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Signature Solar Honest Customer Service Experience

Kennyh327 said:
Checked the BMS and it is listed as a max continuous discharge of 200 amp and max of 350 amp. Plus no errors from the BMS that I've seen. Still seems more an inverter malfunction than anything else.
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While there could be issues with the inverter like bad dc bus capacitors, you really can't trust the logs to diagnose these kinds of issues reliably as @sunshine_eggo stated. You need to see your AC output inrush current, and ideally your battery inrush current as loads change.
 
shopman said:
Is it just me, or do these inverters seem to be failing at an alarming rate? I've seen many posts here and elsewhere of failing 6500's. Oh and the Solar Assistant thing is pure BS.
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I have two 6500s never a problem, it might be due to the fact they have never had power run through them yet. Someone could easily assume there is a problem and that’s why SS is offering a upgrade program that for a $750 each credit they get out of the warranty.
 
I have two 6500s and have ran problem free for 8.8 months. They handle everything I have thrown at them. On another note, I did take the upgrade program for the 18kpv. I would say the 6500 handle surges better. The 18 k is an awesome unit. Only thing about the 18k i don't like its too dang quiet...lol Have to turn a light on in my power shed to see if its working. I will use the 6500s as a backup.
 
Kennyh327 said:
Contacted SS about a problem with two of my 6500ex inverters. Got through really fast and had a tech on the line diagnosing my problem. Went through everything, all the testing of the units and within an hour the tech informed my that he knew the issue and we could start the return process. Fantastic, I thought! Finally, good customer service. Well that Fantastic turned into nothing but frustration, delays and excuses.

Sent all the info and photos for the return process to begin and then I hear nothing for days. Called to get an update and the very same tech I spoke to acted like he had no idea or interest in my situation. He now wanted me to do random tests that had nothing to do with the issues we discussed, just to delay my issue as long as possible. A full 2 weeks after I was told that he knew my issue and it NEEDED to be sent in for repairs, I was then informed he would send me to Tech 2 support. Well Tech 2 didn't ask much other than to find reasons that this was my fault and the warranty would not be covered but I could pay for it to be repaired.
I didn't complain because it was obvious it would only delay things further, so I sent 1 unit back for repair. They told me it would cost $150 for the repair PLUS parts if anything needed to be replaced. Ended up costing $150 so I can only assume nothing was actually damaged too badly. Probably a simple fuse replacement.
Repair was fast and I did receive the unit back in a reasonable amount of time. I asked the 2 separate people that I had been emailing about the repair, what exactly was wrong with the unit and could I get pictures of the damages as it was listed that they took pics. 2 weeks later I'm still waiting for a response.

Summary:
Contacted SS and was pleasantly surprised how helpful the Tech 1 person was. Until he wasn't!
2 weeks of delays and excuses later, I still had not actually been helped.
SS blamed me that the units had Error 52's (said they did not "SUGGEST" that I could double-land 2 positives onto 1 breaker). Because it was not "suggested" by them, then the warranty would not be honored and I paid for repairs. I changed the double-landing and still have F52 errors with the repaired units.
Contacted SS for information about what the actual damages were to the units. 2 weeks later - still waiting.

Very poor customer service in my opinion.

If SS had just let the Tech 1 person handle this I would be giving a much different review. But after he told me his boss involved himself in my issue, then delays and excuses started. In my case, it seems they actually went out of their way to make the process as difficult and slow as possible.
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I wouldn’t expect anything more out of SS.
 
Adam De Lay said:
Boy it’s hard to say. I know that 1, 280ah battery isn’t gonna be enough to run up to full capacity, but I still wouldn’t think that would cause your issues.
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I’m running 4 ea 304’s or 64kWh and have issues, so it’s probably not.
 
Kennyh327 said:
I do have Solar Assistant and WatchPower but I wouldn't know what to share. It's just a huge list of numbers.
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Huh? Should be nice charts showing solar input, load, battery current, output voltage, etc in SA.
Kennyh327 said:
Interesting side note. Don't tell SS you use Solar Assistant. After all the tests we did and the tech said he knew the problem and I had to send the unit in for repair, then they ignored my issue and started making dumb requests that had nothing to do with my issue. When they found out I had Solar Assistant and the techs near exact words were "oh I didn't know you had that, that's your problem right there. Solar Assistant does not work with our inverters. It messes with the operation of them".
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Yea I've seen a bunch of those threads... Bunch of baloney. Imo, it's a problem because it brings issues to light way better than watch power can...
 
OP says it's not happening on startup of the AC unit but whilst it's running. Ultimately I think it is the inverters but just trying to eliminate the battery and connections.
 
ChillnGrill said:
I have two 6500s and have ran problem free for 8.8 months. They handle everything I have thrown at them. On another note, I did take the upgrade program for the 18kpv. I would say the 6500 handle surges better. The 18 k is an awesome unit. Only thing about the 18k i don't like its too dang quiet...lol Have to turn a light on in my power shed to see if its working. I will use the 6500s as a backup.
Click to expand...

The upgrade program doesn't require the return of the units being upgraded from? It's like a customer loyalty discount program?
 
Kennyh327 said:
I do have Solar Assistant and WatchPower but I wouldn't know what to share. It's just a huge list of numbers.
Interesting side note. Don't tell SS you use Solar Assistant. After all the tests we did and the tech said he knew the problem and I had to send the unit in for repair, then they ignored my issue and started making dumb requests that had nothing to do with my issue. When they found out I had Solar Assistant and the techs near exact words were "oh I didn't know you had that, that's your problem right there. Solar Assistant does not work with our inverters. It messes with the operation of them".
Click to expand...
On the charts tab, the very last chart is “bus voltage”. See if you can narrow down a specific time where you get the error and then match that time on the other charts to see what your load is at.

As far as surges in SA, you can’t see surges very well when your looking at a broad time range. You have to be looking at a very tight data window. The other think to keep in mind is SA provides info at 10 second intervals, so you really have to have the problem happen at just the right second (or be a continuous problem) for SA to actually log it.
 
It appears that Inverter 2 lost battery connection first. Inverter 2 is the repaired unit that was causing F52 before repairs.
 
42OhmsPA said:
Have you tried turning off grid assist on overload?
Should be option 23.
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That option has always been disabled.
I've been considering enabling it. The F52 shuts down the AC output even tho its still connected to the grid. If the battery is losing connection and causing the F52 then it wouldn't be as bad an issue if it just turns to grid and keeps AC output alive.
 
Kennyh327 said:
That option has always been disabled.
I've been considering enabling it. The F52 shuts down the AC output even tho its still connected to the grid. If the battery is losing connection and causing the F52 then it wouldn't be as bad an issue if it just turns to grid and keeps AC output alive.
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That's odd since SA is showing power from the grid before and after shutdown.
Try turning it on and see what happens.

I noticed the bus voltage drops off when they shut down which explains the error, the million dollar question is why.
 
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