I'm currently putting together my 48V system for a remote property, which is a seplos DIY battery kit and an EG4 3000 AIO. I am planning on running starlink and a few network devices off DC, and would like to be able to completely power off the EG4 inverter after it stops charging via solar at night. I did see a youtube video of someone installing a remote switch, but I am wondering if there are easier options? I will have the ability to use wifi/zigbee/z-wave, as one of the DC powered devices will be a RPI5 running home assistant. Is there a smart "disconnect" or something out there I'm not aware of?
Need some "smart" ideas for turning off EG4 3000 at night.
- Thread starter beckkl
- Start date
sunshine_eggo
Happy Breffast!
If you don't need an inverter running at all, won't the unit still charge via PV in standby mode?
Couldn't you just leave it off?
Couldn't you just leave it off?
The issue is that I do want to be able to turn it on and off. I'll have some POE cameras that I'd like to be able to access should the need arise.
MattSapp
New Member
When you say you want to turn the inverter off after it stops charging, are you just looking to stop the ~70w/hr base draw of the inverter? If that's the case, here are a few things I learned as I built my RV system around a 300EHV-48 last year:
1) "Power Save" mode on the inverter turns off the AC and takes the parasitic load down to basically nothing.
2) If you're using the MPPT inputs and not AC coupled microinverters for your panels, which I assume you're using DC strings with this inverter, you don't even need the AC inverter on to charge the batteries from solar. So rather than turning off the inverter when the solar charging stops, think of it more like turning the inverter off anytime you don't need AC.
3) I run SolarAssistant with mine and I put in a request with the developer, and they pushed out and update already that exposes the inverter's power save mode on/off toggle in solar assistant.
4) I ended up finding that just leaving Power Save mode on actually worked pretty well, with some caveats. The microwave in my rv would pull enough power to turn on the inverter, i assume charge up its internal power supply caps, then the load would drop and then the inverter would shut off..microwave would shut off and repeat the cycle, so the microwave would beep every few seconds. We just turned the breaker off for the microwave when not in use. When we want to use the microwave, turn on some constant AC load - I usually use my laptop power supply - that'll pull the inverter out of power save mode, then flip on the breaker to use the microwave.
So, you might just turn on power save mode and find some method to break the connection from the inverter's output to your distribution panel or whatever you have downstream of it. Could be a breaker, could be something you can control via wifi (as long as the control system gets DC power directly from battery).
DIYrich
Solar Wizard
Tap into the on/off rocker switch on the bottom of the unit.
Design whatever complex circuit you want to close/open that circuit. Raspberry Pi to control a relay
You can run the circuit directly off battery power.
If you want remote capabilities, then you need to run Starlink and whatever else you need off battery power.
Design whatever complex circuit you want to close/open that circuit. Raspberry Pi to control a relay
You can run the circuit directly off battery power.
If you want remote capabilities, then you need to run Starlink and whatever else you need off battery power.
For 3) So, if your turn on Power Save mode via Solar Assistant when there is a load, it will just turn off, then turn back on? Or are you referring to the inverter putting itself in power save mode when there are no loads detected?
Edit: Yeah, I just tested thus with a load. Just switches on and off over and over. Not sure what the value of this is? I guess If you know there are no loads, but I'd think most folks would have something plugged in with some parasitic load that would trip it over and over.
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solarenvy
Solar Enthusiast
When I can’t [easily] automate the button function, I automate button press.
The switchbot can “press” a button. If you need a toggle, you can use 2 of them positioned correctly or permanently fix the switchbot lever to the toggle for push/pull functionality.
Of course this all assumes your wifi will have continuous power even when your inverter is shut down.
The switchbot can “press” a button. If you need a toggle, you can use 2 of them positioned correctly or permanently fix the switchbot lever to the toggle for push/pull functionality.
Of course this all assumes your wifi will have continuous power even when your inverter is shut down.
Ha! I had no idea such a thing existed.
Zwy
Solar Wizard
Voltronic AIO's always would charge from PV with the unit off. On my Growatt in my truck camper, I just added a remote switch in the galley to turn the inverter on/off as needed.
One could easily automate it if desired, even remote control from anywhere in the world.
MattSapp
New Member
In my case it's in an RV that I've converted everything possible to DC, so there are very few AC loads and they are tightly controlled. It sounded like the OP had a similar situation since it is a remote property and they've done similar work converting things to run directly from DC off the battery.
Anyway, I may not have stated it very well, but my point that I was trying to get to is that _if_ you've got minimal AC loads, and if you can work some method to switch the AC output on/off through a disconnect external to the 3000EHV (maybe a manual disconnect, maybe something automated as long as the control circuitry is DC powered from battery) - you can use rely on the power save mode of the 3000EHV to shut the inverter off when the AC load is cut and not have to try and rig up something like switchbots to physically switch the inverter on/off.
Standard POE voltage is 48v. You can run those straight off the battery, without using the inverter at all.
sunshine_eggo
Happy Breffast!
But 48V batteries may go significantly over that. My POE injector and starlink won't work above 56V.
Makes sense. In which case, a DC buck converter will fix that without the overhead of a full inverter. Many available in a variety of sizes, such as:
