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Zero Energy Trailer - Solar/Diesel hybrid - Know anything?

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cogniz55

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savannah,ga
Hello good men.
I bought this lovely Zero Base Energy Light Tower Trailer, National Stock Number 6210-DS-LIG-HTSE, at auction yesterday. I purchased it for it's components, the trailer, and 2 24v LiFePo4 monster batteries. The Kohler 6500w generator and large inverters were bonus. I may keep it all together or part it out for other things I'm working on.

But I cannot get the unit up and running. I've got manuals on the individual systems, but nothing that ties them all together along with instructions on setting up the solar panels, etc.
And Google has not been my friend regarding any materials specific to the trailer. I dropped a new 12v battery in for the generator side, and setup a single solar panel.
I'm guessing there is a master switch somewhere but without documentation, I'm lost so far. I've been hand over hand through the electrical and I'm stumped.
I did call and email the company but I don't expect help from them.

Your guidance is most appreciated.
 

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Light in the Dark

Light in the Dark

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I've not seen this kind of setup before. The NSN doesnt come back with much when searching....
 
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cogniz55

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savannah,ga
kayak1 said:
If you can get it working, that looks like a deal.
Click to expand...
Even if I part it out, there is way more used market value that what I paid. The genset new is $5k, batteries look like they are $4k each, and there are two, etc.
This unit looks like it was never used or deployed.

I have a sneaking suspicion that there is some plug or switch somewhere that connects the power, and that during transport it's disconnected...
 
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Chainbreaker

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Very nice-looking set! Hard to tell... but its either a reset with a fresh paint job or virtually unused.

The "SS brain trust" on here can most likely figure out what you need to make it operational. Some more close up pictures would help (control panel, engine area, solar panels, connectors, any cables, etc.

Also, being able to demonstrate it fully functioning, even if you decide to keep the genset portion and sell off the rest, would make it more valuable.
 
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cogniz55

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Location
savannah,ga
There is a big red Emergency stop button, but it's reset.
I'm stumped. Batteries have 24.6 v at the big plug disconnect. I plugged shore power in (120v) and nothing. No lights, no inverter lighting up as energized, etc. Definitely missing something somewhere.
The most obvious is with the generator, but I don't think that's the issue. It's missing the key on the standby / starting module. But it's wired to bypass for Auto Starting.
It's raining here so I can't go out and chase electrons yet.
Here is a recap-
Batteries are charged, at least enough for the MATE3 controller to energize, but nothing.
Solar hooked up, in full sun, nothing energizing on the panel to suggest power in.
Shore power hooked up (extension cord just plugs in), no power indicated on the panel, nor inside on the inverter (everything runs through DC on this unit).

Here are some pics.
 

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cogniz55

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I'm sure the MilSpec manual on deploying this unit would probably answer the question but the Zero Base Energy folks have yet to respond to my email.
 
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cogniz55

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ZeroBaseEnergy.com is down. Their Twitter and FB have not been updated since 2018. I'm wondering if they were another flash in the pan grift?
Is there a way to search for manuals on military equipment?
 
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Dieselmeister

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Just a thought, If you can't get the manuals, mentally break the unit down into smaller troubleshooting units. Get a voltmeter, and work your way from the batteries to the inverter, and see where the power stops, then work on that part. Same with the generator. See what is keeping it from getting started, and try to get that running. Where does the power from the PV panels stop and why. Once you figure out all the individual components, you can decide what you want to do with the whole set, and reconfigure it too your liking. When I saw all those Cat5 cables going into that black box, all I could think was - They definitely violated the KISS principal - by complicating things. Also see if you can get the manuals for the individual components, like the OutBack equipment, generator, etc. Those may help.
 
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kayak1

Active member
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Location
Maine
Dieselmeister said:
Just a thought, If you can't get the manuals, mentally break the unit down into smaller troubleshooting units. Get a voltmeter, and work your way from the batteries to the inverter, and see where the power stops, then work on that part. Same with the generator. See what is keeping it from getting started, and try to get that running. Where does the power from the PV panels stop and why. Once you figure out all the individual components, you can decide what you want to do with the whole set, and reconfigure it too your liking. When I saw all those Cat5 cables going into that black box, all I could think was - They definitely violated the KISS principal - by complicating things. Also see if you can get the manuals for the individual components, like the OutBack equipment, generator, etc. Those may help.
Click to expand...
The CAT5 cables are the Outback equiv of Can bus.

HUB - OutBack Power Inc

The HUB system communications manager is the backbone of your networked OutBack power conversion system. The OutBack HUB communicates stacking, load share and power save on/off signals.
www.outbackpower.com www.outbackpower.com

The MATE3 is plugged into port 0.
The inverter is plugged into port 1.
Port 2 or 3 is the FLEXnet DC (keeps track of the state of the bat.

FLEXnet DC - OutBack Power Inc

The FLEXnet DC is the ultimate DC system monitoring device. Our integrated networked communications make valuable, usable data available from your system and viewable on an OutBack MATE communications device.
www.outbackpower.com www.outbackpower.com
The other port will likely be the charge controller (again all of this is for just communication and control no current)

I would start by identifying the Inverter. Check to see it has power. If it has power then you had one where the jumper has been removed and the operation is controlled by closing two contacts. Download the manual it will show you where the jumper is and where the contacts.

The manuals will also have the default passwords for the mate3 (I have yet to see one with a non default password).

One you get the Outback side figured out then you can look at the genset is that may be connected to the outback, as the mate3 is likely programed to start the generator when the batteries hit X voltage or % full.


The model of the inverter will tell you the expected battery voltage rage.

If you bring it to Maine i would love to have a go at getting it working.
 
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