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parisfox asked

EasySolar-II 48/5000/70-50 MPPT 250/100 GX - Unstable

Hi,

I have an off grid system consisting of an EasySolar-II 48/5000/70-50 MPPT 250/100 GX and an 11 KWh microplus battery pack.
The system has been operating for about 20 days, but since last Wednesday, when the battery charge reaches maximum capacity (around 95% according to VRM), the PV Power turns off and the system becomes unstable.
The first time it turned off for about 40 minutes, only when I accessed the device list and looked for it did it reappear.
In the following days, it turns off and on again, and from then on the production and consumption count in the VRM does not coincide with the real one (which appears on the inverter, for example).
What could be causing this situation?
I put together some prints - days 18 and 19 of april worked just fine, after that this problem persist....
Thanks.


screenshot-2022-04-23-at-09-54-54-vrm-portal.png
EasySolar All-in-One
screenshot-2022-04-23-at-09-54-54-vrm-portal.png (30.7 KiB)
screenshot-2022-04-23-at-09-49-02-vrm-portal.png (57.3 KiB)
screenshot-2022-04-23-at-09-48-51-vrm-portal.png (57.1 KiB)
screenshot-2022-04-23-at-09-48-37-vrm-portal.png (58.4 KiB)
screenshot-2022-04-23-at-09-48-09-vrm-portal.png (57.3 KiB)
screenshot-2022-04-23-at-09-47-50-vrm-portal.png (59.0 KiB)
4 comments
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parisfox avatar image parisfox commented ·

Anyone? Please!!

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klim8skeptic avatar image klim8skeptic ♦ parisfox commented ·
Was the battery fully charged, and the cells balanced before the battery was commissioned?
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parisfox avatar image parisfox klim8skeptic ♦ commented · 
I'm new to this and I just know that until the 17th, unless I'm wrong, and for about 15 days the system worked perfectly and now, all of a sudden, this started happening.
Until that date, the system charged the batteries and then managed consumption and produced only what was necessary for consumption, until the sun began to disappear and then the system began to discharge the batteries as well.
I join the sample of data exported from the VRM.
Thanks for the help!

20220423-0000_to_20220423-1140.pdf



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20220423-0000-to-20220423-1140.pdf (697.3 KiB)
parisfox avatar image parisfox klim8skeptic ♦ commented · 


Each time the batteries reach 95%, the smart solar switches off and consumption is ensured by the batteries.
Then it turns on and off according to consumption until the battery charge starts to drop significantly, at which point it starts to work normally (apparently).
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2 Answers
JohnC avatar image
JohnC answered ·
@parisfox

These widgets show the grid starting while you have some solar on. I can see what you mentioned earlier about the battery being completely full (well, 95%), as the V rises sharply, the solar then has nothing to do and dips output severely.

Time to consider what you really want this grid backup to do. Is it really necessary to use like 4kW? Or to run it all the way to 95%, when you could actually switch it off at (say) 70% or even less. Then you'd have room for acceptance of the solar.

You mention switching grid in for heavy loads. That's an Assistant function, and I suspect Assistants might be the place to look for adjusting all of this. This might be a little daunting if you're fresh to it, but with VRM and a Win PC with VEConfigure loaded it's possible. Even remotely by your installer if you're not prepared to learn it.

ESS is also an Assistant, and is quite complex. I don't think you need it, but others may disagree. With switching on a time-based schedule you might, but your grid supplier mightn't allow it anyway. Don't go there just yet, it won't help with the issues I see.

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parisfox avatar image parisfox commented · 
Thanks again JohnC, your help has been fantastic!
In fact, I'm new to this and have no knowledge on this subject, so the installer will have to make the necessary adjustments, I just try to understand what's going on so I can question him and analyze the best options with him.
What has made me a lot of confusion since the beginning, is the fact that the system is charging the batteries with the mains, when I would prefer it to only get the necessary energy from the mains to supply the needs of the loads when the batteries reach the preset minimum .
It doesn't make any sense to me that at dawn the batteries are almost charged, when they could be charged from the solar.
Today it was absurd, after sunrise (it was cloudy) the batteries reached 55% (preset minimum) and the system started charging the batteries from the network to 95%, even when a few minutes after having started to charge the batteries the solar was already sufficient to power the loads and batteries.
So, if I understand what you said correctly, it is possible to set a limit to which the network charges the batteries, right?
That would be fantastic and I think it would solve once and for all the problems I'm having, because I'm also thinking about reducing the minimum battery limit to 40%, which would give the solar system a good margin.
Therefore, please confirm that it is indeed possible to set a maximum network loading limit. without it interfering with solar charging, because I thought they weren't independent.
In that case, I will ask the installer to do this, and I forget the ESS option.
Once again, thank you very much for your help, in the last few days I had felt some regret about investing in this system...
 
                  
 
                 
 
                 
 
                   
                     
                     
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                    JohnC avatar image 
                   JohnC ♦ 
                      parisfox   
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                    @parisfox 
                    
All the things you've mentioned should be adjustable. Of course there may be trade-offs and practical limits you mightn't want to exceed, but you just need to find that happy spot.

                    
You have the best kit, so don't harbour regrets. Learn what it can do, if you're keen learn how to do it, and you'll be happy. You've asked, and that's a great start. I treat my own system as a hobby, and love tuning it myself. But it gets to a point when improvements are hard to find. I'd love to see you get to that point. Good luck with it..

                    


                   
 
                  
 
                  
 
                    
                      
                      
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               JohnC 
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Hi @parisfox 

                 
You need to tell us more about your system. You appear to also have power input from other than the 250/100. What is the 'From Grid' shown in your pics? 

                 
If actually grid, this could be interfering with the solar. How is it switched in? Are it's charge settings different to the mppt? 

                 
Also, is that a shunt providing the SOC?, and what are the batteries, Li or Pb?

                
 
               
 
              
 
               
               
              
 
               
 
               
 
                 
                 
                 
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                   parisfox avatar image 
                  parisfox  
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I have a system working in off grid, but with the grid connected to AC imput.
The system privileges solar power, and only uses the grid when there is no solar production and the batteries reach the predefined minimum level (55%).
Currently, the solar production is enough for the day (I have 12 panels of 455W), but during the night the batteries are charging through the network, because the load is not enough to last the whole night.
In the last days in the morning the batteries have a charge that varies between 65% and 90%, and at dawn they start to recharge with the solar, but when they reach 95%, after a while, what I described starts to happen - unstable system, the solar PV disappears, then it returns but the AC Lods and/or the batteries disappear and it stops counting consumption and production for some time, which gives a considerable discrepancy between the values of the VRM and that of the inverter, for example.
The batteries are directly connected to the inverter without a shunt and are LIFePO4 51.2V/54A.
I'm considering an ESS system with the victron net meter, but the installer tells me that my system is off grid and it doesn't work...


 
                  
 
                 
 
                 
 
                   
                     
                     
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                    JohnC avatar image 
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                    @parisfox 
                    
Ok. How the grid is being switched in is the important thing. Maybe from the battery bms, or Assistants in the Multi?, but we can't tell from here. This is what I think is fouling things up.

                    
I could see it happening at night, but for some reason it's also happening in the late morning. And pushing the solar off, maybe when the mppt drops to Float. Those posted pages from VRM aren't good to show that, maybe you could find suitable Widgets to monitor it more clearly.

                    
Your solar isn't getting priority. It may be when mppt Absorb setting is higher than the Multi's charger Abs, but when in Float it's not. I'd set the Multi to a Flat Voltage, just 0.1V below mppt Float.

                    
But you'll need to find out why grid is switching in when it shouldn't. 

                   
 
                  
 
                  
 
                    
                      
                      
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Thanks again for your response.
I think the system is not going to the grid, it just turns off the smart solar and goes to the batteries.
From what I've seen, the system only goes to the grid when there is not enough charge in the batteries (less than the default 55%).
Apparently the system is working properly until the battery charge reaches its peak, then system instability begins.
From what I've monitored, when the loads are high enough not to let the battery charge rise to the limit, the system seems to work fine...
It's strange and even more because it worked without problems until the 17th and only then did this start to happen.
I add a print with VRM widgets.
 
                     
screenshot-2022-04-23-at-16-20-33-portal.png
 
                    
 
                   
 
                   
 
                     
                       
                       
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                      JohnC avatar image 
                     JohnC ♦ 
                        parisfox   
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@parisfox 

                      
That extra data helps a lot. You're correct of course that the grid hasn't switched in during solar hours as I suggested, so ignore that.

                      
But the solar mppt hasn't stopped completely. It varies a bit, but that could be passing cloud. And it will decrease output when it reaches Absorb V, and especially at Float.

                      
You have some quite large loads there confusing things too, but overall I can't really see an issue with the system's behavior. What the battery bms is doing I have no idea, but it may also be contributing to the perceived 'instability'.

                      
What were the VE.Bus warnings? 

                      
Going back to the original VRM bar charts, maybe best not to put too much faith there. Ive noted an issue when ac input is called 'Generator', but I haven't studied it when 'Grid' is selected. 

                     
 
                    
 
                    
 
                      
                        
                        
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                         JohnC ♦   
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Hi JohnC,
 
                       
Thanks again for yout help!
 
                       
I attach a pdf with yesterday's data report which has all the data exported from the VRM (sorry for the size - I can't post the excel file).
I also add a print with all the VRM widgets.
The warning is related to an overload, although it seems to me that the consumption was not that high...
Another strange thing that is happening (happened just now) is that the system should go to the network to get the necessary energy when the loads exceed the inverter limit and it is not happening, the inverter just shuts down...
Probably the installer programmed something wrong...
In my case, instead of having the system as off grid, wouldn't it be better to be like ESS, charging the batteries only with solar and going to the grid only when necessary?
What is the advantage of the off-grid system (if there is) of the ESS system, even if I want to be as autonomous as possible and without ever injecting energy into the grid?
Thanks again for the valuable help!
 
                       
20220423-0000_to_20220423-2359.pdfscreenshot-2022-04-24-at-10-49-25-vrm-portal.png
 
                       

 
                      
 
                     
 
                     
 
                       
                         
                         
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                       20220423-0000-to-20220423-2359.pdf 
                       (2.4 MiB)