FYI Generator AGS tested successfully

[Joe Dutchstar]

With the recent garage door issue, see other thread, we were forced to leave the RV unplug in the “parking” area.
I was curious, having never tested the AGS, if the Generator would work come online when batteries were low.
Thankfully when I went to check yesterday the generator was humming away, charging the batteries.
Good to know it works.

 

[sheridany]

Aside from verifying that AGS is working it’s a good idea to exercise your generator under load periodically for a finite amount of time. I do mine monthly.

 

[DennisT]

Aside from verifying that AGS is working it’s a good idea to exercise your generator under load periodically for a finite amount of time. I do mine monthly.

Yes, we run ours monthly under as much load as we can for about an hour.

 

[Joe Dutchstar]

Well my comment was premature, arrived at the coach this morning generator still running and circuits dead. Coach starts easily but steps inop, ac circuit dead. Looks like it may be an issue with the LiFo battery management system offline

 

[Joe Dutchstar]

Looks like battery management system went dark after the generator circuit breaker tripped off. House battery at 17%. Charging now.

 

[Texas Clodhopper]

Looks like battery management system went dark after the generator circuit breaker tripped off.

Do you know why?

 

[Neal]

If your charge rate is higher than your GEN breaker size this happens. It happened to me as I had my inverters set to allow 50A each. It should have been 30A. Your inverters are likely set wrong.

 

[Joe Dutchstar]

Attempting to understand how power moves around the various systems in the RV. Then trying to speak with various technical folks while struggling with correct terminology and names of various controlling equipment.
The KIB auto shedding programs is constantly referred to as a Safety when power demands exceed the amount being provided.
To Neal's point of reducing Charging current to 30 amps per invertor makes some sense as the generator only delivers 66 amps or 8kW.
However, I ran the generator for the 2.5 hour ride home from Cummins bringing the House battery from 17% to ~75% without issue. Granted there was no other load on the house battery and the alternator was taking care of the 12v side of things.
During the summer we found that it was easy to overwhelm a 50amp power pedestal with other House demands (AC, Hot water, etc) while charging the house battery from a low state of charge. This supports Neal's position about reducing the Charger load limit at the invertor.
The KIB system does not shed enough to keep from overwhelming the system.
Next I am going to contact Victron to determine what is the default setting of the Invertor and under what circumstance should it be changed.

 

[Neal]

Next I am going to contact Victron to determine what is the default setting of the Invertor and under what circumstance should it be changed.

I'll save you the time, but do as you wish. There is no default setting. It's set based on your coach's setup aka power grid. Look at the breaker on your GEN to determine it's max output. You can change the values based on your supply (grid). If on a 50A pedestal, you can probably use 50A for charge current, I had it for a long time until I was boondocking and not charging and I contacted SES and learned why I blew the GEN breaker. If you're on a 30A pedestal, you need to know what/where to change. For me, 30A works in all situations unless I have some need to be on a 15A (120V) charge setup such as in a maintenance shop with no other options. I noticed the setting of 50A when doing my walk through with SES at end of install and asked about this and I didn't get a clear answer until I learned why it was wrong. If I'm on a stressed pedestal such as a CG with brownouts or extreme heat I can easily reduce demand by turning off OASIS AC I/II and just use burner. That drops 22A on the spot. You can reduce inverter charge rates if using 50A (unnecessary) to 30A. It's all about learning and knowing your system, what your draws are, and how to manage them.

 

[Joe Dutchstar]

I’ll attempt to view the charge amperage limit via Victron Cerbo GX today.
Limiting the charge Amps to 30 does make sense. Reading your note, Neal, provides insight into why and when this value should be changed. Thank you.

Never had the need to use the generator on the CanyonStar due to solar array providing all necessary power and then some. So this is new territory for me.

 

[Neal]

It's never ending learning. I'm thankful SES answers phone/email/text about any time other than their religious days (Sundays). I was in a pickle down to very low SOC and not charging and couldn't figure out how to get the batteries charged and with my slides being 12V driven I felt I may have been stuck. So again, we are always learning and understanding these systems. Fun stuff...when it works.

 

[Joe Dutchstar]

Learning more everyday. The generator breaker is 45amp AC. And is a QD 10000.

 

[Joe Dutchstar]

After some trial and error found the appropriate page on the monitor. The controller for the inverter is set to Input Charge Limit of 30 amps on both. ….moving on

 

[Neal]

If you haven’t created a VRM account you should. You can control all of this from your phone or computer too. Easier in fact.

 

[redbaron]

30amp may still be too high if you had additional loads such as air conditioning or other large draws. Tripping the breaker is unusual but does indicate a high load was present.

Was the oasis on by chance?