I bought one in April, just started hookup yesterday, (was waiting on all materials needed) and the positive battery lug broke off when I was loosening it. Thought I was screwed and then noticed wiring damage on communication card. Contacted the company, sent them a picture they wanted. 2 hours later got a text saying they are sending me a new unit and a packing slip to send the defective one back. Now that is service and look forward to doing more business with them in the future.
I think the biggest issue I see with a battery-less system is stability of your solar. Even if your array is large enough, you just need a cloud to go by and it drops out lol. I agree on the still needing a small battery!
In the other hand, if the batteries suffer a catastrophic failure you stil can pump water to higher elevation, run the freezer and even the water heater which don't need a constant energy supply.
I ran my EAsun aio a while (looks nearly identical to the mpp solar Will in the video replaced) without a battery. I noticed it had some safety to produce well below the solar pv wattage. As soon as I added the batteries the full potential of the solar array became available. There are some small cheap Lifepo4 cells with high C rating on Aliexpress, so I agree you need to add some of those to have the small buffer capacity.
Great video! Your idea about creating discrete systems for discrete functions is something I've been thinking about quite a bit. By creating these large capacity, centralized power systems, we're really just recreating the existing grid on a smaller scale. Decentralization fosters resilience, which is something I think we're all seeking by learning about in pursuing solar-powered home-scale systems.
I think like most ideas, discrete vs. centralized all comes down to the specific case. There's benefit to discrete, in terms of resiliency, but centralization makes switching between alternative sources for everything much simpler.
too many variables with discrete, wayyyyyy too much work when there are all in ones. even installers make mistakes. You'd have to watch all of Wills videos twice to remember everything. And practice for a year, or take an elecro-mechanical technology course. And yes they employ the same principles and hardware as a utility grade infrastructure. (For that matter, so does a solar light.) Unless you're handy, I'd say just get 'er dun, buy a backup if you're worried, and learn as you go.
The growwatt with city power backup looks really cool. Allows a small building to run off solar but still work just fine in the winter without being grid tied.
its a good case for a super capacitor bank - there is a video here where a guy uses super/ultra capacitors as the storage bank and runs his power tools with them. in fact it might be good to have 2 arrays of caps one for each PV set so you could match that output
With supercapacitors, the useful capacity with an inverter like this is a fraction of total capacity. Energy density and cost aren't good either. LTO is better for this application.
Thanksk for the video - recently had an enquiry from a client who does not want to use batteries and only solar panels, this is a great way to save money on a setup without using a grid tied inverter, because we have a lot of rolling blackouts in South Africa. I love the Growatt Inverter range will def recommend this to him. I think using it along with grid input will work perfectly for this application when the solar array is not generating enough power it will draw from the grid while it is available if his solar array is not large enough.
This is what Sol-Ark has been doing for a good long while. I have the 12k and did a DIY, and could have never done it all without learning from this channel!!!! I have learned a LOT from you!
Hello , How is that sol ark working? I was strongly considering that. But heard they were very finicky about balanced lines . And shut down because of it .
Let’s see: video published on April 13th, today it’s the 18; probably cant get one b/c it’s sold out after Will’s review. Key to getting rich fast: Have a huge stock of a product that Will is gonna give a positive review and you’ll sell all your stock. (LoL). All joking aside, it speaks volumes of your work. People trust you. Your videos are to the point, easy to understand and honest; with no fluff. I’m no electrician and you’ve helped me immensely on my own van build. Thank you, keep it up.
I love learning from your RUclips videos! I am going to attempt setting up my system with two of these, Growatt 48V SPF 3000TL LVM - 3kW 120Vac Stackable Inverter 4.5kW MPPT Charge Controller Split Phase 120V/240V capable with two or more units. I ordered some lifepo4 batteries and I gotten some of these Lot of 2 Valence U-Charge RT Series U1-12RT LifePo4 Battery 12V 40Ah . I am going 48 votes after watching your RUclipss I was convinced this would be a great start! Thanks for teaching me these important Growatt inverter information! Technology changes so fast it’s hard to figure out how to get the best bang for your bucks!
I bought this model after watching this video but just sent it back to exchange for the 5000 model that outputs 240v. I can power my well with that one. It does not output 110 volt but a transformer will do the trick for that. Now time to find the right battery. I bought your book and am excited to learn more about electrical. Learning a lot from your vids. Thanks
Question: Is the Growatt 5000 still working for your well pump? I have a 1.5 HP 240V Single Phase well pump pumping from 200 feet down the shaft. Was wanting to know if this would work. Thank you.
If your getting enough voltage then voltage is not the problem, it’s amperage, you just don’t have enough amps to start the compressor. You said you needed 3000 watts to start the AC unit well at 120 volts you would have 25 amps. If the AC unit is running off line power it starts with a simple 15 amp circuit which would indicate it can start and run with only a 1800W power supply. So it doesn’t matter how many volts you have, you need at least 15 maybe 20 amps to start that thing.
This is great! I bought an 800 watt solar pump from RPS for our off grid permaculture property. The pump works so well I wondered if there was something like this I could install in the workshop that I could use on sunny days instead of spending a ton on batteries. I couldn’t find anything until I saw this. I’m in.
Battery less Solar Inverters are cool but down side is That you can't run Torque loads and other loads which requires Large current initially. And Also little shade on your PV array and the whole system shuts down. If you have The Ac input connected it will work great or a battery just to compensate the PV and keep the loads running Awesome video
Inverter type AC systems may help by reduce the need for a battery since they’d have much lower starting current. And since they’re typically a lot more efficient, it might be money better spent than on a battery. Then again, a battery sure makes a system more resilient in the short term.
Hey Will!! Love the Videos. i have been looking to build an off grid system for a while now. i mostly need it in lower temp months just to keep the lights on (all LED of course) and run my well pump as necessary. the biggest hassle for me is trying to build and size a system for the summer months when i would absolutely need AC. i keep looking at the MPP (48V) all in ones, several 400w panels and at least 10kw of battery (your should for sure do a video on some of the different Alibaba power walls) but i always stop short because i just feel like i am missing something, and i get nervous ordering the power walls. anyway thanks for the content. as said i really enjoy it. thank about doing that power wall video.
It is clear looking though the comments on this video that there is an underserved segment of the market. I know there are plenty out there but it is hard to dig through em all to find one that will do it in a simple and efficient way and even harder to find one marketed that way. 2-6kw or so solar without batteries, independent of the grid. Going in to this adventure I thought that would be THE most common use, surprized to find that it is almost unheard of. Ok because of motor starting current you either need a LOT bigger array, or battery. Some have mentioned making use of caps, ehh gonna take a bunch of them in place of a battery, real spendy. On the panel side, unless the inverter had provision for it in the algorythm it is gonna give the MPPT fits and you would still need big, expensive caps on each panel in the string to do any good, and the cheaper electrolytics are not gonna live long at roof temperatures. In this case the battery doesnt have to be elaborate 3 day, whole house battery, it really only needs to be big enough to kick 40 amps for a few seconds maybe twice an hour, it could be as small as a motorcycle battery or a handful of 18650's and Bob's your uncle, or Bob was your dad in my case. But why not go ahead and use a car battery for nearly the same price and get an hour or 3 of cloud protection? If this inverter can be set up to do so, that starting current supplied by grid, run current supplied by solar that would eliminate the battery except when grid is down. My main goal at the moment is to reduce the on-peak usage as much as possible due to price. For about 5 years I have been pre chilling the house then not running ac for the 5 hottest hours of the day. Sick of that s**t! Just need to run a window unit, fridge, an led lamp, router and computer during that time, that is my main goal at the moment. Off to watch more of your vids. Thanks! like, like, like, like......
I just use a normal grid tie inverter/s with a seperate charger for the battery bank. Then I have a 6000w peak power inverter connected to a few circuits in my house. I know it's not off-grid but the easy I have it set up gives me free power.. 😎
The solar trailer is great idea I have wanted to do that for a trailer to pull behind an RV so it would be like a mobile generator. Could put golf cart inside trailer as the battery bank. Make arms that slide out over the trailer for more solar
For PV Direct - overbuild the PV Array. 300+ watt 60 cell panels. PV is cheap. Load < ~25 % STC PV Rating for cloudy days. Use electrical gloves on the MC4 PV connectors.
Guess what! The LV6548 has the 'batteryless" feature as well. I had no clue. Thanks to my viewers for pointing that out. That's awesome! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Does off-grid solar confuse you? Check out my DIY friendly website for solar system packages and product recommendations, and so much more! www.mobile-solarpower.com Join our DIY solar community! #1 largest solar forum on the internet for beginners and professionals alike: www.diysolarforum.com Check out my best-selling, beginner-friendly 12V off-grid solar book (affiliate link): amzn.to/2Aj4dX4 If DIY is not for you, but you love solar and need an offgrid system, check out Tesla Solar. Low prices and great warranty, and they can take your entire house offgrid with their new Powerwalls: ts.la/william57509 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My solar equipment recommendations (Constantly updated! Check here first): 12V/48V Lithium Batteries: www.mobile-solarpower.com/solar-batteries.html Solar System Component Directory: www.mobile-solarpower.com/solarcomponents.html Plug-N-Play Systems: www.mobile-solarpower.com/full-size-systems.html Complete 48V System Kits: www.mobile-solarpower.com/complete-48v-solar-kits.html DIY Friendly Air Conditioner/ Heat Pumps: www.mobile-solarpower.com/solar-friendly-air-conditioners.html Complete 48V System Blueprint: www.mobile-solarpower.com/48v-complete-system-blueprint.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Favorite Online Stores for DIY Solar and Coupon Codes: -Current Connected: SOK, Victron and High Quality Components. Best prices and warranty around: currentconnected.com/?ref=wp -Signature Solar: Cheap Server Rack Batteries and Large Solar Panels: www.signaturesolar.com/?ref=h-cvbzfahsek -Ecoflow Delta Official Site: My favorite plug-n-play solar generator: us.ecoflow.com/?aff=7 -AmpereTime: Cheapest 12V batteries around: amperetime.com/products/ampere-time-12v-100ah-lithium-lifepo4-battery?ref=h-cvbzfahsek -Rich Solar: Mega site and cheaper prices than renogy! Check them out: richsolar.com/?ref=h-cvbzfahsek -Shop Solar Kits: Huge site with every solar kit you can imagine! Check it out: shopsolarkits.com/?ref=will-p -Battery Hookup: Cheap cell deals bit.ly/2mIxSqt 10% off code: diysolar -Watts 24/7: Best deals on all-in-one solar power systems, with customer support and distribution here in the USA: watts247.com/?wpam_id=3 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Contact Information: I am NOT available for personal solar system consult! If you wish to contact me, this is my direct email: williamprowsediysolar@gmail.com Join the forum at diysolarforum.com/ if you wish to hang out with myself and others and talk about solar FTC Disclosure Statement and Disclaimers: Every video includes some form of paid promotion or sponsorship. Some links on this youtube channel may be affiliate links. We may get paid if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of these. My videos are for educational purposes only. Information is subject to change/update at any time. Electricity is DANGEROUS and can kill. Be smart and use common sense :) DIY Solar Power with Will Prowse is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, An affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com
Will, baterryless inverter is the perfect tool for your last video scenario. Just hook it up to the solar panels in the roof. (Disconnect it from the grid-tie inverter of course)
I was just about to hop in and comment about that. Glad to see you getting on this quickly. I have never given it much thought though as I assumed all inverters could be batteryless, but they'd be sucky. I like watching your videos because your commentary shows you are thinking. I was thinking of a small battery to handle the compressor kicking on. I use batteries with my 3d printers to lower the draw at the wall.
I called Growatt China 2 months ago. The engineer said you need either battery or AC input (grid backup). You can’t run on PV alone. I have a 5kw version of this. Don’t waste your time on testing it without battery or grid support. Pls focus on battery only, and then with grid only.
I at first wanted the older non -es version but the power consumption turned me off at over a KW per day. I looked at the new Victron Miniplus II 48v but it only plays well with other Victron stuff and almost twice the price of Growatt. Then thought of the surge friendly LF like the Must, thinking it's cheap, powerful and reliable enough. My 10kw battery just arrived from China and got ready to make my order and saw this. WOW! I'm Getting this to send to Central America with the battery. Power hungry little beast, 60w idle consumption? That's hungrier than my teenage son! I'll try it out though, if 1.5KW per day consumption gets on my nerves I'll buy a 48v 1200w Victron Phoenix to run the 24/7 stuff, the Growatt for the big things when needed and standby the rest of the time.
I really like this concept batteryless solar, so many things can be run during the day without the need of batteries. Like washing machines, water heaters, AC, dryers, even hot water floor heaters. Major cost reduction for solar applications if batteries are not needed. Super caps for transient loads instead of small batteries? Good video!
I think you're missing the big point here. The best application for that inverter is using it along with AC input in the SUB mode without batteries. That way, it uses the most out of PV plus AC input to feed the loads. No crazy rules to follow for ON-GRID set ups, no bidirectional meters, no big buget zero inyection accesories and all that madness, plus ON-GRID offering for 120V is pretty limited.
That's awesome it answered a bunch of questions I had about those inverters I was thinking about getting some but I want to run my house with solar as soon as I can get all the stuff together and I was thinking of getting a couple of those inverters but I don't think that 3000 watts is enough
May I suggest going to harbor freight or amazon and buying some Composite Ratchets. They're pretty decent and they eliminate one of the biggest risks for short circuits when dealing with live battery terminals. Also, thanks for mentioning that you could use two to do split phase. I'm currently considering a smaller system for a trailer but would like to able to move it into a house at some point and get split phase.
Can you please make a video on real time sharing of power between grid and solar while remaining off grid? I have seen videos of some inverters having this feature.
Hi Will, it would be fantastic to see if one of these Growatt or MPP batteryless inverters could trickle charge a Tesla without a battery or a very small battery👏👏
Good stuff..!! I've been developing a system that will run inverterless with small battery bank acting only as a voltage buffer! Similar to this system, only scratch the inverter..!!
I can see how this was also of getting all that done at once. You definitely need to do part 2. It's pretty neat running straight off of solar that's like ideal if it were always possible but definitely all t more difficult to achieve. I know you definitely have enough panels by now to do it though. I wish I could start my own solar array.
this is information I was looking at for a cabin install where a battery might go below freezing and being able to run power during the day would be very useful .. the only other way you could do that is to dig a very deep cellar and place the battery there where it would be about 50F underground because the temperature is constant underground but how deep you would have to bury a battery might make it very difficult.. you might end up hitting ground water at that point
Hi Will, love your blogs I consider your info to be extremely accurate and truthful thanks for that. I’m planing to hit the road in a year and a half once my trailer build is done. I’m planing on use this growatt for my 48v lithium 280ah bat bank with 4 410w bifacial panels you recommended and a 2000w wind turbine later to ad on. Now after watching this video I’m wondering if I’m on the right track, if you have any input I would be appreciate but I also understand if you chose not to comment. Keep up the great videos.
It's good to see this working. I thought of one day running AC without batteries. One problem is with voltage drop with passing cloud. For that, I thought of using DC-to-DC converter to keep the voltage stable.
You are so talented, knowledgeable, loveable and etc. I started with your plantar fasciitis videos and I ended up here . Liked and subscribed. Thank you for your informative videos . Cheers from Toronto.
Thanks Will. Growatt have some innovative products. Has anybody ran Growatt products wirh the earlier Giant Power products? I will await the follow up.
So I know nothing of solar but I do know that I am working with an e-pro 19-FBS travel camper. I currently have the factory installed Go Power 1000 watt power inverter with the 30 amp controller and a 100 watt solar panel (flexible panel that, like you mentioned in one of your videos has only lasted about a year and a half). I have two interstate HD24-DP dual purpose Marine/RV batteries. I want to upgrade to a 200 watt solar panel but may end up adding two or three of the same 200 watt solar panels in the future. So, with having some things already installed from the factory, I don't want to waste money on something. I agree with you that parting out all the things needed becomes costly so I am considering something like this all in one. I dont know exactly how much power I am shooting for but I know that anything will be better than the 100 watt panel from Go Power (which no longer works but may be under warranty - I'll check). I have two 2200 watt gas generators that I used to run together to run my air conditioner but I found a way around the surge that the air conditioner pulled to require two generators by purchasing a "Soft Start" device that is a godsend so now I only need my one 2200 watt generator to run the AC. Anyway, I know I'm rambling on but long story short, my focus to solar has been of greater interest recently because I want to take my camper to the Imagine Festival in Atlanta next month which is a three day festival but they do NOT allow gas generators and so I am looking at running power via my Jeep to operate my air conditioner unless there is a way this unit in your video would help to minimize the need to constantly run off my Jeep via an inverter. Love the videos. Great info. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm a travel respiratory therapist and always looking to make electricity life easier!
Please test its ability to blend grid power with solar. I know you can probably not mix them in your state but for a demo you could add another inverter to simulate the grid. The grid would make starting the heavier loads no problem.
That model has the ability cutover to grid power if your solar panels can't keep up with what's being drawn from it, I believe. I think I saw this same model being demoed on another channel.
@@Vlfkfnejisjejrjtjrie Thanks I will look for it. Do you know if it combines the grid power ie if you have an 800 watt load but only have 400 solar avail it provides 400 from each?
I've seen other channels where the tester utilizes a solar input simulator so the voltage can be dialed up or down as required. I'm sure that helps with recording videos at night.
I started that years ago with psu. But that would do nothing here because this can handle 3000W watts. A 200W power supply isn't testing anything. It's weak
Something like this seems like it would work better with a blend of power sources perhaps solar and wind so you can get more consistent power without needing as large of a battery.
Fascinating, so you need a battery, even a small one, to really make the system convenient and simplistic. Otherwise it looks frustrating trying to get the right amount of voltage, not to mention expensive if you mess up!
Your almost at the point of an alternative style grid tie... cool. Just finished doing a small scale portable 150w batteriless video myself should have it posted tonight, can't wait to see your part 2, cheers!
Will check out the Midea U AC unit... it uses an inverter to power the compressor, and variable speed fans, so ... it should not have a large compressor load spike. It's also 15 SEER (similar to a low end mini split) probably 30-40% more efficient than your portable AC there which tends to be very low efficiency. Since they have exemptions and also are only measured at full load (where split systems noadays get measured at various loads to arrive at a combined value).
You can only run a heat pump like a mrcool or artic cool with wit because the compressor slowly ramps up!! Instead of kicking!!! I run my 12k btu mrcool fine no problem max 1100w on turbo mode and normal 900w max on max and 200w normal!!
I have this unit and tried this experiment with a 48volt home made bicycle 15 amp sized battery with 2000 watts of solar. This turns out not to be enough battery for the surge. I have a similar portable AC unit that has a 35 amp momentary surge. I put a couple of therminsters on the two supply wires to the compressor that brought it down to 15 amp surge. It still fails on startup. So now I am almost finished with a higher capacity 80 amp battery which I will try. After Im done with experimenting, saved some funds, I will buy a mini split inverter that is so much more efficient with a miniscule startup surge.
My dilemma - I have the Growatt 3000watt 24v system and 2-24v 170ah battery packs. I hooked it all up to my 8-100 watt panels that are in series/parallel (thanks to Will's book) and left my off grid cabin for 5 days. When I left, the battery voltage was at 26.1 in both batteries. When I returned the batteries were dead - dead, like no voltage to display on the LCD dead, along with my inverter. I have a generator hooked up to the AC INPUT thinking if I fire it up, the inverter it would kick on and charge my battery bank, but I was wrong. So this leads me back to my dilemma....Keeping the system (inverter and batteries) on for 5 days should drain at max 3000 watts (600 per day) figured the 8000watts I have would be enough but the Growatt standby consumption must be more than advertised? I'd love to keep the batteries charging while I am away, but I don't want to arrive to a dead battery/inverter and have to crawl around in the dark in the middle of the Olympic forest to undo the wiring to hard wire it back to the generator. The low voltage cut off on the Growatt works great, but it doesn't seem to have worked on the battery bank? It seems like once the batteries reach the minimum voltage, they would shut off, allowing you to turn them back on when you arrive in 5 days so I could fire up the Jenny to add some juice. Am I going about this correctly? Any feedback would be appreciated.
I wish I understood this before I bought the 48v 3000 ES. Says 120-250v range, but my 6-100W panels are not enough even though they are VMP 20.4 (VOC 24.3). Ordered 2 more hope it is enough to turn this sucker on.
@@jackscrafts9202 Hope it works for ya. Luckily I bought the Growatt that also uses a battery bank. Have had it for over a year and I really like it. I have 8 panels as well.
I bought one in April, just started hookup yesterday, (was waiting on all materials needed) and the positive battery lug broke off when I was loosening it. Thought I was screwed and then noticed wiring damage on communication card. Contacted the company, sent them a picture they wanted. 2 hours later got a text saying they are sending me a new unit and a packing slip to send the defective one back. Now that is service and look forward to doing more business with them in the future.
I think the biggest issue I see with a battery-less system is stability of your solar. Even if your array is large enough, you just need a cloud to go by and it drops out lol. I agree on the still needing a small battery!
Good point!!!
I sell ebikes and have loads of 48V lithium batteries. i will use one or 2 as a buffer. they are 17AH so they have a fair amount of capacity.
In the other hand, if the batteries suffer a catastrophic failure you stil can pump water to higher elevation, run the freezer and even the water heater which don't need a constant energy supply.
I ran my EAsun aio a while (looks nearly identical to the mpp solar Will in the video replaced) without a battery. I noticed it had some safety to produce well below the solar pv wattage. As soon as I added the batteries the full potential of the solar array became available. There are some small cheap Lifepo4 cells with high C rating on Aliexpress, so I agree you need to add some of those to have the small buffer capacity.
Would be a good as a stand alone system to heat water maybe?
Great video! Your idea about creating discrete systems for discrete functions is something I've been thinking about quite a bit. By creating these large capacity, centralized power systems, we're really just recreating the existing grid on a smaller scale. Decentralization fosters resilience, which is something I think we're all seeking by learning about in pursuing solar-powered home-scale systems.
I think like most ideas, discrete vs. centralized all comes down to the specific case. There's benefit to discrete, in terms of resiliency, but centralization makes switching between alternative sources for everything much simpler.
too many variables with discrete, wayyyyyy too much work when there are all in ones. even installers make mistakes. You'd have to watch all of Wills videos twice to remember everything. And practice for a year, or take an elecro-mechanical technology course. And yes they employ the same principles and hardware as a utility grade infrastructure. (For that matter, so does a solar light.) Unless you're handy, I'd say just get 'er dun, buy a backup if you're worried, and learn as you go.
I love when you show actually working on the wiring....showing safety tips... I'm hoping to help a friend do solar in her short bus conversion
The growwatt with city power backup looks really cool. Allows a small building to run off solar but still work just fine in the winter without being grid tied.
This is what I was looking for. Now I just have to buckle down and study to figure out what you were saying. A lot of that went over my head.
YOU MADE THE VIDEO I REQUESTED! Thanks Will! Thanks internet!
I really like the possibility of running without a battery. There are some good use cases.
@marthale7 There are a lot of applications that a cloud isn't a deal breaker like boilers, pumps, cooling, and heating.
@marthale7 Motors can be tricky. I hear they aren't fond of impure sine waves either.
It is nice to see these companies upping their game and producing better equipment for solar based systems!
its a good case for a super capacitor bank - there is a video here where a guy uses super/ultra capacitors as the storage bank and runs his power tools with them. in fact it might be good to have 2 arrays of caps one for each PV set so you could match that output
With supercapacitors, the useful capacity with an inverter like this is a fraction of total capacity. Energy density and cost aren't good either. LTO is better for this application.
Would you please share link to the video or its title?
Thanksk for the video - recently had an enquiry from a client who does not want to use batteries and only solar panels, this is a great way to save money on a setup without using a grid tied inverter, because we have a lot of rolling blackouts in South Africa. I love the Growatt Inverter range will def recommend this to him. I think using it along with grid input will work perfectly for this application when the solar array is not generating enough power it will draw from the grid while it is available if his solar array is not large enough.
This is what Sol-Ark has been doing for a good long while. I have the 12k and did a DIY, and could have never done it all without learning from this channel!!!! I have learned a LOT from you!
Hello ,
How is that sol ark working? I was strongly considering that.
But heard they were very finicky about balanced lines . And shut down because of it .
I’m so glad to find a guy who has the same definition as “fun” that I do 😂
Mr. Prowse is akin to the Mr. Rodgers of our era. Keep up the great work on informing us of all the new solar/battery tech out there!
I am happy to see that you know the difference between OCPD and OCD. Props to you.
Let’s see: video published on April 13th, today it’s the 18; probably cant get one b/c it’s sold out after Will’s review.
Key to getting rich fast: Have a huge stock of a product that Will is gonna give a positive review and you’ll sell all your stock. (LoL).
All joking aside, it speaks volumes of your work. People trust you. Your videos are to the point, easy to understand and honest; with no fluff. I’m no electrician and you’ve helped me immensely on my own van build. Thank you, keep it up.
growatts are for sale not sold out, just got one yesterday
I love learning from your RUclips videos! I am going to attempt setting up my system with two of these, Growatt 48V SPF 3000TL LVM - 3kW 120Vac Stackable Inverter 4.5kW MPPT Charge Controller Split Phase 120V/240V capable with two or more units. I ordered some lifepo4 batteries and I gotten some of these Lot of 2 Valence U-Charge RT Series U1-12RT LifePo4 Battery 12V 40Ah . I am going 48 votes after watching your RUclipss I was convinced this would be a great start! Thanks for teaching me these important Growatt inverter information! Technology changes so fast it’s hard to figure out how to get the best bang for your bucks!
Is the ES a U.S version?
I bought this model after watching this video but just sent it back to exchange for the 5000 model that outputs 240v. I can power my well with that one. It does not output 110 volt but a transformer will do the trick for that. Now time to find the right battery.
I bought your book and am excited to learn more about electrical.
Learning a lot from your vids. Thanks
The ES is a U.S model?
Question: Is the Growatt 5000 still working for your well pump? I have a 1.5 HP 240V Single Phase well pump pumping from 200 feet down the shaft. Was wanting to know if this would work. Thank you.
An update to this video would be great. I was curious about clarity on terms like "small battery" like how small.
If your getting enough voltage then voltage is not the problem, it’s amperage, you just don’t have enough amps to start the compressor. You said you needed 3000 watts to start the AC unit well at 120 volts you would have 25 amps. If the AC unit is running off line power it starts with a simple 15 amp circuit which would indicate it can start and run with only a 1800W power supply. So it doesn’t matter how many volts you have, you need at least 15 maybe 20 amps to start that thing.
Indeed
Just would prefer the voltage to be as high as possible. But yes indeed.
Thank you. I believe this Growatt is what I've been waiting for.
This is great! I bought an 800 watt solar pump from RPS for our off grid permaculture property. The pump works so well I wondered if there was something like this I could install in the workshop that I could use on sunny days instead of spending a ton on batteries. I couldn’t find anything until I saw this. I’m in.
I don't think you realize how many people want to make it work to charge an electric car direct from solar panels. You dived right into it.
You always have good information on your channel. I've been watching for a long time. Keep up the great work.
I also strategically leave wires disconnected "for safety reasons." That's my story and I'm sticking to it. 😁🤣👍
Battery less Solar Inverters are cool but
down side is That you can't run Torque loads
and other loads which requires Large current initially.
And Also little shade on your PV array and the whole system shuts down.
If you have The Ac input connected it will work great or a battery just to compensate the PV and keep the loads running
Awesome video
Inverter type AC systems may help by reduce the need for a battery since they’d have much lower starting current. And since they’re typically a lot more efficient, it might be money better spent than on a battery. Then again, a battery sure makes a system more resilient in the short term.
"batteryless" setup would probably be great with a small supercapacitor bank for surges.
Very interesting, "a converter that doesn't need a battery" Thanks Will for info that's new to me!
Hey Will!! Love the Videos.
i have been looking to build an off grid system for a while now. i mostly need it in lower temp months just to keep the lights on (all LED of course) and run my well pump as necessary. the biggest hassle for me is trying to build and size a system for the summer months when i would absolutely need AC.
i keep looking at the MPP (48V) all in ones, several 400w panels and at least 10kw of battery (your should for sure do a video on some of the different Alibaba power walls) but i always stop short because i just feel like i am missing something, and i get nervous ordering the power walls.
anyway thanks for the content. as said i really enjoy it. thank about doing that power wall video.
It is clear looking though the comments on this video that there is an underserved segment of the market. I know there are plenty out there but it is hard to dig through em all to find one that will do it in a simple and efficient way and even harder to find one marketed that way. 2-6kw or so solar without batteries, independent of the grid. Going in to this adventure I thought that would be THE most common use, surprized to find that it is almost unheard of.
Ok because of motor starting current you either need a LOT bigger array, or battery. Some have mentioned making use of caps, ehh gonna take a bunch of them in place of a battery, real spendy. On the panel side, unless the inverter had provision for it in the algorythm it is gonna give the MPPT fits and you would still need big, expensive caps on each panel in the string to do any good, and the cheaper electrolytics are not gonna live long at roof temperatures. In this case the battery doesnt have to be elaborate 3 day, whole house battery, it really only needs to be big enough to kick 40 amps for a few seconds maybe twice an hour, it could be as small as a motorcycle battery or a handful of 18650's and Bob's your uncle, or Bob was your dad in my case. But why not go ahead and use a car battery for nearly the same price and get an hour or 3 of cloud protection?
If this inverter can be set up to do so, that starting current supplied by grid, run current supplied by solar that would eliminate the battery except when grid is down. My main goal at the moment is to reduce the on-peak usage as much as possible due to price. For about 5 years I have been pre chilling the house then not running ac for the 5 hottest hours of the day. Sick of that s**t! Just need to run a window unit, fridge, an led lamp, router and computer during that time, that is my main goal at the moment. Off to watch more of your vids. Thanks! like, like, like, like......
I just use a normal grid tie inverter/s with a seperate charger for the battery bank. Then I have a 6000w peak power inverter connected to a few circuits in my house. I know it's not off-grid but the easy I have it set up gives me free power.. 😎
The solar trailer is great idea I have wanted to do that for a trailer to pull behind an RV so it would be like a mobile generator. Could put golf cart inside trailer as the battery bank. Make arms that slide out over the trailer for more solar
Pretty good, you just showed the pros and cons. It’s just a matter of choosing the panels after getting it.
This channel will have 1M subs soon. Solid content.
For PV Direct - overbuild the PV Array. 300+ watt 60 cell panels. PV is cheap. Load < ~25 % STC PV Rating for cloudy days. Use electrical gloves on the MC4 PV connectors.
10:21, or just check the output voltage of your panels! This is a really cool product and perfect for off grid systems or a remote shed.
I love the excitement when it turns on!
WOW! for a moment I thought I saw clones or twins of Will, around the 10:37 mark! after reviewing, I realized that was some quick editing, cool !
Guess what! The LV6548 has the 'batteryless" feature as well. I had no clue. Thanks to my viewers for pointing that out. That's awesome!
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Brother Will thanks for doing dis video ... so my question is what is array voltage for the LV6548 for the batteryless
Will, baterryless inverter is the perfect tool for your last video scenario. Just hook it up to the solar panels in the roof.
(Disconnect it from the grid-tie inverter of course)
I was just about to hop in and comment about that. Glad to see you getting on this quickly. I have never given it much thought though as I assumed all inverters could be batteryless, but they'd be sucky. I like watching your videos because your commentary shows you are thinking. I was thinking of a small battery to handle the compressor kicking on. I use batteries with my 3d printers to lower the draw at the wall.
I called Growatt China 2 months ago. The engineer said you need either battery or AC input (grid backup). You can’t run on PV alone. I have a 5kw version of this. Don’t waste your time on testing it without battery or grid support. Pls focus on battery only, and then with grid only.
@@cclenergy3033 Right! Engineer said the same to me.
Capacitors are going to be warm and they're burning without a battery or a grid
I only understood one word in ten, but I enjoyed listening to you!
I feel the same about You Barbara! x
I at first wanted the older non -es version but the power consumption turned me off at over a KW per day. I looked at the new Victron Miniplus II 48v but it only plays well with other Victron stuff and almost twice the price of Growatt. Then thought of the surge friendly LF like the Must, thinking it's cheap, powerful and reliable enough. My 10kw battery just arrived from China and got ready to make my order and saw this.
WOW! I'm Getting this to send to Central America with the battery. Power hungry little beast, 60w idle consumption? That's hungrier than my teenage son! I'll try it out though, if 1.5KW per day consumption gets on my nerves I'll buy a 48v 1200w Victron Phoenix to run the 24/7 stuff, the Growatt for the big things when needed and standby the rest of the time.
I really like this concept batteryless solar, so many things can be run during the day without the need of batteries. Like washing machines, water heaters, AC, dryers, even hot water floor heaters. Major cost reduction for solar applications if batteries are not needed.
Super caps for transient loads instead of small batteries?
Good video!
I think you're missing the big point here. The best application for that inverter is using it along with AC input in the SUB mode without batteries. That way, it uses the most out of PV plus AC input to feed the loads. No crazy rules to follow for ON-GRID set ups, no bidirectional meters, no big buget zero inyection accesories and all that madness, plus ON-GRID offering for 120V is pretty limited.
That's awesome it answered a bunch of questions I had about those inverters I was thinking about getting some but I want to run my house with solar as soon as I can get all the stuff together and I was thinking of getting a couple of those inverters but I don't think that 3000 watts is enough
May I suggest going to harbor freight or amazon and buying some Composite Ratchets. They're pretty decent and they eliminate one of the biggest risks for short circuits when dealing with live battery terminals. Also, thanks for mentioning that you could use two to do split phase. I'm currently considering a smaller system for a trailer but would like to able to move it into a house at some point and get split phase.
I have them in all sizes. But they were on other side of my property. And yes indeed. I was being careful.
Yeah it would work great for that application
Run a solar array to pump water through a solar collector. Use that hot water to warm a building.
Can you please make a video on real time sharing of power between grid and solar while remaining off grid? I have seen videos of some inverters having this feature.
Hi Will, it would be fantastic to see if one of these Growatt or MPP batteryless inverters could trickle charge a Tesla without a battery or a very small battery👏👏
Yes we need update update update
what happens if you connect it to the grid, is it smart enough to use solar over grid and supplement when solar drops?
Good stuff..!! I've been developing a system that will run inverterless with small battery bank acting only as a voltage buffer! Similar to this system, only scratch the inverter..!!
I can see how this was also of getting all that done at once. You definitely need to do part 2. It's pretty neat running straight off of solar that's like ideal if it were always possible but definitely all t more difficult to achieve. I know you definitely have enough panels by now to do it though. I wish I could start my own solar array.
Neat feature to have on all those allin1 units, just because.
this is information I was looking at for a cabin install where a battery might go below freezing and being able to run power during the day would be very useful .. the only other way you could do that is to dig a very deep cellar and place the battery there where it would be about 50F underground because the temperature is constant underground but how deep you would have to bury a battery might make it very difficult.. you might end up hitting ground water at that point
I know a guy in Chicago selling new 430W bifacial panels for really cheap. It's a canceled order and he has pallets of them!
I have ordered the 5000 please review that one also
Hi Will, love your blogs I consider your info to be extremely accurate and truthful thanks for that. I’m planing to hit the road in a year and a half once my trailer build is done. I’m planing on use this growatt for my 48v lithium 280ah bat bank with 4 410w bifacial panels you recommended and a 2000w wind turbine later to ad on. Now after watching this video I’m wondering if I’m on the right track, if you have any input I would be appreciate but I also understand if you chose not to comment. Keep up the great videos.
It's good to see this working. I thought of one day running AC without batteries. One problem is with voltage drop with passing cloud. For that, I thought of using DC-to-DC converter to keep the voltage stable.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU WILL...
Man, you work harder now then ever. Thanks for the information and reviews
Rps solar well pumps are standalone dc well pumps. They work seamlessly
You are so talented, knowledgeable, loveable and etc. I started with your plantar fasciitis videos and I ended up here . Liked and subscribed. Thank you for your informative videos . Cheers from Toronto.
Thanks Will. Growatt have some innovative products.
Has anybody ran Growatt products wirh the earlier Giant Power products?
I will await the follow up.
I love your reviews. I have learned a lot from just watching your reviews. Thank you for articulating self-knowledge.
So I know nothing of solar but I do know that I am working with an e-pro 19-FBS travel camper. I currently have the factory installed Go Power 1000 watt power inverter with the 30 amp controller and a 100 watt solar panel (flexible panel that, like you mentioned in one of your videos has only lasted about a year and a half). I have two interstate HD24-DP dual purpose Marine/RV batteries. I want to upgrade to a 200 watt solar panel but may end up adding two or three of the same 200 watt solar panels in the future. So, with having some things already installed from the factory, I don't want to waste money on something. I agree with you that parting out all the things needed becomes costly so I am considering something like this all in one. I dont know exactly how much power I am shooting for but I know that anything will be better than the 100 watt panel from Go Power (which no longer works but may be under warranty - I'll check). I have two 2200 watt gas generators that I used to run together to run my air conditioner but I found a way around the surge that the air conditioner pulled to require two generators by purchasing a "Soft Start" device that is a godsend so now I only need my one 2200 watt generator to run the AC. Anyway, I know I'm rambling on but long story short, my focus to solar has been of greater interest recently because I want to take my camper to the Imagine Festival in Atlanta next month which is a three day festival but they do NOT allow gas generators and so I am looking at running power via my Jeep to operate my air conditioner unless there is a way this unit in your video would help to minimize the need to constantly run off my Jeep via an inverter. Love the videos. Great info. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm a travel respiratory therapist and always looking to make electricity life easier!
Jja. Your are BRILLIANT Will. Do you do paid calls?
Love the videos! Would you be able to do a video showing how you wire your inverter to a subpanel with the AC output like you have setup?
Fantastic information. This could be exactly what I need. Looking forward to part 2. Just revived you book yesterday. Thanks
I’m waiting for part two as I’ve order the Growatt SPF5000ES
Please test its ability to blend grid power with solar. I know you can probably not mix them in your state but for a demo you could add another inverter to simulate the grid. The grid would make starting the heavier loads no problem.
That model has the ability cutover to grid power if your solar panels can't keep up with what's being drawn from it, I believe. I think I saw this same model being demoed on another channel.
@@Vlfkfnejisjejrjtjrie Thanks I will look for it. Do you know if it combines the grid power ie if you have an 800 watt load but only have 400 solar avail it provides 400 from each?
I've seen other channels where the tester utilizes a solar input simulator so the voltage can be dialed up or down as required. I'm sure that helps with recording videos at night.
I started that years ago with psu. But that would do nothing here because this can handle 3000W watts. A 200W power supply isn't testing anything. It's weak
It is so cool that you have all the parts on hand. You have done this so long and comes so easy for you. THANK YOU for sharing your knowledge. Cheers
Something like this seems like it would work better with a blend of power sources perhaps solar and wind so you can get more consistent power without needing as large of a battery.
This what I'm looking for only to run the AC during the day that's all I need.
Fascinating, so you need a battery, even a small one, to really make the system convenient and simplistic.
Otherwise it looks frustrating trying to get the right amount of voltage, not to mention expensive if you mess up!
@@RobC1999
Exactly, although you said it better than I did.
*WOW super cool. Great Videos Brother !*
Your almost at the point of an alternative style grid tie... cool. Just finished doing a small scale portable 150w batteriless video myself should have it posted tonight, can't wait to see your part 2, cheers!
Will check out the Midea U AC unit... it uses an inverter to power the compressor, and variable speed fans, so ... it should not have a large compressor load spike. It's also 15 SEER (similar to a low end mini split) probably 30-40% more efficient than your portable AC there which tends to be very low efficiency. Since they have exemptions and also are only measured at full load (where split systems noadays get measured at various loads to arrive at a combined value).
Sure wish I could afford all of these awesome items!
Nice!!! Try out solar+utility with no battery! Manual say it can work without battery, just solar+utility as battery
Smart idea! Will do
@@WillProwse when you will do it?
I've been so excited to see how this thing behaves. Thanks for posting this!
You can only run a heat pump like a mrcool or artic cool with wit because the compressor slowly ramps up!! Instead of kicking!!! I run my 12k btu mrcool fine no problem max 1100w on turbo mode and normal 900w max on max and 200w normal!!
I have the 5000 ES and it is awesome,i have two of them paralleled for 10KW and it id awesome would definitely recommend
Is the ES a U.S version?
@@oneshot_onekill4618 European 220-240 but I don't think there is a difference
@@tiaan1587 Thank you!
I have this unit and tried this experiment with a 48volt home made bicycle 15 amp sized battery with 2000 watts of solar. This turns out not to be enough battery for the surge. I have a similar portable AC unit that has a 35 amp momentary surge. I put a couple of therminsters on the two supply wires to the compressor that brought it down to 15 amp surge. It still fails on startup. So now I am almost finished with a higher capacity 80 amp battery which I will try. After Im done with experimenting, saved some funds, I will buy a mini split inverter that is so much more efficient with a miniscule startup surge.
Charlie is the 3000 TL LVM ES a U.S version growatt model?
@@oneshot_onekill4618 yes, I bought it on ebay and deployed it in CA
Just have to say, who downvotes a Will Prowse video??? He is great!
This is exactly what I was looking at!!! I love your videos!!
What happens when the battery is fully charged. Where does the excess energy from the solar solar go? Cool setup you have there, Awesome!
How do you test an array for working voltage before hooking up? Won't a multimeter only show open circuit voltage?
For us vandwellers/nomads please make a video showing how many amp hours of battery power with bms can fit in a milk crate. (No Inverter) Thanks!
You might get enough power if you connect something like an Enphase to each panel. That should give you proper voltage
Wonder if a person could use 4 48v panels and use this on a van build?? Along with a 3kw battery should be able to run a 10kbtu ac... I would think
Great . Fewvideo man!!! Thanks for trying all those like that!!
Wow, this is the product i have been waiting for.
What is the standby consumption on this unit?
I see you can also use it in hybrid mode with grid input. Can you test hybrid mode without batteries? Does it use solar and grid simultaneously?
My dilemma - I have the Growatt 3000watt 24v system and 2-24v 170ah battery packs. I hooked it all up to my 8-100 watt panels that are in series/parallel (thanks to Will's book) and left my off grid cabin for 5 days. When I left, the battery voltage was at 26.1 in both batteries. When I returned the batteries were dead - dead, like no voltage to display on the LCD dead, along with my inverter. I have a generator hooked up to the AC INPUT thinking if I fire it up, the inverter it would kick on and charge my battery bank, but I was wrong. So this leads me back to my dilemma....Keeping the system (inverter and batteries) on for 5 days should drain at max 3000 watts (600 per day) figured the 8000watts I have would be enough but the Growatt standby consumption must be more than advertised? I'd love to keep the batteries charging while I am away, but I don't want to arrive to a dead battery/inverter and have to crawl around in the dark in the middle of the Olympic forest to undo the wiring to hard wire it back to the generator. The low voltage cut off on the Growatt works great, but it doesn't seem to have worked on the battery bank? It seems like once the batteries reach the minimum voltage, they would shut off, allowing you to turn them back on when you arrive in 5 days so I could fire up the Jenny to add some juice. Am I going about this correctly? Any feedback would be appreciated.
how did you handle this ... similar questions with an off grid system
just whay I was searching for yesterday!! Great!! Thanks
Groo here
Try a "soft start " box on your air....... like you would use with a small gen in an RV.
My giandel inverter ‘soft starts’ automatically. But of course it uses batteries...
I know someone is the real deal when he describes a solar setup as "adorable".
I hate that it needs 120v minimum. So basically if you have less than 10 panels it's useless even if you have a battery bank as well?
I wish I understood this before I bought the 48v 3000 ES. Says 120-250v range, but my 6-100W panels are not enough even though they are VMP 20.4 (VOC 24.3). Ordered 2 more hope it is enough to turn this sucker on.
@@jackscrafts9202 Hope it works for ya. Luckily I bought the Growatt that also uses a battery bank. Have had it for over a year and I really like it. I have 8 panels as well.