Ok, so I went and purchased the EG4 8kw hybrid AIO inverter from SS. I am going to give you my impressions upfront with only 30 days.
Bottom line: It's a quality unit with dependable performance in the capacity that I am using it. Worthy of your purchase consideration.
Picture of the unit in operation paired with 3 x EG4 LL v2 lithium batteries (which deserve their own review).
First off, my tiny home is 100% off grid. The nearest utility connection is 1.5 miles away. Estimated cost to run power is about $80,000 US.
Cost for whole house solar system, self installed was ~$10,000.
I am not an electrician or a solar installer, but have been using various off grid solar systems exclusively since 2016 using various Magnum Energy and Victron inverters and charge controllers.
Ease of installation. The manual covered the exact steps needed to insure communication from the batteries to the inverter. I like the use of ferrule terminals on the cabling. The ground bussbar was the only issue needing modification as it requires ring terminals to attach and the bar is behind the main cable inputs.
The unit casing is well built from steel, not aluminium or plastic. Although it's heavy (90+ lbs?) I was able to mount it by myself. Two people would be better. It came with the correct mounting bolts. The unit comes with 4 separate PV inputs of 3000w each, so you won't need a PV combiner box. I question if a PV disconnect is needed either since the unit has a PV disconnect built in. The manual says to use one, so you can see one in my picture, meant for two strings. The unit can handle 4 PV strings at 3000w each string (12 amps per string) for a total of 12,000 watts PV input. Minimum PV voltage per string is 120v, max is 500v.
After connecting 1 string of my PV array (2730W), connecting the batteries, connecting the AC output to the main fuse panel box, and connecting a backup 50 amp generator AC input, I turned on the unit.
It fired up and it took me about 30 seconds to figure out the menu. I went step by step through each selection, however it was pretty much correct right out of the box. I haven't done any firmware or software "upgrades".
My power usage includes a 30 gallon Rheem electric water heater that uses a 4500w heating element, an 18kw/240v minisplit A/C and heater with two head units. Then the normal house stuff like lights, outlets, refrigerator, TV, phone chargers, stove, washing machine, microwave, coffee pot, etc etc. I don't have a dryer (we use clothes line) and my stove/oven is propane.
No tripped breakers. The unit runs quiet. My Frigidaire refrigerator is louder than the unit.
Idle consumption of the inverter is approximately ~70 watts. Here is a picture from the unit with the main breaker off.
Take note of that little icon in the upper right hand corner of the screen. That icon is the "lock screen" icon that prevents the screen from scrolling to the next data point. It is locked/unlocked by pressing the "enter" button (far right button).
Originally, I posted about one hiccup so far that is definitely software related. I thought I had found the simple solution. The unit was rebooting itself every 48 hours at exactly 6:57 am. This obviously caused everything in the home to turn off, then back on. Clocks have to be reset, etc. The solution I tried was to go into the settings, then switch ARC enabled to "disabled". This was based on another thread in this forum. It turned out to not work in my situation.
I sent an email to SS for guidance, it took nearly a month to get a response acknowledgement and then another 4 days for a suggested solution. The solution appears to be correct as the unit no longer reboots.
Here is the solution if you find yourself in the same situation:
MAKE SURE THIS SETTING IS DISABLED.
SETUP ---> RUN SETTINGS ----> ACTIVE REP -----> INSULATION DETECTION -----> DISABLED
Some of the menu items are so vague a programming engineer wouldn't understand them. I wouldn't suggest just randomly enabling or disabling menu items to figure it out. It requires the seller to write a comprehensive owners manual for the buyer and it would maybe even lessen their tech support demand!
I am obviously not using the grid connection features of this unit, so I can't comment on that aspect. I saw Will Prowse's video, but I simply am not having the issue he had because he was putting the unit through all its limits. My unit did come with the CT connectors. I am also not using any wifi or Bluetooth connectivity, but the unit did come with a wifi connection device. For me, it's just easy to look at the screen on the inverter for information.
I was skeptical when I saw SS put this unit up for sale knowing it was a chinese clone. But I needed a 240v solution without daisy chaining inverters that would cost the same and fit in my space (see closet picture). There are options for you to purchase this unit directly from China and save nearly $1000. SS tech support is on par with chinese tech support, imo. You send an email and hope to get a response in a month.
There are pros and cons to an All-in-one unit. Primarily cost savings is the pro (space and wiring ease another), but the con being eggs all in one basket. If part of it don't work, the entire system might go down waiting on parts or repair. I have been fortunate to never have an inverter or charge controller malfunction, and I certainly put them to the test learning solar.. many many tripped breakers and battery depletions and panicked dark nights were part of that learning curve.
Most people only post negative problem reviews or they just live there life with no review if there are no problems. Maybe I will revisit this thread in a year to give another update if I have any need.
Bottom line: It's a quality unit with dependable performance in the capacity that I am using it. Worthy of your purchase consideration.
Picture of the unit in operation paired with 3 x EG4 LL v2 lithium batteries (which deserve their own review).
First off, my tiny home is 100% off grid. The nearest utility connection is 1.5 miles away. Estimated cost to run power is about $80,000 US.
Cost for whole house solar system, self installed was ~$10,000.
I am not an electrician or a solar installer, but have been using various off grid solar systems exclusively since 2016 using various Magnum Energy and Victron inverters and charge controllers.
Ease of installation. The manual covered the exact steps needed to insure communication from the batteries to the inverter. I like the use of ferrule terminals on the cabling. The ground bussbar was the only issue needing modification as it requires ring terminals to attach and the bar is behind the main cable inputs.
The unit casing is well built from steel, not aluminium or plastic. Although it's heavy (90+ lbs?) I was able to mount it by myself. Two people would be better. It came with the correct mounting bolts. The unit comes with 4 separate PV inputs of 3000w each, so you won't need a PV combiner box. I question if a PV disconnect is needed either since the unit has a PV disconnect built in. The manual says to use one, so you can see one in my picture, meant for two strings. The unit can handle 4 PV strings at 3000w each string (12 amps per string) for a total of 12,000 watts PV input. Minimum PV voltage per string is 120v, max is 500v.
After connecting 1 string of my PV array (2730W), connecting the batteries, connecting the AC output to the main fuse panel box, and connecting a backup 50 amp generator AC input, I turned on the unit.
It fired up and it took me about 30 seconds to figure out the menu. I went step by step through each selection, however it was pretty much correct right out of the box. I haven't done any firmware or software "upgrades".
My power usage includes a 30 gallon Rheem electric water heater that uses a 4500w heating element, an 18kw/240v minisplit A/C and heater with two head units. Then the normal house stuff like lights, outlets, refrigerator, TV, phone chargers, stove, washing machine, microwave, coffee pot, etc etc. I don't have a dryer (we use clothes line) and my stove/oven is propane.
No tripped breakers. The unit runs quiet. My Frigidaire refrigerator is louder than the unit.
Idle consumption of the inverter is approximately ~70 watts. Here is a picture from the unit with the main breaker off.
Take note of that little icon in the upper right hand corner of the screen. That icon is the "lock screen" icon that prevents the screen from scrolling to the next data point. It is locked/unlocked by pressing the "enter" button (far right button).
Originally, I posted about one hiccup so far that is definitely software related. I thought I had found the simple solution. The unit was rebooting itself every 48 hours at exactly 6:57 am. This obviously caused everything in the home to turn off, then back on. Clocks have to be reset, etc. The solution I tried was to go into the settings, then switch ARC enabled to "disabled". This was based on another thread in this forum. It turned out to not work in my situation.
I sent an email to SS for guidance, it took nearly a month to get a response acknowledgement and then another 4 days for a suggested solution. The solution appears to be correct as the unit no longer reboots.
Here is the solution if you find yourself in the same situation:
MAKE SURE THIS SETTING IS DISABLED.
SETUP ---> RUN SETTINGS ----> ACTIVE REP -----> INSULATION DETECTION -----> DISABLED
Some of the menu items are so vague a programming engineer wouldn't understand them. I wouldn't suggest just randomly enabling or disabling menu items to figure it out. It requires the seller to write a comprehensive owners manual for the buyer and it would maybe even lessen their tech support demand!
I am obviously not using the grid connection features of this unit, so I can't comment on that aspect. I saw Will Prowse's video, but I simply am not having the issue he had because he was putting the unit through all its limits. My unit did come with the CT connectors. I am also not using any wifi or Bluetooth connectivity, but the unit did come with a wifi connection device. For me, it's just easy to look at the screen on the inverter for information.
I was skeptical when I saw SS put this unit up for sale knowing it was a chinese clone. But I needed a 240v solution without daisy chaining inverters that would cost the same and fit in my space (see closet picture). There are options for you to purchase this unit directly from China and save nearly $1000. SS tech support is on par with chinese tech support, imo. You send an email and hope to get a response in a month.
There are pros and cons to an All-in-one unit. Primarily cost savings is the pro (space and wiring ease another), but the con being eggs all in one basket. If part of it don't work, the entire system might go down waiting on parts or repair. I have been fortunate to never have an inverter or charge controller malfunction, and I certainly put them to the test learning solar.. many many tripped breakers and battery depletions and panicked dark nights were part of that learning curve.
Most people only post negative problem reviews or they just live there life with no review if there are no problems. Maybe I will revisit this thread in a year to give another update if I have any need.
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