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windlight
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Joined: 03/03/2007
Location: AustraliaPosts: 331 |
| Posted: 04:57am 21 Dec 2011 |
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The following is my experience with a Selectronics PS1 inverter, they are a discontinued model but I suspect quite a few are still in service.
The batteries associated with this inverter were well past their use by date, their owner had been getting by until he could purchase a new bank. He finally had them on site and he made the connections, albeit not correctly, this is where I first became involved. I talked him through the connections on the phone and that was resolved, although the negative 125A fuse was destroyed in this exercise.
He was still unsure so I went to site, we bypassed the negative fuse, one needs to go all the way to Cairns to get a new one and the positive fuse was OK so that would suffice until a new fuse was sourced.
All went well except that the inverter synchronizing light would pulse and there was a dip in the lights when this occurred, he was still able to start the generator and the inverter changed over to this.
A few days went by and he phoned again determined that electricians had messed up the wiring when installing a change over switch because when he switched on the gas powered generator or Diesel generator via a change over switch (center off)there was loud humming on the selected generator.
So what did we find, well the sparkies had done their job correctly, quite confusing as there was the choice of a gas generator, a diesel generator and a typical caravan plug. So turning my attention to the inverter soon revealed what I suspected initially, the contactor that the inverter uses to connect the alternative 240V AC source once it is happy with volts, frequency and has syncronised was jammed closed.
Therefore the inverter seen incoming volts and was trying to synchronize to it's self, what boggles the mind is that with this contactor jammed closed, any incoming power would not be synchronized, so it is testament to the robustness of these inverters that it survived. To be fair he was only using a single cylinder Lister and I suspect as it ran up it's generator slipped into phase with the inverter, however, he was in the habit of running the generator up with the MCB open and closing it once the generator was at full speed, loops back to my statement on the robustness of these inverters.
The power to be switched was spread across the three contacts on the contactor, so we dismantled the contactor, extracted the one welded contact and put it back into service with the remaining two contacts and the auxiliary contact, it never sees more that 3 Kw max. All was well and tested OK, this is how it will stay until a new contactor can be sourced tomorrow.
So was this contactor welded closed as a result of the initial incorrect wiring of the batteries that destroyed the negative fuse, I doubt it was. My suspicion is it was just one of those things that coincided with the battery change or had been there before but not noticed. Of course the loud humming was the inverter feeding the respective alternator windings, one wonders where the weak ling would have been if the switch was left closed for more than a few seconds on a stationary alternator.
Allan of the Jungle in FNQEdited by windlight 2011-12-22
"I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it" - (Act II, Scene IV). |
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home heater
Newbie
Joined: 03/03/2010
Location: AustraliaPosts: 9 |
| Posted: 02:29am 23 Oct 2014 |
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Hi Windlite,
Tough inverter eh! Has to be the worlds best inverter, I have a few Selectronic inverters and just installed PS1 here. I can now give my SA30 a rest after 18 months of 24/7. That's 24v, also have two SA42's on 48v, three Midnites and 11kw of panels plus 5 back to grid. Am aiming for 20kw here, could sell electricity in buckets with that!!!
Now why would you want a Pro, I enjoy opening the PS1 door to show people the innards, cant do that with a pro. Anyway, this one come up cheap, a showroom model with zero hours. The PS1 is impressive inside with the computer on the inside of the door.
Gotta love the solar Allan, we heat the house (threw the wood heater out), our water and make more power than we can use. I heat water with spare solar electricity water, the Midnites are the controllers with their two aux outputs. When the batts float the fridge over-rides the thermostat and freezes bottles of water against the evaporator, this makes for a lot less running after dark.
We have power 24/7, the inverter never goes to sleep. Can switch my load(s) to any inverter(s).
We use 18kwh per day and there are very few days when the batts don't get to float.
I am retired (over 65), but still do a bit of solar, 5kw grid feed with SMA and 6kw of all black panels is my favorite, I don't do small solar, and never get asked for it. Also do a bit of standalone.
Back to the PS1 for a moment, I cant run it at night, it shuts off telling me the batteries need charging so needs fine tuning, I have just printed the manual so will get into the tweaking bits shortly. This was our first power failure in 18 months!!! When the mains go off I feed my son with power as well. He has the 5kw back to grid.
Cheers for now,
Allan of the cold south,
Portland
Vic
do it yourself |
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Bryan1
Guru
Joined: 22/02/2006
Location: AustraliaPosts: 1345 |
| Posted: 12:11pm 23 Oct 2014 |
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Well our SA32 selectronic is still going after 10 years service and hasn't missed a beat. A couple of years ago I rang them and asked if they still sold them only to be told they only do the pro. They did say to let us know when it finally dies and if I send it over to them I will get a nice discount on a pro.
So yea I do think these inverters are the best and TOTALLY Ozzie made and owned to boot. |
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norcold
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Joined: 06/02/2011
Location: AustraliaPosts: 670 |
| Posted: 01:17pm 23 Oct 2014 |
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I keep forgetting just how important the SA42 is to my system. I take it for granted, just keeps on going, but like anything it will fail. You got your ears on Windlight?
We come from the land downunder.
Vic |
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windlight
Guru
Joined: 03/03/2007
Location: AustraliaPosts: 331 |
| Posted: 01:08pm 24 Oct 2014 |
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Yea guys I am here, the inverter I discussed here let out the magic smoke xmas 2011. It was replaced with a Chinese box of garbage (cheep) which did little of what was promised and also let out the magic smoke 12 months later.
At my play pen (I refuse to call it work, as for 2 days a week I am allowed to play at The Daintree Discovery Center), one overnight system still uses a SA32.
The main building was upgraded to a pro when the batteries were changed.
Here is a question someone may have experience with, since the Daintree has no mains power the Discovery Center runs on one of two generators. They are controlled by Datakom modules
Genset #2 has a intermittent false Hz reading when off line, I am chipping away at it one change at a time, the makers suspect a harmonic back along the neutral from the Pro. Nothing stands hard, so it is hard to say but it does appear that there is a small harmonic on the neutral. This afternoon at shutdown I plan to install a small capacitor on the module across Bat- to Neutral to hopefully snuff any stray voltage.
It has been quite dry up here so maybe the earth stake at the genshed is not making a good contact, last evening I installed a temporary bond between the neutral bar and the bat- on the module which helped with some of the resistance readings but did not solve the problem.
Just another day in the wet tropics.
I don't post much these days but are quite busy fixing generators and other projects, I was waiting until my new salvaged Detroit powered genset was installed before posting. The new genshed is progressing so that will happen soon.
Allan
"I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it" - (Act II, Scene IV). |
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norcold
Guru
Joined: 06/02/2011
Location: AustraliaPosts: 670 |
| Posted: 04:45pm 24 Oct 2014 |
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Good to hear from you Allan, tis a dry October with no sign of the wet. Would have to go back 20 odd years in fragmented memory to such a cool October, still have a blanket on of a night up here, with a few morns below 10deg C. Time for rain dancing methinks.
We come from the land downunder.
Vic |
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brucedownunder2
Guru
Joined: 14/09/2005
Location: AustraliaPosts: 1548 |
| Posted: 10:53am 25 Oct 2014 |
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Good to hear you are happy Allan.
Been busy here ,just fiddling around with varnishing the house and cleaning the tiles,, Have been playing around with my lathe ,milling machine and solar gear.
How's Blondie,she still mowing the grass ?
have fun ,
Bruce & Ilda
Bushboy |
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windlight
Guru
Joined: 03/03/2007
Location: AustraliaPosts: 331 |
| Posted: 12:27pm 26 Oct 2014 |
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Hi Vic yes it has been a dry one alright, my creek has such little flow that my nymph has vacated  .
I have been watering the lawn and garden like crazy, just as well I have surplus power, must be something to do with the sunshine I guess.
I am converting to all electric up here, just purchased bench top cooker (easy cook), gas is just so expensive up here. A third air conditioner going in, into the lounge as soon as the refridge guys get enough jobs over here. Gee life is tough in the Far North.
Hi Bruce good to hear from you also mate and that you are still "fiddling" with things.
Blondie is up here ATM, she now lives in Iluka now.
Generator shed floor
Pumpkins grow well up here
Sun roof on sea container, the container may blow away but it will be with the roof attached.
The gen set I salvaged from my play area, I had to swop over motors as the coupled one was seized (water ingress, but it goes well.)Edited by windlight 2014-10-27
"I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it" - (Act II, Scene IV). |
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windlight
Guru
Joined: 03/03/2007
Location: AustraliaPosts: 331 |
| Posted: 11:51am 15 Nov 2014 |
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Just a note, I solved the problem with the Datakom at my play pen, OK a couple of weeks ago now.
After dragging my CROW and a portable generator to the gen shed and annoying the closest neighbor in the wee small hours I concluded that it was indeed the module which was heat sensitive. I suspect his rather loud "shut up" was directed at me not his dog who was barking, but hey a kid has to do what a kid has to do.
We ordered a new one on line (love eBay) and installed it after work last Thursday (generators off line), we did not succeed in programing it then but I did on Friday. The replacement, (same model) has a different programing sequence, so much for copying from the other, good unit. Realy it was the sender unit characteristics that had me confused at first, but never one to give up.
On Friday when I sat down and studied the data, and the young fillies coming into the discovery center,the penny dropped, and a bloody big penny it was. So up to the gen shed I waddled, re-programmed the new unit and woopie it works, dropped in briefly yesterday (Saturday) and they were running successfully on generator #2, the one I was working on.
So the million plus that Western Power (or what ever name they go by now) spent training me was not totally wasted.
Oh and did I say another fantastic day in Paradise, then with 3 air-conditioners running off solar power why should it not be.
AllanEdited by windlight 2014-11-16
"I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it" - (Act II, Scene IV). |
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