Sharp Inverter Fan Replacement

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ledBetter

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A guy called me up with the following issue. He has a Sharp Sunvista JH-3500U multi-string 3500W unit. He is getting "d-29" and "e-29" error codes, which I believe to be "fan failure codes". The system is about 7 years old and still producing the KwH I think it should be. Two questions: 1) do you think it is worth trying to replace the fan? 2) where would I locate replacement parts for these older Sharp inverters?
I tend to think this thing will go kaput in a couple years anyways and don't think it is worth the bother. But I am trying to help him and give him some guidance. thanks.
 
ledBetter said:
A guy called me up with the following issue. He has a Sharp Sunvista JH-3500U multi-string 3500W unit. He is getting "d-29" and "e-29" error codes, which I believe to be "fan failure codes". The system is about 7 years old and still producing the KwH I think it should be. Two questions: 1) do you think it is worth trying to replace the fan? 2) where would I locate replacement parts for these older Sharp inverters?
I tend to think this thing will go kaput in a couple years anyways and don't think it is worth the bother. But I am trying to help him and give him some guidance. thanks.
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It's likely that Sharp used some off the shelf fan for their inverter. It may be generic enough that the right size and voltage fan can be got from Grainger or someone like that. Heat is the main enemy of electronics; if the inverter is exposed to the outside temperature (and especially if it's in direct sunlight) its time to failure, whatever it is, will be significantly reduced without an operational fan.
 
ggunn said:
It's likely that Sharp used some off the shelf fan for their inverter. It may be generic enough that the right size and voltage fan can be got from Grainger or someone like that. Heat is the main enemy of electronics; if the inverter is exposed to the outside temperature (and especially if it's in direct sunlight) its time to failure, whatever it is, will be significantly reduced without an operational fan.
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OK thanks. Unfortunately the original installer placed this thing directly in the sun on the west side of his house.
While I think the fan replacement will certainly prolong the life of the inverter, I am still concerned this thing will die out in another year or two anyways. From what I know about Sharp inverters, they don't have a good track record.

BTW - when he called Sharp, they were of no help. The inverter is out of warranty and they didn't offer any replacement parts.
 
That inverter came out circa 2003. It had 3 independent mppt inputs, which potentially solved some design problems. But you paid a price in efficiency. I think that unit was about 91.5% efficient.

If all that's failed in 10 years is a fan, I'm impressed. I wasn't a super burly looking inverter on the inside. But I suppose Sharp knows a thing or two about qualifying electrical equipment designs.
 
Sharp inverter Fan

Sharp inverter Fan

ledBetter said:
OK thanks. Unfortunately the original installer placed this thing directly in the sun on the west side of his house.
While I think the fan replacement will certainly prolong the life of the inverter, I am still concerned this thing will die out in another year or two anyways. From what I know about Sharp inverters, they don't have a good track record.

BTW - when he called Sharp, they were of no help. The inverter is out of warranty and they didn't offer any replacement parts.
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I spoke to sharp and they were actually extremely helpful, I guess it all depends on who picks up the phone over there on a given day.

Sharp's advise was to simply clear the fault code and voila, the inverter fired right back up. To clear fault codes from this inverter:
>Press (not hold) PWR and DISP buttons simultaneously > release buttons > display will read "CLEAR" for 5 seconds > Display will then read "STOP" > Press the PWR button to restart the inverter.

The Sharp rep also said that it was a simple 12V computer fan in there and it could be replaced with any-old off the shelf fan.

It goes witout saying that its not an end-user serviceable fan since the main inverter lid must be removed to access it, exposing all manner of capacitors that could seriously ruin your day if touched. Call a qualified electrician / Solar company to handle fan replacement.
 
I have a Sharp Sunvista JH-3500U multi-string 3500W unit installed in 2004, which works fine. PGE intermittent, seconds long, power outages created the D-29 error Tuesday night. I tried the reset ( during the daylight hours) method above and it cleared the error message, system is forking fine

After reading of the efficiency issues and age of the inverter I wonder should I be looking to make a change? I have one south facing string and two west facing strings of Kyocera KG-167 panels.

Ernie
 
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