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Sol-Ark not a good company to deal with 12k

David E

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Jul 24, 2022
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This statement is false. “ Sol-Ark currently sells three models of inverter, with names that correspond to the number of kilowatts (kW) of continuous power output. They are called the 5K, 8K, and 12K lines. Sol-Ark plans to begin selling a 15 kW inverter (called the “15K” of course) later in 2022.”

I have two 12k EMP sol-ark inverters and after all the money i spent on these pos i come to find out they can only deliver 9kw ea NOT 12kw that everyone believes! I installed a 25kw array and the only way to get it to put out the max of the array is to drain my battery down, then it will produce 23 to 24kw while it is charging the batteries however as soon as the batteries are charged it drops the system back to 18 to 19kw. I have contacted Sol-Ark and these people will not even respond. I sent a certified letter to CEO, no response. I joined linkedin and message him, no response. I wrote a review on google reviews and someone who claims to be owner will look into it and get back to me in a few days, guess what , no further contact from them. That was over 2 weeks ago. I emailed them , no response. This is not a reputable or legitimate company. They claim customer’s are important to them however their actions say that that is false. Ignoring me or any customer is not good practice. I asked them to swap out these falsely advertised inverters for 2 15k inverters. Is this how good, responsible companies act?
 
Is this how good, responsible companies act?
It is marketing and I agree it is deceptive. If you dive into the details, my understanding is if you AC couple a 12k SolArk you can get a total of 12kW from a combination of the AC coupled pass through and the native 9kW from the internal inverter. I have a 5kW Outback Skybox and I can AC couple 7.5kW of solar but Outback did not call it a 12.5k.
The SolArk is actually a rebadged Deye inverter which is made in China, but they lead you to believe it was made by Veterans. My Skybox did cost a lot less than the SolArk. I guess marketing costs more. :ROFLMAO:
 
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It is marketing and I agree it is deceptive. If you dive into the details, my understanding is if you AC couple a 12k SolArk you can get a total of 12kW from a combination of the AC coupled pass through and the native 9kW from the internal inverter. I have a 5kW Outback Skybox and I can AC couple 7.5kW of solar but Outback did not call it a 12.5k. It did cost a lot less than the SolArk. I guess marketing costs more. :ROFLMAO:
AC coupling is not an option as I have a generator attached. Besides they knew dam well in my opinion that by calling it a 12k it would make people think it was 12kw AC continuous output and they didnt care that they were being deceptive. All they cared about was getting a false edge. Good companies that really do care about their customers are not deceptive. The 8k did output 8kw AC continuously. Now the 15k does output 15kw AC continuously, this shows that people were not all that stupid annd they took slack for their deception. I am going to go to every website until they make this right. I can’t believe they are hiding and not answering me. This is ridiculous. Not a good company. Thanks for listening.
 
This statement is false. “ Sol-Ark currently sells three models of inverter, with names that correspond to the number of kilowatts (kW) of continuous power output. They are called the 5K, 8K, and 12K lines. Sol-Ark plans to begin selling a 15 kW inverter (called the “15K” of course) later in 2022.”

I have two 12k EMP sol-ark inverters and after all the money i spent on these pos i come to find out they can only deliver 9kw ea NOT 12kw that everyone believes! I installed a 25kw array and the only way to get it to put out the max of the array is to drain my battery down, then it will produce 23 to 24kw while it is charging the batteries however as soon as the batteries are charged it drops the system back to 18 to 19kw. I have contacted Sol-Ark and these people will not even respond. I sent a certified letter to CEO, no response. I joined linkedin and message him, no response. I wrote a review on google reviews and someone who claims to be owner will look into it and get back to me in a few days, guess what , no further contact from them. That was over 2 weeks ago. I emailed them , no response. This is not a reputable or legitimate company. They claim customer’s are important to them however their actions say that that is false. Ignoring me or any customer is not good practice. I asked them to swap out these falsely advertised inverters for 2 15k inverters. Is this how good, responsible companies act?
I would be very mad. Just confirming what I had figured. Overpriced fleecing of the public with no support
 
If you are the design team, it is on you to research the data sheets and manuals to know if they will work in your application. It is common in Hybrid inverters to have a single, get your attention number, but since hybrid are many things there is no single number that covers all the functions.

You have the solar input, the grid tie output, the pass-thru ability and backup which has surge and time parameters for example, they all have different abilities. Then you also get into the batteries where voltage windows effects the actual backup abilities, more of a concern in the HV Hybrids.

Sol-Ark is just one of many, they all provide all information needed to verify before purchase if they meet the buyer / installers needs. I see to many leaping into products without understanding they don't know, what they don't know. Hybrid systems are quite complex and it is very challenging designing your own solution, more so to be code compliant!, is for me and I've been in the business for a very long time.
 
So many complaints against so many companies. Still the wild west in solar stuff. Makes me lean towards a power shack, cheap ash components, and if it burns out, it burns out. Nothing but sweet AC into the house.
A power shack? Like descret redundant cheap components?
 
If you are the design team, it is on you to research the data sheets and manuals to know if they will work in your application. It is common in Hybrid inverters to have a single, get your attention number, but since hybrid are many things there is no single number that covers all the functions.

You have the solar input, the grid tie output, the pass-thru ability and backup which has surge and time parameters for example, they all have different abilities. Then you also get into the batteries where voltage windows effects the actual backup abilities, more of a concern in the HV Hybrids.

Sol-Ark is just one of many, they all provide all information needed to verify before purchase if they meet the buyer / installers needs. I see to many leaping into products without understanding they don't know, what they don't know. Hybrid systems are quite complex and it is very challenging designing your own solution, more so to be code compliant!, is for me and I've been in the business for a very long time.
Absolutely true. It's your own fault if you fall for a scam. But, that doesn't mean that the scammer is on high moral ground.
 
This statement is false. “ Sol-Ark currently sells three models of inverter, with names that correspond to the number of kilowatts (kW) of continuous power output. They are called the 5K, 8K, and 12K lines. Sol-Ark plans to begin selling a 15 kW inverter (called the “15K” of course) later in 2022.”
While it totally agree with the sentiment, this is only partially the company's fault.

You didn't read the spec sheets
Or documentation from the manufacturer

You could have even gone to the 3rd party manufacturer that sells them under their own name outside the US.
 
I have two 12k EMP sol-ark inverters and after all the money i spent on these pos i come to find out they can only deliver 9kw ea NOT 12kw that everyone believes! I installed a 25kw array and the only way to get it to put out the max of the array is to drain my battery down, then it will produce 23 to 24kw while it is charging the batteries however as soon as the batteries are charged it drops the system back to 18 to 19kw.

Can you elaborate on what is wrong with 23-24 kWh into the batteries with a taper to 18-19kWh as the batteries are charged? Are you expecting 25 kW every hour of the day, even when batteries are nearing 100%?
 
Yeah. Cheap inverters, cheap mppt, off in a separate place. Along the line so upnorthandpersonal. Stuff they use in africa that has easy to replace boards. If I can get such here. Alibaba stuff. Good enough for clean power and run it till it drops.
I like that idea. I've not heard about his set up. What sort of stuff do they use in Africa? I'm sorta going down a road where everything is al separate stuff. Lots of separate things and no do all box.
 
I read the specs not assuming anything before iI bought my 12kw. I have 9600 watts and it hands it just fine. My batteries are 3 totaling 22.5. kw. Not selling back so limiters and time of use is working well. They have treated me well-repaired my unit when the DC side board went down.
Been very helpful on the phone with tec support over a two plus year period. Yes the 12kw could be mis interpreted but its in the spec sheet and is very clear..10 year warranty as well.
sorry you found this out after the sale but thats not Sol-Arks fault
My experience has been the opposite of your.s They are not the cheapest option but most know that going in.
Seems all manufactures in this business seem to have issues and we all know this going in.
 
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