Sol-Ark Integration Guide

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Rev 2.1 09-14-21

Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide

505 Keystone Rd, Southampton, PA 18966 . (877) 497 6937. sales@fortresspower.com . Fortresspower.com

Introduction

Battery Datasheets / Manuals: See “Downloads” section of individual product pages

Email: techsupport@fortresspower.com

Discord Support: https://discord.gg/kxX6QMjKFw

Phone: (877) 497-6937 x 2

Hours: 9:00AM - 6:00PM EST – Use Discord for After Hours / Weekends

Warranty Submittal: https://www.fortresspower.com/warranty/

Step 1 – Getting Started. Turn each battery on individually while unpacking the batteries and note the voltage

of each battery as well as the serial numbers. The batteries must be within +/- 0.5V of each other before

commissioning. Turn off the batteries and install in parallel. Install the battery-to-battery communication cables and

proceed with system commissioning.

Pro tip: If the battery voltages are significantly different, wire the batteries in parallel without communication cables

and only turn on the lowest voltage battery. Use the inverter or external charger to charge the battery to the

voltage of the 2

lowest battery. Turn the 2

battery on and charge the battery bank to the 3

lowest battery

voltage. Repeat until all batteries are at the same voltage. Keep total charging voltages under 15A per battery during

this process.

Pro tip: If the batteries are just slightly outside the +/- 0.5V range, you can avoid using an inverter or an external

charger to balance the batteries by only turning the lowest voltage batteries on (ONLY if within 0.5V relative to each

other) and allowing those batteries to balance. Repeat this process with the highest voltage batteries. This brings

the lowest and highest voltage battery towards to the middle of the group.

Pro tip: It is not usually necessary to apply a firmware update to Fortress batteries during system commissioning,

but our installer firmware update tool can help speed up commissioning times.

Step 2 – Update Sol-Ark Firmware. Power up the Sol-Ark from grid, generator, or batteries. This step can be

done during pre-commissioning while running the batteries in “master only” mode, ahead of installing the battery

communication circuits. Set up Wi-Fi with Sol-Ark Inverter using Sol-Ark’s PowerView App (search for Powerview in

the app store, but it is called PV Pro) and have your site name and Wi-Fi dongle serial number handy. Call Sol-Ark at

(972)-575-8875 and request a firmware update. This process can take up to 60 minutes. You may want to take a

picture of your firmware version so you can tell when the firmware update is complete.

Pro tip: If a BMS error occurs when powering up the inverter, turn the batteries off. Connect the inverter and any

battery breakers so that power can flow from the batteries to the inverter. Turn the batteries back on again. Then

power up the inverter again. You may need to repeat this process up to three times to pre-charge the inverter

enough for it to power up.

Join Our Discord Chat

Check Sol-Ark firmware here

Summary of content (8 pages)

PAGE 1
Rev 2.1 09-14-21 Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide Introduction Battery Datasheets / Manuals: See “Downloads” section of individual product pages Email: techsupport@fortresspower.com Discord Support: https://discord.gg/kxX6QMjKFw Phone: (877) 497-6937 x 2 Hours: 9:00AM - 6:00PM EST – Use Discord for After Hours / Weekends Warranty Submittal: https://www.fortresspower.com/warranty/ Join Our Discord Chat Step 1 – Getting Started.
PAGE 2
Rev 2.1 09-14-21 Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide Step 3 – Install the battery-to-battery communication circuit When installing multiple batteries, it is necessary to use the canbus terminators. This procedure is different for the eFlex, eVault MAX, and eVault Classic. eFlex and eVault Classic: eVault MAX: The eVault MAX has the canbus terminators built into the unit. The two eVault MAX units on the end have the canbus terminators set to ON.
PAGE 3
Rev 2.1 09-14-21 Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide Step 4 – Modify the Battery-to-Inverter Communication Cable In 2020, Sol-Ark replaced the individual wire ports for RJ485 communication with an ethernet port, making a custom conversion from our data cable “pin out” to Sol-Ark’s necessary. This conversion can be made in the field with locally procurable items, but registered Fortress installer-dealers can also purchase pre-made cables at https://fortresspower.com/shop.
PAGE 4
Rev 2.0 08-28-21 Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide Step 6 – Plug the modified end of the cable into the correct Sol-Ark port. Fortress batteries communicate with Sol-Ark over RS485 modbus. Even so, Sol-Ark labels its communication port on its most recent communication card as the “Battery/Canbus” port. Legacy SolArk inverters may use the RS485 port for battery communication.
PAGE 5
Rev 2.0 08-28-21 Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide Start V is not programmable / disabled when Use Batt % charge is enabled. Start % autostarts the grid or generator charge and charges the battery to 100%. Avoid this charge by programming the Timeof-Use settings in the Grid Setup. 15% Float V / Absorb V should be set to 54.4V if not using battery-to-inverter communication, (Ex. 3+ eVault classics).
PAGE 6
Rev 2.0 08-28-21 Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide Step 8 – Confirm BMS communication. After completing steps 1-7, go to the home screen of the SolArk unit, touch the gear icon, and select the new “Lithium Batt Info” option in the setup menu options screen. If data appears across the top of the menu option as well as across line 2 only, then the battery is communicating to the SolArk. Otherwise this option will only populate with zeroes. Header data appears here 56V 185A etc….
PAGE 7
Rev 2.0 08-28-21 Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide Steps 10 - Verification: Confirm all batteries are “working” before leaving site by confirming amperage is flowing in or out of each battery. If the battery is showing 0 amps while other batteries are working, then that battery has not been commissioned correctly.
PAGE 8
Rev 2.0 08-28-21 Fortress Power - Sol-Ark Inverter Guide Step 11 – Updating firmware (optional): All Fortress batteries are now shipping with firmware necessary for closed-loop communication with SolArk inverters.