The Anker SOLIX F3800 - What Other Channels Don't Show You!
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- 게시일 2024. 04. 27.
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In this video I complete in-depth testing one of the newest offerings from Anker, the SOLIX F3800! With 240v split phase output in one unit lots of people have been asking me to test this power station. In this video I give you the honest facts about the performance of this product. The AC output is clean and powerful, it can take in a bunch of solar, and the form factor is unique....BUT it isn't perfect...How did you think it did?
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Video Timestamps:
Anker SOLIX F3800: (0:00)
AC Inverter Testing: (2:22)
DC / USB Output Testing: (10:30)
Charging the F3800: (14:16)
240v Output While AC Charging?: (25:18)
Pricing & Warranty Coverage: (26:22)
Grading the Power Station: (27:00)
Final Thoughts: (28:28)
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Lots of video reviews out there that are more like Anker commercials and this is the only review I could find that was actually a review and not an infomercial. Thank you and well done!
The best solar generator reviews on KRplus. The unit has a lot going for it especially the 240 and the clean sine wave and 240 volt split phase. I wish the engineers would gonna back and rethink the 60 volt limit; I think that’s a real issue because you have to limit your ability to connect your panels in series. I like the higher voltage due to distance of my panels to the units. (Backyard to house) I don’t like the fact that you take advantage of faster charging by using both the AC and solar panels at the same time. Hurricanes in Florida will sometimes take down the grid for a week or more. There will be times when you want to do a quick charge and use both an inverter generator and solar panels at the same time. I think the unit has great potential; however, it has kinks that have to be worked out.
that would take a lot of transformers which are heavy. This is designed with the ability to pick it up. Transformers would add 30lbs atleast.
I agree completely. I understand they cannot be everything to everybody But I would be running a small AC unit and two fridges, 3 tablets. and a couple of computers and monitors on and off. I would not like shutting down the AC for 2 hours all at once and extension cords are out of the question. I would be charging with solar and it doesn't match the power needed to keep everything running. They are certainly on the right track.
Quite an oversight from engineers considering that once users add expansion batteries, the DC charger/converter is not that powerful. It is only adequate powerful with the built-in battery.
What Noel said. For us, this is a standard grid drop backup that needs to have week+ ability in case of SHTF. The need to completely rewire my grid tied array for 60vdc doesn't make it more convenient than dragging out the Vanguard for a day or two. TrickinTricking the Solar Edge inverter to send AC to the house just makes the battery unit shut off the 240v outlet running the critical loads panel. The coup de Gras is the idle thirst of the inverter. This looks like exactly what I need, and in budget too, but the devil is in the details.
@@JFabric500 Maybe they could provide one of those additional external packs that instead of higher charge capacity handles higher voltages... Nice option to have.
I am still learning. A year ago i had no idea of this terminology but able to follow along now. Still learning how to use the equipment used in th testing and why. Please continue making these presentations, I like the funny ones as well. you are a great presenter ☺
Outstanding production sir. I have no critique for you. No unnecessary music, got right to the point, all very pertinent tests and info. Best review I've seen. Do more!
As always top-notch reviews and likely one of the top two on the internet. You seem to cover everything I have questions about or need to know on a subject. Keep them coming. Long time subscriber.
I just recently purchased the Anker F3800.
I had to a few questions that I didn't think of before I bought it. You were very thorough and covered all my questions. Thank you for making this video.
thank you for the thorough and honest reviews that you do
His review of the F3800 is outstanding. I’ve been looking at the unit for ~1 month and without question his assessment and understanding of this power station is very helpful. Thanks!
Excellent review as always.
Another great review Jason. You set the bar very high for all reviews and yours are second to none. I'm not in the market for something like this at this time, but you helped me very much to build up my knowledge so I can make an intelligent decision when the time does come. Thank you for your time and sacrifice to help keep us in the know of what's available and what's good and not so good about it. It also helps the manufacturer know where there's need for improvement. Thank you very much. 👍👌
That's exactly my goal and purpose for doing these in depth review videos! I want the buyer to be well educated about the product to the point where they know if it's right for them or not. Thanks for being a channel member :)
@@Jasonoid Of course. Thank you for all your work and dedication.
Great review as usual. You give the best content on the net. Very strong
Another thorough review from you. Nicely done.
Absolutely beautiful testing video! Great job man!
You do an excellent job with your reviews . Very professional and helpful.
Jason, great review, the best on KRplus.
Thank You!
Wow, thanks!
You are so equipped and detailed ❤
I've watched five reviews of this product and this review was the best. Why? He speaks clearly and at a good pace which is important. For me, what stuck out was total watts vs. actual running watts. They should add this information to the packaging like gas generators do. They show peak surge watts and actual running watts. I always find this somewhat deceptive with power stations. Because it is a mobile unit, I would use it in an RV but not as a home backup because of the limited solar voltage. I think the standard should be 150 max for this type of unit in this price range. For home back up, I would go with the Delta Pro Ultra. I don't yet understand the 240 volts inputs yet. Would love to see videos dedicated to what you could use them for and their respective applications. For example, could I plug in my home dryer and run it? I know people are looking at these systems as a cheaper way to home backup which is great. There is a lot to like about this power station, but seriously, how are going to incorporate XT connections for the solar inputs and not include the adapters? Anker is good but they are seriously lacking when it comes to what people are looking for regarding solar inputs and capacity. I would actually go with the Zendure Superbase V with expansion batteries because the 240 volts is not of particular importance in my application at this time. This was an awesome video; thank you Jason once again.
Great job, I like the idea of the larger units.
Extremely well done and thorough video thank you!!!
Another great review, Jason. This unit is far beyond my needs, yet the information was excellent.
Thanks for supporting the channel, Jim!
Awesome review! Thank you for sharing your awesome knowledge!
I do these videos for you guys! Thanks for watching.
Excellent and thorough review Jason; thank you. I purchased my F3800 plus expansion battery on Kickstarter and love it. One thing that you forgot to mention is that when in UPS mode(AC charging and AC inverter on), the max AC input is brought down to 1440W from the 1800W MAX.
Thank you for clarifying that! You are correct, the UPS mode is limited to 1440 watts.
Great review. Thank you!
Well presented and very thorough review.
Thanks for watching
The lack of 240v output while A/C charging would be a deal breaker for me. I would want to use it connected to circuits on my transfer switch sub panel and have it connected to A/C charging on a timer to only charge during off peak electric rates.
nice idea. i was looking for similar like a grid tie inverter functionality.
Similar issue with EcoFlow.
Solution:
Switched Mode Power Supply (SMPS)
This is a useful device from a third party that can be purchased with different specification depending on the power station it is used with.
Reasons for using SMPS with Delta Pro:
1. Double Voltage Hub (DVH) is in use with 2 Delta Pros
2. AC loads on the Delta Pro (DP) will exceed 1,800 watts
3. Non-inverter type generator which does not output pure sine wave Alternating Current (AC) to charge Delta Pro
4. Manual Transfer Switch (MTS) users wanting to charge from AC power source connected to same electrical system.
5. When a Delta Pro (DP) already has 2 Extra Batteries (EBs) connected to it.
6. allow users to charge 1 DP + 2Extra Batteries (EBs) via DC power using the DP’s XT60i solar input port at the maximum charging rate of 1,600 watts.
7. Allow users to charge 2 DP + 4 Extra Batteries (EBs) via DC power using the DP’s XT60i solar input port at the maximum charging rate of 1,600 watts.
8. Demonstration with a 1,500 watt SMPS here krplus.net/bidio/m7p9o6Z-m3_cY6g
Thinking of getting one for my home in Texas thanks for the very comprehensive review
Glad to help
Jason, I've watched all the F3800 videos and yours is by far the most comprehensive. Thanks so much for the DC input tests. Unfortunately your results were the same as mine, so my idea of using one device to feed four inputs on two F3800's is out the door. I was trying to skip the 48v server rack battery and charge all four ports in an extended outage with an EG4 chargeverter and my inverter generator. So now thinking of one EG4 48v server battery to take care of one port on each F3800 and the chargeverter for the other two ports. I got these at the Kickstarter 45% off rate but for my use case it appears the Ecoflow Ultra would work better for me but at a much higher cost. Also don't love the poor reviews of Ecoflow's customer service. Love that power supply you used. Looks like a beast. Thanks again for such a great review.
There are definitely ways around the quirks of the 60v limit. I just showed a couple options. Since you got such a great deal on this model it's definitely worth getting something that works for you.
agreed, I was thinking of charging it the same way, 48V through the solar inputs.
Dude...friggin epic vid. You just kept busting out more awesome testing hardware and more things to test..."thorough" is an understatement!! You got my sub!!
Wow, thank you!
@@Jasonoid For sure. Well deserved. I know all that gear ain't cheap! #dedication
Amazing review.
Fantastic Channel! Great find.
Absolutely the most detail report on this Anker Excellent job. A quick correction you now can charge DC and AC at the same time :) 4 important update that needs to happen is being able to charge 120v while using 240v , get a higher solar input , UPS mode on 240 . and definitely a 30amp 12v output for rv camper would be a winner, the way for now to go around charging while using 240v is to use a amps 25a 60v dc to the solar input I tried it and it works well. get all this and then this unit will definitely be the best portable unit out there thanks
Yes! One good change, I just updated the firmware last week and now it dual charges.
I suspect that the dual charging still doesn't solve the problem with not having power to the 240V outlets and the right 120V bank of outlets. That's because the inverter for the left bank is a bidirectional inverter and is still repurposed backward as an AC to DC converter (plus UPS passthrough) to charge up the batteries when power is applied to the AC charging input. The only problem it solves is that you can now charge the batteries faster using both the AC charging power (through the repurposed inverter) and the direct DC charging power. I bet you dual charging doesn't give you the 240V power that many people want. You need DC charging ONLY to let the left bank inverter work as normal inverter in order to supply 1 of the 2 legs of the 240V outlets.
This is partially why the Anker Solix F3800 is cheaper but less robust than their competitors (like the EcoFlow Delta Pro Ultra). The EDPU probably uses a dedicated inverter to do AC charging, while Anker went cheap and repurpose one of its 2 inverters as a bidirectional inverter to do the AC charging, therefore causing the lack of a normal functioning inverter to power 1 of the 2 240V legs.
Great video again Jason. Just like the 767/F2000, the best panels I've found with these 60v input MPPTs are the Qcell 480 watt bifacials with their 53.38voc.
I was looking on Signature Solar earlier this week since someone emailed me about panels that were compatible and I found only a few options for parallel use. Those panels were on the list!
I would like to know more about the compatible panels you have found for the 767/F2000. I’m looking for one unit, possibly two max due to space limitations. Thanks.
@@my23glock the panels I shared on this video will work excellent on the F2000 as well:
krplus.net/bidio/iKqkhJt_n2_WdZQ
Nice Job, your testing answered all of my questions.
I wish that the 240v output would stay on all of the time though.
I have a video coming out on Friday of this week trying a few alternative charging options. We'll see if I can come up with anything to improve that.
Great job Jason and very thorough. I’ve reviewed one on my channel and the only thing I noticed that you missed is that the left solar input is disabled after 90% charge if there’s something plugged into both. Unfortunately I couldn’t get the expansion battery to charge or discharge on mine and I’m currently waiting for a replacement battery. I can’t wait to run my home from it again with the expansion battery because the unit itself has been working excellent!
I'm kinda bugged that none of these 'little facts' are in the owners manual....
The owners manual is too simple. I wish it had all the deets! Thanks for sharing your experience!
That that thing better be a beast for its size
Super review. I have followed you for over a year now and always learning. A couple of items on gen charging (17min). Per Anker the F3800 will not accept a gen with modified sine wave. Bummer with all the old gens used. My set up was to use the gen to subpanel and then charge the F3800 during the day off a house 120v outlet or use two with 240v adapter plug. Use the F3800 at night into subpanel. A bit of switching but workable. Still the issue here is that with my old gen, it will still put out a MSW so per Anker, I will need a chargeverter from house current to charge.
Correct, most power stations require a pure sine wave input to charge properly. That's definitely something to check out if you have an older genny, thanks for bringing that up!
Great job! Learned some things I didn't already know. I got my setup on Kickstarter at a 35% discount which is always a plus. I'm waiting on the rest of my stuff(Home Panel and 12 Circuit Sub Panel). When do you think you'll have a video on those items? I would be curious of your review and how to configure the installation. Keep up the good work!
Since I have the 240v transfer switch I can't install their home panel.
Excellent presentation. Thank you. If I am going to spend $5000 on this just for my home for backup power, I am getting a fixed in place natural gas generator for about the same cost and will run the entire house basically forever.
Thats also a great option.
@@JasonoidOn a side note, you need to test the new Iceco PB1000's. It looks interesting.
@@markmonroe7330 I'm in contact with them about it actually 👍
Looking the kit! It's a proper evolved brand .
It's quite the product!
Thank You for All that you are doing for our Planet Earth.... Peace.. Shalom.. Salam.. Namaste 🙏🏻 😊 🌈 ✌ ☮ ❤
Needs either more versatile solar input capabilities or the 240 volt while AC charging ability for me to opt in. As is, you also would need a large generator with this power station which kind of defeats the purpose. Still this device is pretty impressive. Great review!
I appreciate you commenting and sharing your thoughts.
Excellent review and explanation! Thank-you!
I do have a question. What does the charge controller do with the ampacity available from the solar panels when there is no load on the system and the battery or batteries are at 100%. Is that condition detrimental to the PV array?
I really like your review of this power station, best review out there. I’m considering purchasing ANKER SOLIX F3800. My question is: 1. What is required to connect two units in the house to double the battery capacity? 2. Will there be needed twice as many solar panels to charge both of the units at the same rate as one? Thanks again for your explanatory.
If you wanted to connect two units together to your home, you'd want to purchase the Anker Smart Home Panel, it should be coming out soon.
With two units, you have the ability to get double the solar charging speed, so you'd have 4 solar charging ports, 2 per machine.
Thanks for the thorough, data driven review. I believe the Anker Home Power Panel acts as an automatic transfer switch and will resolve the issue of 120V AC charging while retaining 240V output. The HPP should also have the ability to preference solar input over AC input (if I interpreted the website information correctly). Do you have any plans to review the Anker Home Power Panel that was specifically designed to work with the F3800?
I already have the transfer switch installed and I don't have space for their panel. I'll keep my eye out for any news on it.
Great review. Should this be hooked up to a 50amp generator outlet? I have two units I expect to combine at some point, but may not always use them connected. Thanks & keep up the great work...
You can power a main panel through a generator inlet box and a interlock switch. You could also power critical loads through a transfer switch. There are multiple options.
Add some barrel jacks on the DC output, and maybe let me bump that voltage up a bit in the app, I'd really like to see 13.8 -14.0 DC just to help keep the current down a little bit, Mainly for an "special use case probably exclusive to just me!
Definitely need to be able to use dual charging with FULL ac output, and again let me prioritize one over the other as needs dictate!
And yes a higher DC voltage input would probably be nice!
I'm just starting to explore this arena right now, I'm starting small to experiment and learn
Great video review, thank you! Can you help identify best solar panels to use with this unit besides the portable ones due to the limited 60V solar input?
I'll be putting out a future video breaking down that information soon. Stay tuned!
When the 240 output is connected to a transferswitch (so the generator input of it) no problem that it goes to 0 Volt while the unit is AC charging. The reason for it is that when you are AC charging that means there is AC coming from the grid and the transferswitch is using the grid anyway.
For charging this battery from a generator when solar is not enought I would consider using the DC inputs or use the generator to feed both the transferswitch as the Anker, basicly feeding the whole group again.
Another very nice review. If I were building an off-grid cabin, this would be almost ideal. Otherwise, charging it from 120V AC introduces some pretty serious limitations, especially the loss of 240V output.
The power output was super clean on the inverter. It checks MOST the boxes for a perfect unit except the items you mentioned.
Nice unit I agree 100% with the flaws you pointed out. My bigger panels all put out 41 volts that maximum voltage input should of been higher. Geez my 2000 w pecron takes in 95 volts per solar input. Should of been 150 like most bigger power stations. Lack of attachments they need to correct that which is an easy fix that should be made. At the end of the day, its worth the money in my opinion. Whatever that's worth. Lol, great review as always!
I think there are many use cases the F3800 will work well for people. It has many of the newer features and the inverter performed well. No complaints from me about the performance. Just the charging options can make it limited.
Wow, the reason I sold my Delta Pros was just because I could not AC charge while connected to the 240v and now this one does the same. Bummer!
The owners manual doesn't talk about this, neither do many of the other review videos 🤷
That’s why Ecoflow sells their smart DC generator. Then you can charge with the solar input as well as DC generator charging at the same time.
Switched Mode Power Supply (SMPS)
This is a useful device from a third party that can be purchased with different specification depending on the power station it is used with.
Reasons for using SMPS with Delta Pro:
1. Double Voltage Hub (DVH) is in use with 2 Delta Pros
2. AC loads on the Delta Pro (DP) will exceed 1,800 watts
3. Non-inverter type generator which does not output pure sine wave Alternating Current (AC) to charge Delta Pro
4. Manual Transfer Switch (MTS) users wanting to charge from AC power source connected to same electrical system.
5. When a Delta Pro (DP) already has 2 Extra Batteries (EBs) connected to it.
6. allow users to charge 1 DP + 2Extra Batteries (EBs) via DC power using the DP’s XT60i solar input port at the maximum charging rate of 1,600 watts.
7. Allow users to charge 2 DP + 4 Extra Batteries (EBs) via DC power using the DP’s XT60i solar input port at the maximum charging rate of 1,600 watts.
8. Demonstration with a 1,500 watt SMPS here krplus.net/bidio/m7p9o6Z-m3_cY6g
You plugged an eg4 battery in to charge it. Can something like the eg4 powerpro be used to charge it. Thanks for your in-depth review and answering questions. I purchased one of these before seeing your review, and it gave me great insight. Well done!
Yes, the EG4 powerpro would function the same exact way and would provide a TON of additional capacity.
@@Jasonoid thank you, sir!! You are a wealth of knowledge. I'm glad I found your channel.
First off GREAT video, super detailed.
Could you test the efficiency of the 240v outlet for the benefit of those charging a car? Charging a Tesla at 120v yields a 10-12% loss due to having to boost the voltage to 220v+ I would be interested in how much lower they would be than the 120v figures.
I am considering using this as a solar bank to run one or two of my 120v room AC units during the day. My concern is the no load efficiency of the inverter at night draining 25% of that stored energy that could be used just before the sun comes to it's peak, but the low no load efficiency seems counter intuitive. It seems like there may be two 120v inverters inside to run the 240v outlet, is there a mode in which it can operate maybe only one 120v bank at no load with more efficiency? If the unit is depleted during the night, will it reboot once a charge source such as solar is received?
Have you measured the power consumption when the unit is in UPS mode and fully charged?
While this is the highest charge rate system I have found, the no load inverter efficiency is certainly a downside, have you seen better no load 120v only systems that are above 3kw?
UPS power consumption isn't very high since the power is being pushed right through the device. Theres no exact way to measure it but it seems like it's less than 35 watts.
There is no way to turn off the 240v output, so you have to deal with the inverter losses anytime it's enabled. The only other 240v system I have tested is the EcoFlow DPU and it's much more efficient at idle.
The other large system I have tested in the Bluetti AC500 and it has really bad idle power loss as well.
Great review and testing. Did you try to use your HVAC to figure out if it handled the surge during the compressor power up ?
I have a 4 ton air conditioner, too big for this unit. It runs my furnace motor just fine though.
Would it power a 2.5 ton inverter Mitsubishi heat pump?
It says it will power up to a 3 ton unit
I could not verify the auto-off feature for 30 minutes before. I contacted Anker support and learned that if you use any of the USB-A ports or the 12V ports, it will not "close" until 2 hours later, then the time out for 30 minutes starts after it closes. So even when you set the time out to 30 minutes, the F3800 won't shut down until 2.5 hours after there is no more load on the USB-A port. Similar with the AC output ports, they take 30 minutes of inactivity to "close", then another 30 minute of the time out set, so the F3800 will not auto shutdown until 1 hour after the outlets have 0A load with a 30 minute time-out set.
Wow, you put out a gazillion terabytes of information and my brain can only take about a kilobyte. Lucky for me you had the grade sheet at the end that summarized it very well and the pros and cons. Agree that the solar charging is limited and it is something that should be remedied along with the pass through charging.
It boggles my mind that most of this manufacturers think about the systems they built as home back ups units only and fail to fully grasp that in emergency scenarios due to earthquakes or hurricanes , and tornadoes, and grid down systems, that using 12V appliances during days or weeks of power outages are more efficient and very crucial in these instances.
During a time that I had no power for 10 days and sun for 4 of those days had I not had my 12V refrigerators/freezers to transfer my food from the residential fridge and freezer there would have been some spoilage for sure. Luckily I had redundancies in place but people that may not have the finances for whole residential backup system could benefit more from a unit that has 3 or more 12V plugs.
I personally am not impressed in having a 6000W inverter with a 3800w battery where using all ac appliances only can drain your unit in a few hours. I'd rather have a 6000W battery with a 3000W inverter. Managing your power source is more crucial in power outages something that many many people are not aware of or understand.
As always fantastic video. I love your content very succinct and informative and don't pay attention to that jerk's comment. When you get haters it's because they are jealous, incompetent , and losers.
Amazing point about managing your power usage during an outage. That's something that's easy to forget. It's important to plan ahead and know only the essential loads you want to run. Maybe even do a couple 'simulated outages' to see how everything fairs in your setup. Then you can fix any issue BEFORE the real emergency hits.
This thing was a steal a few months back when they first introduced it at $2599, but even this price is pretty good for an all-in-one solution for 240 split phase. You really went all out on that BK Precision DC power supply, but you really can't beat quality. I don't think it is a quirk that the 240 split phase receptacles are not energized during 120 single phase charging as this would require an internal method of converting the 120 single phase into 240 split phase, which can be heavy (large center tap step up transformer, about 70 pounds) and expensive. A 3000 watt transformer for this purpose is more expensive than the Anker 3800! Also on a side note, common grounding of solar arrays violates the NEC in the US, and will void your home owners warranty if a fire results and it's found to be from common DC grounding of solar arrays. A very thorough review as always. This Anker is a refreshing product when compared with the pricier, multiple box and big cable alternatives from EcoFlow and Bluetti:)
I'm glad I finally pulled the trigger on the BK Precision. I'm hoping I can get that money back over time as people watch these videos. That thing is a beast but it allows for more thorough testing!
Thanks for the heads up on the shared ground between solar arrays. I don't have any shared grounds on my solar arrays, that only happened when I was trying to charge from the same battery.
The EcoFlow Delta Pro Ultra has 120v input and 240v output at the same time but I'm not sure how they accomplished it. I think the 120v input is completely separate from the 240v output, almost like they have two separate inverters inside (120v and 240v).
@@Jasonoid I am glad at least one other person understands that the Delta Pro Ultra can do this but Anker can't as they are simile sizes so the theory that it would take a much larger unit to do this is bunk!
@@JasonoidThe way that EcoFlow does it is that it has 240 split phase input for charging, as well as 120. Since you have the new EcoFlow, you may want to try and see if the the split phase operates with only a single phase hooked up to the input. Having a UPS type of switch over may also contribute to the Anker not being able to provide 240 split phase while hooked up to the 120, as the UPS mode is only for 120 side. While the EcoFlow provides UPS functions for both 240 and 120, the Anker only provides UPS for the 120 section. It is half the price though!
What is the connection cable for the expansion battery? Could it be "rigged" to work with a 48v server rack battery? I'm guessing there's some proprietary BMS anker has under wraps?
The cables I purchased for the video are all listed in the video description. They are perfect for connecting a 48v server rack battery.
Thanks so much for your reviews and tutorials!... If I planned on using two server rack batteries as extention batteries/charge for the 3800, would it make more sense to go with 12v or 48v? I watched your DC to DC video, so I know I can use a step-up converter to charge it from a 12v, but Im wondering if I could go straight from xt60 to the EG4s terminals with 48v? Would I need fuses on the xt60 cord for the 48v?
This video shows you exactly what you need to buy to connect to a 48v:
krplus.net/bidio/iKqkhJt_n2_WdZQ
A 48v battery is a MUCH better option vs the 12v battery.
@@Jasonoid Thank you! ☀️💪🏽
I'd love for you to review the Anker Home Panel when it becomes available.
I don't have space in my main panel for the smart home panel since I have the 240v transfer switch installed.
very detailed. i want to use this to run a RV off grid while running a PC as well- the RV uses a 5500kw Generator now- will this work as is or do i need to add the battery? how many solar panels to keep this charged? Thanks you have earned my sub.
I made a video more specifically about solar panels for this unit here: krplus.net/bidio/iKqkhJt_n2_WdZQ
I'd recommend having as many as you can afford since this unit has a large inverter that uses lots of background power. An extra battery might be needed. It depends how many watts you'll be pulling consistently.
Based on your review, the best plan for this in an outage would be 2 of the 48v server rack batteries and each with an MPPT hooked up to it. Have a wide ranging MPPT on them to get around the voltage limits of the unit and keep your critical loads powered from 240v. The server rack battery is nearly the perfect DC input for this it seems. I do like this unit in general, but the charging quirks makes for coming up with some innovate solutions. Ecoflow's new Delta beast does outshine this one, but it costs more too. I'm still waiting to see one of these that can allow my AC Coupled solar panels to be used when the grid is out. I know wall units from Sol-Ark, EG4 and Schneider can, but have yet to see one of these kind of portable ones have the feature.
I think having two 48v server rack batteries with their own MPPTs is a viable option around the 240v being disabled and the 60v cuttoff... but if you have two 48v server rack batteries, why not just invest in an All in One inverter anyways? I guess each person has their own use case. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Much appreciated!
@@Jasonoid You are so right. A hybird inverter coupled with two or three of the 48v batteries would and could do as much and more than any portable unit at a similar cost but I guess that portability is the difference here.
@@JasonoidYeah, at the point of getting 2 of those batteries, you are likely better off with an All in One. I do help at some outdoor events in the woods (ultra running races) and need power at those. Having a unit that could be carried there and used at home would be nice. Honestly, we rarely lose power at home and investing so much in the batteries and inverters to collect dust for 364 days out of 365 is hard. I don't have time of use rates and I get a 1 to 1 match on power sent back to the grid from my existing panels. Just not incentivized by my electric company to do much with home backup.
My perfect setup since I have no solar (very old dense tree neighborhood) is two 48v server rack batteries and the EG4 Chargeverter. I mimicked Jason tests and found that you could not input to both DC inputs with one device. That was a disappointment for sure as I have two F3800's (bought during the kickstarter campaign at 45% off) and I was hoping to run the chargeverter directly into all 4 DC inputs on the two F3800's (each at 48v25ah), For now I have the chargeverter going to a busbar and then into one port on each F3800, but at least one 48v server battery also going into one port on each f3800 would complete the max 2400 watts in each (really 2300 as like Jason the best i could do was 1150w). But two server rack batteries would be the ultimate, just not sure I want to pull the trigger on the cost.
Great video, really helps to chose between this Anker F3800 and the Eco-Flow Delta Pro Ultra both quality products from good companies. It seems that not being able to DC charge (e.g. from solar) while running the 240 V output is a big problem. Do you have to choose between running your 240 V power (e.g. EV charging) and solar charging?
It's actually AC charging that disables 240v output. Solar charging is all good!
Does that mean you could have a bank of eg4s and feed them into the solar input in order to keep your 240 working?
@@lesliehunter1823 yep, that would be an excellent option. You could also charge the EG4s with a solar charge controller that would take in higher voltage from solar panels.
@Jasonoid Based on your review I pulled the trigger on one of these bad boys. I noticed fans turn on/off very randomly, even at very light
Yes, the fans will turn on every now and then to cool off the inverter, even if the load is very small. I've noticed the fans don't turn up very high unless you are running a large load though.
I've had my eye on this one for a while. The lack of 240v output while charging from AC isn't a big deal to me. Chances are that if you're using the 240v out, it's probably because you're in backup mode and there isn't any 120v input available anyway. Also, the 120v charge input is about 1700w max, and you're probably drawing a lot more that that if using the 240v output. The 1700w input would give you a little bit more run time, but the draw will be faster than the charge. I would not be using pass-thru or UPS modes, a much smaller UPS at the usage point would fit my usage better than having the 3800 co-located with my sensitive devices.
Saw a few comments on lack of an RV outlet. 50a to 30a RV adapters for under $10 at wallymart.
I think the main scenario where you'd charge off 120v and want 240v output is where the power is out, solar is junk and your backup charging option is a gas generator. So as long as the sun is always around it shouldn't be an issue. I guess that depends on the climate you live in.
@@Jasonoid If you have a gas generator, use it to power the house directly. The losses in all the conversions and cables from gas to 120v to battery charger to battery to inverter is huge comparatively. That scenario would be a last ditch effort for me. The only reason I might do that is to take advantage of the cleaner output of the 3800 vs gas generator, but my gas backup currently is a 9000w inverter generator.
All that said, I have a feeling Anker will implement those desired features on the 3800 based on customer comments, so I'm ok to wait a bit for upgrades.
crazy testing, matches the abilities of the product. I remember when I first saw this station, it has grid tie functionality where it can dump energy to the house? Am I mistaken? I'd want a feature like this so that the battery gets utilized daily when the station is not outdoors. otherwise, I'd just DIY a server rack battery as a station and home backup which is a lot cheaper albeit janky setup.
With their upcoming smart home panel I think it will have that functionality. It's not out yet.
@@Jasonoid thanks. subbed!
EcoFlow version of this class has every checkmark. Especially AC UPS at full rating. And better solar charging options.
Yes, it seems Ecoflow spent much more on their design and delevolpment.
Great review as always, thank you!! I bought this on Kickstarter and generally pleased, My biggest gripe is I cannot charge it from a small gas generator and use the 240. Hopefully they can do a firmware upgrade and enable that feature? Anker, you listening?
That would be amazing! I think it's a hardware limitation though. It takes some advanced engineering to get that to work.
That is what I was afraid of, LOL. I think the 48V battery with XT-60 connectors would work going into the solar inputs.@@Jasonoid
@@andrewvillavicencio8496 yes, and then charge the 48v batteries via solar or ac charging.
Can the expansion battery charge separate from the station for solar or only through the station?
Battery expansion only has the main connection port. No secondary input or output ports.
I have one ordered, scheduled to arrive tomorrow. Could you use a 48v charger to charge it and still get all the ac outputs on? That might be a way to get around the problem with ac charging.
I think using a 48v DC battery charger might work just fine. Any DC voltage under 60v will charge the power station so any AC to DC converter you plug in should charge it up.
I like this better than the ecoflow cause of its shape. I can put it in the garage in front of the car.
And I can purchase batteries in the long run wo breaking the bank
I think formfactor is very important when buying a power station. I like how tall and narrow it is. It will fit much better in a tight corner than other models of the same size.
Could you use some kind of AC-DC converter to be able to charge with a generator and retain the 240v outlet functionality?
I'm building a new house (600 sqft) and I'm looking at a more portable power solution versus a wall mounted off-grid inverter. Space is limited. I want to be able to run the central AC unit, refrigerator, and well pump, with the capability to run a washer/dryer if needed. I'll be on the grid so it kind of sucks that this thing can't charge with AC and power the 240v outlet at the same time. I plan to have solar panels, but I'm kind of limited on roof space b/c the house is small. I'll have yard space, but that means taking up space for a permanent installation or constantly having to lay out panels. Its not impossible, but its not ideal.
The wall mounted off-grid inverters seem more capable, but I won't have an area where I can easily wall mount them out of sight. I also like the idea of being able to throw this thing in my truck and haul ass in case of a hurricane evacuation order.
I showed that in this video:
krplus.net/bidio/iKqkhJt_n2_WdZQ
Can I ask an unrelated question Jason? I notice you do charge your battery banks off of solar. How long is your mc4 connection wire to the inside from the outside? I’ve heard one can only go 50 feet before you loose power from the length of the cord to the battery bank. This is a esp issue for me. I have a high quality heavy Cale that is 50 feet but I still can’t get it to the house from the position of the panels, and being in Michigan, there’s no way I would leave a bank outside. What are your thoughts in this matter? Thank you…
Amperage is what causes you to get 'voltage drop' over a long run of wire. To off-set voltage drop you need to have larger wire that can handle the resistance. I used 10 awg wire between my power station and my solar panels. The run is about 100 feet and I don't lose much power.
If you have the Anker F3800, you'd want to use 8 awg wire for a longer run since the amperage is much higher on this model vs other power stations (up to 25 amps). With an 8 awg cable you should be able to have a 100ft run of cable without an issue.
Here's an example: amzn.to/48x8Qvw
Larger cable is costly, thats one of the downsides of having a low voltage / high amperage charge controller. High amps requires more money to handle. I have a full video on testing voltage drop over long distances to illustrate this concept: krplus.net/bidio/cb6BdJ14dLGmeKQ
So if you had to choose one for home backup, I feel like you would choose the Ecoflow Delta Pro Ultra over the Anker Solix 3800. Am I right ?
It all depends what you are looking for. Is 240v output nessesary? Not really for my needs. It's nice to have, but not needed. My critical loads panel never goes over 5000 watts so I don't need a massive inverter.
For example, I have been running the Bluetti AC500 as my main unit for almost a year and it's been great. Takes in a bunch of solar, only 120v output though and the price hasn't dropped much since launch.
I'll just started testing the EF Ultra as a daily driver two weeks ago and it's been good so far. The EF Ultra is very nice but it's also very expensive. The Anker F3800 is more affordable but it's limited while charging. The AC500 is large and bulky compared to these other brands. They all have their own advantages and disadvantages so each use case will vary.
With kit this good is there any good reason to try and build your own system? Back in 2020 I built a system based around a 12V 200KAh LiFePO4, Renegy solar charge controller, and a Renegy 3000w inverter. It works great but if I were to do it again, I think I'd buy a one-box solution like Anker.
Diy solutions are even better and more affordable. If you can DIY I'd recommend that instead. You can get a 5kwh LFP server rack battery and all in one inverter and charger for under $3000. It can take in TONS of solar and will put out 240v split phase no issues.
@jasonoid quick question for home backup. Considering the Anker at $2999 but also realizing that the Bluetti AC200L is on sale for $1399. The Bluetti only has 120V but has capacity to plug into the side of my house Reliance hookup. Same as Anker. However my use case is short power outages to run fridge, laptops, lights, and maybe switching on sump pump, well, and furnace for short period (while turning off circuits to other appliances). Again Bluetti is far cheaper and not the same wH, but curious to hear your opinion for someone considering first time battery backup and long term, what's the best option?
I think the AC200L is a great home backup solution. I'd prefer it since high solar voltage is king. The 60v cutoff of the Anker is tough to deal with. You have to find very specific panels to get peak output.
With a 2400 watt inverter it allows you to power a couple large devices at the same time. It's nice that the AC200L also supports expand ability with the B300 battery so you can get super long runtimes.
@@Jasonoid thank you and really appreciate your insights. I still need to do some research to find out if the AC200L can handle a sump pump, well, furnace for short use. Again, I'm not looking for full time off grid usage, just backup for a 6-8 hour power outage which I usually get in NH a few times during the winter. Bluetti deal right is hard to beat at 1399. My only hesitance is that the Anker is a bigger powerhouse and there's less concern about its ability to handle the power loads vs the Bluetti. Plus, winter power outages typically means no sun for days, so charging the Anker or Bluetti with solar isn't really going to be an option.
@@cunnos you could also look into getting a 48v server rack battery (5kwh) and an all in one inverter/charger. The price would be around $2200. DIY is always cheaper.
Can you get 25 amps per leg of that 14-50 if both legs are only supporting 120v like in an RV where it is split to 2 sides of the breaker panel? Or is it limited to 25 amps total for both legs?
The output is 240v, 25 amps. So that's two hot legs of 120v 25 amps split phase power. 3000 watts per leg, 6000 watts total.
Sir, do you have a video on that Google box you just showed, what is that?
That is the hardware that's installed when you get 'Google Fiber' as an internet service provider.
Do you have plans to test the Home Power Panel that's coming out soon ?
Since I already have a transfer switch installed I don't have the option to wire in their smart panel. I don't have plans to test that in the future.
Ok.
I ve read the manual and done some research about it.
It is not just for powering critical loads (that is similar to the interlock but does so automatically without flipping switches)
Let' say you have a grid tied solar system, the solix with the HPP can feed into your main load center and help you not consume power from the grid at night.
If you are only pulling 100 watts or so, powering a home AC refrigerator for example, how long does it run? IE how much does the inverter eat just being on? Shame there isn't any 240v charging
You estimate the runtimes by taking the usable capacity of the power station and dividing it by the load you are wanting to run, for example:
3310wh usable capacity / 100 watts = 33 hours of runtime.
I'd lower that 33 hour number a little more since the inverter will use a bit of background power. I'd guess around 85% of that timeframe, so probably around 28 hours. You can extend that a bit by using an expansion battery or charging with solar panels.
Great Video. Q - Can you set A/C charging on a timer to only charge during off peak hours?
On it's own no but I think with their smart home panel you can adjust those settings.
@@Jasonoid Not on its own, but the answer is actually yes, with a wifi smart plug outlet. I've done just that. I use a wifi smart plug outlet to set AC charging on a timer to turn on during off peak hours. Not just to charge, but to also use it as a UPS setup for my fridge, my freezer, and my internet gateway & router. During on peak, the fridge, freezer, internet gateway/router run on battery, and also my induction cooktop and electrical kitchen appliances. The right side of the 120V bank is used to run a portable 120V AC unit. It's my poor man alternative to the Anker Home Power Panel. During off peak hours, the wifi smart plug outlet is programmed to turn on and supply power from the grid to charge the batteries and also to UPS power my fridge, freezer, gateway & router. Just make sure you use a wifi smart plug outlet that remembers its last ON/OFF state so that in case of a real power outage, it'll resume in the ON state when grid power is restored to pass the power through again. But if you lose power during the off peak hours, you want it to resume in the OFF state to avoid peak time power draw. If your grid power is lost during OFF peak and restored during ON peak, though, you will incur ON peak charge for the load because the outlet will resume to be ON during ON peak time. Some outlet always comes up in the OFF state when grid power is resumed and that's not optimal because you can't automatically restore UPS grid power through it except manually. If you're on vacation and don't know about the power outage, you might deplete the batteries before the outlet will switch ON to restore power for your fridge/freezer.
I hope Anker would make this available in the Philippines without the excessive price. Too expensive here in the Philippines close to double the price.
Likely running 2 120V inverters in series for 240V split phase output, but AC charging likely uses one of those inverters in reverse, hence half your AC output is gone when AC charging.
That seems accurate.
How do you connect two 3800's together? Once this is done can you also add the additional batteries and run everything to power your home when the power is out? Thank you
Yep, you need to purchase the Anker Solix Double Power hub to connect two together.
thanks for getting back to me. I can't seem to find that on their site. do you have a link for that? Thanks
@@Jasonoid
@@ajborda I think it's coming out soon. I've only heard rumors about it.
Do you have a timeline to test the new units from Ground Zero... the Yeti's 300 / 500 / 700?
I have plans to test the Yeti Pro 4000 soon. I will check out the smaller units later on this summer I think.
@@JasonoidYea Yea Yea. I can't EXPRESS enough how Excited I Am for your new Yeti 4000 PRO video. I been hit with 4000 PRO Love at first sight for a while NOW. Ask me why___ I don't know. Its a LOVE thing.
Every channel has showed me this.
Really? Most channels just ignored the 240v shutting off....Anker didn't want me to post it in my video but I did it anyways 🤷
In theory, for the cost of an add-on battery (roughly) you could buy 2 cheap Lifopo4 48v 100ah batteries (like the Chins) and 2 PowMr 48v 60amp Solar Charge Controllers and wire 1 SCC and 1 Battery to each XT-60 input giving you 10 Kwh of battery expansion and the capacity to connect up to 4.8 Kw worth of solar panels at up to 160v instead of 60v, you wouldn't be able to feed more then 2.4 Kw into the F3800 but the other 2.4 would go into the expansion batteries giving you 2.5 times the battery capacity of the expansion battery and doubling the size of your solar capacity, you would just only be able to ever charge the expansion batteries with Solar (or a 48v battery charger connected to grid power).
DIY is king, if you have the knowledge and skills to not burn the house down.
Can I connect the 48 volt EG4 to the solar input of the Anker F3800? Would this then add 5kw of battery backup to the total system? Could I then charge the EG4 with a generator at the same time? This would allow me to charge the Anker with AC and without disabling the 240v output?
Yes, you can but be aware that per Jason’s test and grounding issue, you can only use one of the xt60 inputs from the battery. If you want to charge at 2400w DC into both the xt60 ports (1200w each) you would need to feed with 2 different devices, batteries etc.
I think it is reasonably common for these power station to support a mismatch between AC input and AC output. To get 240V output when charging from AC you usually need to be charging at 240V
There are only three power stations that support 240v output right now, this model, the Zendure Superbase V, and the EcoFlow Delta Pro Ultra. The Ultra supports 120v input and 240v output at the same time. I'm not sure about the Zendure. I guess we will see with time if companies want to invest in a way to make it possible.
it woulda been nice to have ups mode with 240v connected, and then we can charge and passthrough power. i take it that it doesn't accept 240v in?
otherwise it looks like a very nice unit, i have seen several others examine this unit and it appears to be solid with the few exceptions you mentioned.
This is a very solid unit! The output is very clean, fans were quiet, and it provided full rated power via the inverter. I like the taller / narrow form factor too. Just a few quirks with the charging design... those might not effect some use cases though, just depends on how someone plans to use it.
It only charges at 120v input. They have a home power panel coming out soon, I wonder how that might change it's performance.
well if it can be connected to the panel and do 240v passthrough that would be a fantastic addition.
@@user--PM if that is the case, I will definitely do an update video
I have an F3800 (love it) and ordered the Home Power Panel package. Most of the negatives in your review are eliminated with the HPP kit including 240v charging/pass through and solar input limitations. You can connect 2 F3800’s to the panel for 12000 watts of output. Due out by March 20th, on sale for $1099.
Does Anker make a whole house off grid product? This seems more geared to backup power.
They have something like that coming out soon.
For home use, comparatively a Tesla Powerwall is less expensive.
I just subscibed. 😊
I would like to connect 1200 watts of solar to mine, but i have limited space to do so.
Can you recommend 3 or 4 panels i could use to do this
that won't go over the 60 volt limit?
The area i have is 6ft x 15ft.
Thanks for your reply and for the great review.
What size panel you looking for? 400w sized glass rigid panels?
Yes, three 400 Watt panels would be perfect and also yes, ridged panels.
Sooooooo..... you're going to want the highest voltage panel you can find (without going over 60v) so it can be connected in parallel. You can overpanel it, meaning you can have more that 25 amps in your solar array, the power station will limit the amperage automatically.
These two options from signature solar might work best:
signaturesolar.com/q-cells-475w-half-cell-bifacial-solar-panel-silver-q-peak-duo-xl-g10-series/
signaturesolar.com/bluesun-460w-half-cell-bifacial-solar-panel-silver-up-to-575w-with-bifacial-gain/
Most current '400w' panel options produce peak power at 30v-32v which isn't high enough for full solar input on the F3800. Remember the performance of my Talesun 400w panels in parallel in the video? I only got 310 watts with two of them since the voltage was too low and it was hitting the 10 amp limit.
For higher power, you need a Vmp around 47v to 48v Vmp on the panel specs but I can't find anything that perfect.
@@Jasonoid Oh man, that sucks.
I really want to provide the most amount of charging I can into the f3800.
If you ever discover a better solution, please let me know.
@@NoClocks.NoCalendars Hello. I'm Sort of a Solar Novice in my Parts of the Neighborhood. But regards Rigid Glass.... I would like to F3800 Thinker with the Renogy 550w Bificial panels. Two of them for one mppt slab of the Anker. I say this 4 Couple reasons. Reason number #1. Just last week or so on my Renogy 220w bificial Rigid Panel I gotten several times 250w to 272w. Panel facing South East. My foot standing in Central Californis.
Reason number #2. Renogy 550w bificial specs: VOC 49.95v. Opt Oper volt 41.97v. Short Curcuit current 14.05A. Opt Oper current 13.11A.
Judging Crazy Poorly or Wisely___ how every you want to view it, my R220bf gave me 50 watts OVER. Thus a conservative man might happily get EXPECT 100w over the Rated 550w in good sun Direct Pointing. Central California Winter February. Thus 2 such panels in parallel Array could catch you 1300w. You likely get 2 x 13.11 that's 26.22A. So you only going to clip off about 1A as Solar feeds 1 mppt of the F3800. Now if you did'nt require Rigid or Glass. Then Anker has a 400w portable panel that folds in 4 x 100w Solar Boards. Think it's 59.9VOC. I also have Poor Memory of Sorts for my parts of my neighborhood. Please Confirm.
Tho my Thinking might be Dumb Downed____ my Instincts tell me that THAT 400w panel won't make it 20 or 30 years of Daily use.
Great video. The lack of 240v pass-through charging is a deal breaker for me. I want to charge this with a generator during a power outage and this would mean I have to do something special to begin charging and not lose power.
Thank you for the feedback!
Could you feed this with 2 48VDC chargers (1 per port) to faster charging from a generator?
Someone mentioned using an EG4 chargeverter on one of the ports. Look in the comments for Alan. You can ask him. I know for sure an independent 48v battery works on each port.
Does each of the (2) XT60 ports support up to 60v (or combined)?
If so, could you use a parallel set up of (3) 400 watt panels each less than 60v to get 1200 watts per XT60 or 2,400 watts?
Thx!
Each XT60 port supports it's own solar array up to 60v. If you are planning to use 400w solar panels, make sure they have a Vmp (voltage max power) in the specs listed HIGHER than 32v. If you saw in the video where I tested my Talesun 400w solar panels, the output was not good since they voltage during peak power was under 32 volts. Most 400w panels I have seen have a similar VMP near 29 to 30 volts so the input will be limited to 10 amps per port.
@@Jasonoid Hi, my panels are 41.4 VMP. Thanks!
@@Curious_Cat123 nice! they will get the higher input limit.
Wouldn't using a charge controller with the solar panels solve the 60 volt limit?
It's something worth experimenting with but I have my doubts it will work. The charging input port doesn't act like a battery so the charge controller will probably think that 'battery' is full and it won't charge properly. People have suggested using a 48v LFP battery charging though. I have a few ideas to test.
Does this take it's own solar panels? you said you bought an adaptor,
so could i buy 3, 290w,36v solar panels, and put them in series, to each of the two battery inputs?
So like theoretically 870w 36v input to each of those two inputs?
or is the max VOC 60? (I only know a small amount of solar/etc, so i might be getting everything here wrong, just curious)
You can use your own solar panels, you want the Vmp to be above 32v and below 60v. I have a basic video cover how solar works: krplus.net/bidio/f76upISnmoHMiaQsi=agEqKVxgrbJFGDzK
If you connect those panels in series it will fry the power station, you need a parallel connection.
Can yo pair units, to increase wattage? How is it paired?
It's paired through their smart home panel. They just released it. It wasn't available at the time of the video.
Great review. Any chance these batteries will weigh less? Living in Hawaii, shipping charges are through the roof. And solar companies don't cover it.
I totally understand that predicament! Possibly long term there might be a better technology. Right now LFP batteries are heavy, lithium ion batteries aren't much lighter. There aren't any 'super light' batteries available on the market. It would be really cool if a company partnered with Hawaii to bring batteries in. They sail right past you from China on their way to California...
@@Jasonoid It take possibly a few more years and advance technology for lighter and efficient solar batteries. Plus, with the Jones Act, shipping goods of any kind are off the charts in addition cost here to these island ports.
@@Jasonoid
Zendure V6400 and Yoshino B4000 use solid or semi-solid (?) state batteries. They are a bit over 100 Wh/kg total weight for the stations, where most LFP stations are 60-80 Wh/kg. Newer companies so uncertain reputation.
You looked at a B6000 at CES which would be more competitive with Anker and Ecoflow 240V units. I don’t think they’ve announced weight on the B6000.