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diy solar

I'm DONE with MPP Solar

You do realize that video was before he gave up on solark at least for certain installs...and he's a professional installer. He's not saying anything others are not saying here and on youtube. Solark is a decent inverter but it's not a tier 1 inverter and it's night and day compared to a outback or Schneider. It's easy to install and from what people say they provide good customer service but it's way overpriced and does not compare to a xw or outback or sma. Solark / deye is a good tier 2 inverter but even then they need to get the surge and balance issues ironed out as even the mpp can start things it can't from user reports.
 
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You do realize that video was before he gave up on solark at least for certain installs...and he's a professional installer. He's not saying anything others are not saying here and on youtube. Solark is a decent inverter but it's not a tier 1 inverter and it's night and day compared to a outback or Schneider. It's easy to install and from what people say they provide good customer service but it's way overpriced and does not compare to a xw or outback or sma. Solark / deye is a good tier 2 inverter but even then they need to get the surge and balance issues ironed out as even the mpp can start things it can't from user reports.
You do realize he is David Poz good friend and the other guy was just running insane tests. I think you need to look at Schneider and outback’s features and operation limitations before you comment further. If powering a big old single phase well pump off Grid and is your interest then yes dealing with Schneider’s problems might be worth it.
Btw what user reports? Ian from watts247 demonstrated the same cut off point on the MPP when it was loaded beyond the max specializations
 
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Btw what user reports? Ian from watts247 demenstated the same cut off point on the MPP when it was loaded beyond the max specications

Are you referring to Ian's LVX6048 videos here? If so, one of the same basic limitations that a lot of the split-phase (in single unit topology) suffer from are related to load / leg imbalances and whatnot. One reason I got the LV6548-type split-phase topology, is because they (MPP Solar technical team) were able to tell me in an email that imbalances don't affect them, since each leg's inverter circuit is not related to the same output transformer, so when there is a severe imbalance, each inverter is just doing its own separate thing. So at least this way, I could know that any trips would be related to just basic overload and not due to imbalance potential.
 
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You do realize he is David Poz good friend and the other guy was just running insane tests. I think you need to look at Schneider and outback’s features and operation limitations before you comment further. If powering a big old single phase well pump off Grid and is your interest then yes dealing with Schneider’s problems might be worth it.
Btw what user reports? Ian from watts247 demenstated the same cut off point on the MPP when it was loaded beyond the max specications
I've done a fair amount of research both on the internet and here with actual users which is how I arrived at my conclusions. It's not uncommon to see folks using the solark complain about it shutting down all the time even under limited surge / load. Nuisance tripping! Solark is way too expensive to justify and defend this behavior when a tier 3 inverter like mpp doesn't suffer or suffers less and cost 1/4 the price. IMHO the deye built inverters are far superior in overall build quality than mpp and growatt and I'd buy a deye 16k at a competitive price point even with knowing what's stated above. I don't know if the solark 15k suffers from this as I've not seen people report on this yet! That older gentlemen provided good technical information and it was relevant! As for Poz...I could care less if they are "Good Friends", and hang out on the weekend smoking cigars and drinking scotch it does not take away from the information presented. The one negative takeaway from Schneider is the atrocious customer support for DIY..I'll give you that all day and twice on Sundays. Aside from the latter the xw is solid and feature rich if you can get it installed correctly. Same for the radian but they have much better support and their own diy forums so that's a plus.
 
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I've done a fair amount of research both on the internet and here with actual users which is how I arrived at my conclusions. It's not uncommon to see folks using the solark complain about it shutting down all the time even under limited surge / load. Nuisance tripping!
Like who? Poz who was using old firmware and then put 4800W on one leg. Ben who says he is turning on devices like dryers etc but we cannot really see the load data and then you have the old Loon who is throwing over 70Amps on one phase.
You don't own one so you really have no idea how it reacts to load except based on what YouTube Influencers are saying. There are literally dozens of forum users on here with 12K units and they are not having any issues. I can also tell you from helping many people that there are a lot of settings in the Sol-Ark that are designed to protect itself and your Battery BMS from overload. If you do not have them set right your going to have tripping issues. Unlike some other brands on here you do not see burned out Sol-Arks that almost burned down peoples houses. That protection circuitry is what is prevents that from happening.
Solark is way too expensive to justify and defend this behavior when a tier 3 inverter like mpp doesn't suffer or suffers less and cost 1/4 the price. IMHO the deye built inverters are far superior in overall build quality than mpp and growatt and I'd buy a deye 16k at a competitive price point even with knowing what's stated above.
Sol-Ark and Deye build quality are two different things. I have seen both 8K units side by side and there is a whole lot of differences in the whey they are put together.
They may use most of the same circuit boards but the BOM list is most likely different spect parts. The whole lower half is completely different and the firmware is different, the Warranty is actually real and the customer support is A+
I don't know if the solark 15k suffers from this as I've not seen people report on this yet! That older gentlemen provided good technical information and it was relevant!
What technical information was relevant in his video? He was continuously using slight of hand to get the result he wanted. We all know an LF Inverter will withstand about 4 times its rated load in surge capacity for a few seconds but after that, what other benefits do I get from the Inverter and what are th downsides? If I am not starting a Single Phase Well Pump what is the benefit?
As for Poz...I could care less if they are "Good Friends", and hang out on the weekend smoking cigars and drinking scotch it does not take away from the information presented.
It does if you know the history of what has been going on. Schneider was hardly even mentioned on the Forum until David Poz Sponsor started to sell them. Anyway it's never going anywhere as most people on this forum are only interested in Inverters and batteries that cost around $1500 or less.
The one negative takeaway from Schneider is the atrocious customer support for DIY..I'll give you that all day and twice on Sundays. Aside from the latter the xw is solid and feature rich if you can get it installed correctly. Same for the radian but they have much better support and their own diy forums so that's a plus.
XW Pro fro all indications have firmware issues that may or may not have been resolved. That was what Ben was saying, that he was testing it to see if the issues are resolved. Keep in mind these Inverters are not marketed for DIY people. So they have to work without issues.
 
Like who? Poz who was using old firmware and then put 4800W on one leg. Ben who says he is turning on devices like dryers etc but we cannot really see the load data and then you have the old Loon who is throwing over 70Amps on one phase.
You don't own one so you really have no idea how it reacts to load except based on what YouTube Influencers are saying. There are literally dozens of forum users on here with 12K units and they are not having any issues. I can also tell you from helping many people that there are a lot of settings in the Sol-Ark that are designed to protect itself and your Battery BMS from overload. If you do not have them set right your going to have tripping issues. Unlike some other brands on here you do not see burned out Sol-Arks that almost burned down peoples houses. That protection circuitry is what is prevents that from happening.

Sol-Ark and Deye build quality are two different things. I have seen both 8K units side by side and there is a whole lot of differences in the whey they are put together.
They may use most of the same circuit boards but the BOM list is most likely different spect parts. The whole lower half is completely different and the firmware is different, the Warranty is actually real and the customer support is A+

What technical information was relevant in his video? He was continuously using slight of hand to get the result he wanted. We all know an LF Inverter will withstand about 4 times its rated load in surge capacity for a few seconds but after that, what other benefits do I get from the Inverter and what are th downsides? If I am not starting a Single Phase Well Pump what is the benefit?

It does if you know the history of what has been going on. Schneider was hardly even mentioned on the Forum until David Poz Sponsor started to sell them. Anyway it's never going anywhere as most people on this forum are only interested in Inverters and batteries that cost around $1500 or less.

XW Pro fro all indications have firmware issues that may or may not have been resolved. That was what Ben was saying, that he was testing it to see if the issues are resolved. Keep in mind these Inverters are not marketed for DIY people. So they have to work without issues.

Like I said there's others here and elsewhere that have found the solark has issues with shutting down while not exceeding the listed inverters output and or under surges. After doing a quick search and finding the below thread, which you're in and doing the same thing, it's clear there's nothing going to make you accept others might be right based on their personal experience cause you don't have the same issues. Honest, it's almost like a solark groupie or cultist attitude. You seem to really have a oddly strong opinion / reaction to a youtuber and his "best friend". If you feel so strongly against them why not start your own channel and refute them? In the same thread you're alluding to a conspiracy on how he's working for signature solar to tarnish the reputation of solark. Why do you care so much if he's getting paid to make youtube videos sponsored or not? Again, why not make opposing videos and get paid for your outing him; expose this masked bandit to the world. While I don't have a charged opinion on him negative or positive he does make decent content and offers his personal opinion of which I don't see a issue with. You're right.. I don't have a solark I also don't own a doge ram but at the same time I'm aware they have historically had a lot of transmissions issues. It's kinda like the amazon reviews..I don't have to buy the product to get a feel for how it's working for others. Maybe we need something like amazon reviews here..a well formatted and easy to review experience and comparison section. I'll give solark a virtual 4.5 stars is that better? Why are you resorting to name calling that older gentlemen providing his input a loon; you're accusing him of lying, is he secretly working for Poz and signature solar to? He pointed out the weakness of the solark, I for one appreciate it as yes I do need to be concerned with some surge but also some of us have the significant other factor to account for. I can't have a inverter shutting down every time it gets a little stressed. You even mentioned on the thread below that you need to be aware of starting what loads and their sequence. Why not buy a inverter that can handle surges and overloads with a little grace and not worry about scheduling what you start? And, no the xw has many users here and it's not because of Poz. In fact it's one of the reasons I joined here to converse with the ones using it based on off grid videos and arizona wind and solar forums. You state most on this forum are only interested in $1500 dollar inverters and batteries so the Schneiders don't have chance on this forum. I find there's a lot of diy people here using high end stuff. I mean, you yourself spent several thousand on a single inverter right? Are you the exception? If a $2/3k Deye is so different than a comparable solark,which you blatently state, which cost at least 3x as much then why is solark so inclined to ban them from competing in the USA? I'd love to have a deye inverter..in fact I've stated that mpp and growatt need to step up their game and build higher end inverters to compete with them. While I'll always appreciate tangible input from others, including you, I find it odd that you're so strongly inclined to defend a product and your apparent disgust for a youtuber that had a different experience than you did with said product. In summery it appears while the solark is a good inverter it's more sensitive than others of a much cheaper price point under the same circumstances.

Honest question since I'm new here...can you provide undisputed proof about your accusations of Poz, Ben and any others trying to on purpose influence perception of solark in a negative viewpoint for personal gains? Serious I'd like to know. Mabye to be more constructive and on point vs speculation we can start a poll of owners who have solarks with and without shutdown issues. Perhaps...users that have a way to log data on both legs? Again, I appreciate your input but don't understand you're enthusiastic stance.


 
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Like I said there's others here and elsewhere that have found the solark has issues with shutting down while not exceeding the listed inverters output and or under surges. After doing a quick search and finding the below thread, which you're in and doing the same thing, it's clear there's nothing going to make you accept others might be right based on their personal experience cause you don't have the same issues. Honest, it's almost like a solark groupie or cultist attitude. You seem to really have a oddly strong opinion / reaction to a youtuber and his "best friend". If you feel so strongly against them why not start your own channel and refute them?
I am not interested in starting another YouTube channel again. I have two already that deal with other hobbies I am in. Did you read the 11 pages of that thread you posted? If you read it you would know that Poz would not tell anyone where he got the Inverter from and then Signature Solar admitted they sent it to him. Kind of strange when your competitor sends one of their Influencers a competitors Inverter to review or do you think that is normal?

Did you read the comments section in Youtube when it was released? If you did you would know that the CEO of Sol-Ark called him out asking why he did not update the firmware and why was he still using the original release firmware.
They also asked him why did he not contact them if he was having an issue so they could have updated it. Many such comments where deleted so you do not know what transpired. Did you know that it is standard practice for Sol-Ark to release their inverters with throttled back firmware? It was only about three weeks ago that they released the update for the 15K that finally increased the load handling to it's actual specifications.

In the same thread you're alluding to a conspiracy on how he's working for signature solar to tarnish the reputation of solark. Why do you care so much if he's getting paid to make youtube videos sponsored or not?
I care if the idea behind it is to make a dishonest videos.
Again, why not make opposing videos and get paid for your outing him; expose this masked bandit to the world. While I don't have a charged opinion on him negative or positive he does make decent content and offers his personal opinion of which I don't see a issue with. You're right.. I don't have a solark I also don't own a doge ram but at the same time I'm aware they have historically had a lot of transmissions issues. It's kinda like the amazon reviews..I don't have to buy the product to get a feel for how it's working for others. Maybe we need something like amazon reviews here..a well formatted and easy to review experience and comparison section. I'll give solark a virtual 4.5 stars is that better?
Does this help you with your review problem?
Customer_Satisfaction.jpg

Why are you resorting to name calling that older gentlemen providing his input a loon; you're accusing him of lying, is he secretly working for Poz and signature solar to?
He's a loon because he is trying to start a 90 LRA compressor drawing 77 Amps using an inverter rated for 37.5 Amps.
He pointed out the weakness of the solark, I for one appreciate it as yes I do need to be concerned with some surge but also some of us have the significant other factor to account for.
So the weakness is that it cannot do more than twice the Advertised power?
I can't have a inverter shutting down every time it gets a little stressed. You even mentioned on the thread below that you need to be aware of starting what loads and their sequence. Why not buy a inverter that can handle surges and overloads with a little grace and not worry about scheduling what you start?
If your off grid you always have to worry about what loads you start at the same time. Whats new about that?
And, no the xw has many users here and it's not because of Poz. In fact it's one of the reasons I joined here to converse with the ones using it based on off grid videos and arizona wind and solar forums. You state most on this forum are only interested in $1500 dollar inverters and batteries so the Schneiders don't have chance on this forum.
Even Will Prowse has stated in the past that the reason he was not doing reviews on more expensive Inverters and Batteries is because his followers are interested in low cost options not expensive products. Schneiders just like Sol-Arks and SMA etc are always going to have a small following on this forum.
I find there's a lot of diy people here using high end stuff. I mean, you yourself spent several thousand on a single inverter right? Are you the exception? If a $2/3k Deye is so different than a comparable solark,which you blatently state, which cost at least 3x as much then why is solark so inclined to ban them from competing in the USA? I'd love to have a deye inverter..in fact I've stated that mpp and growatt need to step up their game and build higher end inverters to compete with them.
See above statement. We are a small minority on this forum.
While I'll always appreciate tangible input from others, including you, I find it odd that you're so strongly inclined to defend a product and your apparent disgust for a youtuber that had a different experience than you did with said product. In summery it appears while the solark is a good inverter it's more sensitive than others of a much cheaper price point under the same circumstances.
Your lumping HF inverters in the same basket as LF inverters.
Honest question since I'm new here...can you provide undisputed proof about your accusations of Poz, Ben and any others trying to on purpose influence perception of solark in a negative viewpoint for personal gains? Serious I'd like to know. Mabye to be more constructive and on point vs speculation we can start a poll of owners who have solarks with and without shutdown issues. Perhaps...users that have a way to log data on both legs? Again, I appreciate your input but don't understand you're enthusiastic stance.


Your the one that stated you don't have to drive a Dodge Ram to know that they have transmission problems.
As I stated above i was there within minutes of Poz video coming out and I saw the posts that followed and I saw them get deleted, I saw mine get deleted! If you read the thread you will see others mentioning it.
I can also see based on the way the video is put together that it was designed to just Trip the Sol-Ark and make it look bad. The man even carried his wife into it to try and hammer home the point. There are so many issues with that video and I don't even know why you are asking the question. If you actually read that thread you would see where all the issues are pointed out.

I have no problems with Schneider Inverters. It was actually my first choice for an Inverter until my local dealer who is actually a Schneider dealer steered me away from it. I then bought an SMA Inverter and while I think it is probably the best Inverter made the customer support is non existent and the complexity of Islanding it was to expensive and clunky so I sold it and luckily found out about Sol-Ark.
 
I'm interested with a "boat-able" inverter that can run and host a rock concert on a trawler without ever tripping:

 
I am not interested in starting another YouTube channel again. I have two already that deal with other hobbies I am in. Did you read the 11 pages of that thread you posted? If you read it you would know that Poz would not tell anyone where he got the Inverter from and then Signature Solar admitted they sent it to him. Kind of strange when your competitor sends one of their Influencers a competitors Inverter to review or do you think that is normal?

Did you read the comments section in Youtube when it was released? If you did you would know that the CEO of Sol-Ark called him out asking why he did not update the firmware and why was he still using the original release firmware.
They also asked him why did he not contact them if he was having an issue so they could have updated it. Many such comments where deleted so you do not know what transpired. Did you know that it is standard practice for Sol-Ark to release their inverters with throttled back firmware? It was only about three weeks ago that they released the update for the 15K that finally increased the load handling to it's actual specifications.


I care if the idea behind it is to make a dishonest videos.

Does this help you with your review problem?
View attachment 112926


He's a loon because he is trying to start a 90 LRA compressor drawing 77 Amps using an inverter rated for 37.5 Amps.

So the weakness is that it cannot do more than twice the Advertised power?

If your off grid you always have to worry about what loads you start at the same time. Whats new about that?

Even Will Prowse has stated in the past that the reason he was not doing reviews on more expensive Inverters and Batteries is because his followers are interested in low cost options not expensive products. Schneiders just like Sol-Arks and SMA etc are always going to have a small following on this forum.

See above statement. We are a small minority on this forum.

Your lumping HF inverters in the same basket as LF inverters.

Your the one that stated you don't have to drive a Dodge Ram to know that they have transmission problems.
As I stated above i was there within minutes of Poz video coming out and I saw the posts that followed and I saw them get deleted, I saw mine get deleted! If you read the thread you will see others mentioning it.
I can also see based on the way the video is put together that it was designed to just Trip the Sol-Ark and make it look bad. The man even carried his wife into it to try and hammer home the point. There are so many issues with that video and I don't even know why you are asking the question. If you actually read that thread you would see where all the issues are pointed out.

I have no problems with Schneider Inverters. It was actually my first choice for an Inverter until my local dealer who is actually a Schneider dealer steered me away from it. I then bought an SMA Inverter and while I think it is probably the best Inverter made the customer support is non existent and the complexity of Islanding it was to expensive and clunky so I sold it and luckily found out about Sol-Ark.
I didn't read the entire 11 pages, I read enough to see where several people were calling you out including signature solar. Adding that info in conjunction with seeing several people here and on the internet..no not Poz, lets get of Poz for a while...that had the same issues. Some of these folks know how to balance their loads well and were on the latest firmware. It seems like solark have or had issues with starting certain loads that should have not been a issue.

To be honest..I actually think from seeing some peoples issues with SS here that they appear to be somewhat concerning. But, they are one of the only vendors here answering questions which is a point in their court. If it was ever proved that SS was behind something like what you're accusing them of that's a defamation case for sure. Can you point me to the exact thread number where they admit sending him that inverter? Even if they did I personally wouldn't be too shocked, it's common for competitors to buy the others product and test it and have others test it for comparisons. But to blatantly obfuscate, misrepresent and outright lie would be a whole other equation.

I didn't see Davids video fresh off the press it was probably a few days. I didn't see anything being deleted but might have missed something someone said deep in the comments that got deleted. I can tell you from other youtube channels that comments made sometimes get deleted without the owner of the channel doing anything. It happens more than you think, it's a youtube issue. I don't have any proof he was intentionally trying to make a dishonest video...that seems to be an opinion of perhaps a few here. Maybe your right but maybe your not. Where did you get that review pic, I'd have to know where you got it from to weight it's value. I understand what you're saying regarding LF vs HF surging but according to the manual the solark 12k should have been able to start it with its surge specs. In fact, maybe I'm reading it wrong but the solark 12k shows to have much more surge capacity than the xwpro which started the load. Is this correct? Also, just a personal opinion...why the F did they call it a 12k when it's not capable of it; while people should read the manual it's kinda shady since you're talking about shady tactics. Like I said I don't really care one way or another about david ...but I remember him saying a few times years ago his dream inverter was a solark so it's kinda interesting why he'd intentionally try to bash it. He didn't really care for the sma either right? I think the man just found what worked best for him. And, I not sure why his wife is triggering...she was annoyed with it. I stated this to...if what he said was true then most woman would not put up with that nonsense for long. Anything electronic has to pass the "waf" or wife acceptance factor. Could you elaborate more on how the deye is so much different and if that's the case why solark engages in banning them in the USA but not in the EU? That seems kinda sketch and illegal. Thanks for your update!


 
I didn't read the entire 11 pages, I read enough to see where several people were calling you out including signature solar.

Can you point me to the exact thread number where they admit sending him that inverter? Even if they did I personally wouldn't be too shocked, it's common for competitors to buy the others product and test it and have others test it for comparisons. But to blatantly obfuscate, misrepresent and outright lie would be a whole other equation.
Seriously!!!!
You read enough pages to see where people are calling me out but you did not read PAGE 1 where Signature Solar admits they sent him the Inverter. ?

Please read the thread.
 
Oh, so you want a Victron?


It's high on my list right now, hybrid LF (not hybrid HF, I want to think of it as half full rather than half empty :)), compact, plus got 220v.
 
Can't we all just agree that if you like high priced inverters that shut off whenever it wants, get Sol-Ark? I like my MPP. Sure it took me a month to troubleshoot the voltage drop issue but who doesn't like to tinker. I saved lots of money and could actually get another and parallel it if I wanted to without having to get a second mortgage.
 
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I've had no problems; until today.
One of my units decided it wouldn't recognize the solar panels. Shows 0V and 0A input power, but I measured around 80 volts at the unit's input.
Not looking forward to laboriously checking all the panel connections in the morning, but I'm hoping for an easy fix.
Not sure if this helps..was taking to signature solar the other day and they mentioned that eg4 6k would need around 100v input before it recognizes the PV.
 
Seriously!!!!
You read enough pages to see where people are calling me out but you did not read PAGE 1 where Signature Solar admits they sent him the Inverter. ?

Please read the thread.
The search feature took me to page six..get over yourself.Try just answering the question next time. Noticed you didn't comment on how the solark, on paper, almost surges twice it's output for 10s and over twice it's output for 16ms.Comparing it to the manual for the xw it appears the solark is supposed to have a much higher continues output and higher surge rate. So..page 1 post 19? It's like I stated above...so what... vendors test other vendors products all the time. You didn't like the way he tested it / compared it...ok fair. But you're tying to attach malicious intent which is nothing more than your opinion and a stretch.


"David was trying to do what his channel does best: let normal people know what to expect upfront if they bought either option: the $2200 growatt + transformer stack or the $6500-7000 non-emp Solark.
It appears to us that he just tried his house on one option and then the other and had an opinion, that should be expected.
His video was an out-of-the box application review, not a complete review of the whole Solark product."
 
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...why the F did they call it a 12k when it's not capable of it...

Yeah I'm not speaking for or against any inverter (except that I hope my LV6548's perform as I'm hoping), but just thought I'd add this about the Solark 12k 'rating' hehe...

As I understand it, their marketing pitch on the 12k thing is not what the inverter is capable of. The inverter is supposedly a 9k inverter (at nighttime), or whatever it actually is.

In their spec sheets the 12k number is defined as follows:

"Max PV Power Delivered to Battery & AC Outputs: 12000w"

So that would be PV harvesting net power to AC outlets (assuming battery charging too?)...

So the 12k number really says nothing about the inverter capability.
 
Yeah I'm not speaking for or against any inverter (except that I hope my LV6548's perform as I'm hoping), but just thought I'd add this about the Solark 12k 'rating' hehe...

As I understand it, their marketing pitch on the 12k thing is not what the inverter is capable of. The inverter is supposedly a 9k inverter (at nighttime), or whatever it actually is.

In their spec sheets the 12k number is defined as follows:

"Max PV Power Delivered to Battery & AC Outputs: 12000w"

So that would be PV harvesting net power to AC outlets (assuming battery charging too?)...

So the 12k number really says nothing about the inverter capability.
I think the solark is a good inverter but it's like anything else it has its legitimate criticisms...what's baffling is the "guardians of the Ark" mentality. While a buyer should ask the vendor, manufacturer and consult the spec sheet...it's seems solark was intentionally disingenuous at marketing. I've seen people using the LV6548's with great success. There a ausie on youtube that has some MPP inverters, don't remember the model number, and they have been working fine for like seven years now...but he does say they are starting to show their age by getting hotter than they used to etc. I'll probably go with a radian or xwpro but in the meantime I'll most likely get a EG4 or two ..split phase to get things rolling.
 
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