Lost both of my inverters last week in a big electrical storm. Both units were ON at the time of the storm. Neither are fried, they both show no physical damage, just wont work. One is a Victron Quattro, that just says it’s in permanent overload. The other is a Chinese 3kw MPPT charger / inverter, its output voltage has gone unstable and it reports a constant fault. At the time of the storm I have my incoming Grid breaker open so zero connection to outside power. My two inverters are in different parts of the property 75m apart. Another casualty was a cheap 10w LED floodlight, just doesn’t work any more. Only conclusion i can come to is that this was EMF? Anyone go any ideas on how I avoid this damage in the future?
Wow, that’s a strange one! I’ve only heard of an inverter failing after a nearby lightning strike that hit the lines. Was there a lot of lightning nearby? Could it be possible that the solar array way hit?
There are many different surge protection devices available for both DC and AC circuits. It would be good to find the exact source of the surge (or EMF?) https://www.phoenixcontact.com/en-au/products/surge-protection
This article contains some really good information and diagrams about lightning-induced emf and voltage surges.
Update: Victron have pronounced my 8kW Quattro DOA. They have given me a good deal on a replacement unit, thank you Victron.
My other inverter, a no name Chinese brand is another matter. 3kw, hybrid MPPT inverter / charger. I’m looking right now at replacing that with a unit from MasterPower, a Spanish company. Does anyone have any experience with this brand? Web site says manufacturing is in Vietnam. Thanks
My bad, company is actually called Master Battery. (MasterPower seems to be a product range). Web site is www.masterbattery.es