BigotedUncle

Ah... I see. I currently use 3 x Dyness B3 batteries (The dumb ones), in an actual server rack. (Connected to a SunSynk inverter) It's been a year and a half with no issues.
I also chose to go with multiple small batteries (3.6Kwh) instead of 1 big one (10Kwh). In case there is a failure i do not lose the whole battery. But there are many other options from Deye to Pylontech to Revov, Hubble  Sunsynk etc. But to be honest, the actual (High End brand names) batteries, i think, are not too far apart in quality. What usually sets these batteries apart is the after sales support.
To be on the safe side, i would pay a little bit extra and go for the known brands that are available and supported locally. E.g. SunSynk, Revov or Dyness, (but the smart ones with BMS monitoring and SW updating over wi-fi) . I do not know LUMO, so maybe it also has pedigree.
(P.S. I saw the Dyness B3s were only R13K on geewiz which is a steal). I paid R18k to 22k per battery  less than 2 years ago.
 

Thank you for the feedback
 

Hi, sorry I didnt clarify properly. It was the rackmount batteries in a standing rack of about 12. These Lumo batteries looked quite similar to the Deye rack mount batteries, they were side by side in the showroom. I dont really have photos for them unfortunately. I haven't been back to the showroom since then. From what I know, the Deye batteries were the LV Li-Ions 5.32KwH batteries (51.2V with 104Ah). I was told they are 'SE' Deye batteries. Other than that, I can make a trip back there sometime and just grab a pic and update you here.

Thank you for replying, I was wondering if you could use the alternator as a source of power to charge the battery while driving as an addition to the panels. So if I was driving at night, the alternator could slowly add some charge to the battery. It was just a thought I had, hadn't really done much research on it, my thinking was just to see if it can be done, even if only certain systems/inverters could actually use the power coming from an alternator. This is a very informative answer. Thanks again!

Hi there... I can't say i can answer you, but can you share what you mean by stack? You mean the ESS options by Deye, or do you mean the rackmount type batteries? Can you share links to, or an images of, the Lumo and Deye stack you saw?

I'm curious what the alternator would be doing in the system you're thinking of. E.g. Are you replacing the batteries? So instead of having a 12V battery feeding the inverter, you want to put an alternator?
Typically inverters state what power they can take in the INPUT, e.g. Petrol/diesel Generators, DC is usually batteries., Solar or Grid AC (Eskom), but in ALL cases, there are working parameters that the INPTUT source must meet (Hz, V min and max etc). I do not your an alternators specs, (how suitable or clean the power it produces is), to feed into an inverter, but i highly doubt a typical inverter can handle the power coming from al alternator effectively. 
Lastly, looking at the image below, it looks like it only wants AC or Solar in... The built in battery provides the DC voltage. So bot sure where you wanted to put the alternator?

hi everyone. new to the solar industry and like to learn as much as possible. currently gearing up to get a solar greencard.
so will be lurking and learning from you master craftsmen.

Still happy with the drop-in replacement batteries? 
 
 

Got tired of replacing Sealed Lead Acid batteries 
Decided to try Li-Fe on the trolley inverter with no lithium charging option.
The REVOV 12v battery is supposedly a drop in replacement for lead acidand has a built in BMS you can monitor via bluetooth
So far so good!
 Wish me, and the poor BMS luck🫣
 
 



 

Hi everyone, new user here. I bought the RCT MP-T2000S a few months back, but the manual is rather horrible and I was unable to get any decent info from RCT over the phone. I emailed RCT but am yet to get a reply, so I thought I would ask anyone here if they have any info about this inverter/battery unit.
The inverter comes with 2x12v Oliter 100Ah 12V valve regulated sealed gel batteries, and being gel batteries I know that sooner rather than later they will die so I want to plan ahead, and maybe replace them.
So here are the questions I have:
What is the open circuit voltage for panels? In the manual (page 19) it lists "MPPT Voltage Range of 30V-100VDC, does this mean the VOC (open circuit voltage) is at max 100VDC? The manual (page 15) has a battery protection table that seems to be based on a 12V battery (e.g: says over voltage protection kicks in when 16.8(volts i assume?) is reached), but the T2000 is a 24V battery setup, so this table (page15 in manual) must be wrong. Do you have the correct info for a 24V setup? The manual (page 9) has a table for the charge voltage. This has values like 54.8v which is clearly an incorrect voltage to charge a 24v battery. I haven’t touched this setting (as I don’t want to mess the battery up) but I want to know if you can manually input a voltage e.g: 25.4v or 25.5v etc or if there are presets only which can be selected. If there are only presets, what are they? How long do you recommend I run a De sulphation cycle for? And what voltage for a 24V battery? The manual says 4 hours at 58v (this must be incorrect for a 24v battery surely?). What is the charge current (amps) for ac charging? The manual says you can change the % of current but what is the % based on? (again I don’t want to go into the setting on my inverter because I might put the incorrect setting on). How many 12v 100ah batteries can I add to the inverter? (Keeping it in a 24v configuration). I heard it is 12 x the charge current of the inverter somewhere on the net (the manual doesn’t give the ac charge current). Can I use lithium ion or iron phosphate (LIFEPO4) batteries (with a built in BMS) in this inverter? I read with some inverters like the Mecer 1200VA 720W 12V Inverter, you can add Lithium batteries like the Hubble s100 with a build in BMS. With my unit, when load shedding/mains power is off, the display keeps saying the battery is at 100% until power comes on, then the % drops (to the correct % i think) e.g: 76% and goes up very quickly back to 100% (in like 2/5 mins) I don’t expect all these to get answered, but speaking with RCT on the phone today, the guy was pretty much clueless and couldn’t give me anything (hopefully they will reply to my email). So any help/ advice would be greatly appreciated.

I hope every are still going strong.  Just curious about 2 things.
1) Why did you put non essential loads on their own ATS. What are you switching Eskom with? A generator?
2) From what i see, your essential loads also use eskom first, not the inverter. Right? If so, I assumed hybrid inverters have their own "internal ATS" meaning they let eskom pass through, and only switch to inverter and battery output, when eskom is down. Or is your inverter different? I think switch to Eskom is 10ms wasted especially for sensitive equipment like fridges or other things with high inrush current at restart. Unless theses no inrush current? 😅

Yes it is correct that 1 phase can be at 6kW and the other 2 then share the other 6kW left. 

Hello, thanks to everyone who replied. It turns out my 48v Axpert King rack 5kw was one of the first released so its communication card could only talk with PYLONTECK stackable lithium. The newer models have a different communication board that can speak to any Lithium. So €108 later they have switch my communication board and it all worked. (For a short time I will post the update later 🤦‍♂️🤣) 

Not to say the cables are faulty, but the standard cables are different to that blue one. If you have tried swapping the ends around (what is in the battery goes to Inverter) and it is still not working, them maybe try order the original cables. They look like the black ones with the yellow tags. (From the battery manufacturer)
Also, check you battery DIP switch settings. (Again from battery manufacturer). Different for different batteries. And you set the Dip Switches while battery is OFF. They don't always catch the first time round, especially when system is on.
 
 

Well bms Comms appear to be working fine. Try a cold restart on inverter and batteries and see if that triggers any charging up to 100% SoC

Fan noise can be a problem, depending upon where your inverter is placed.  In my case, it is in a utility space which happens to be near my wife's study.

We recently took over a friend's 5kw Mecer inverter to replace our older 3kw Mecer inverter.  My wife has hearing similar to a dog (please don't let her read this!) and she was bothered by a high pitched whine from the inverter fans. I experimented with lower charge rates which helped to some degree, but the whine was still there.
This morning I took out the inverter and removed the 2 fans.  I cleaned them, and then removed the sticker in the middle of each fan.  I put 3 or 4 drops of sewing machine oil in each bearing, and then spun each fan using a hair dryer to let the oil work itself in.  I stuck back the stickers, refitted the fans and put the inverter back.

It really has made a big difference, and there is once more peace in the home (In more than 1 way!)

Im going to order new 80mm x 80mm ball bearing fans with a 4 pins lead to replace these, but this was worth posting in case it helps others.