solaredge products..... UNRELIABLE

[paris401]

what i see on the psegli site is that prior to april 11th when the tech came out , my net usage was on the negative side of the graph... since i'm on the other side...the prior day to the tech coming out it shows net usage as -38... yesterday a similar weather day, it shows a net usage of -8.... sat a crumby day in ny it shows a usage of +9
so from my limited (very limited) knowledge, apparently the solaredge reporting is correct..

is it the inverter crapping out on 1/2 the panels, of something else???

[oregon_phil]

Reading through the thread, I don't believe you said exactly what SE inverter you now have, quantity of each type of optimizer and if you know the string layout (one long string, two stings, etc.)

[paris401]

hey - here is the info off the site
se10000h us000b3u4

i looked further info panels that are producing, producing very little, and no production - here is what is online

panel - produced today 943kw
current (a) 5.63
opt voltage 27.62
power 298.46
voltage 53

panel produced 12.23 wh today
current a 0.04
opt voltage 1
power 2.28
voltage 60.88

panel producing 'zero'
current a 0
opt voltage 1
power 0
voltage 61.5

what any of this means, i don't have a clue- the service people are coming out on april 24, so losing 1/2 my power till then...

[J.P.M.]

what i see on the psegli site is that prior to april 11th when the tech came out , my net usage was on the negative side of the graph... since i'm on the other side...the prior day to the tech coming out it shows net usage as -38... yesterday a similar weather day, it shows a net usage of -8.... sat a crumby day in ny it shows a usage of +9
so from my limited (very limited) knowledge, apparently the solaredge reporting is correct..

is it the inverter crapping out on 1/2 the panels, of something else???

I'm still wondering if your problem might be the reporting system you haveas well as maybe some bad system components or wiring. That is, your monitoring system is malfunctioning.

That's why I suggested you see what your POCO thinks they've sent you and what they think you've sent them as f(time) so you can use that info to perhaps glean some insights as to how what they think and how it compares to what your monitoring system thinks the system is producing and then telling you.

Given that you have SolarEdge equipment, I'd be suspect that the optimizers or the monitoring or the assembly/wiring is not working as it should.
I'm simply suggesting that some detective work comparing what your system is telling you and what your POCO is telling you might be informative or provide some clues or insights.

[paris401]

many thanks , and always appr your comments/insight's - i got my weekly report last nite from the power co, and there is no doubt that the solar system is funky... it shows that every day, i am using a few kwh ... at this time of the year with sunny weather, i def should be banking power... as u mentioned , i think it mite be some wiring problem, as the panels not producing are on the same side of the array of panels... the other side (14panels) seem to be fine... it is just strange that they come out to fix one non-producing panel, and once they leave 1/2 of em stop working...

[Mike 134]

many thanks , and always appr your comments/insight's - i got my weekly report last nite from the power co, and there is no doubt that the solar system is funky... it shows that every day, i am using a few kwh ... at this time of the year with sunny weather, i def should be banking power... as u mentioned , i think it mite be some wiring problem, as the panels not producing are on the same side of the array of panels... the other side (14panels) seem to be fine... it is just strange that they come out to fix one non-producing panel, and once they leave 1/2 of em stop working...

They are wired like old time Xmas lights in series. One bad connection the entire string goes down. SolarEdge inverters have 2 inputs for 2 strings which is why the other half still works.

[paris401]

thanks... makes sense, tho a few on that string are producing very,very little power...i guess i'll find out next wed...

[oregon_phil]

I have thoughts for you to review, but I don't own a SE system so take it with a grain of salt.

1) What optimizers did your installer use for your Sunpower 335 watt panels? I am guessing you have X21-335 Sunpower solar panels (Voc=67.9, Vmpp=57.3, Imp= 5.85amps). Your installer should have used P400 optimizers since Voc is greater than 60 Vdc and less than 80 Vdc.

2) What optimizers is your installer going to use to replace your bad optimizers? This is important. If they replace the optimizers with the proper P series optimizer, then no worries.

Otherwise, the attached SE power optimizer inter-compatibility technical note says a P400 optimizer can be replaced with S400 or S500 only IF Voc is less than 60Vdc. If Voc is greater than 60V, then contact customer support. You have panels with Voc greater than 60V. SolarEdge support needs to weigh in on how to replace optimizers for your system. Of course, this assumes the original optimizers are P400. If for some odd ball reason you have P485 or P505's, then the compatibility table can be used as is without restrictions.

3) After your installer finishes optimizer replacement, I would make them prove each panel is producing power by showing you each and every panel's power output. Also I would document what optimizers are replaced and where by using their app, photos, anything to document time, date and location of replacement.

[paris401]

thanks for the info.. i did speak to solaredge yesterday ref the problems... 1st the new inverter i have they said is 'new' not refurbished or used, tho they could not tell me the manufactured date. as to the opt's, she did not know which ones are installed, tho she like u said i should ask, and get everything they are doing in writing.... so i guess i will make the 3hr trek out to the house on tues, to be there on wed for the installers...

[oregon_phil]

From what I can tell looking at SolarEdge info on line, your installer should be able to log into SE monitoring platform and look at your system and the inverter serial number, physical & logical string layout, and optimizer type/serial number. I don't see why you couldn't ask your installer for this before your meeting next wednesday.

Maybe somebody with SE installer privileges can weigh in on this discussion. It seems odd that SE can't see the components of your system since the info is on SolarEdge's cloud.

[Mike 134]

From what I can tell looking at SolarEdge info on line, your installer should be able to log into SE monitoring platform and look at your system and the inverter serial number, physical & logical string layout, and optimizer type/serial number. I don't see why you couldn't ask your installer for this before your meeting next wednesday.

Maybe somebody with SE installer privileges can weigh in on this discussion. It seems odd that SE can't see the components of your system since the info is on SolarEdge's cloud.

I have installer privileges and yes, I can see the inverter serial #, model number of the inverters, what each panel/inverter is producing power wise, from my desktop PC. What the layout actually is depends on the quality of your install, I was careful to be sure I knew exactly where each optimizer was located on each string. I could have just as easily just tossed them up onto the roof, randomly wired them in series and it still would have worked.

[paris401]

hey... 1st off thanks for all the comments- the installers came out yesterday and confirmed it was a loose wire, and i am up and running on all cylinders .... at least for now.. so far today at 5pm i've produced 59.72, so we should have a 60+ day... not bad, gotta start banking for them july and aug days when 14tons of ac is on...

[DanS26]

Glad your installers found the problem. Just be aware the the NEC requires all connections to performed in a way that makes "loose" connections a very rare thing. If one "loose" connection is found in your install, then I would suspect that many more may lie in wait. Every connection needs to be torqued to proper specifications. Most DIY and fly by night installers have no idea how to properly torque a connection.

For what its worth.....just be prepared for the future......

[Mike 134]

Glad your installers found the problem. Just be aware the the NEC requires all connections to performed in a way that makes "loose" connections a very rare thing. If one "loose" connection is found in your install, then I would suspect that many more may lie in wait. Every connection needs to be torqued to proper specifications. Most DIY and fly by night installers have no idea how to properly torque a connection.

For what its worth.....just be prepared for the future......

Just an FYI on a Solar Edge system there are no electrical connections on the roof that would need to be torqued. I suspect on the previous visit somebody didn't makeup one of the MC4 connectors. No need to cause the OP needless worry from your armchair vantage point.

Just my 2 cents

[DanS26]

The OP said in his first post that he has has multiple problems with this install.
MC4 connections do have to be properly seated and joined and away from drip points.....lots of things can happen on the roof.

I think if the OP sees another connection problem, the the entire install and every connection needs proper review.