Errors on Home Solar Still under Warranty. Installer Wants Full Checkup at $700

ozstarlite on 23/11/2022 - 09:08

Hi,

Had 18 solar panels about 2 years. In the last 8 or so months about 3 times a day only on sunny days, we get an email from the device as below.

The installer says they will come and do a complete check, clean etc for $700. I said I just want to check the warranty on the device that is sending errors.

I called Origin Energy and the guy came and checked everything and said they were okay on their side.

He said the error was because there was too much power going into the grid and said the new apartments next door have a massive solar device and it may be them sending in too much power so ours switches off as we are in the same pod.

What rights do I have to get them to check the warranty parts before they run out of warranty in case there is something wrong?

Thanks

【Solis Cloud】
The SN 03040018XXXXX inverter in your address plant has an alarm, please deal with it as soon as possible
Go to view alarm information
Alarm code: 1010
Alarm time: 2022-11-21 17:32:56
Alarm content: Grid Over Voltage
Processing method: 1. If it occurs by accident, it may be short-term abnormality of the power grid. The inverter will resume normal work after detecting the normal power grid, and no manual intervention is required. 2. If it occurs frequently, check the grid voltage and check whether the grid frequency is in the inverter. Within the allowable range, if not, please contact customer service; if yes, please check if the AC side breaker and output cable are connected properly; 3. If the grid voltage, grid frequency is within the allowable range of the inverter, and the AC side wiring confirmation It is true that this alarm still occurs frequently. After obtaining the consent of the local power operator, please contact customer service to modify the over-voltage and under-frequency protection points of the inverter power grid.

Home & Garden

Comments

  • AndyC1 on 23/11/2022 - 09:16
    +4

    Sounds like you need to google and read what "Grid Over Voltage" means and how this impacts on solar inverters and what inverters should do when they detect this condition.

  • brendanm on 23/11/2022 - 09:38
    +9

    As above, very easy to find out what this means. The grid voltage in your area is above the high voltage cutout on your inverter. Nothing to l do with warranty, though the installer is trying to rip you off with the $700 "service".

    • iDroid on 23/11/2022 - 09:53
      +6

      brendanm is correct.

      This is not an issue but a feature of how inverted coupled to the grid work.

      As your inverter produces current it need to go somewhere - this is usually the grid. To get current to flow to the grid, it must produce a voltage slightly higher than the grid to allow current to flow out. Every inverter is trying to do this, the net effect is that the grid voltage keeps increasing when the solar generation is high with low local load.

      There is a limit to how high the grid voltage is allow to get - inverters must cut out and stop producing and/or feeding the grid until the voltage drops to a suitable level.

      No warranty can help with this and that $700 is a rip off.

  • MS Paint on 23/11/2022 - 09:38
    +1

    Pretty sure this has nothing to do with the installers but I've been wrong plenty of times*

    *Source: wife

    • elgrande on 23/11/2022 - 09:56
      +2

      Correction: always wrong 🤣

    • DashCam AKA Rolts on 23/11/2022 - 10:02
      +1

      That clears things up. Cheers.

  • Look Up on 23/11/2022 - 09:39
    +1

    You don't need to pay for a checkup - it is not a parts or warranty issue

    The Origin guy is right - too much solar output being fed back into your local grid is raising the voltage, probably somewhere close to 250V

    It can only be fixed by a) the distributor (because you're in Sydney, it will be Endeavour Energy, Essential Energy or Ausgrid) adjusting the transformer to reduce the line voltage or b) overriding the voltage cut out levels in the inverter

    As you can read in the error message, the inverter manufacturer covers their ass by saying "After obtaining the consent of the local power operator…" as you cannot legally adjust these settings without approval

    Check here for more information - https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum/143 - as you are not the first and definitely won't be the last with this issue

  • GordonD on 23/11/2022 - 09:54
    +2

    As can be seen from the error message, there is NOT a problem with your solar installation that requires your solar installer to waste their time and money checking it. Nor you to waste yours.

    The problem is with the grid. Grid over-voltage. Solar inverters are programmed to not try to push even more power out onto the grid if the grid voltage is too high because other nearby solar installations are pushing more power onto the grid than is being used in that area.

    The origin of this common problem is that Australia was built with a 240V grid, then they changed that to a nominal 230V to conform to match what other countries were manufacturing electrical equipment for, but they didn't actually change the voltage the network supplies. So it is now not allowed to exceed 230V + 10% which is 253V. Which leaves little headroom for solar power exports driving it up when its already close to 250V in most urban areas.

    The people to complain to are the people responsible for your state's power grid. Not the retailer you buy your power through. The company that actually runs the grid. They can choose to adjust the tap on the local power transformer to bring the mains voltage down a bit so there's more headroom before it hits the limit. SAPN did for me. Or they can choose to ignore the problem. If they ignore it your inverter shuts down, and doesn't export any power, and they don't have to pay you for what you're not exporting.

    If you want to check for yourself, and get evidence for the electricity company that its really a grid problem, not an inverter problem, get yourself one of those 20 to 30 dollar plug in power meters. Plug it in, leave it set to volts. If its reading 253V or more at the time your inverter is sending error messages, the inverter is working exactly as it should by shutting down.

    • bbinc on 23/11/2022 - 10:22

      This exactly. My inverter failed some years back, and I discovered supply was over voltage. Power company agreed and adjusted the tap in our area. No problems since.

  • opinio on 23/11/2022 - 09:55

    I have been through this. It is the electricity distributor’s fault. You need to contact them and go through their process of reporting various data for them to make a subtle adjustment in the voltage for your street. The voltage over is usually like half a volt or so. Irrelevant. So just ignore it.

  • ozstarlite on 23/11/2022 - 10:05

    Many thanks guys. Great help.
    Yes the Origin guy did say the installer should make the adjustment so that input did not go over their recommended rate but they installer repeats the $700 offer to clean, dust, check cables etc.
    I have one of those and plugged it in. It seems to be vacillating mainly between 240 and 241v down to 239 then up to 245v
    I just didn't want it to come out of the warranty period when something really goes south and it costs me umpteen dollars to fix.

  • Mcuser on 23/11/2022 - 10:29
    -4

    $700 sounds fair pay up

    • iDroid on 23/11/2022 - 11:05
      +1

      Troll.

  • Drakesy on 23/11/2022 - 12:44
    +2

    Not an issue with your system, and they're right to charge (albeit it would come with a caveat that if there was a warranty issue it would be waived)

    It's there to discourage things like this that would waste their time.

    Grid overvoltage is there to protect the grid and a sign that your inverter is working correctly.

  • happydude on 23/11/2022 - 13:16

    This is becoming an increasing issue. Sunny days are seeing too much power going into the grid and it is overloading.

    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-01/rise-of-rooftop-solar…
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2022-02-01/renewable-energ…
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-14/household-solar-power…

  • cauilfield on 23/11/2022 - 13:32

    call you network distributor and tell them to sort this out.

  • ozstarlite on 24/11/2022 - 07:50

    Thanks guys. Appreciate the advice and banter.

  • Quantumcat on 24/11/2022 - 15:41

    Use the $700 you were going to pay the installer towards getting a battery?

  • Gros21 on 25/11/2022 - 03:12

    It's not the network's fault either. Simply not enough load on the network and to much generation.

    258v is the magic number from memory. It's unlikely energy provider will issue and do a voltage tap on distribution transformers.

    Solar causes havoc on the network not just only voltages but ripple (to control loads needs to be turned to the loads) but also 11/22kv regulation may not be handle reverse current flow.

    We had an estate here and every place came with a 3kw solar system it caused havoc for ages.

    Also common where a school/business just throws on a massive solar array. They have a massive load during the day but nothing on weekends.

    But your issue is to see if you can view that that setting, do not adjust it (it's prolly locked) then complain to power company about voltage fluctuations (blowing bulbs E t ect) they will put a device (gridsence pm40 for example)on your line if it does go over stat levels they will fix it if not you are out of luck. They are not obligated to fix it if it's fine.

  • ozstarlite on 25/11/2022 - 08:21

    Thanks.
    .

  • ozstarlite on 28/11/2022 - 15:14

    Thank you.
    It has not caused any grief so far and with what everyone has told me, it is more par for the course in Sydney anyway so will leave it to worry about something else that needs it :-)

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