Was told by installer I could connect generator anytime to charge batteries so I connoted gen while in bulk mode , it ran for a few minutes until it blew a breaker in my cottage so I shut down the generator and disconnected it , did I do something wrong ??? ( I have a midnight classic with a mini magnum panel and Magna sine inverter , 24 volt system )
Need more info
Did it blow an AC breaker or one on the DC side ?
What size breaker blew ?
Can you look at the menu in your inverter and see what charging amps is set for ?
What size generator is it ?
It is hard to diagnose since we can't see how this is wired up .
Larry
Quote from: ClassicCrazy on October 23, 2018, 09:17:00 PM
Need more info
Did it blow an AC breaker or one on the DC side ?
What size breaker blew ?
Can you look at the menu in your inverter and see what charging amps is set for ?
What size generator is it ?
It is hard to diagnose since we can't see how this is wired up .
Larry
all the same stuff I'd ask too.
I use a 3Kw genset and limit 48V charging amps via inverter, to 30A,
Usually, the inverter switches the house loads to the genset, AND then adds more load when it starts charging batteries, so it can get easy (and confusing calculating DC amps to AC Watts) to overload something
it blew an AC breaker on the panel inside the cottage, ( not sure what ampsbut it was a kitchen receptacle), the generator is 3500 watts, i will check to see what the charging amps was set for when i go back to the cottage this wknd, ps can i perform an equalization in any phase or must i wait till it is in float phase ???
Quote from: Solar noob on October 23, 2018, 10:30:17 PM
it blew an AC breaker on the panel inside the cottage, ( not sure what ampsbut it was a kitchen receptacle), the generator is 3500 watts, i will check to see what the charging amps was set for when i go back to the cottage this wknd, ps can i perform an equalization in any phase or must i wait till it is in float phase ???
You have to wait till the battery is fully charged, before the EQ can actually begin.
You can only EQ flooded batteries, AGM & Gel have some special procedures, for a controlled
overcharge, but a "EQ " will destroy them.
I'd give it an extended Absorb, maybe add another 20% to your standard absorb time.
I'd start the morning with a bulk from the generator, and let the solar carry the latter half of absorb and then the EQ. It may take a couple days to get the EQ going, if all you can use is solar.
Also - if everything is rated properly an wired properly - check the connections on the breaker that blew for loose wire connection. That can make them trip - loose wire higher resistance and makes it heat up tripping breaker. Make sure all the wire connections are tight - they can get loose over time.
Larry
i will check the connection but also one thing i forgot to mention, after the breaker blew and i shut down the generator, i checked the midnight classic for fault codes and although there were none the inverter fan was on, it was plus 5 celcius outside, this seemed abnormal to me, is it ??
Regarding the tripped breaker, what was plugged into that outlet/circuit? Was anything that was plugged into the outlet ON?
Was that outlet a GFCI ?
Thanks, Vic
i asked my wife about this just to make sure (since she was the one in the cottage when it blew and i was outside) and i find out the breaker did not trip but the receptacle did, she had to push the little button in order to get it working again, there is a radio plugged into it which is on pretty much all day every day
sorry but when she said we blew a breaker i assumed the panel breaker
Quote from: Solar noob on October 24, 2018, 07:11:01 PM
i asked my wife about this just to make sure (since she was the one in the cottage when it blew and i was outside) and i find out the breaker did not trip but the receptacle did, she had to push the little button in order to get it working again, there is a radio plugged into it which is on pretty much all day every day
Hi Solar noob, Thanks for the added info.
So it does sound like the outlet that tripped, was a GFCI. These outlets will trip from overload or when there is a Ground Fault. However, they can be sensitive to noise, moisture, and can just wear out.
It does sound like that outlet was not overloaded (something drawing too much current), so you should check that all connections on that outlet are tight, (as Classic Crazy Larry mentioned) . BUT you need to switch off the breaker in your AC panel that protects that outlet. Then check with your MultiMeter that the outlet is not powered.
Is your generator an Inverter type ... at 3500 watts, it might not be. Some Inverter gensets have quite a bit of noise on the AC voltage output. That could have caused the GFCI to trip. Do not know for sure.
FWIW, Vic
First i tried plugging in a 2000 watt (new this year) honda generator and after a few minutes the breaker on the generator tripped.I disconnected that and reconnected an older 3500watt generator (not sure the name till i get back up north), briggs and sratton motor i believe and on wheels. It ran for about 5min and my wife yelled out that we blew the breaker, so i shut down the generator and am now trying to find out what all i did wrong ??? even considering i wired the AC plug in wrong ( i wired it the the AC input where it says from utility or gen.
sounds like you are overloading your generator .
Check the settings on your inverter charger setpoints and make sure that it is not more than your generator can handle.
On my Outback inverter I can set it low and then ramp it up - I have the eco setting on my Honda inverter generator and I can hear the generator ramp up as I raise the input amps on Outback inverter. When I get too high it will overload my generator and it will go out on overload ( back to idle ) . This is because my generator is not capable of handling the full charging capability that the inverter could put out.
Maybe it is something similar with yours.
Also photo of your wiring helps us look for any troubles.
Larry
here is how i wired the plug
How many amps is your inverter set to charge the batteries for ?
Are you overloading the generator and that is why it trips out ?
Larry
I have a couple other ideas regarding the tripped GFCI:
1) Most portable generators have the neutral and ground connected together and can cause any GFCI in the house to trip. The Honda 2000i inverter output generator is an exception; there is no neutral/ground connection.
2) The output waveform of many small non-inverter output generators contain lots of harmonic components that can cause havoc with many items, including GFCI devices and arcfault protection.
I also have a Honda EU 2000 generator. If I don't control the input current with a setting on the Outback inverter it will overload .
I think there were two different issues mentioned in this topic - one was a GFI tripping in an outlet in the house, and the other was the generator getting overloaded.
Larry
I dont know how many amps the inverter is set for to charge the batteries, how do you find it ???
Look in the manual - should show a setpoint for AC input amps from the generator or possibly DC charging amps from the inverter.
I don't know Magnum.
Larry
The Magnum MS-PAE inverter has a 0 to 100% setting for the charger that should be adjusted so that the charger cannot charge the batteries too fast. There is also an ac input limit that needs to be set so that the combination of charger and loads won't overload the generator. The ac input limit can't control the loads so it can't prevent the loads from overloading the generator. When you switch generators, you only need to change the ac input limit. Refer to the manual for the inverter and controller for more information.
lots of homework, thanks for the help !!
just curious,is it imperative to equalize with a generator or is it just fine to equalize using your panels ???? I've watched a lot of youtube videos on the midnight classic controller but have never seen or heard mention of equalizing using a generator ??
Generally, solar is unable to Complete an EQ cycle in a day. So you start the bulk and Absorb on your generator at 6am, and by 11, you let the PV finish the Absorb and start the EQ at noon for a couple hours
Or the lazy way of extending your absorb time for a couple days, and see if that accomplishes the same result.
ok