wolfandy

I would probably go back to the very beginning and start from scratch (even though it will probably be a bit painful): Switch all inverters off Disconnect/isolate loads, AC, PV and battery inputs from inverters Disconnect USB cable Power down Pi At that point, your system should be completely dead. Then Ensure that parallel cables are correct for all 3 inverters Connect/switch on battery input to all inverters (if your Kings are similar to my old model, then the inverters should go into standby). Do not reconnect PV, AC, or loads Switch on all inverters (they should now synch their parallel state and assign 1 Master and 2 Slaves - maybe check on the individual displays) Connect USB cable to Master and Pi Power up Pi, start ICC, and check if the problem still persists

Yeah, I know that problem. I have the same challenge at night... There is a line of code somewhere here in the forum that you can use to send an inverter into standby (and reduce self-consumption) and wake it up again - but it only works on Coulomb's patched firmware. And that requirement together with running the patched firmware is such a small target group that this is not anywhere near the top of Manie's list of feature requests (for which I can't blame him) If you are without PV production for a longer period of time because your panels are covered with snow, then I can fully understand. For my older Axperts, self-consumption is only around 40W. And I get PV production virtually every day, so for me it is only the time between sunset and sunrise and hence not that much kWh

Thanks I have to admit that I do not fully understand why you switch your inverters on/off. My 2 are running 24/7 - even though I hardly ever draw more than the 4kW that 1 can provide. The inverters will always share the total load, which means that each will have to work less hard than running a single one But your system does sound quite specific, so maybe you do have a specific reason for doing so I would just drop him a mail on Monday. My experience is that he still replies quite quickly

Thanks Does this mean that you physically switch the inverters on/off during the day? Ok - my experience is only with 2 in parallel... Have you dropped Manie an email and asked him for support?

Ok. Great And have you restarted your Pi since making the cable changes? And maybe also a 2nd time? What version is your ICC? Are you using the USB cable that came originally with the Axperts or a cable that you bought more recently? Some of the USB cables that were shipped with Axperts were of an old standard and could cause comms issues between the inverter and ICC. For me, replaceing the original cable with a new one from the shop made my systems a lot more stable

Cool - thanks That sounds ok so for I'm running 2x Axperts, 1 Victron MPPT, and Pylontechs (instead of your BMV) on my ICC Just out of curiosity: Why do you not have the BMV also connected to the same ICC that your inverters are on? Then you could have the inverter switching based on the accurate BMV data instead of the Axpert's guesstimates?

What I do not understand is that the 1st serial number is showing up 2x - but with different values reported for some of the line items Do you only have 1x USB connected now to the Master inverter? All other inverter USB connections unplugged? And have you restarted ICC or even your Pi after doing so?

I have to admit that I do not fully understand how your system is set up If all of your equipment is in a single setup, then you should only require 1x ICC - as you should be able to manage (almost) everything through it As @Calvin wrote, you only need 1 USB connection from the Pi to the Master of the inverters. I am only running 2 Axperts in parallel, but this is also how my system is set up The only problem that you will have is that ICC currently is only able to support 1 external Victron MPPT. If I understand correctly, you have 2. So for the time being, you will only be able to display the PV production of 1 Victron MPPT in ICC. Manie does have the feature request for ICC being able to handle multiple Victron MPPTs on his table (I'm also interested in that feature) - but at the moment I do not know when he will be able to add it

I also would not purchase this type of equipment from Takealot Any reputable supplier will deliver to you (just as Takealot) PM me if you want some places that I have purchased from in the past

Yeah, my old Axperts do not have direct comms with the Pylon BMS. I use ICC to get the BMS info and switch the inverter based on it - but my inverters do not have any control over the Pylons

That sounds a bit strange to me When I initially got my 1st Pylon, I drew more than 37A (I'd say around 50A) on a number of occassions and for several minutes (typically hair dryer, coffee machine, vacuum cleaner, etc) - but I never had my Pylon go into protection on me

I have to admit that I do not know any of the inverters (am running old Axperts myself) But check whether 'compatible with Pylon' means that the inverter is able to communicate with the BMS - or if it means that it will simply work with Pylons (my old Axperts are also compatible (work with) Pylons but are not able to communicate with the BMS and rely on own voltage measurements) If the inverter is not able to natively communicate with the Pylon BMS, then I would highly recommend ICC and the Pylon comms cable. For me, this was probably the best investment into my system

If you have normal loadshedding duration of 2h, I would assume that you can actually keep your fridge/freezer on. The new Pylon US3000C has a 95% DOD - which means 3.3kWh of usable capacity. That would give you approx. 1300W of constant load for a duration of 2h (taking into account conversion losses and not wanting to drain it down to the last bit). When you get your system installed, just monitor your consumption incl. fridge/freezer and everything else you want to run during loadshedding

Am running ICC v3.1 and it automatically starts for me

That statement is not completely true The Pylon US3000 does not like to be discharged (or charged for that matter) for a longer period of time by more than 37A (approx. 1800W). However, it is capable of handling 74A (3700W) - though the manufacturer does not specify for how long. For short peaks (15s) it can even procide 100A (5000W). You should design your system that your general load does not exceed 1800W per Pylon that you have. If you briefly exceed that load, it will not immediately trip the battery - however drawing more than 1800W over extended periods of time will impact the lifetime of the Pylon

Cool Just please either quote me or tag me when you do - so that I get notified. Otherwise I might miss your post 😉

My 2015 Axperts charge my Pylon lithium's without problems. I do not know what the BlueNova voltage requirements are, but unless they are something really fancy (e.g. higher than 54V) I do not see why it cannot work Maybe post a picture of the sticker on the side of the Axpert here, so that we know exactly which model you have Just be mindful of one thing: The Axpert I would assume is 48V. I do not know if your current system is also 48V or possibly 24V. And I do not know if the BlueNova can be stringed together into 48V. But the BlueNova guys should be able to help you with that

In that case I would upgrade to a 250/XX model and re-wire to put more panels in series. Are you currently running 2S3P? If yes, you could then add your new panels to make 4S3P - which means you would not even need to pull any new wires or add any new combination boxes (obviously assuming that your current wires/boxes can handle the new config)

Adding a 2nd MPPT would give you the option to have the new panels face a different direction (e.g. capturing the early morning sun) If you replace your current MPPT, I would go for a 250/XX model. This allows you to connect more panels in series, which result in a longer solar day Maybe play around a bit with the PVWatts Calculator and see which direction will give you the best yields?

Infini Solar is also on the list of compatible inverter for ICC - maybe just confirm your exact model (if necessary, drop Manie an email at [email protected] I have Axpert inverters and Pylons - and ICC does exactly for me what I believe you are looking for PM me if you want further details

I would check if your inverter is compatible with ICC. If yes, then you have an option for both time-based switching between SBU and Utility as well as a conventient way to manage your system from anywhere whenever required (instead of having to physically stand in front of your inverter)

Agree I do not see that a comms problem would put the battery into protection - and cause it to remain in protection even if simply switched on by itself without any connections (that's what it does, right?)

Thanks Coulomb I will see if I can find time over the weekend to tinker with the system

Ok - then I believe we can say that low voltage is not the cause ... I would then ask the Pylon support for help in trying to identify the reason for it being in protection

Have you determined why the Pylon has gone into protection? Is it maybe because its voltage has dropped too low? Are you able to take a voltage reading of the Pylon in protection? If it is due to low voltage, either try charging the Pylon through your inverter or try balancing the 2 Pylons as per the video in this thread