Avoid mistakes! EG4 18kpv inverter and PowerPro WallMount batteries install

Рет қаралды 26,098

6 ай бұрын

Don't make mistakes when installing your EG4 18kpv inverter and PowerPro WallMount batteries! Watch this video for a smooth installation process. In this video I will show you how to install an 18k inverter and wall mount batteries as well as give you important tips to make your install go smoothly!
- Please consult with local codes/rules/regulations before doing your install and install at your own risk.
Here is where I purchased all my solar panels, inverter and batteries:
signaturesolar.com/?ref=MsXWm...
Here are some additional tools and supplies that we used for this install:
MC4 Solar connectors and crimper - amzn.to/4aqxdgx
Solar Connectors - amzn.to/41C6PfK
Wire stripper - amzn.to/3uZbQCD
Small Ferrel crimper kit - amzn.to/3RyMAL0
Big Ferrel Crimper - amzn.to/473Qx05
Labeler - amzn.to/4783FBi
Solar panel ground lugs - amzn.to/3Tzqz1C
Multimeter - amzn.to/3toGOUu
Grounding lugs (for batteries) - amzn.to/3NxrPy8
10 Gauge Solar PV wire - amzn.to/487dWPC
Line Tap - amzn.to/3v5zHkn
Torque Wrench - amzn.to/3GR2ZWh
Video supplies:
Hero GoPro - amzn.to/3RrqWbP
Tripod - amzn.to/3Tt5xl9
Wireless Mic -amzn.to/3NzciOl
Go Pro Mic Adapter - amzn.to/478RS5Z
Go pro Adapters - amzn.to/3RLwq2l
Extra batteries - amzn.to/47bprnM

Пікірлер: 124

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

Check out signature solar for all your solar needs! signaturesolar.com/?ref=MsXWmTeevL-_aL

@meilyn22 Ай бұрын

One thing that makes Will Prowse popular is that he shows us instead of just telling us. The wiring is important. We want to see how you did it. Great video though.

@portercreek Ай бұрын

Thank you for the feedback!

@Madsci-zy8wm 28 күн бұрын

Will Prowse is a salesman who earns a commission when someone clicks on his affiliate links. And like all salesmen, he will say anything to get you to buy what he's selling He only demonstrates the ability of his products on a one shot basis. No accelerated aging reliability or performance. Sure it works now but how about 3 years from now?

@meilyn22 28 күн бұрын

@Madsci-zy8wm I like how your comment has nothing to do with what i wrote lol.

@DanRibar 6 ай бұрын

might be the most informative video yet. great job!

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

@kencox737 6 ай бұрын

Nice video. I was going to make one but you covered almost everything that I would have. A few extra points that I would like to bring up…. Mongo put my batteries together and stripped one of the battery cover screw heads out. I tried everything including grinding down a screwdriver. I ended up drilling out the screw head. No big deal just very time consuming. The other battery had the screw for the conduit box stripped head, Mongo strikes again! It was also a hex head so no big deal. The instructions call these “thumb screws”. To me thumb screws are the knurled screws used to secure the access covers. Also they talk about screwing the conduit box to the inverter. My inverter had no holes? Another wrong item is the additional rapid shutdown jumper. It was not installed on mine note was there a place to do it. I guess the PCB has been modified. The X bracket was totally useless! Big pain! I used a laser level after mounting the lower bracket, and lined up the center screw and the arrow head on the upper bracket. Worked well. I used a two wheeler to lift the battery onto its bracket. One thing I didn’t see you do is ground the batteries to the inverter. Your thoughts on this? There are probably a few items I missed that may help someone else, I will add them later. Again, nice job!

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

I didn’t see holes on my inverter either for attaching the conduit box to it. They want you to snip a yellow wire and put a plug on it for the rsd, in my opinion, the plug should already be there ready to use. I forgot to include the grounding in the video. I bought a set of lug on amazon(link in the description) and installed them on the batteries which made grounding the batteries a lot easier.

@ejennings98 6 ай бұрын

Excellent video! Great install tips.

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

@hendersonsobers396 5 ай бұрын

Excellent video. Great job.

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

Thanks!

@Gary_Pauls_DIY 5 ай бұрын

The screws you pointed out on the bottom edge of the conduit box can be removed allowing the plate to come out. It is then very easy to install the battery cables. Once the battery cables are installed you simply replace the plate and install the four screws.

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

Good to know! Thanks!

@kelstr 5 ай бұрын

Great video !!!! Thanks for this.

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

Thanks!!

@GavinStoneDIY 6 ай бұрын

You did a really good job with descriptions. Great detailed video.

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

I have seen a few of your videos as well! Are you grid tied on your 18k with a net metering agreement with the utilities company?

@GavinStoneDIY 6 ай бұрын

@@portercreek I have grid as backup if needed. But I pretty much run completely off grid. I don’t have a net metering agreement.

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

@@GavinStoneDIY i am in the same boat, however, unless I run mine in off-grid mode it will back feed some electricity to the grid, even though I have zero export checked and export set at 0kw. I would like to have the grid help out because we have a wood shop and sometimes powering up some of the equipment takes a little more juice than one inverter can handle. Do you run yours in off-grid mode or do you have it disabled?

@GavinStoneDIY 6 ай бұрын

@@portercreek I run mine in off grid mode. Which firmware are you using now? I believe they have a version now that does good with zero export.

@ken-w 6 ай бұрын

Thanks. Great info.

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

👍🏻

@tjmooney4181 3 ай бұрын

So helpful, thank you

@portercreek 3 ай бұрын

Glad you found it helpful!

@MrMindlink 6 ай бұрын

Very informative, thank you. Screws/screwdriver: You might consider picking up a Set of JIS screw drivers... (Japanese Industrial Standards)

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

I have never heard of those, I’ll have to check them out!

@amshaq007CR7 6 ай бұрын

So master battery dip switch down then second battery the second dip switch down and the third battery the first two down ?

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

Battery 1: First one down Battery 2: All up except second one is down Battery 3: First 2 down, the rest up

@TJM45 5 ай бұрын

Ok, I’ll try that first… thank you

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

Let me know if you have any other questions!

@TJM45 5 ай бұрын

I finally figured out the PV so cool… The dip switch on the battery what configuration is number 4 and 5… I have 5 batteries

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

@@TJM45 on page 27 it has the configuration of the batteries. eg4electronics.com/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/EG4-14.3kWh-PowerPro-WallMount-AW-Manual.pdf

@TJM45 5 ай бұрын

Thank you

@daveharman888 6 ай бұрын

Great detailed video. So you did the install of the new transfer switch and shutoff switch yourself correct? Did you need to pull permits for any of this or is that not required? I'm just in the planning phase, but I would love to do as much of the install as I can myself. Again - great video.

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

Yes I did install it myself, you’ll need to check with your local codes on whether or not you will need to obtain permits.

@daveharman888 6 ай бұрын

@@portercreek Thanks for the reply.

@TJM45 5 ай бұрын

Great channel. I just received five batteries and one 18k inverter yesterday. Today I laid out the shed and tomorrow I start to build. I know I’ll be watching all your videos for help so thank you very much

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

@@TJM45 Thanks! If you have any questions just drop a comment and I’ll try to respond right away!

@TJM45 5 ай бұрын

I really appreciate that…

@paulross1296 5 ай бұрын

Hi. Just watched the vid. Very informative. Can you use more than 3 wall mounted batteries with the 18K, or are you limited to the 3? Thanks.

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

There is no limit.

@thatretiredguy8907 28 күн бұрын

I have asked this question of eg4 and SS and got no answer. other vlogs say 3 is the limit because of the buss bar and certs. Still makes no sense as my inverter is limited to 200amps so the batteries are limited. I was going to install 4 powerpro's on one 18k but now I don't know if I can. There is a reddit post that shows only 3 and if you go to 4 or 5 you need a second inverter...again makes no sense electrically. Anyone know the correct answer or does anyone have 4 or more batteries? Does and external fused buss bar make it possible.

@sneakypete830 6 ай бұрын

Nice video, Lucky you for getting those batteries already. Did you place your order awhile back? I'm waiting for my inverter and 2 batteries to ship any day now, hopefully.

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

I ordered them Oct 26th, received them beginning of Dec

@sneakypete830 6 ай бұрын

I just got my system last week. Looking forward to learning everything so I can set it up myself

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

@@sneakypete830 if you have any questions let me know!

@kyledewaal9332 2 ай бұрын

Why are you choosing LUX vs EG4? I can’t get my battery to power my house at night I have 18kpv and eg4 pro powerwall my protocol is rs485 - eg4 and can - lux any ideas?

@portercreek 2 ай бұрын

Lux is just what the manufacturer states it needs to be set at. The rs485 also needs to be set to LUX. After you make the changes and power cycle the bms, double check to make sure the settings took. I believe this is done by pressing the second button from the right on the screen. They should both be set to LUX

@ry2456 2 ай бұрын

I am concerned that you wont be able to remove the battery while leaving the conduit box in place. What are your thoughts? Is there a way with the bracket design?

@portercreek 2 ай бұрын

That is correct but code requires the cables and cords to be inside conduit

@ry2456 2 ай бұрын

@@portercreek I just mean that if there is an issue with the battery one would want to simply unbolt it from the wiring box, detach the cables and slide it out.

@portercreek 2 ай бұрын

@@ry2456 I have slid the box out before on mine when I was changing stuff around, it is doable.

@rodneyhunt 4 ай бұрын

What size are the 3 conduits going to each conduit box you used?

@portercreek 4 ай бұрын

2”

@thatretiredguy8907 28 күн бұрын

@@portercreek The larger popouts are doubled so there looks to be a 2" and a bigger one, maybe 2 1/4". Is that correct you popped out the inside popout for the large one or is the large one 2"

@portercreek 28 күн бұрын

@@thatretiredguy8907 the largest knock outs are for 2” conduit

@thatretiredguy8907 28 күн бұрын

@@portercreek OK thanks I will go buy the hardware

@johncoinas 6 ай бұрын

Do you have a video of ur solar setup or the strings you ran. Parallel or series

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

I don’t yet, I plan on doing one in the spring when I add a few more panels to it!

@johncoinas 6 ай бұрын

@@portercreek how many panels are hooked up to each spring in the inverter?

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

@@johncoinas I have 4 strings of 12 390w panels

@TJM45 5 ай бұрын

Question: with 10 solar arrays how would I combine them into the 18k inverter since there are only 8 slots or 4 arrays? I’m not sure of this step.

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

How big are each arrays? You would need to link them in parallel so you have 4. Make sure that each array doesn’t exceed the 600v max. Inputs 1 and 2 need to have the exact same size/configurations.

@TJM45 5 ай бұрын

Each array has six 195 watt panels. I linked them in series/parallel. Can I bring them into a combiner box and then into the inverter? I did the math and they’re not over 600v. For example: four array’s wired in series/parallel… the bring those four into a combiner box. Then bring two wires into the inverter? OR would you wire two arrays in series/parallel bring those two wire into inverter. Then do the same with the third and fourth arrays? And thank you for your guidance. This is my first project and I’ve been learning from KZfaq videos.

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

@@TJM45 I have some strings with 12 and some with 14. Mine are 390watt panels. You can use a combiner box, however it makes the most sense for your application. If you can just connect the arrays to each other it would save you some wire. Just make sure that when you connect the arrays they are at the same angle and have the same amount of panels. Series is always better(as long as you stay under the volts because it doesn’t require as heavy of a gauge wire which will save you quite a bit in expense

@thatretiredguy8907 28 күн бұрын

just got my second battery and was watching your video again to make sure I installed it correctly. Since both batteries will not be at the same SOC is there anything I have to do before turning everything back on or will the 18k and BMS take care of it? Second battery has the second dip switch down and the rest up, correct. Looks like you used PVC conduit, did you punch out the large knockouts? I tried to punch out the smaller on inside the large one but the large one came out and I believe they are 2 1/4" holes. What hardware did you use, looks like it some kind of PVC on the outside and EMT on the inside. The local big box stores only go up to 2" so I guess this requires a trip to the real electrical supply or amazon. Thanks for your video it has been very helpful for a one person install, these babies are heavy beasts for an old dude

@portercreek 28 күн бұрын

The bms and the inverter will communicate to level out the charge. It is recommended on all new batteries to charge it up 100% and run it all the way down to 20% and then back up again to a full charge. This will help calibrate the bms. I used 2” conduit for everything. The male threaded ends for the conduit fit perfectly in the knock outs. It was sourced from my local Menards and home depot.

@thatretiredguy8907 28 күн бұрын

@@portercreek SS said try to balance both within 0.5v between the 2 batteries before you turn everything on so I charged battery 1 till I was close and so far so good my only issue is, I can't get into the setup screen for battery 2 to set it for LUX. We have troubleshot it but no solution. They said that as long as its charging its OK for now but we can't see the total AH of the system, still looks like one battery not 2. I will try HD or lowes and see if I can get some PVC conduit. I would like to use liquidtite but it is hard to buy just 2 feet of it. I am hoping that this does not require returning the battery as I know that will be a really hard thing to do

@jasongphillips 3 ай бұрын

Klein Tools 32327 Precision Screwdriver Buy it, you won't regret it. It has skinny #2 (plus a bunch of other stuff)

@portercreek 3 ай бұрын

I’ll check them out! Thanks!

@highmountainfarmersoffgrid 4 ай бұрын

What back up generator are you using for your system?

@portercreek 4 ай бұрын

We are currently hooked up to the grid to sell back because we produce way more than we can use. I have a small Honda generator if push came to shove but even on cloudy days I produce enough to charge the batteries back up to 100%

@shelley131 Ай бұрын

@@portercreek It is not worth selling back to the grid. For example, just an example, if they sell you 1kw of electricity for 20¢ they will buy back from you 1kw for 1¢. Just make sure also that the utility company is willing to buy back.

@portercreek Ай бұрын

@@shelley131I am not sure where you are getting your info from but it is inaccurate. I buy electricity from them for 13.5 cents a kw and I sell back to them at 12.6 cents a kw

@highmountainfarmersoffgrid 4 ай бұрын

Got ya thanks…

@portercreek 4 ай бұрын

👍🏻

@dawg2100 24 күн бұрын

Good video. Cluttered installation tho. Detail to design and layout is also important. Having ANYTHING on the floor or in front of the breaker panel is dangerous and not code compliant. Just because something works does not make it correct.

@portercreek 24 күн бұрын

Correct! If you have seen my more recent video on this system, I had made some changes and moved stuff around to be code compliant

@merican3789 5 ай бұрын

So does this unit require internet to work? I apologize if my question is dumb in advance.

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

It does not

@merican3789 5 ай бұрын

@@portercreek thanks!

@thatretiredguy8907 5 ай бұрын

just got my system and can't find an exact measurement from the floor to some place on the battery bracket to measure it, I did not see that measurement in your video. one video said 28 1/16" is that your measurement. I plan on using the X bracket as I believe that is to exactly locate the inverter bracket

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

In the beginning of the video when I am showing how to mount the battery bracket I give the measurement twice, I can’t remember what it is off the top of my head. If you use the x bracket you won’t need measurements for the inverter.

@thatretiredguy8907 5 ай бұрын

thanks for the feedback. I used the x bracket and it worked great. I did see the measurement from the floor to the top of the battery bracket was 28 1/6" and that worked fine too. getting the battery on the bracket was definitely a challenge and required so physics!

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

@@thatretiredguy8907 getting the battery and inverter installed and wired was the mower challenging part! The rest should go fairly easy!

@thatretiredguy8907 5 ай бұрын

@@portercreek I still have challenges that no one has answered because I have a SPAN panel. Its a great device but they don't play well with other equipment and presnelty only work with 4 inverters, all the big boys and zero DIY types. SPAN is too smart, it acts as your CLP when you lost grid and automatically shuts off all noncritical loads. Great idea if it worked with all inverters. Hopefully they wake up to the DIY community and support all inverters with some kind of open source code

@mcarling6495 4 ай бұрын

What is the horizontal spacing between the screws that attach the mounting panel to the wall? The manual indicates to align it with studs, but it doesn’t indicate what the stud spacing should be in order to have two or three studs available at the right locations to screw into. The overall width of the battery is 22.3” so it seems like the horizontal spacing might be about 20” (10” from the center holes to either side).

@shanebaker2613 6 ай бұрын

Video has no sound for me? Thanks for this detailed vid.

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

Maybe try refreshing the video? It seems to have sound for me. Thanks!

@LarryRichelli 4 ай бұрын

I want to but this inverter and battery but I just moved to a new area and don't know anyone here in San Antonio to help me lift this thing to install it. I do not want to set them on the ground because they will be outside.

@portercreek 4 ай бұрын

Believe it or not, one man can install it, you just have to be creative! The battery can be tipped back and forth and blocked up a little each time to get it to the height you want it at. The inverter is not nearly as heavy and can be lifted into place by one person, you could also put anchors on the wall above it and use ratchet straps to lift it into place.

@thatretiredguy8907 28 күн бұрын

I did the first setup myself...old dude. just use leverage and physics, it is doable. I am installing the second battery now and rewatched this video and got some helpful hints

@user-jo5dm9er2n 5 ай бұрын

I wish I watched this before I installed!!! Those tiny screws stripped and were a pain!!!

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

I almost completely stripped mine, I was pretty frustrated

@user-jo5dm9er2n 5 ай бұрын

Yea I know not the best solution but ended up drilling the tiny holes with a 1/4 drill and using a regular screwdriver

@Madsci-zy8wm 4 ай бұрын

This EG4 inverter simply does not offer a high enough surge capacity to simultaneously power my off grid home and shop. Because of this inverter's light duty 200% peak power capacity and no galvanic isolation, for performance and safety reasons, I chose a low frequency, transformer based inverter charger instead.

@portercreek 4 ай бұрын

If you are looking to run a shop and your house you will definitely need 2 or even 3 inverters depending on what you are looking to run. This inverter has no problem running our house but when my 40 amp compressor kicks on it will kick out the inverter.

@thatretiredguy8907 28 күн бұрын

I run a large house with a 5ton and 3 ton AC plus sewer lift pumps and a 2 pool pumps a 3hp and 1hp, lots of loads...almost 100kwh a day during the hot AZ summer. I have softstarts on everything that I can put them on and all lights are LED's and no issues. Even have both AC's start no issue. I have never had the inverter kick off and have been running everything for 6 months without failures.

@Madsci-zy8wm 28 күн бұрын

@@thatretiredguy8907A 5 ton and 3 ton AC plus sewer lift pumps and a 2 pool pumps are not large loads and six months, sure. Give it time,. Mark my word, 2-3 years is all these high frequency inverters are good for.

@akshonclip 3 ай бұрын

If you wonder why your screw heads don’t fit your driver, lookup Robertson Vs Phillips

@portercreek 3 ай бұрын

👍🏻

@opietaylor9308 4 ай бұрын

I wouldn't recommend buying these batteries. When they go into protection mode it is a nightmare to get them to comeback online. I have 6 of them. We've have multiple batteries go into protection mode. We still have one that will not come back online. We've bought the 399$ charger that's a scam. Eg4 has been tough to get any help on troubleshooting the battery. The battery has no reset button like the LL batteries. Complete nightmare. #300lbwallbrick!

@portercreek 4 ай бұрын

Set your discharging parameters to not drop below 20% I have had these down to around 5% and had no issues getting them charged back up

@opietaylor9308 4 ай бұрын

@@portercreek The battery that's in protection mode has 57% power and is brand new. We have never got it out of protection mode from straight out of the box. We've been troubleshooting for 2 weeks now. We are just hoping EG4 will exchange it for us. We have had Eg4 on the phone twice in two weeks. Why wouldn't the wall battery have a reset button like the LL batteries. We still haven't installed the other 3 batteries and inverter yet. I have left them boxes up just in case EG4 might let me trade them in for rack batteries.

@Madsci-zy8wm 4 ай бұрын

Why should he have set his discharging parameters to not drop below 20%? The BMS in any high quality built LFP battery pack should already protect against an over discharge parameter of no more than 2 Volts per cell when using LFP chemistry.. @@portercreek

@thatretiredguy8907 28 күн бұрын

@@opietaylor9308 sorry to hear about failure out of the box. Any thing manufactured can have infint mortality. hopefully EG4 stands up for their product. The exchange has to a pain in the butt. Pleasee let this group or reddit know what happens as standing behind the warranty is my only real concern. even Every inverter is made in china so they are all the same generally speaking. if you have not installed the inverter how are you using the battery out of curiosity? I have been running my system on a heavily loaded house for 6 months no issues. My state of charge is 100% down to 15% everyday no issues. I drain the battery anywhere from 8 hours down to 4 hours every day depending on AC load. Once it hits 15% it then charges back up to 18% for some reason and sits there till the next scheduled PV recharge. Everything has worked flawlessly, but the setup had some growing pains and it took EG4 to fix it, SS could not. I have specific time of use needs and my initial goal was only to use the first battery to get through the stupid rates from 4pm to 7pm. I am now adding batteries so I can run my AC anytime at the temps I want using the sun. I have nearly 100kwh daily loads in the summer so I will never be "off grid" but at least I won't give my money to the utility mafia!

@solarcharging9743 6 ай бұрын

I would never install one of these low surge capacity, shorter lived high frequency, transformerless inverter to power my off grid home. No thanks!

@portercreek 6 ай бұрын

Thanks for commenting!

@BruceMallett 5 ай бұрын

Are you selling an alternate? I see you putting this comment on other SS installation videos.

@dalboltv9747 5 ай бұрын

What's your alternative?

@portercreek 5 ай бұрын

@@dalboltv9747 he is just a troll, people get a high off of bashing what people do and trying to make them feel dumb. If they really had a legit concern they would have given their opinion of a solution

@meilyn22 5 ай бұрын

🤡