all the issues mentioned on here. Now that I have over 1800Ah I’m glad it did.

Thats a good size bank. Got any pictures of that?

 

[629658]

Thats a good size bank. Got any pictures of that?

1854Ah

 

[Lt.Dan]

1854Ah

Very nice, I like how you went with the larger packs, instead of 18x 100ah batteries.

 

[629658]

Very nice, I like how you went with the larger packs, instead of 18x 100ah batteries.

Another dumb luck choice. I over did it with the 4/0 wire everywhere. But I added the last 4 a few weeks ago and I spent about $400 on wire and lugs. So approx $800 for all in wire and lugs. If I had used 100Ah double the cost at least. Not to mention what to do with 18 batteries. If I were doing all over I might have sprung for the Trophy 304’s. These Trophy 220’s have been terrific. No issues at all. They are heavy run about 185 lbs each.

 

[ChillnGrill]

This forum has become a stomping ground for signature solar. I on the other hand have had really good luck with my pair of eg4 6500ex and 6 lifepower4 batteries. Maybe I'm just one of the lucky ones. The system was very easy to setup and the price cant be beat. My system has been running since the first of the year. Its about time someone stands up for signature solar instead of all the bashing. As far as customer support goes, everytime I have called tech support (for just questions) someone has always answered or called me back with half an hour. I for one am still supporting signature solar. Side note (if anyone sells enough of a particular product you will a have problems) That doesn't mean all are bad. All can only be perfect if GOD built them himself. Rant over

 

[dcg9381]

This forum has become a stomping ground for signature solar. I on the other hand have had really good luck with my pair of eg4 6500ex and 6 lifepower4 batteries.

I have the same bench tested and working. But largely thanks to you guys pointing out the gotchas and (often) to video documentation by SS.

 

[Plum Crazy Rob]

Unfortunately wills experience isn’t an anomaly. And given how much influence will has im sure they gave him the best units they had… and still a total dumpster fire.

Signature Solar DEFINITELY saw his video. Surprised this isn't being discussed in the main Megarevo threads (did i miss it perhaps?). Seeing familiar names in YouTube comments

Edit: you know, the SS video came out after Will's video, so it seemed it was "in response to it" . However, you can see by the file dates it appears to have been made before Will's just as a how-to...just wanted to point this out.(?)

 

[ddeatrich]

I had all the same issues he had. I hate this thing and really hope they will return it for me. Waiting for "tier 2 tech support" to troubleshoot. I don't want to troubleshoot, I just want a refund.

Wanted to give an update from my last post. This has still not returned to sig solar yet.

 

[Scat]

Another dumb luck choice. I over did it with the 4/0 wire everywhere. But I added the last 4 a few weeks ago and I spent about $400 on wire and lugs. So approx $800 for all in wire and lugs. If I had used 100Ah double the cost at least. Not to mention what to do with 18 batteries. If I were doing all over I might have sprung for the Trophy 304’s. These Trophy 220’s have been terrific. No issues at all. They are heavy run about 185 lbs each.

@629658 Do you use a Victron Inverter with those batteries?
and Does the Victron Cerbo-GX see those batteries?

Thanks
Scat

 

[robby]

@629658 Do you use a Victron Inverter with those batteries?
and Does the Victron Cerbo-GX see those batteries?

Thanks
Scat

That account belonged to a User that was Banned.

 

[Scat]

That account belonged to a User that was Banned.

Thanks for letting me know

 

[Mendo Home Power]

I'm looking at installing a new solar system with about 10kW of panels, batteries (probably EG4 LifePower4), and a generator. This would also be grid-tied with 1:1 net metering. I like the all-in-one concept and am going back and forth between the EG4 8k and Sol-Ark 12k. Obviously, the big difference is the cost. It sounds like the EG4 might be a newer product with some bugs they are still working out while the Sol-Ark sounds solid. This would be connected to my critical loads so it does need to be reliable. Does anyone have experience with either of these or another option? This will be my first DIY solar install.

I was looking at the survey Will Prowse put up with regards to Sig Solar and Sol-Ark and how close they were to each other with Sig winning out. I have to say that being well experienced with both, there are some significant differences that won't show up in a survey.
When I first started dealing with Sol-Ark in 2019, about the time they first introduced their 12k that was really a 9k, there were some tech support issues that were indeed difficult to solve. But with those issues there was a real team of engineers behind the scenes working on the problems. I even had Tom Brennen, the owner of the company call and email me to try and work through some of the earlier issues, and if you are connected via wifi, Sol-Ark updates firmware so you as the installer or the homeowner don't have to deal with such things. In retrospect that is well worth paying more for. Sol-Ark developed their own firmware and fixed the problems, or they at least they picked a better firmware version to start with when they had their machines made in Schenzen. There are lots of things I don't like about Sol-Ark but function and reliability aren't on the list of issues. Of the half dozen or so that I have put in and monitor they just keep ticking along with the performance getting better over time as the firmware updates improve.. Their tech support has taken a dive as they have expanded but finding tech savvy people that can interact with the public is no easy task.
With Sig Solar on the other hand, they order product in bulk with their logo on it and hope for the best. From what I have experienced, even if you get a tech support person that is knowledgeable and doesn't try to kick the can down the road by requesting more pictures or treating your case like nobody has talked to you before even though there have been half a dozen previous calls on the same topic, more than likely they will have to talk to someone else and get back to you. Personal experience again. Ticket numbers don't really mean much there. So you end up with a non functional machine and waiting for a point in time when there is a call back while trying to pacify a customer who's system isn't functioning and in most cases hasn't functioned from the beginning. My favorite response from Sig Solar tech support has been, "this hasn't ever shown up before, yours is the first" LOL.
Take it for what it's worth but I have installed a half dozen Sol-Arks that haven't really skipped a beat in almost four years. On the other hand, I have three EG4 8k's that are going back, Two without ever being installed. I've installed a half dozen SPF 5000 es-us units from Sig and only one failure, but it's taken a couple of months to get the return and replacement resolved, leaving the customer stranded.
That's my two cents

 

[robby]

I was looking at the survey Will Prowse put up with regards to Sig Solar and Sol-Ark and how close they were to each other with Sig winning out. I have to say that being well experienced with both, there are some significant differences that won't show up in a survey.
When I first started dealing with Sol-Ark in 2019, about the time they first introduced their 12k that was really a 9k, there were some tech support issues that were indeed difficult to solve. But with those issues there was a real team of engineers behind the scenes working on the problems. I even had Tom Brennen, the owner of the company call and email me to try and work through some of the earlier issues, and if you are connected via wifi, Sol-Ark updates firmware so you as the installer or the homeowner don't have to deal with such things. In retrospect that is well worth paying more for. Sol-Ark developed their own firmware and fixed the problems, or they at least they picked a better firmware version to start with when they had their machines made in Schenzen. There are lots of things I don't like about Sol-Ark but function and reliability aren't on the list of issues. Of the half dozen or so that I have put in and monitor they just keep ticking along with the performance getting better over time as the firmware updates improve.. Their tech support has taken a dive as they have expanded but finding tech savvy people that can interact with the public is no easy task.
With Sig Solar on the other hand, they order product in bulk with their logo on it and hope for the best. From what I have experienced, even if you get a tech support person that is knowledgeable and doesn't try to kick the can down the road by requesting more pictures or treating your case like nobody has talked to you before even though there have been half a dozen previous calls on the same topic, more than likely they will have to talk to someone else and get back to you. Personal experience again. Ticket numbers don't really mean much there. So you end up with a non functional machine and waiting for a point in time when there is a call back while trying to pacify a customer who's system isn't functioning and in most cases hasn't functioned from the beginning. My favorite response from Sig Solar tech support has been, "this hasn't ever shown up before, yours is the first" LOL.
Take it for what it's worth but I have installed a half dozen Sol-Arks that haven't really skipped a beat in almost four years. On the other hand, I have three EG4 8k's that are going back, Two without ever being installed. I've installed a half dozen SPF 5000 es-us units from Sig and only one failure, but it's taken a couple of months to get the return and replacement resolved, leaving the customer stranded.
That's my two cents

If you read the thread on that Poll you will realize that everyone else is also scratching their heads.
The Poll does not reflect the reality of what we see on the forum nor does it reflect the BBB customer satisfaction Polls on both companies and more importantly it does not even remotely line up with the Professional polling done by Energysage.

 

[Mendo Home Power]

If you read the thread on that Poll you will realize that everyone else is also scratching their heads.
The Poll does not reflect the reality of what we see on the forum nor does it reflect the BBB customer satisfaction Polls on both companies and more importantly it does not even remotely line up with the Professional polling done by Energysage.

As long as I'm not living in an alternate universe by myself

 

[Mendo Home Power]

If you read the thread on that Poll you will realize that everyone else is also scratching their heads.
The Poll does not reflect the reality of what we see on the forum nor does it reflect the BBB customer satisfaction Polls on both companies and more importantly it does not even remotely line up with the Professional polling done by Energysage.

It may have something to do with affiliate percentages, if you know what I mean.