Signature Solar Honest Customer Service Experience

[Adam De Lay]

I also can't rule out that this is Solar Assistant data which is in 10 second intervals. Even tho the data showed that slight difference when one inverter lost battery connection I think it's more probable that they actually lost at the same time.

It’s possible, but with everything else between the inverters being synced, I would assume that data would be as well.

Timing is everything. Unfortunately even *cough* WatchPower when directly connected between a computer and inverter doesn’t log fine grained details.

 

[Kennyh327]

Yes I have noticed the same thing as Adam so I would concentrate your search in that specific area. For example do you have a battery circuit breaker for each inverter or are they sharing one. And yes the inverters will switch back and forth with loss of AC input but not battery, that is a whole different situation.

I do have a separate breaker for each inverter.
So it is in fact normal that a sudden loss of battery shuts the entire system down? Except the inverters remain on with the help of the grid.

 

[ghostwriter66]

If they are not working and Signature is not helping, try contacting your credit card company to initiate a charge back.

The credit card company will not be very helpful in this situation ... They will contact SS and SS will explain to them that YES the system is STILL under warranty BUT (according to SS) the credit card holder did something that violated the warranty ((Like plugged it in))((I crack myself up)) and therefore they will refuse the chargeback - and probably will win --

BUT there is Light at the end of a tunnel -- SO - then the credit card owner can reach out to the CC company again and ask them if THEIR EXTENDED WARRANTY PROGRAM ON THE CC will cover the repairs -- many of the credit card companies have an extended warranty program that covers "events" well outside of the normal SS warranty ...

For example -- we purchased 20 VSUN535 panels and sent a now "former" intern to Houston to pick them up ... He loaded them all wrong (stacked them on top of each other and put them on the very back of a 20 foot trailer where they bounced and shook themselves to death -- when he finally made it back here (6) of them was cracked and broken ... we called the CC company and they refunded our charges ... its just part of their insurance packages ... anyway -- check with your CC company and see if they can help you at least get back the $150 you spent ..

BUT again, the CC is not going to allow a Chargeback under the conditions that were stated by the OP above --

Again SS is not set up for Customer Service nor Technical Support -- they seem to be (not saying they are - just guessing)) just a RETAIL distributor. The reason they hate doing warranty work is that they probably have to either send the thing back to China ($$$$$$) or spend allot of frustrating hours on the phone with their Chinese counterparts trying to fix something they themselves aren't sure they know how works ... so its much easier just to blame you for purchasing their stuff and move on to the next customer in the cue ...

 

[Adam De Lay]

I do have a separate breaker for each inverter.
So it is in fact normal that a sudden loss of battery shuts the entire system down? Except the inverters remain on with the help of the grid.

I think the one time I actually tested that (which was completely by accident), I didn't have the grid connected, so the system just shutdown.

I might suggest switching the breakers around between the inverters and see if you notice the problem still reflecting that inverter 2 lost battery connection. At least it might help narrow something down.

 

[Kennyh327]

I think the one time I actually tested that (which was completely by accident), I didn't have the grid connected, so the system just shutdown.

I might suggest switching the breakers around between the inverters and see if you notice the problem still reflecting that inverter 2 lost battery connection. At least it might help narrow something down.

Just now a surge kicked in. Lights flickered and I happened to have Solar Assistant in front of me.
Sudden drop in PV power, battery dropped from charging +2000w to drawing -100w or more (no drop in voltage) and the Grid kicked on. Exactly what I'd expect to happen when battery and PV cannot handle the load.
This again leads me to my thinking that the BMS shutting the voltage down when its under heavy draw is resulting in the F52 error.
Thinking maybe another battery is the answer but it a very expensive solution.
I'm hoping that after this heat wave passes and the Central Air is no longer needed, I won't see the F52 error til next summer.

 

[Adam De Lay]

Had you enabled option 23?

 

[42OhmsPA]

Just now a surge kicked in. Lights flickered and I happened to have Solar Assistant in front of me.
Sudden drop in PV power, battery dropped from charging +2000w to drawing -100w or more (no drop in voltage) and the Grid kicked on. Exactly what I'd expect to happen when battery and PV cannot handle the load.
This again leads me to my thinking that the BMS shutting the voltage down when its under heavy draw is resulting in the F52 error.
Thinking maybe another battery is the answer but it a very expensive solution.
I'm hoping that after this heat wave passes and the Central Air is no longer needed, I won't see the F52 error til next summer.

A soft start for for A/C would be a lot cheaper option...
What brand is your BMS?

 

[Kennyh327]

A soft start for for A/C would be a lot cheaper option...
What brand is your BMS?

Jk -

A soft start for for A/C would be a lot cheaper option...
What brand is your BMS?

Had you enabled option 23?

I did enable it before the last f-52 error so it didn't make a difference.

 

[Kennyh327]

Jk -


I did enable it before the last f-52 error so it didn't make a difference.

But it seems the inverters are not being overloaded so I don't think that option matters in my case.

 

[Quattrohead]

I have a refrained from saying that your battery/bms might not be good enough but I really I'm not sure on that.

 

[Bad Randy]

I had a problem with low volts #04,
GW8K and 2- EG4-LL.
Running a travel trailer, it would alarm out at 40-50% SOC.
after adding 2 more EG4's my problem went away.
My 2 cents.

 

[Shimmy]

So it is in fact normal that a sudden loss of battery shuts the entire system down? Except the inverters remain on with the help of the grid.

Kind of; when the inverter goes into error mode it needs to decide what to do very quickly. An unstable DC bus will often lead to unstable control logic. We have had equipment in the past (industrial) where supplemental control power supplies were used to ensure isolation between sources. I doubt this inverter has a separate power supply from the AC input, which makes recovering to bypass harder.

 

[Zwy]

Thank you for your help. I think one big issue is does anyone even know what Low Bus Voltage even refers to or why it really happens? Battery, pv, grid? Apparently SS has no idea.

You need more battery.

Low Bus Voltage under load = the current battery does not have enough capacity to handle the extended loads/voltage drop in the battery system is causing a low voltage condition

That's how I see it.

 

[cdsolar]

I can't say for sure, so my guess is speculation. I am guessing it means the internal DC bus is not high enough. (This is different than the battery voltage. ) This kind of error is often unrecoverable. One common cause of this type of error is if the batteries are run open loop and suddenly shut off. The sudden change in current can cause a voltage spike on the internal bus that can damage components.

When I first started up my inverter with a pre-Charge resistor, (Multiplus II 48V) I got a low battery light.

It turned out that I had the inverter ON, and it was trying to pull stuff through the resistor which it couldn't.

 

[tialiden]

I found 2 answers online. One said 2900 surge the other said possibly between 3000 - 4000w.
I do have 2 inverters running split so it should handle at least 6500 Watts each.

Look on the side of the outdoor compressor unit at the label plate, specifically look for the compressor LRA for Locked Rotor Amperage rating of your 4t or whatever AC unit. Mine was something like 109Amps (LRA) and 19.9RLA. While it's running (after compressor has kicked in) it is only maybe 44 amps if memory serves correctly. It's the in-rush which is a killer, and why I am thrilled with my micro-air Easy Start, which easily chopped that in half. Anyway, best of luck in sorting out your issue.

 

[GuyG]

You need more battery.

That was my first impression too. Except …

1) A 280Ah battery with 200A BMS technically should be able to deliver 10K, more than enough to power to run the loads here. At least, as long as the batt stays charged ….

2) This doesn’t explain why the inverter totally craps out while it’s connected to grid;

3) There’s a pretty big imbalance between the two inverters while they’re still running. One of the screen shots posted by OP shows a total load of over 4KW with about 2/3 of it coming from one inverter and only 1/3 coming from the other. Since the only big 240v load is the AC, why this imbalance if it’s a battery issue?

The interesting thing about this thread is that a bunch of forummers are pitching in to try and help diagnose the problem, which is as it should be. While the entity who sold the unit hasn’t even shown up, which most definitely isn’t as it should be.

 

[cs1234]

The interesting thing about this thread is that a bunch of forummers are pitching in to try and help diagnose the problem, which is as it should be. While the entity who sold the unit hasn’t even shown up, which most definitely isn’t as it should be.

@FilterGuy Popped in briefly when asked much earlier in the thread. I didn't see any other call outs to Signature Solar.

You would think they would show up from the thread title, but they must be busy with all their sales. Call on them directly with a specific question and see if they respond. Maybe @Markus_EG4 will stop by and answer a tech question.

 

[Markus_EG4]

I am trying to follow up but im
Not sure what post is what and what the actual problem is.

 

[cs1234]

I am trying to follow up but im
Not sure what post is what and what the actual problem is.

Me either. Now that you're here, maybe somebody can TLDR it for you.

 

[GuyG]

Not sure what post is what and what the actual problem is.

Gee, I wonder if reading the OP’s well-written posts in this thread and looking up your service history on this unit might offer a clue. ??‍

 

[Quattrohead]

Gee, I wonder if reading the OP’s well-written posts in this thread and looking up your service history on this unit might offer a clue. ??‍

Ouch.
I'm afraid it's the same old story Marcus, dodgy 6500s and unfortunately poor customer service.
Man I do not envy you some days especially here LOL
And everyone else, you do realize Marcus has a day job too right haha.

 

[Crowz]

Ouch.
I'm afraid it's the same old story Marcus, dodgy 6500s and unfortunately poor customer service.
Man I do not envy you some days especially here LOL
And everyone else, you do realize Marcus has a day job too right haha.

Rule# 37

 

[GuyG]

you do realize Marcus has a day job too right

In that case I apologize to Markus; I was under the impression his day job was working for SS. Random forum posters have every right to be obtuse; for-profit tech reps do not.

 

[Markus_EG4]

In that case I apologize to Markus; I was under the impression his day job was working for SS. Random forum posters have every right to be obtuse; for-profit tech reps do not.

Thank you and I am the R&D Director for EG4 so i am very busy and I jump in here when i have time. I want to help anyone I can.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Thank you and I ma the R&D Director for EG4 so i am very busy and I jump in here when i have time. I want to help anyone I can.

"I am from Germany. Don't mean to come off rude"

LOL... wish I had a good excuse...