January 8, 20251 yr A 2 year old 8kVA inverter was used as load shedding unit only. Late December added 6 x 555W solar panels and found that the inverter doesn't read the PV current, just the voltage. With PV connected it basically shorts the PV array as it can't determine the wattage in. Suspect a faulty MPPT board. Unable to find anybody interested on google! Does anybody know of a company that can repair the Fivestar? Assistance much appreciated James
January 8, 20251 yr 4 hours ago, James D said: With PV connected it basically shorts the PV array as it can't determine the wattage in. I suspect that the Fivestars are either rebranded Axperts, or clones, or very similar to Axperts. Looking for someone that can repair an Axpert might widen the field a bit. Can you post a photo of the inverter's screen showing the PV voltage? If the panels are literally short circuited, then they should show zero volts.
January 9, 20251 yr 20 hours ago, James D said: A 2 year old 8kVA inverter was used as load shedding unit only. Late December added 6 x 555W solar panels and found that the inverter doesn't read the PV current, just the voltage. With PV connected it basically shorts the PV array as it can't determine the wattage in. Suspect a faulty MPPT board. Unable to find anybody interested on google! Does anybody know of a company that can repair the Fivestar? Assistance much appreciated James Or this - https://cooperpower.co.za/articles/inverter-batteries/inverter-maintenance-and-repairs/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiA4fi7BhC5ARIsAEV1Yib1VHEzO7tkSWSp8uLpRqCfyWFUl4nukSu2Iz0C-R4ZBOrkiM5EyUAaAsXGEALw_wcB
January 9, 20251 yr Author 21 hours ago, Coulomb said: I suspect that the Fivestars are either rebranded Axperts, or clones, or very similar to Axperts. Looking for someone that can repair an Axpert might widen the field a bit. Can you post a photo of the inverter's screen showing the PV voltage? If the panels are literally short circuited, then they should show zero volts. Hi Coulomb, The PV array short cct current spec is 18.2 Amp, max power current is 17.2A. I placed a 20 amp (220V AC) circuit breaker on the positive and a 30 amp fuse on the negative PV input, with 600V surge protectors. Within minutes the cct breaker pops, while the inverter still shows zero current. I don't have a DC current probe, so I can't verify my assumption, but the cct breaker gives me a clue... Thanks for your help, James
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