Im very interested in the growatt to power my 24v bank and to connect to my panels, but im interested in possibly running one or two 120v appliances.... if I were to run a refrigerator would this burn out the inverter? Will mentions on the blog that they have a high idle consumption.. im a complete beginner but my deduction tells me that that means they take up a lot of power when in 'sleep' or idle mode.. that makes me think that it would not be good to have a fridge connected to it, but ive also read things online about how to growatt has a smart inverter. im interested if I should just run an expensive 24 v fridge (not a big deal if so) or if I can get more bang for my buck by connecting a separate inverter and a fridge, or even use the growatt. thanks in advance!
Growatt 3000 inverter newbie question
- Thread starter Benihanas
- Start date
MichaelK
Solar Wizard
I think you are a bit confused about what does what? An all-in-one unit incorporates a charge controller, an inverter, and possibly also a charger, all in one box. So, the charge controller section of the box takes the raw solar panel current, and transforms it down to the current voltage the battery wants to see.
Then the battery feeds the inverter section of the box, and converts the low DC voltage into higher AC voltage. Some AiOs make just 120VAC, while others make split-phase 120/240VAC.
The reference to the "idle consumption" refers to how much power the AiO consumes just being turned on but not doing anything. Some are quite high, in the 100W per hour range. Over a 24hr period, that adds up to 2.4kWh. So, your solar panels need to be scaled both to supply the power your loads need, and also the power the inverter itself needs. In comparision, I have 6800W Schneider inverter which only consumes ~20W per hour.
Inverters can be divided into two big classes, high frequency (transformerless), and low frequency (has a transformer). The LF units tend to be large, heavy, and have VERY strong surge capability. My 6800 can surge to 200% for 60 seconds. HF inverters however have little or no meaningful surge. They might advertize 200% surge for 20miliseconds.
The detail you want to pay attention to is the surge of the refrigerator you want to power. I'd guestimate the starting surge to be at least 3-4-5X the running wattage, so a frig that consumes 400W while running might consume 2000W at startup. You don't have to guess at this. You can buy a clamp meter that has "in-rush current" capability. I can measure the startup surge that happens in the first 0.5 second or so. I have this one.
You can still run it with an AiO, you just have to make sure the inverter can support the in-rush as if it was a steady load, rather than the surge.
I would not spend extra money on an expensive DC frig. They are very over-priced, and if there's a problem, there's no local shop that can fix it. You are better off spending the extra money on a better LF inverter that can run a standard HomeDepot/Lowes refrigerator. At my own cabin, I got rid of all the DC powered stuff years ago, and I'm very happy now living a completely 120VAC lifestyle.
Then the battery feeds the inverter section of the box, and converts the low DC voltage into higher AC voltage. Some AiOs make just 120VAC, while others make split-phase 120/240VAC.
The reference to the "idle consumption" refers to how much power the AiO consumes just being turned on but not doing anything. Some are quite high, in the 100W per hour range. Over a 24hr period, that adds up to 2.4kWh. So, your solar panels need to be scaled both to supply the power your loads need, and also the power the inverter itself needs. In comparision, I have 6800W Schneider inverter which only consumes ~20W per hour.
Inverters can be divided into two big classes, high frequency (transformerless), and low frequency (has a transformer). The LF units tend to be large, heavy, and have VERY strong surge capability. My 6800 can surge to 200% for 60 seconds. HF inverters however have little or no meaningful surge. They might advertize 200% surge for 20miliseconds.
The detail you want to pay attention to is the surge of the refrigerator you want to power. I'd guestimate the starting surge to be at least 3-4-5X the running wattage, so a frig that consumes 400W while running might consume 2000W at startup. You don't have to guess at this. You can buy a clamp meter that has "in-rush current" capability. I can measure the startup surge that happens in the first 0.5 second or so. I have this one.
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I would not spend extra money on an expensive DC frig. They are very over-priced, and if there's a problem, there's no local shop that can fix it. You are better off spending the extra money on a better LF inverter that can run a standard HomeDepot/Lowes refrigerator. At my own cabin, I got rid of all the DC powered stuff years ago, and I'm very happy now living a completely 120VAC lifestyle.
what exactly is it you think im confused about?I think you are a bit confused about what does what? An all-in-one unit incorporates a charge controller, an inverter, and possibly also a charger, all in one box. So, the charge controller section of the box takes the raw solar panel current, and transforms it down to the current voltage the battery wants to see.
Then the battery feeds the inverter section of the box, and converts the low DC voltage into higher AC voltage. Some AiOs make just 120VAC, while others make split-phase 120/240VAC.
The reference to the "idle consumption" refers to how much power the AiO consumes just being turned on but not doing anything. Some are quite high, in the 100W per hour range. Over a 24hr period, that adds up to 2.4kWh. So, your solar panels need to be scaled both to supply the power your loads need, and also the power the inverter itself needs. In comparision, I have 6800W Schneider inverter which only consumes ~20W per hour.
Inverters can be divided into two big classes, high frequency (transformerless), and low frequency (has a transformer). The LF units tend to be large, heavy, and have VERY strong surge capability. My 6800 can surge to 200% for 60 seconds. HF inverters however have little or no meaningful surge. They might advertize 200% surge for 20miliseconds.
The detail you want to pay attention to is the surge of the refrigerator you want to power. I'd guestimate the starting surge to be at least 3-4-5X the running wattage, so a frig that consumes 400W while running might consume 2000W at startup. You don't have to guess at this. You can buy a clamp meter that has "in-rush current" capability. I can measure the startup surge that happens in the first 0.5 second or so. I have this one.
You can still run it with an AiO, you just have to make sure the inverter can support the in-rush as if it was a steady load, rather than the surge.UNI-T UT216C 600A Digital Clamp Meters NCV LCD Test ACDC Auto Range Multimets # | eBay
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I would not spend extra money on an expensive DC frig. They are very over-priced, and if there's a problem, there's no local shop that can fix it. You are better off spending the extra money on a better LF inverter that can run a standard HomeDepot/Lowes refrigerator. At my own cabin, I got rid of all the DC powered stuff years ago, and I'm very happy now living a completely 120VAC lifestyle.
do you have any experience at all with the growatt 3000 or do you know if I can hook an external alternator to one of the all in on MPPTs? or no?I think you are a bit confused about what does what? An all-in-one unit incorporates a charge controller, an inverter, and possibly also a charger, all in one box. So, the charge controller section of the box takes the raw solar panel current, and transforms it down to the current voltage the battery wants to see.
Then the battery feeds the inverter section of the box, and converts the low DC voltage into higher AC voltage. Some AiOs make just 120VAC, while others make split-phase 120/240VAC.
The reference to the "idle consumption" refers to how much power the AiO consumes just being turned on but not doing anything. Some are quite high, in the 100W per hour range. Over a 24hr period, that adds up to 2.4kWh. So, your solar panels need to be scaled both to supply the power your loads need, and also the power the inverter itself needs. In comparision, I have 6800W Schneider inverter which only consumes ~20W per hour.
Inverters can be divided into two big classes, high frequency (transformerless), and low frequency (has a transformer). The LF units tend to be large, heavy, and have VERY strong surge capability. My 6800 can surge to 200% for 60 seconds. HF inverters however have little or no meaningful surge. They might advertize 200% surge for 20miliseconds.
The detail you want to pay attention to is the surge of the refrigerator you want to power. I'd guestimate the starting surge to be at least 3-4-5X the running wattage, so a frig that consumes 400W while running might consume 2000W at startup. You don't have to guess at this. You can buy a clamp meter that has "in-rush current" capability. I can measure the startup surge that happens in the first 0.5 second or so. I have this one.
You can still run it with an AiO, you just have to make sure the inverter can support the in-rush as if it was a steady load, rather than the surge.UNI-T UT216C 600A Digital Clamp Meters NCV LCD Test ACDC Auto Range Multimets # | eBay
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I would not spend extra money on an expensive DC frig. They are very over-priced, and if there's a problem, there's no local shop that can fix it. You are better off spending the extra money on a better LF inverter that can run a standard HomeDepot/Lowes refrigerator. At my own cabin, I got rid of all the DC powered stuff years ago, and I'm very happy now living a completely 120VAC lifestyle.
you gave a very thorough answer to a question that I did not ask...
MichaelK
Solar Wizard
Sorry!
no worries.. so no experience with the growatt then?
Well actually he did answer your questions and then some. Idle consumption can be high on these Chinese units and you need to plan accordingly. That doesn't mean you shouldn't buy it it just needs to be accounted for in your solar production and battery capacity. You can most certainly run a fridge off these units and most likely more than one it really depends on what the startup wattage requirements are for the fridge. 3000 watt unit which is what most people are looking at for the grow Watts are more than enough to run a couple of refrigerators. Like the mpp solar units, you get a lot for your money and they can easily be paralleled to increase your capacity. Just be aware that you'll get little to no support for it.
If running on the growatt inverter will waste a ton of power I’m interested to know if I should just hook another more efficient inverter to the system to run the few 120 appliances I’ll have.
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