This thread has some potential patterns for all of us:
- HF's fail more often than normal; is the HF inverter you chose "fully repairable on site", or must it be returned? A fallback method of power production is a good thing.
- this vendor's warranty/replacement process is long and fraught with issues (still). At best, it's a week-long process (and potentially costly), and at worst, it's many weeks.
Both of these patterns require planning. For the design notes section:
- read the warranty and return process docs from the vendor, such that you know what will happen before purchasing the critical item. sales will sell you a unit all day long, but it is up to you to understand everything about what you are getting before purchasing, including warranty/return. much harder to claim surprise with the process, if you didn't read the docs. On top of that, you add a factor for "many things can go wrong to delay the warranty/return".
- understand the difference(s) between LF and HF inverters, when choosing this critical component. a reliability characteristic is that HF inverters fail "more often than normal", whereas LF inverters fail "less often than normal". OP chose an HF inverter, so it matches this pattern of failure; however, he has grid backup, so less of an issue (he also wants emp protection).
- save the packaging, such that a failed item can be returned. we just cannot throw packaging stuff away for expensive items like we can for a "disposable" item (unless vendor offers a "we'll ship you an empty box process"), especially if the item can't be repaired on site.
The patterns are there in all the forum threads ...
