Megarevo 8K Firmware Update

[Beene Brothers]

Updated bottom of previous post with links.

Basically what you're doing sounds like what we need to do. Just not sure how to set that up.

Currently run off solar during day in Self Consume (~20-24 Kwh pV generated per day, with ~33 Kwh usage, & 6x LifePower4 batteries) .... So battery ends up running down to about 25-40% SoC and never gets topped of by solar... Then at night it runs down until it hits 20% SoC and pulls from grid for load... And doesn't charge back to 100% or any thing higher unless switched manually to battery priority.

Would like to be able to self Consume from PV as much as possible and charge from Grid at night... Not much extra capacity with current 16 panel setup (2 strings of 8pnls) to charge from after supplying the critical loads panel at the moment until more funds are available for 2 more strings.

It's been suggested by SigSolar to move up the 18Kpv unit.

Yep sounds like the same scenario. They are tweaking my settings now, he said they are talking to R&D so I think something in my run today didn't match with what he thought the inverter would do. If I don't give an update by tomorrow feel free to ping me. I can take a video of all the settings and/or do some written documentation on what works and which firmware it works on. That's the plan, just have to follow through.

 

[Mpgrimm2]

Yep sounds like the same scenario. They are tweaking my settings now, he said they are talking to R&D so I think something in my run today didn't match with what he thought the inverter would do. If I don't give an update by tomorrow feel free to ping me. I can take a video of all the settings and/or do some written documentation on what works and which firmware it works on. That's the plan, just have to follow through.

That would be great to see your config setup written out or a video of your setup/configuration.

Came across one of your videos the other day... Just can't find a lot of actual grid tie setups/commission videos for this 8k or any layman's explanation of most of the settings, monitoring screen menus, etc. and the manuals have been painful to use or just wrong.

Only thing I've found useful so far is the EG4 Setup/Commissioning video which had errors in it.

 

[Beene Brothers]

Here's what my graph looks like from today. Didn't get the settings right until mid morning. You can see where it went from pulling from the grid in orange to flat lining. Then as soon as the battery was at 100% it started feeing to the grid (orange going above the line). The only thing wrong is that in the afternoon as soon as my battery hit 50% SOC it stopped discharging and instead pulling from the grid:


Do you have less expensive power at night, is that the reason to charge from the grid after dark? Or is it because in the morning after killing the battery the solar falls on its face trying to run loads and charge the battery? I had that issue in peak shift mode where if the battery hit 0 I'd get 1/4 to 1/2 of the solar I should be and it would run the loads, pull some power from the grid, and not really charge the battery. If I shut off the loads for a few minutes to let it charge the battery up a tad then turn the loads back on it would catch up and be fine.

 

[Beene Brothers]

That would be great to see your config setup written out or a video of your setup/configuration.

Came across one of your videos the other day... Just can't find a lot of actual grid tie setups/commission videos for this 8k or any layman's explanation of most of the settings, monitoring screen menus, etc. and the manuals have been painful to use or just wrong.

Only thing I've found useful so far is the EG4 Setup/Commissioning video which had errors in it.

Yeah and it's different with every firmware revision it seems. So with what like 8 versions fromport has documented we probably have 8 different versions of the users manual and no real experience behind any of it! I'm hopeful the version I'm on is going to work OK and I can create some documentation around it.

 

[Mpgrimm2]

Do you have less expensive power at night, is that the reason to charge from the grid after dark?
....
Or is it because in the morning after killing the battery the solar falls on its face trying to run loads and charge the battery?

It's mainly the 2nd one (battery runs down to 20% SoC and barely charges if at all from Grid & Grid runs loads at night, but also power is cheaper here at night I believe. just found this...

Reference (Greenville, SC area)
Time of Rate - How it Works - Duke Energy

 

[Beene Brothers]

It's mainly the 2nd one (battery runs down to 20% SoC and barely charges if at all from Grid & Grid runs loads at night, but also power is cheaper here at night I believe. just found this...

Reference (Greenville, SC area)
Time of Rate - How it Works - Duke Energy
View attachment 155064

Awesome. Maybe you can get at least one mode working and then play with it from there. I know many people will likely want to just set the inverters to self consumption and let them run the battery down to dead overnight as needed. I ran my pair of inverters like that for about a week and it worked well. I was on the "generator" firmware and just had it set to self consumption. Of course in my setup I ended up buying a lot of power 5am to 9am. It didn't have the struggle that peak shift mode had in getting the battery above 0% though which was nice. Another glitch I've found in certain versions of firmware is gloomy day performance. input 1 and 2 would outperform 3 and 4 but 2-4x. In full sun they'd work just fine.

 

[Mpgrimm2]

Another glitch I've found in certain versions of firmware is gloomy day performance. input 1 and 2 would outperform 3 and 4 but 2-4x. In full sun they'd work just fine.

Interesting...

PV1 & Pv2 strings have 2900w each of panels on them and it's hard to see much more than 3kw of total PV input at times on a sunny day. ... But I'm new to this and maybe don't fully understand what I'm seeing here

 

[Beene Brothers]

Interesting...

PV1 & Pv2 strings have 2900w each of panels on them and it's hard to see much more than 3kw of total PV input at times on a sunny day. ... But I'm new to this and maybe don't fully understand what I'm seeing here

Are All the panels south facing? You should be getting more than 50% output. My south facing arrays in triple digit heat will still do 75%.

 

[Mpgrimm2]

Are All the panels south facing? You should be getting more than 50% output. My south facing arrays in triple digit heat will still do 75%.

2x 2900w strings of Pv on home built rack (rated at 2910w, 314vdc/9.27A)

Yep. Dead South, ~ 34° tilt. (~ 90ft run back to the house, which sits at 34.95° Lat. ).
Rack has one series set of 8 on the right 1/2 and one set on the left 1/2.

Looking at PV1 vs Pv2 around 2pm... I see a consistent difference in output?
(Now sure how good the graphs are with the Solarman Logger)







---------------

 

[Beene Brothers]

Yep. Dead South, ~ 30-35° tilt I believe he said. (~ 90ft run back to the house).
Rack has one series set of 8 on the right 1/2 and one set on the left 1/2.

Looking at PV1 vs Pv2 around 2pm... I see a consistent difference in output?
(Now sure how good the graphs are with the Solarman Logger)

View attachment 155068View attachment 155069


View attachment 155075

View attachment 155076

Yeah that doesn’t look good. What if you add load output and soc to that graph? The solarman data has been very reliable for me even if it is clunky.

 

[Mpgrimm2]

Yeah that doesn’t look good. What if you add load output and soc to that graph? The solarman data has been very reliable for me even if it is clunky.

Edited above post. Couldn't control the color choices for graphs very well to see all 4 at same time, so did it separate

 

[fromport]

2x 2900w strings of Pv on home built rack (calculated at 2910w, 314vdc/9.27A)

The shape of the graphs look like there is a lot of shading going on.
Can you take some pictures one day every hour of the array(s) to verify how many panels actually are shaded ?

 

[Mpgrimm2]

The shape of the graphs look like there is a lot of shading going on.
Can you take some pictures one day every hour of the array(s) to verify how many panels actually are shaded ?

Rainy & clouds today though all of next week here... Looks like I'm in a holding pattern on that (There are trees adjacent/behind the property)

 

[potin]

I have been working with the 8k inverter firmware for the best of the past 2 weeks. I have been aiming at using the system (with 30kwh of lifepo) as a whole house ups while I finish the installation of some 12kw of solar panels. The first work mode I tried was battery priority with the anti feed enabled, yet the battery cycled from 100% to 95% charge, discharging/feeding into the grid. In some 20 hours, the inverter seems to have back fed a little over 3kwh.

Then I tried self consumption mode, but it simply did not work as I intended. Lastly, I tried the peak shift mode setting the charging time from 00:01 to 23:57 and setting discharge from 23:58 to 23:59. So far it has worked fine without any back feeding. As to the ct's, they had been pointing towards the grid while using Solarman, as it was the only way the grid input/output readings read correctly. When I started using Solar Assistant, I had to invert the ct's direction, since the app was reading incoming power as if it was outgoing. Until then I was using the Feb23 stable version of SA and about an hour ago switched to the June23 beta version.

After running for about an hour I looked at the graphs and noticed that SA was reporting a considerable amount of power backfeeding. I checked all readings and it was clear that SA was reading the input power as if it was going out, hence, I had to switch back the direction of the ct's and now the arrows point towards the grid (power meter) and all seems to be fine. Hopefully this will resolve the backfeeding issue resported.

In the meantime, I am looking forward to the June 2023 Megarevo firmware to have access to the advanced settings menu. This new software is already included into Amensolar's version of the inverter. While one can download the newest manual from Amensolar's site, the firmware is nowhere to be found. If anyone has access to the newest firmware and wishes to share it, it will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Mpgrimm2]

I have been working with the 8k inverter firmware for the best of the past 2 weeks. I have been aiming at using the system (with 30kwh of lifepo) as a whole house ups while I finish the installation of some 12kw of solar panels. The first work mode I tried was battery priority with the anti feed enabled, yet the battery cycled from 100% to 95% charge, discharging/feeding into the grid. In some 20 hours, the inverter seems to have back fed a little over 3kwh.

Then I tried self consumption mode, but it simply did not work as I intended. Lastly, I tried the peak shift mode setting the charging time from 00:01 to 23:57 and setting discharge from 23:58 to 23:59. So far it has worked fine without any back feeding. As to the ct's, they had been pointing towards the grid while using Solarman, as it was the only way the grid input/output readings read correctly. When I started using Solar Assistant, I had to invert the ct's direction, since the app was reading incoming power as if it was outgoing. Until then I was using the Feb23 stable version of SA and about an hour ago switched to the June23 beta version.

After running for about an hour I looked at the graphs and noticed that SA was reporting a considerable amount of power backfeeding. I checked all readings and it was clear that SA was reading the input power as if it was going out, hence, I had to switch back the direction of the ct's and now the arrows point towards the grid (power meter) and all seems to be fine. Hopefully this will resolve the backfeeding issue resported.

In the meantime, I am looking forward to the June 2023 Megarevo firmware to have access to the advanced settings menu. This new software is already included into Amensolar's version of the inverter. While one can download the newest manual from Amensolar's site, the firmware is nowhere to be found. If anyone has access to the newest firmware and wishes to share it, it will be greatly appreciated.

@fromport has it linked in his Post 76 of this thread. I installed it yesterday on dad's Eg4 8k

 

[McRod]

I also have an EG4 8kw. My setup is completely off-grid. With all the talk about the grid export function, I am wondering:

Would it be possible to export to a separate solar system to augment that system, maybe charge the batteries? I actually have 4 separate solar systems on my off-grid property (house, water pump, outdoor kitchen, and an RV). Just exploring possible backup options.

 

[Mpgrimm2]

The shape of the graphs look like there is a lot of shading going on.
Can you take some pictures one day every hour of the array(s) to verify how many panels actually are shaded ?

See our Setup Post here and Grid Charge Issue here.

Went back and checked dad's panel layout ... You called it... significant shading until about 1-2pm, & didn't realize panels/Rack was that far back in the property... Will have to figure something out,... Maybe see if neighbor will let us drop the trees on the other side (PV1 is right side 8 panels)


@Will Prowse (maybe worth a revisit on the 8K ?)

Thanks to @fromport for sharing the MegaRevo fw v22 (20230414), Post 76, & @Markus_SignatureSolar for some of the pointers & assistance with the EG4 8KLNA setup... (I'll try and do a roll-up of our working setup later/below).

>> 1st Issue: Possible Grid feed/Export with Zero Export/Anti Reverse enabled. This may have been a defective unit, or bad CTs... 1 confirmed bad CT later. Unit exchanged (EG4/SigSolar changed the spec sheet later "Caution: Inverter does not support full Zero Export capability. Some power may be fed to the grid, especially due to surges." )

>> 2nd/Biggest issue: not enough solar PV (yet) to really charge the 30Kw/600ah EG4 LifePower4's battery bank during the day & it won't pull from grid to make up the difference at any time without switching to Battery Priority.
(~20Kw PV generation vs 33kw Max consumption per day).

>> Solution so far :
- Updated EG4 8k from v14 Gen2 fw to MegaRevo fw v22 (20230414) which has #16 Advanced Menu" support. This version has access to "Global Grid Charge Enable" setting which will allow it to Change from Grid And Solar in Self Consume mode and also has “ToU Enable" menu (Time Of Use) with 6 Time Slots very similar to the Amensolar N3H-X8.0-US 8kw which has a very good "Advanced Settings Menu" section in their manual with good explanations. (Latest Eg4 8k v1.4.0-1 manual is similar now. Except below)


** Supposedly this v22 fw hasn't officially been released by EG4/SigSolar b/c the Generator & A/C coupling features don't work correctly ** (Per Markus at SigSolar. Support Tech "Brent"? also mentioned needing access to "Advanced Menu" & "Grid Charge Enable" feature to address our Setup issue... May also be some closed loop BMS issue with EG4 8K Invrtr & LifePower4's ... Markus may have bumped up the charge current to 50A max remotely ... If that wasn't the default with 6 batts? IDK?)

** Our Setup w/Adv Menu **
- Standard Grid/PV/Batt setup
- CTs pointed towards Grid/40A supply breaker
- Working Mode: Self Consume
- Anti Reverse Enabled

--- Advance Menu ---
>> 1. MODE SET > 4. SFC SellDis = "SelFConsume Mode Anti-Reverse Enabled" (Zero Export)

.... FYI... >> 1. MODE SET > 1. Disable = Disables the remaining Advanced Menu options & features (Need to choose above mode or one of the other 2)

>> 2. ADVAN CTRL > 1. Grid Chg En = " Global control, whether the power grid can charge the battery." ENABLED

NOTE: the above 2 advanced mode settings for the battery charging from grid AND solar in a Self Consume setup, however, dad wanted to charge from/use Solar PV & Battery during peak times of 8am-8pm when cost per kWh is highest and recharge batteries off grid at night when cost per kWh is least. = Time of Use (ToU) Advanced settings menu below.

>> 2. ADVAN CTRL > 2. ToU En = "Time Of Use is ENABLED."

>> 3. TOU SET > 1-6 Slot (Schedule)
(all 6 Slots must be used apparently and not conflict)
.... ToU Schedule menu....
1.-> From the start time to the end time, charge the battery with the written (Max) Power to the written/Target SOC. (Limited by our closed loop BMS to 50a which is about 7%/Hr from grid with 6 LifePower4 Batts) ...
If GridChg is enabled, allow the grid
to charge, and if GeneratorChg is enabled, allow the generator to
generate power for the battery.

2.-> In the slot section, control the grid to charge the battery.

3.-> In the slot section, control the generator to charge the battery. (Not available on MR v22 Fw?)

Our Time Of Use Schedule
(recommend you make a similar chart beforehand) ...

-----------------------------------
Side bar: with this Time Of Use Schedule/Grid charge setup above, it seems we can make adjustments as additional Solar PV capacity is added and hopefully get to a point where critical loads are run and battery can charge to 100% SoC without topping of the battery bank at night via grid in off peak times.


------------------------------------

And EG4 8K v1.4.0-1 manual advance section 12 excerpt for Reference ...
(note the default ToU schedule/example which is preloaded when you start)


.

.

 

[Cheap 4-life]

For zero export It says the CTs are to be installed on the inverter grid input wires.. how then can the inverter detect how much of the homes main panels loads it needs to cover. Doesn’t the inverter push power into the homes main panel (to cover the homes main panel loads) by reversing the power direction of the inverters grid input, therefore supplying power to the main panel via the grid input making it instead an output/bidirectional.
thats how the SolArk 12k works, for grid tie zero export the CTs are to be installed before the homes main panel so the inverter can see how much power the homes main panel is using so it can cover it all and not export..

hopefully this smallish 8k inverter does not need to be installed before the main panel to do zero export and cover all the homes loads.. I’m sure it doesn’t have enough pass thru capability for this to be feasible

 

[Cheap 4-life]

I’m thinking this inverter simply has its grid connection from a breaker (not main breaker) in the main panel. And the inverter uses that connection to cover all of the homes loads. Then the inverters AC output to the offgrid panel can be used in a grid down scenario.if it is to be installed like this then the CTs go before the main panel

 

[Mpgrimm2]

I thought the same thing...

The values the CTs are to determine Zero Export change significantly based on where they're placed...

Mine are currently placed at the output of the 40A main panel breaker which means it's only trying to zero out what I'm pulling to the inverter's grid tie input... Not the whole home's 200a panel.

(Is that correct? IDK? Not really from what I see in the manual, but EG4's Commissioning video has them that way but on the same L1 & L2 line where it comes into the 8K inverter connection box.
... But it's effectively not sending anything back to grid, and even if it sent 100-200w back, the main 200a panel is still pulling way more than that with the remaining regular loads)