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Grid Interactive - sipping power from the grid

trad

New Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2023
Messages
120
Location
TX
I never really appreciated what grid interactive was. I understand it a little better now and how the 18kpv and 12kpv are supposed to handle this. What I would like to see is actual war stories about how well this works, and if there are cases where it doesn't work so well. Can the 18kpv really handle 200a by supplying 12000 watts from itself and getting the rest from the grid?

I have the 6000XP working and it can start the AC without difficulty. What it cannot do is run the 240v AC, and run the toaster, the microwave and the kettle if they are all pulling from the same 120v side of the inverter. In that case, the unit flips all the loads to grid and everything seems to work fine but I will likely have overload issues at some point. There is no way my 6000XP can run 200amp through it like my main panel can. I have things wired up so in 30 seconds I can bypass the 6000XP and be back to full 200a grid for the days when the Thanksgiving turkey needs to be cooked and everything else all at the same time. But could the 12kpv or 18kpv just handle this all itself without any drama?

How well does the 12kpv and 18kpv and other grid interactive units handle leg imbalances. Can they just back-fill one leg from the grid? What are the limits to grid interactivity?
 
Awesome!

So, I'm really curious about the 18kPV handling 200A. I've heard it can do it, but haven't seen proof yet. That's something I'd love to know more about.

Your 6000XP experience is cool. It's good to know it can start the AC no problem, but the limits you hit are good to know too. Have you thought about upgrading to a bigger inverter?

As for grid-interactive inverters and leg imbalances, I'm not sure about the details, but I bet they have built-in stuff to handle that. It's worth checking the manufacturer's info to see for sure. Also, Read: Are home solar panels worth it?

Overall, grid-interactive inverters seem promising, but there's still some stuff to figure out. I'd love to hear more about what other people think of these things.
 
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Yeah, 2 6000xp inverters would be better, but one can handle 95% of my needs. If the grid could handle the 5% without drama that would be awesome. As it stands, the grid can do it all, but I have to manually switch to full 200a grid mode. Poor me ! ! ! !
 
How well does the 12kpv and 18kpv and other grid interactive units handle leg imbalances. Can they just back-fill one leg from the grid? What are the limits to grid interactivity?

The limit is the Amperage the grid relay can handle.

With a grid interactive inverter, the loads are directly connected to the grid and all the inverter is doing is injecting power into that connection to reduce how much is being pulled from the grid.
 

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