Troubleshooting GZ Yeti 1400

[Itsuo]

Greetings all,

I'm struggling with an issue that I've repeatedly tried to work through GZ (who has been very supportive/responsive) but I'm afraid something is getting lost in the communication based on my lack of understanding of my system.

The System: Currently I run a GZ Yeti 1400 powered, via GZ MPPT, by 250w of GZ Boulder panels (2x 100w +1x 50w).

The Load: The panels are on the roof of my small home and the Yeti powers (via AC outlet) my internet router along with a few IoT device hubs on a power strip: 24/7. This creates a continuous load of ~30w. We also charge all of our mobile devices in the evening (phones/watches/tablets) which might push the load up to ~80-100w for a limited amount of time. All to say it seems to me like a fairly modest application.

The Issue: For my second Yeti 1400 in a row, the AC ports on the Yeti will shut off after the state of chage (SoC) drops below an ever increasing level. It starts at a low SoC and then over time the cut of level occurs at higher and higher SoCs. As an example, my current warrantied Yeti 1400 was under the described load and the AC outlets shut off at a SoC of ~30%. I noticed the wifi was down so I checked the battery, plugged in the AC Yeti charger, and by the time the SoC got up to 33% I was able to turn the AC outlets back on and have the system up and running again. Not so bad you might say, but over time that cut off occured at higher and higher SoCs until now it's happening at ~60%! This means that when my Yeti 1400 drops to a SoC of around 60% the AC outlets automatically shut off and cannot be turned on until the SoC is raised: usually no more than a few percent. (I will note that when the AC ports shut off the USB ports (and perhspas 12v outlet) still work and the Yeti's screen still functions as normal.)

The same thing happened to my last Yeti and after it started happening above 55%, and I tried all of their recommended fixes (three finger re-set and internal battery disconnect) to no avail, Goal Zero sent me a box to have it sent back warrantied. Unfortunately the same thing is happening with the replacement and I'm starting to wonder if it's something I'm doing? Is it a voltage issue? Perhaps below a certain voltage (~9.8v?) the AC outlets shut off?

Question: Does anyone have any idea what my set up or my issue sounds like may be happening?

Thank you!

Itsuo

 

[snoobler]

If everything you describe is accurate, the unit is defective either in its % capacity reading, its actual power delivery, or its configuration.

They are rated for 1425Wh with 500 cycles to 80% capacity. Can you determine how much power you are actually extracting between full (or 80%) charge and the trouble?

These are only 3S units with a 10.8V nominal voltage. 9.8V is a fine voltage for the cells at about 3.3V each, but that should be about 20-25% capacity. They must have a custom inverter that doesn't shut off until somewhere below 9V vs. the typical 10.5V for a 12V inverter.

 

[Itsuo]

If everything you describe is accurate, the unit is defective either in its % capacity reading, its actual power delivery, or its configuration.

They are rated for 1425Wh with 500 cycles to 80% capacity. Can you determine how much power you are actually extracting between full (or 80%) charge and the trouble?

These are only 3S units with a 10.8V nominal voltage. 9.8V is a fine voltage for the cells at about 3.3V each, but that should be about 20-25% capacity. They must have a custom inverter that doesn't shut off until somewhere below 9V vs. the typical 10.5V for a 12V inverter.

Thank you! I will monitor the total power use between a nominal rate (like 80%) at the cut-off and report back!

 

[Itsuo]

Thank you! I will monitor the total power use between a nominal rate (like 80%) at the cut-off and report back!

To my surprise, and disappointment, I woke up this morning to find that the wifi router was down--indicating that the AC outlets on the Yeti 1400 had shut off in the night. As you can see from the second image, sometime after a sync at 0426 this morning it shut off. 36.7w of output at that time seems a little high, I would have expected something closer to ~30w, but still nothing that you would imagine trigger the outlet to shut off. .


After this, relatively familiar, discovery I plugged the AC input to the Yeti and took the dog out. When I got back the SoC(?) was high enough to turn the outlets back on and you can see that at ~80% SoC it had 1136 Wh available vs. the 1064 Wh that was available shortly before shut off.

Between the two units I've had with this issue, I have never experienced a cut off at such a high SoC. That being said, the fact that it happened to two consecutive units, gives me at least a moment of pause to reflect on my use to double check that I'm not the problem. I also did a fairly exhaustive search of reviews and customer feedback on GZ Yeti units and I didn't see anything like this. It seems to me like it would be a huge issue for all the #vanlife-ers out there who rely on one for constant load/use.

All that being said, can anyone think of anything else I can do as a user to remedy this? Assuming no other options for me to try, I'm considering asking for store credit and trying one of their X models (when back in stock) or a refund to move to another maker.

 

[snoobler]

Defective unit.

 

[Midlife Cabin]

Last night, the 120V section of my Yeti 1400 switched off in exactly the same way as described by Itsuo above. 12V and USB sections work normally. Screen is on. Battery read out is at 30% and yet the 120V section is out of commission. It's a nice sunny day this morning and I'm waiting to see what happens when the battery charges back up a bit.

Update: within 15 minutes of solar charging, the 120V section turned back on, good as new.

I've had this unit for 18 months, but haven't come anywhere near the 500 cycles listed in the specs. My use is limited to charging phones, computers, and running 8watt lightbulbs. The occasional spin of the circular saw and vacuum, but that's it. I've had this unit working up and down the charge capacity, from 100% to 0%. No problems.

I hope I am not in for the same experience as described above. I'd be curious to know if GZ customer service is quick to offer a replacement or if you have to fight them on it. Please advise.

 

[Itsuo]

Last night, the 120V section of my Yeti 1400 switched off in exactly the same way as described by Itsuo above. 12V and USB sections work normally. Screen is on. Battery read out is at 30% and yet the 120V section is out of commission. It's a nice sunny day this morning and I'm waiting to see what happens when the battery charges back up a bit.

Update: within 15 minutes of solar charging, the 120V section turned back on, good as new.

I've had this unit for 18 months, but haven't come anywhere near the 500 cycles listed in the specs. My use is limited to charging phones, computers, and running 8watt lightbulbs. The occasional spin of the circular saw and vacuum, but that's it. I've had this unit working up and down the charge capacity, from 100% to 0%. No problems.

I hope I am not in for the same experience as described above. I'd be curious to know if GZ customer service is quick to offer a replacement or if you have to fight them on it. Please advise.

I appreciate your comment! At least I know I’m not completely crazy. I tried everything they suggested I do–while always watching the calendar ? for the warranty.

At first when none of the remedies they suggested worked on the original unit, I sent it back and they sent me another (open-box) unit. Was working well at first but then I had the same problems, but seemingly worse. I tried all the same reset/disconnect battery tricks. They helped for a cycle or two but it would go back to the same issue. So earlier this month I went back to them (within a year of the original open-box purchase) and asked to return it for credit towards a newer model.

To their credit, they didn’t even hesitate. They provided me a box to send my unit back to them (again) and then offered me a full credit on my original purchase. I’m planning to try again with either a 1500x or maybe 3000x. Hopefully this time works out better....

 

[Itsuo]

Providing another update for those interested parties.

BLUF: Goal Zero customer service is very good; however, I still can't find a unit that is made to reliably handle my use case.

After returning my second Yeti 1400 (refurbished) under warranty, GZ offered me store credit toward another unit. I contemplated getting a 1500X, 3000 (refurbished), or 3000X. In the end I went with the Yeti 3000 (refurbished) and it worked excellent from the spring until very recently. Based on the operating environment between the 250W of solar I had it hooked to and the continuous load it was really working perfectly.

The good news is it wasn't the same problem. I can't say what it might be related to but I will say I had recently updated the firmware(?) through the GZ App. All of a sudden one morning--shortly after the update--I started hearing a buzzing sound coming from my closet. Turns out some type of alarm was going off within the unit. I was able to stop it by soft restarting but as soon as I applied a charge to the unit via PWM or MPPT it would start again.

So eventually I went back to Goal Zero who was very responsive and suggested I check to make sure it wasn't an alarm in the MPPT (it wasn't), then they suggested I send it back(!). It's one thing to send back the 1400 but the 3000 is honestly a bear of a device! (Close to 80lbs!) I tried to do a hard reset by disconnecting the terminals from the battery but that didn't fix it--and it was nearly impossible to reconnect the information screen cable since it was tucked between the battery and enclosure.

Luckily this time I have a 500x as a back up that's been working well as long as the sun is out daily.

I did ask GZ if receiving credit for this unit, to apply against a newer X model, was an option and they agreed but only the amount that I paid for the 3000 (which was less than half of the price based on the previous credit I had). So I'll try a second Yeti 3000 and see how it all works out!