Inverter reset when power goes out

[Merrill]

So we have just had our first power outage and I have a question about the solar inverter reset. When it first went out we had solar going to both the Powerwalls and house, not sure how long after that the inverters shut off and we lost solar output. In about 5 to 10 minutes they came back on, just wondering if this is normal.

 

[jjrandorin]

yes

 

[Merrill]

Update, as soon as the inverters came back on they went off and did not come back until Power was restored, anyone know want is happening.

 

[wjgjr]

How full were the PWs? The inverters will shut down if there is nowhere for the energy to go (home load less than solar and PWs nearly full.) If the PWs were nearly full, this sounds like normal behavior. If not, maybe there is something else going on.

 

[Ampster]

just wondering if this is normal.

Yes it depends on what mode your Powerwalls were in. If you were drawing from them when the power went out most likely you would not have seen that ten minute delay.
What part of Sonoma are you in? We are in Boyes and have power here.

 

[Merrill]

How full were the PWs? The inverters will shut down if there is nowhere for the energy to go (home load less than solar and PWs nearly full.) If the PWs were nearly full, this sounds like normal behavior. If not, maybe there is something else going on.

The Powerwalls were at 93% when the outage occurred and that is when the inverters were working, once the Powerwalls got to 98% that is when the inverters shut off again.

 

[Merrill]

Yes it depends on what mode your Powerwalls were in. If you were drawing from them when the power went out most likely you would not have seen that ten minute delay.
What part of Sonoma are you in? We are in Boyes and have power here.

The Powerwalls are timed based and only come on from 4pm to 9pm, so not drawing from them, I’m on the east side up Gehricke Road. Power is back on.

 

[Ampster]

I misunderstood that it was the GT inverters that went off line but now understand the Powerwall powered the home.

 

[jhn_]

The Powerwalls were at 93% when the outage occurred and that is when the inverters were working, once the Powerwalls got to 98% that is when the inverters shut off again.

Yup, that’s exactly working as it should. Once the powerwalls get close to full they signal the inverter to shut down since there would be no place for excess power to go with the grid out. And the inverter shuts off before the powerwalls are at 100% for a buffer to make sure they don’t have too much power with no where to go when tipping off the batteries.

 

[Merrill]

Yup, that’s exactly working as it should. Once the powerwalls get close to full they signal the inverter to shut down since there would be no place for excess power to go with the grid out. And the inverter shuts off before the powerwalls are at 100% for a buffer to make sure they don’t have too much power with no where to go when tipping off the batteries.

Thanks so much, this was my first experience of a power outage with Powerwalls installed so I learned something today.

 

[gpez]

Thanks so much, this was my first experience of a power outage with Powerwalls installed so I learned something today.

@Merrill depending on your inverters you can likely configure them to scale down production (instead of just see-sawing on and off) as the Powerwall gets full using the inverters "curtailment" feature. This requires understanding how your Powerwall is configured (maximum frequency) and adjusting the inverter settings accordingly.

My IQ6 inverters are configured to start power reduction at 60.2hz and reduce their output 83% per hz after, which means at 61.4hz they will shut down. My Powerwall is configured to a maximum frequency of 62.0hz when it is full (96%+) and then will lower the frequency gradually as it depletes, allowing the solar to increase and decrease as the Powerwall charge changes during an outage.

https://www.solar-electric.com/lib/wind-sun/IQ6_IQ6Plus_Manual.pdf page 34 "frequency-watt".

 

[Merrill]

@Merrill depending on your inverters you can likely configure them to scale down production (instead of just see-sawing on and off) as the Powerwall gets full using the inverters "curtailment" feature. This requires understanding how your Powerwall is configured (maximum frequency) and adjusting the inverter settings accordingly.

My IQ6 inverters are configured to start power reduction at 60.2hz and reduce their output 83% per hz after, which means at 61.4hz they will shut down. My Powerwall is configured to a maximum frequency of 62.0hz when it is full (96%+) and then will lower the frequency gradually as it depletes, allowing the solar to increase and decrease as the Powerwall charge changes during an outage.

https://www.solar-electric.com/lib/wind-sun/IQ6_IQ6Plus_Manual.pdf page 34 "frequency-watt".

Thanks for the info, now that I understand what happened it makes sense. Never thought about with the grid down and Powerwalls almost full the there would be no where the solar could go so they have to shut down. Looking at how the inverters reacted it makes total sense.