AgroVenturesPeru
New Member
- Joined
- Sep 19, 2020
- Messages
- 411
We're living off grid in a remote part of Peru, and one of our four batteries has been acting up. Actually I hope it's just one. This one battery is the only one to show an erroneous low temperature alarm. First, the entire stack limited itself to about 89% charge, and progressively over the course of a couple months now won't get above a 82% charge. I've read about others having this issue, but haven't heard from any of them what their actual solution was.
I won't go into detail here, but you can read my other thread to learn more about the problem:
The batteries are under a manufacturer warranty, and the manufacturer first suggested getting a laptop cable to run their batteryview software, They reached out to the distributor in Lima (the opposite end of the country from where we live) to request they sell me the cable. They asked them to get me the cable, and the distributor finally responded about a month later, saying that I will have to ship them the problematic battery. Long story short, I don't trust the distributor (you can search my old threads to learn why I feel they are a shady business). I fear that if I send them my battery, that they'll just sit on it for at least a month, and never really accomplish anything. If they ever send me the battery back, I can assume the problem will end up recurring. They are very frustrating to deal with. Why take an entire month to respond, and then not even obey the battery manufacturer by supplying me with the laptop cable, but instead demand that I disconnect my battery and send it to them. Not a very logical first step. Maybe there's a simple fix that doesn't require me to be without my battery/batteries for who knows how long.
The distributor could really screw us over in this situation. What if they retained the battery and ignored us for a long time? The authorities in this country are next to useless for resolving scams.
Anyway, I calculate a high probability that the distributor will not help us out satisfactorily. Not to mention the risk of irresponsible shipping companies in this country. I suggested the manufacturer let us use an alternative distributor (there are others in the country) if we ever need service. Still, I'd rather not send my equipment anywhere. I guess it's a matter of tiptoe-ing the line to learn what exactly I can do on my own to the batteries to not invalidate warranty. Last resort I assume would be sending back and forth from China, which would be a total nightmare.
What do you do when you're totally dependent on faulty hardware to provide your electricity?
I won't go into detail here, but you can read my other thread to learn more about the problem:
Why Does My Battery Bank Now Top Out at Only 88% Capacity?
I thought about this thread overnight and the only thing I can come up with is what I stated already: Disconnect communication between the BMS and the rest of the system and see what happens. Well thanks for the suggestions. How should I go about doing this? Just unplug the CAN cable on the top...
diysolarforum.com
The batteries are under a manufacturer warranty, and the manufacturer first suggested getting a laptop cable to run their batteryview software, They reached out to the distributor in Lima (the opposite end of the country from where we live) to request they sell me the cable. They asked them to get me the cable, and the distributor finally responded about a month later, saying that I will have to ship them the problematic battery. Long story short, I don't trust the distributor (you can search my old threads to learn why I feel they are a shady business). I fear that if I send them my battery, that they'll just sit on it for at least a month, and never really accomplish anything. If they ever send me the battery back, I can assume the problem will end up recurring. They are very frustrating to deal with. Why take an entire month to respond, and then not even obey the battery manufacturer by supplying me with the laptop cable, but instead demand that I disconnect my battery and send it to them. Not a very logical first step. Maybe there's a simple fix that doesn't require me to be without my battery/batteries for who knows how long.
The distributor could really screw us over in this situation. What if they retained the battery and ignored us for a long time? The authorities in this country are next to useless for resolving scams.
Anyway, I calculate a high probability that the distributor will not help us out satisfactorily. Not to mention the risk of irresponsible shipping companies in this country. I suggested the manufacturer let us use an alternative distributor (there are others in the country) if we ever need service. Still, I'd rather not send my equipment anywhere. I guess it's a matter of tiptoe-ing the line to learn what exactly I can do on my own to the batteries to not invalidate warranty. Last resort I assume would be sending back and forth from China, which would be a total nightmare.
What do you do when you're totally dependent on faulty hardware to provide your electricity?