May have been a bad batch of components/ PCBs. Remember the flood of failing motherboards (and other electronics) due to knock off capacitors back in the early 2000s?
Capacitor plague - Wikipedia
Stay away from SolarEdge inverter
- Thread starter lettcco
- Start date
May have been a bad batch of components/ PCBs. Remember the flood of failing motherboards (and other electronics) due to knock off capacitors back in the early 2000s?
Capacitor plague - Wikipedia
darhall993
Member
I had a 7600HD with screen swapped out under warranty after only 2 months, but now running a 11400HD without a screen, I’m having another 3kW of panels added next week for a New total of 13.8KW
JPP
Active Member
FWIW I have a vintage 2013 SolarCity (now Tesla) 16 kW system with 4 SolarCity 3800 inverters. I have a Power Purchase Agreement (sort of a 20 year lease) with SC/Tesla, where I get an agreed amount of power at an agreed price per kWh. if the system underperforms and I need to buy power, then pay me, and if it overproduces, I have to pay them. And 3 years ago 1 of my inverters died. i did not even know (or care) but eventually Tesla figured it out and sent someone out to troubleshoot. new inverter ordered and delivered. All good.
I think you're right. The tech told me "known hardware failure." They released a smaller model that took up less room, but they didn't account for how the components would operate in a smaller, more poorly ventilated space, and they burn up...
I would also add to the stay away from Solar Edge. They do not care much about end users. It’s all about sales for them. Everything has to run thru the installer and we have all learned that Tesla is way under staffed.
Hi,
I am having my 8.16 kW PV and 2 PW's getting installed on Tue (Sep. 1st). According to the plans, i am getting a SE7600H-US Inverter. I do not see it listed on the pricelist that was linked. I vaguely remember that it was about $300 for the extension when I looked a while back, but do not see it on the price list anymore.
Regards,
GHTech
holeydonut
Supporting Member
That sheet is weird; it only shows the "part number" for the warranty itself, not the part numbers for the equipment being covered. Assuming you're in North America and you don't have a revenue grade meter (RGM) you'll probably want either of the following.
WE-HD1L-20-NA or
WE-HD1L-25-NA
The SolarEdge website (Inverter Warranty Extension | SolarEdge US) should walk you through it depending on what serial number you enter.
Thanks for the info. For $214 I will take the extra 13 years. I will confirm after tomorrow.
I think the reason people are experiencing issues with the SolarEdge inverter is due to improper inverter selection by the Tesla design people.
I’m having an 11.56Kw system designed. Tesla originally spec’ed the SE7600 inverter. When I questioned them about this selection they informed me that they can overdrive the inverter by 150%. Upon checking with SolarEdge, I discovered that this is not entirely accurate. The SE7600 inverter can output 7600 watts. While it can accept an input of up to 150% greater than that at its input, the inverter will never output more than 7600 watts. The “excess” power (the difference between the 11,560 watts input (assuming ideal panel production) minus 7600 watt output of the inverter, or 3,960 watts) will become heat that the inverter has to absorb. SolarEdge said that amount of heat from the inverter will reduce its reliability.
I thus went back to Tesla and they reviewed the design and changed the inverter to the SE1000, and ion a third review, ultimately to the SE11400.
However, Tesla made a second design error. The SE11400 inverter has 3 string inputs. Each string input can accept up to a maximum of 6000 watts at each string input. My design will employ 340 watt panels, which means that each string input on the inverter can have a maximum of 17 panels (340 watts/panel times 17 panels equals 5,780 watts). Tesla’s design drawings showed string input1 having 23 panels, string input2 having 11 panels, and string input3 not being used. String input1 would be taxed and likely fail over time. I thus requested that the design team review the plans once more and limit string input1 to 11 panels and use string input3 for 12 panels. This way, none of string input1 to string input3 will be operating beyond the inverters design limits of 6000 watts per input.
if you are experiencing repeated inverter failures, I would suggest trying to determine whether the inverter is too small for the application or if more panels than permitted are connected to the string input on the inverter. I believe (but you should double check) that the SE7600 inverter has two string inputs, with each string input being limited to 6,000 watts. The smaller inverters are limited to even less than the 6,000 wattage on their string inputs.
I’m having an 11.56Kw system designed. Tesla originally spec’ed the SE7600 inverter. When I questioned them about this selection they informed me that they can overdrive the inverter by 150%. Upon checking with SolarEdge, I discovered that this is not entirely accurate. The SE7600 inverter can output 7600 watts. While it can accept an input of up to 150% greater than that at its input, the inverter will never output more than 7600 watts. The “excess” power (the difference between the 11,560 watts input (assuming ideal panel production) minus 7600 watt output of the inverter, or 3,960 watts) will become heat that the inverter has to absorb. SolarEdge said that amount of heat from the inverter will reduce its reliability.
I thus went back to Tesla and they reviewed the design and changed the inverter to the SE1000, and ion a third review, ultimately to the SE11400.
However, Tesla made a second design error. The SE11400 inverter has 3 string inputs. Each string input can accept up to a maximum of 6000 watts at each string input. My design will employ 340 watt panels, which means that each string input on the inverter can have a maximum of 17 panels (340 watts/panel times 17 panels equals 5,780 watts). Tesla’s design drawings showed string input1 having 23 panels, string input2 having 11 panels, and string input3 not being used. String input1 would be taxed and likely fail over time. I thus requested that the design team review the plans once more and limit string input1 to 11 panels and use string input3 for 12 panels. This way, none of string input1 to string input3 will be operating beyond the inverters design limits of 6000 watts per input.
if you are experiencing repeated inverter failures, I would suggest trying to determine whether the inverter is too small for the application or if more panels than permitted are connected to the string input on the inverter. I believe (but you should double check) that the SE7600 inverter has two string inputs, with each string input being limited to 6,000 watts. The smaller inverters are limited to even less than the 6,000 wattage on their string inputs.
nwdiver
Well-Known Member
.... that is ~1000% not true.
When the inverter is 'saturated' at its capacity it simply increases the input voltage and current from the panels decreases. The 'heat' is dissipated by the panels not the inverter. This harms nothing. It's no different than if you put a solar panel out in the sun connected to nothing. There is nothing wrong with over-paneling an inverter.
You don’t have to agree with me. It’s nothing off my back. I just request that you call SolarEdge’s toll free number and select the option to speak to tech support and then report here what they tell you. I’m can only report what the tech support person I spoke to told me, including his telling me that inputting 11.56KW into their inverter designed to output 7.6KW will experience reduced reliability and that the inverter used should upsized.
What the tech is referring to is the impact of running the inverter at peak power longer (the inverter is never overdriven).The drawbacks are increased thermal output and reduced longevity. The oversizing limit is tied to the warranty, not capability.
Here is the app note from Solar Edge.
https://www.solaredge.com/sites/default/files/inverter_dc_oversizing_guide.pdf
Why they can't be overdriven: solar panels don't input power, the inverter draws power from them.
A 12V car battery can source upwards of 12kW, however you can connect it to a 5W parking lamp without damage. Why? Because the available power has nothing to do with the current the circuit actually uses.
You could connect an infinitely powerful supply to an inverter snd as long as the voltage does not exceed the ratings, it will be fine.
Does anyone know if it’s ok if powerwalls completely discharge while waiting for a new inverter? They’re sitting at 13% right now but will surely discharge completely within the next few weeks.
nwdiver
Well-Known Member
.... I'm not 'disagreeing' with you. I'm explaining how you're incorrect and preventing you from spreading misinformation. Think about it; You think an inverter oversized by 3kW is dissipating 3kW of heat? A space heater is half of that.
I don't have to call SolarEdge. I can look at the inverter I installed and see that when it hits its 11.4kW AC output limit it takes less of the available energy from the panels. That's why you can see the red line (voltage) rise as the inverter gets saturated.
Sure, an inverter connected to 15kW and producing 24MWh/yr probably won't last as long on average as the same inverter connected to 12kW and producing 19MWh/yr in the same way a car driven 24k miles/yr won't last as long as one driven 19k miles/yr..... but you're getting more production/$ out of it. And ambient temperature probably plays a larger role in lifespan than how many kW of panels are connected to it...
Also; This is 23kW of panels on 15kW of inverter. If the inverters were dissipating >7kW of heat I would have noticed the melting.
Nothing wrong with over-paneling inverters. You get more kWh for your buck.
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