Sol-Ark 15k - Surge Amps

[timselectric]

That's in off grid mode. I'm not sure if that number requires any DC PV though.

It would require assistance from either solar or AC coupling. To output over 12k total. Or 6k per leg.

 

[niktak11]

It would require assistance from either solar or AC coupling. To output over 12k total. Or 6k per leg.

The 15k has a 15k inverter. It can convert around 13.5-14kW battery DC bus to high voltage DC bus so if one leg is low enough it might be able to hit 7.8kW continuous on a single leg with battery only (unless there's a separate low voltage DC to high voltage DC converter for each leg which would be weird).

 

[timselectric]

The 15k has a 15k inverter. It can convert around 13.5-14kW battery DC bus to high voltage DC bus so if one leg is low enough it might be able to hit 7.8kW continuous on a single leg with battery only (unless there's a separate low voltage DC to high voltage DC converter for each leg which would be weird).

Maximum output from battery alone is 12k. So, it would be limited to 6k, from battery only, per leg. (Unassisted)

 

[robby]

The 15k has a 15k inverter. It can convert around 13.5-14kW battery DC bus to high voltage DC bus so if one leg is low enough it might be able to hit 7.8kW continuous on a single leg with battery only (unless there's a separate low voltage DC to high voltage DC converter for each leg which would be weird).

It will do it if you use a 60V to 63V Battery system. Deye is using that specification but Sol-Ark stuck to quoting output based on a standard 48V AGM setup. That is why people with LiFePO4 (51.2V) systems are seeing more than 12KW when on battery.

 

[niktak11]

Maximum output from battery alone is 12k. So, it would be limited to 6k, from battery only, per leg. (Unassisted)

Maximum output from

Maximum output from battery alone is 12k. So, it would be limited to 6k, from battery only, per leg. (Unassisted)

Maximum output from battery is close to 14kW (ends up being a bit over 13kW AC output).

 

[timselectric]

Maximum output from

Maximum output from battery is close to 14kW (ends up being a bit over 13kW AC output).

I guess that you should tell Sol-ark that they are wrong?

 

[niktak11]

I guess that you should tell Sol-ark that they are wrong? View attachment 125598

I'm guessing that's the max near the lowest supported battery voltage. My 15k has no problem doing more than that.

 

[robby]

I guess that you should tell Sol-ark that they are wrong?

It's being conservative in your ratings, something that use to be the Norm when products were made in the USA or Japan, but it seems that for most Chinese Marketing people this is totally illogical.
My Japanese Ham Radio Amplifier is Rated for 1500 Watts of Power in the Spec sheet but it will do over 2000 Watts with ease.
This makes sure that no buyer is ever disappointed or complains.
If Sol-Ark had used 60V like Deye does to get their 16KW Battery power Spec it would have made a lot of AGM battery owners really unhappy. You would be surprised at how many Grid tied people buy these 15K inverters purely for Daytime use and Sell Back.
The Batteries are only there for power outages.

 

[timselectric]

Too bad they weren't conservative in their naming strategy.

 

[629658]

Too bad they weren't conservative in their naming strategy.

Man I love your posts but you have hammered Sol Ark to death over that name deal. I guess that’s your cross to bare. Those of us that bought the Sol Ark bought them for many reasons but the name had absolutely nothing to do with it. It spec’ed out for our applications. I would have still bought it if they called it the Sol Ark 50k blender if it could do the job. How many times do we see this in all products? All the time. So I get your point however the Sol Ark 15 just works and while they have experienced a few issues by and large they have a well built product and the support to back it up. It’s a feature rich AIO that just works without a hundred modules, autotransformers etc. you hang it on the wall hook it up and bingo you’re in business. Is it the cheapest solution? Absolutely not but brother I’ll trade cheaper for working everyday. I installed mine mostly myself and it has performed beautifully since day one. My time and aggravation is worth a lot. Even my wife a complete non tech person is able to understand and operate the Sol Ark without me. I remember having a killer audio video systems that did everything. It was beautiful. However my wife couldn’t even change the channel without going through 5 steps. She just refused to use it so there it sits. Sol Ark is a little like that. Simple. It’s easy to not see the forest through the trees. We all see systems posted on here with miles of wire and boxes hanging everywhere. They are on here days at a time working out issues. We just don’t see that frequently with the Sol Arks. There are 50 ways to skin the cat. But banging on the Sol Ark because of its name seems petty in my book.

 

[timselectric]

Man I love your posts but you have hammered Sol Ark to death over that name deal. I guess that’s your cross to bare. Those of us that bought the Sol Ark bought them for many reasons but the name had absolutely nothing to do with it. It spec’ed out for our applications. I would have still bought it if they called it the Sol Ark 50k blender if it could do the job. How many times do we see this in all products? All the time. So I get your point however the Sol Ark 15 just works and while they have experienced a few issues by and large they have a well built product and the support to back it up. It’s a feature rich AIO that just works without a hundred modules, autotransformers etc. you hang it on the wall hook it up and bingo you’re in business. Is it the cheapest solution? Absolutely not but brother I’ll trade cheaper for working everyday. I installed mine mostly myself and it has performed beautifully since day one. My time and aggravation is worth a lot. Even my wife a complete non tech person is able to understand and operate the Sol Ark without me. I remember having a killer audio video systems that did everything. It was beautiful. However my wife couldn’t even change the channel without going through 5 steps. She just refused to use it so there it sits. Sol Ark is a little like that. Simple. It’s easy to not see the forest through the trees. We all see systems posted on here with miles of wire and boxes hanging everywhere. They are on here days at a time working out issues. We just don’t see that frequently with the Sol Arks. There are 50 ways to skin the cat. But banging on the Sol Ark because of its name seems petty in my book.

I've never had any issues with the product.
It is a quality piece of equipment.
In fact, I was very close to purchasing 38 of the 12k's for an off grid apartment complex. (When they claimed that they were built by American Veterans)
My issues have been with the company. And their shaddy marketing tactics. When you sell a quality product and provide great technical support, there's just no reason to stoop to that level. Especially when they're not even good at hiding it. I was even willing to give them some credit, when they acknowledged their fiasco with the 12k. And vowed to not repeat it. But, greed makes people do crazy things I guess.

 

[Troubleshooter]

I have a similar issue, except for I have 2 12k sol-arks and a miter saw, rated at 9 FLA trips an F18 error. The saw is in the shop, connected to a sub-panel and I can almost always replicate this problem, however when I ran an extension cord from the main panel and tried the miter saw that way, I could not trip the system. Try doing the same and let us know.
I have a clamp amp meter with inrush capability enroute, so I should be better able to see what the draw is on startup. Until then I'm just guessing what the startup draw might be that it trips 2 12k sol-arks.

I measured inrush current of my 9FLA 120v miter saw, and I "saw" 60A on start-up.

 

[robby]

I've never had any issues with the product.
It is a quality piece of equipment.
In fact, I was very close to purchasing 38 of the 12k's for an off grid apartment complex. (When they claimed that they were built by American Veterans)
My issues have been with the company. And their shaddy marketing tactics. When you sell a quality product and provide great technical support, there's just no reason to stoop to that level. Especially when they're not even good at hiding it. I was even willing to give them some credit, when they acknowledged their fiasco with the 12k. And vowed to not repeat it. But, greed makes people do crazy things I guess.

The funny thing is that I have seen the statement that they made a false claim of "Made by American Veterans" so many times that I stopped questioning if it was true and just assumed that it was. Do you have any proof that they ever said that about the 8K or 12K?

I just looked at the Wayback machine and this was the statement they were making a few months after the release of the 8K Inverter. I can find nothing on the Website that claims the Inverters are made in the USA.



I already know that the 12K naming convention was something that was hotly debated in the company and they regretted going down the road that they did but I really would like to see some proof that they claimed to be building the Inverters in America because from what I can see they never made that claim at all. I am not saying I am certain that it's a made up story I am just wondering if it's true or is it a lie told so may times that it is now just accepted as truth.

 

[timselectric]

The funny thing is that I have seen the statement that they made a false claim of "Made by American Veterans" so many times that I stopped questioning if it was true and just assumed that it was. Do you have any proof that they ever said that about the 8K or 12K?

I just looked at the Wayback machine and this was the statement they were making a few months after the release of the 8K Inverter. I can find nothing on the Website that claims the Inverters are made in the USA.

View attachment 125738

I already know that the 12K naming convention was something that was hotly debated in the company and they regretted going down the road that they did but I really would like to see some proof that they claimed to be building the Inverters in America because from what I can see they never made that claim at all. I am not saying I am certain that it's a made up story I am just wondering if it's true or is it a lie told so may times that it is now just accepted as truth.

I don't remember exactly where I read it.
But, it was from Sol-Ark. And it was what first drew me to them. The statement was "designed and built by Veterans". I think it was either a brochure or possibly a video they put out. At the time of the 12k release. But, I no longer have it. I got rid of the mountain of information I had collected, when I decided to go a different direction. I'm a paper in hand preference kind of (old) guy. And at that point it was just in the way. So no ,I can't prove it at the moment. But, I know that it happened. Or I wouldn't have changed my mind about a $150k purchase.

 

[629658]

We all see your point and I might even agree on some of them so then I ask what are your options? I mean I bet 90% or more of all inverters are manufactured in China. Hell not just inverters. So even if you want to make a principled stand what would you use to replicate everything the Sol Ark does? Please don’t say Deye because that’s just not an option in the USA at this time namely single phase non UL listed. I just want something to hang on my wall and does everything the Sol Ark does at approximately same cost including installation.

 

[robby]

I don't remember exactly where I read it.
But, it was from Sol-Ark. And it was what first drew me to them. The statement was "designed and built by Veterans". I think it was either a brochure or possibly a video they put out. At the time of the 12k release. But, I no longer have it. I got rid of the mountain of information I had collected, when I decided to go a different direction. I'm a paper in hand preference kind of (old) guy. And at that point it was just in the way. So no ,I can't prove it at the moment. But, I know that it happened. Or I wouldn't have changed my mind about a $150k purchase.

I am very interested in someone actually providing proof. If they put it out in a brochure then there must be a link to it somewhere.
I am not certain if they built that original 3K black Inverter in the USA but I do know that they built the first thirty 8K units in the USA by hand so that the design could be tested.

I have seen rumors like this before. They start out as a statement from one person and the go unchallenged until they become accepted as fact.
I am going to dig further and if I cannot find it I am going to assume it was rumor because it's not anywhere on their website that i can find so far.
I will next start to check videos since you mentioned it.

 

[629658]

I am very interested in someone actually providing proof. If they put it out in a brochure then there must be a link to it somewhere.
I am not certain if they built that original 3K black Inverter in the USA but I do know that they built the first thirty 8K units in the USA by hand so that the design could be tested.

I have seen rumors like this before. They start out as a statement from one person and the go unchallenged until they become accepted as fact.
I am going to dig further and if I cannot find it I am going to assume it was rumor because it's not anywhere on their website that i can find so far.
I will next start to check videos since you mentioned it.

If this really bothers anyone then there are time one must choose between the lesser of two evils.

 

[timselectric]

We all see your point and I might even agree on some of them so then I ask what are your options? I mean I bet 90% or more of all inverters are manufactured in China. Hell not just inverters. So even if you want to make a principled stand what would you use to replicate everything the Sol Ark does? Please don’t say Deye because that’s just not an option in the USA at this time namely single phase non UL listed. I just want something to hang on my wall and does everything the Sol Ark does at approximately same cost including installation.

I don't have a problem with the fact that it's made in China. (They almost all are)
Actually Deye would be the best option, since it's the same thing. (Deye is the manufacturer of Sol-Ark)
At half the cost.
And you get full balanced power output from a single phase inverter.
But as far as options, there are many out there.
Just look for the features you need.
I'm just an old man who holds integrity and honesty in high regards. Even in a world where it's getting harder to find.

 

[robby]

..

I don't have a problem with the fact that it's made in China. (They almost all are)
Actually Deye would be the best option, since it's the same thing. (Deye is the manufacturer of Sol-Ark)
At half the cost.
And you get full balanced power output from a single phase inverter.
But as far as options, there are many out there.
Just look for the features you need.
I'm just an old man who holds integrity and honesty in high regards. Even in a world where it's getting harder to find.

Deye's firmware is so old and buggy that I would not touch it.

 

[timselectric]

..


Deye's firmware is so old and buggy that I would not touch it.

If I were to go that route. I would probably go with the SunSink version. They seem to be on top of things, with their firmware. They're all Deye inverters, but the firmware is what makes them reliable. I might add one to my system at a later expansion. But for now, I have enough equipment. I'm looking forward to a break from building. And just enjoying the fruits of my labor. (At least for a little while) before I start the next phase of this journey.