EG4 18kPV Hybrid Inverter | Load Test

[@AdamDeLay07]

It looks like the surge time in the video doesn't match the spec listed in the manual. The manual states that the Surge Power (W) for the inverter is 14,000W (10 min.), 16,000W (5 min) and yet going by Mason's numbers, the load was approx 14.8kW and it only ran for around 2 min before tripping.

[@Le_Comte_de_Monte_Felin]

Thank you for this video. The 18k inverter is what I'm aiming for. C'mon - now we need lots of battery racks on sale!

[@zmarko]

You guys have seemingly built an amazing unit there, and it's what I will be going with if I can ever find the right property.

[@millsan01]

I've got mine semi installed and it carried my 40 amp EV charger as well as my normal home load, no other heavy draw items besides EV, but it carried.

[@andyh8239]

I've neen saying this for years. These systems should be able to define an EV as a battery, with user definable rules relating to SoC / in/out flow.

[@lunatik9696]

As I understand it, the real advantage of this unit over 2 - 6548s is it can send energy to the grid. This unit is $5600 while 2 6548s are around $3000. An additional benefit which is more important if it is mounted close by is the quietness. The software is much better. It has more solar panel capacity, slightly less power output, but close enough. 6548s are off grid only and can not send energy to the grid.

[@VinceBadovinatz88]

Also idle consumption much lower 70watts versus two of the other ones at 105w each

[@Mike-01234]

Big thread over on DIY solar power forum started on Aug 5th Guy said he had lot of problems with trying to grid-tie and not back feed. In the Solar equipment review. It's worth reading before you make a purchase. The way I read it was the OP wanted desperately to make it work then got really frustrated because they couldn't make it work over the phone through email. It will be interesting to see how it worked out for him if he was able to get a replacement working the way he wanted. SS did in RMA the unit and even offered to pay any fines from his Utility for back feeding without a contract. I've never heard of it only a letter they send telling you if you keep doing it, they can disconnect your power.

[@hollywoodj500]

That b!tch still too expensive. It should have been $4,600.00

[@Boogle912]

@@Mike-01234which unit you talking about Mike. You said the guy and it. It being which manufacturer and model?

[@powerguymark]

​@@Mike-01234I sure wish I would have read your comment when I saw this video before I purchased my 18 kpv. I have a 4 ton heat pump. I had already installed a top-of-the-line Microair easy start on it a year ago so that I can run it with a Firman dual fuel portable generator. The Microaif soft start brought the inrush current down from 120 amps to around 30 amps. STILL: the voltage on the 18kpv would collapse at startup causing my lights to flicker and the control board for the HVAC compressor to shut off the compressor entirely leaving the internal air handler blower fan running continuously circulating hot air through the house. Just to be absolutely certain that my soft start was not the problem. I contacted Signature Solar and purchased what they said was the same soft start used in this video. IT BURNT UP IN LESS THAN A WEEK. I had to hire an HVAC company on memorial Day weekend to come out and reconnect my old soft start that thankfully was still bolted to the wall of my house. Although both EG4 and Signature Solar have been aware of this problem for over a year, they still sent me a replacement unit. UNFORTUNATELY, Signature Solar, apparently sent me a unit that had already been returned because it had damage inside the box with no visible damage to the outside of the box. So I waited another week for them to swap that one out with an undamaged unit, then spent even more money with my electrician to swap it out. THE NEW UNIT BEHAVED IN THE SAME MANNER. As soon as the HVAC compressor came on my lights would flicker and the overcurrent protection on the HVAC control board would shut off the compressor, leaving the interior air handler running indefinitely as if the unit was still running. In May of this year, a full month after I tried to commission my unit, a higher up tech support person at EG4 did a software update, the got the unit to run without collapsing the voltage, but it is obvious that the original 18 kpv will not handle anywhere near the inrush current they claim AND THEY WERE AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM for at least a year. I'm still afraid to leave my main disconnect open isolating my system from the grid because I fear it's putting stress on the unit and May shorten its life. This is disturbing because I bought this unit specifically for the intent of providing power in a grid down of event. I SPENT MANY HOURS AND MANY DOLLARS TRYING TO CORRECT THIS PROBLEM INCLUDING A BURNT UP SOFT START AND NEITHER EG4 OR SIGNATURE SOLAR HAVE OFFERED ANY REIMBURSEMENT WHATSOEVER. Also off-grid mode seems to successfully stop power from being exported IT DOES NOT STOP POWER FROM BEING IMPORTED COMPLETELY. Although it seems to be functioning I HONESTLY WISH I WOULD HAVE BOUGHT A SOLARK, because I don't know if I can depend on this to work properly without feeling during a grid down event when I need to depend on it the most.

[@JimLarsen108]

Seems your test did not match the specs when it shut off so quickly. With PV: 14.7kW (10 min), 15.5kW (5 min) Without PV: 13.5kW (10 min)

[@doyster4]

good test, two thumbs up for the transparency

[@tyrice24earl]

Can you walk the camera over all wires and behind the wall, so I can make sure it's not other plugs back there.

[@SignatureSolar]

Thanks for the feedback! This is an old video, but we appreciate the suggestion for future ones and will pass this along to our filming crew!

[@Scat.original]

What was the power source? Grid or Battery? If battery only then how many batteries?

[@ap6553]

Exactly, disappointing they didn't mention that important fact. That being said I think we can assume that was grid connected.

[@zwei176]

Incredible demonstration

[@mwreyf1]

On the portion where you showed starting the AC unit (outside condensor), did you factor in the evaporator coil/Air handler which is also running on 40/50amp breaker?

[@doinkeroni]

Great vIdeo! Question that i cannot find the answer to: If this is connected to grid, will it still shut down above 15kw or will it just stay below the max inverter current and allow the remainder to come through the grid via the 200a bypass?

[@SignatureSolar]

If solely relying on renewables like solar and battery power, the system will deactivate. However, if connected to the grid, it can accommodate up to 200 amps through bypass mode. Yet, in bypass mode, it bypasses all renewable energy components and directly powers the load center without utilizing renewables.

[@VinceBadovinatz88]

Oh how I wish I could have one. I've got to save quite a long time before I can get one.

[@extendedp1]

Impressive test set up. Watching the video I was thinking, “ok, if I buy a solar system I am going with Signature”, but after reading the comments section I am a bit disappointed that Signature isn’t interacting with future/current customers on their own video, tbh. Also, I wish the video mentioned the test parameters, such as was this run on a battery? I hope so, and which one? Was there any solar input? Thanks for the video.

[@SignatureSolar]

We hope we are interacting enough! This is an older video and the comments we’re added long before our online engagement specialist started, but today, we have a lot of engagement on our videos :)

[@SignatureSolar]

If you’d like to reach out to us directly at [e-mail], we can reach out to the department and see if we can get the information you’re requesting about the video!

[@Jim-cr5td]

I will be doing an AC coupled system with the 18K. Very nice load test. Thank you,

[@SignatureSolar]

All the best with your project!

[@jamrockrobby5219]

Could someone please explain the grid interactive features of this inverter. Can i use 12 k from the inverter and get the balance from the grid

[@diySolarPowerFunWithRay]

Thank you for showing this. It doesn't look like this unit's going to do much more than the solar Arc 15K. With a sol-ark 15K you have to be careful that the loads are balanced on each side. (Super annoying). It looks like that's what you were doing with this test... Making sure each leg was balanced carefully. Do you know what the inrush current is to start the air conditioner? Could the air conditioner start up if there was no power on other leg? That's the test I'm really interested in. I may buy two of these if it can handle that.

[@niktak1114]

The 15k can also do ~8kW on a single leg like this unit

[@RJ-cc1fz]

He was using a soft start for the airconditioner. It was a full load test so I understand him keeping the legs balanced. I would also like to see the legs out of balance and see how far out of balance it can go when running other big loads

[@niktak1114]

@@RJ-cc1fz The spec sheet says 8kW on one leg

[@jeffmiller2806]

@@iancameron6257 64Amp+60Amp x120v I think is how the formula goes. That comes to 14,880Watts

[@shaiw5225]

@@iancameron6257 each of those readings is on a 120 leg. 124amps At 120v is 14,880 watts

[@afuqua]

I thought the surge rating for this unit was supposed to be 16 Kw for up to 5 mins? According to my math (64A + 60A) * 120V = 14.88 Kw. What am I missing?

[@nitedial13]

I think the surge time may be based on standard test conditions. Perhaps at 25 degrees Celsius. Warmer room temperature may cause the inverter to shutdown sooner. Maybe I am wrong. For the longevity of such an investment I wouldn’t want to bring my loads to that level for even a minute because that’s pushing it to the limit. That’s my personal thought.

[@cgutowski471]

Did the compressor on that 4ton AC actually kick on? If so what type of soft start do you have on it?

[@charlesball6519]

You must have had your volume turned down. I heard the compressor turn on.

[@SpencerLAPower]

I use a Micro Air easy start on mine works great mine is the four ton also

[@jamesshowalter6362]

we carry sure start, I think it is the best value and have used them for 8 years

[@pdavis2207]

The lights came back on right before the video ended. So it looks like it automatically reset. I asume that is configurable?

[@SpencerLAPower]

I told you it could do it but glad you make the video to prove it

[@CRsolar]

Just curious is this on the California energy Commission, if so what brand name. Seems like another version of many inverters we are seeing. as your in Texas you should know if we can install it on the oncors grid and get an interconnection agreement. I asked this before and cant seem to get a answer.

[@CRsolar]

Also curious on the eg 4 batreries. Does oncor allow, if want an interconnection.. seems you may even have oncor up that way, near dallas??

[@mrcooleh]

Good test.

[@macbeliever]

If grid tied, will the grid assist when exceeding 12kw on the output? If so what is the limit?

[@SignatureSolar]

Yes but only with certain configurations

[@macbeliever]

@@SignatureSolar I’m assuming the configuration you’re talking about is with grid conductors fed directly from the utility meter to the inverter with a fused AC disconnect in between, and then inverter AC output feeding the load center?

[@jamaeldudley9869]

I wanted to see magic smoke!

[@AirmanJH]

Would this shut down if it was fed by a 200A utility service?

[@SignatureSolar]

Yes, 18k can bypass 200A

[@3er328]

Sorry but people don’t run appliances in that order, beginning of video, A/C is most likely already on but maybe not running, next laundry gets started, maybe someone in the bathroom drying their hair, A/C happens to kick on and you use the microwave to reheat your coffee and all this takes place in about 15 minutes, my point is, when I tested my generator to see how much of my house I could run, I turned on all my lights, W&D not an issue, then my A/C, gen dropped a hair but recovered quickly but then hit the 1100 w microwave big drop, thought I was going to kill my generator but it actually recovered, for the most part, I found I need to turn off the A/C if I need to use the microwave, my generator is 8750w load 8250 running, I’m looking to buy this system in January with the 2 batteries but thought I’d just throw out a comparison.

[@3er328]

@@RubenKian California, La county

[@davidchristensen1219]

I'd really like to see how this unit handles imbalanced loads - a real-world scenario for those that came from grid applications. I noticed you are diligently watching the multimeter to see how balanced the loads are. Here is a similar video using the Schneider XWPro kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y3bdZZaYqt5qf7M and comparing it to SolArk

[@stevenholmes9256]

This is not a whole home load if you have two adults and two teens, with the 4Ton test.

[@SignatureSolar]

Thank you for your feedback! This was just a test for the purposes of the video. We appreciate your input and will consider it for future improvements.

[@powerguymark]

​@@SignatureSolar​​@Mike-01234 I sure wish I would have some of the comments on this video BEFORE I purchased my 18KPV. I had already installed a top-of-the-line Microair easy start on my existing 4 Ton Heat pump a year ago so that I can run it with a Firman dual fuel portable generator. The Microair soft start brought the inrush current down from 120 amps to around 30 amps. STILL: the voltage on the 18kpv would collapse at startup causing my lights to flicker and the control board for the HVAC compressor to shut off the compressor entirely leaving the internal air handler blower fan running continuously circulating hot air through the house. Just to be absolutely certain that my soft start was not the problem. I contacted Signature Solar and purchased what they said was the same soft start used in this video. IT BURNT UP IN LESS THAN A WEEK. I had to hire an HVAC company on memorial Day weekend to come out and reconnect my old soft start that thankfully was still bolted to the wall of my house. Although both EG4 and Signature Solar have been aware of this problem for over a year, they still sent me a replacement unit. UNFORTUNATELY, Signature Solar, apparently sent me a unit that had already been returned because it had damage inside the box with no visible damage to the outside of the box. So I waited another week for them to swap that one out with an undamaged unit, then spent even more money with my electrician to swap it out. THE NEW UNIT BEHAVED IN THE SAME MANNER. As soon as the HVAC compressor came on my lights would flicker and the overcurrent protection on the HVAC control board would shut off the compressor, leaving the interior air handler running indefinitely as if the unit was still running. In May of this year, a full month after I tried to commission my unit, a higher up tech support person at EG4 did a software update, the got the unit to run without collapsing the voltage, but it is obvious that the original 18 kpv will not handle anywhere near the inrush current they claim AND THEY WERE AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM for at least a year. I'm still afraid to leave my main disconnect open isolating my system from the grid because I fear it's putting stress on the unit and May shorten its life. This is disturbing because I bought this unit specifically for the intent of providing power in a grid down of event. I SPENT MANY HOURS AND MANY DOLLARS TRYING TO CORRECT THIS PROBLEM INCLUDING A BURNT UP SOFT START AND NEITHER EG4 OR SIGNATURE SOLAR HAVE OFFERED ANY REIMBURSEMENT WHATSOEVER. Also off-grid mode seems to successfully stop power from being exported IT DOES NOT STOP POWER FROM BEING IMPORTED COMPLETELY. Although it seems to be functioning I HONESTLY WISH I WOULD HAVE BOUGHT A SOLARK, because I don't know if I can depend on this to work properly without feeling during a grid down event when I need to depend on it the most.

[@Scat.original]

camera on amp meters not focused?

[@thomasharrison899]

Running a high load for less than a minute isn't really convincing.