You can install Autarco’s Hybrid & PV inverters on the same phase. 

The following works:

• Energy harnessing works (excess solar will be absorbed by the battery instead of exported to the grid)
• PV inverter monitoring works as usual
• Hybrid inverter monitoring works: grid import; grid export; generation (of hybrid); charge; discharge; temperatures; faults etc… (except for house consumption(see below))
• Export limiting of the hybrid inverter (if you have an export limit requirement of 5KW; you have a 5kW PV inverter; you can set the hybrid inverter export limit to 5kW and it will stop generating when it sees 5kW being exported)

The following doesn’t work:

• The value of house power is calculated by knowing the meter power and the inverter output power, however, the other device makes this value incorrect. Therefore house consumption power (and energy) doesn’t work
• Export limiting of the PV inverter

If the battery is not connected or the voltage of the battery is too low, the system will display NoBattery. 

1. Check the battery connections and verify if they are properly clicked into the connector. Measure the voltage of the battery. Typical values are from 45 to 52 Volt per unit.
2. If the battery is connected properly, check MyAutarco if there have been previous warnings on the battery state (e.g. Bat Undervoltage, ……) If yes, the BMS may have stopped itself to prevent damage. Isolate each battery from the other batteries in the same stack and start up the battery. Measure the voltage on each. If the voltage is higher than ~35 Volt, the BMS shall be able to recover the battery by applying a forced charge. If the battery voltage is lower, contact the battery supplier for the correct recovery procedure.

Battery setting not correct

Enter Advanced Settings at the LCD of the inverter or through Helios.

Enter Battery Select submenu > Select the correct Battery

Enter Battery WakeUp

Physical connection interrupted

Check if the wiring of the CAN-bus is correct. The CAN-bus protocol in general is sensitive to errors. In case of major changes in the wiring or rewiring, always restart the inverter and battery completely.

Make sure that CAN-H and CAN-L are connected to the right pins.  Different batteries use different connections. Check with the vendor of the battery for the right pins.

Use a CAN-cable with ground protection, e.g. UTP, connected to ground on one side.

Measure voltage at the CAN-connector at the inverter: the voltage shall be around 1.2 Volt

Make sure that the battery is grounded.

Physical connection interrupted

Check if the wiring of the RS485-bus is correct. Make sure that A/+ and B/- are connected to the right pins.  If the meter is connected, the communication symbol on the meter will flash (little telephone or LED, depending on the type.

Although the RS485-cable is not very sensitive, it is recommended for a longer distance to use a RS485-cable with ground protection, e.g. UTP, connected to ground on one side.

Measure voltage at the RS485-connector at the inverter: the measured DC-voltage shall be around 1.7 Volt. Also measure the DC-voltage at the end of the RS485 cable: it also shall be 1.7 Volt. Attention: If a LoRa-bridge is being used for extension of the RS485, make sure that the firmware of the hybrid is not higher than 42.

Meter setting not correct

Enter Advanced Settings at the LCD of the inverter or through Helios.

Enter Storage Energy set > Meter select > Select the correct meter and type (e.g. Eastron or Acrel).

Make sure that the meter is set to connect to the right current transformer.

The hybrids are shipped with 40 mA meters. The current transformers shall be set accordingly e.g.  primary value 120 A, secondary value 40 mA. For details check the documentation of the respective meter.

When the battery is not getting charged for some time, its voltage may drop below a certain value and give a fault message UN-BattV/Battery Undervoltage. 

This value is battery specific. Please check the battery documentation.

For a WECO battery, it is specified that batteries higher than 35 Volts, can be recharged by applying forced charging. The BMS will start charging with a low current to avoid damage to the battery and gradually increase the current. If battery undervoltage has lasted too long, the BMS may run a full cycle charging up to 100%. 

If the voltage of the WECO battery is below 35 Volts, special instructions are needed from WECO to recover the battery.

All batteries have self-discharge: WECO specifies 1% per month if a battery is not used. Make sure that the Forced Charge is on in the inverter so that it starts charging before the battery is drained completely.

If the battery is not in a healthy state, the BMS alarm will show. This may include a range of sub-alarms, temperature high or low, cell problems, and BMS software issues.

The most common in our case is when one battery has a different SoC than another battery in the same stack. In that case, the batteries must be charged separately, so that they are all at the same SoC level within 1 or 2%. After this process, the individual batteries can be reconnected again and the stack shall be restarted if the alarm has gone away.

It is recommended to use the battery-specific software/firmware of the battery vendor to check the status of the battery in case simple actions as above do not solve the problem.