Would you recommend Goodwe?

Inverters Goodwe-AlphaESS
1

My Goodwe GW5048D-ES is now just over 4 years old. While (touch wood) its worked every day there are some aspects that I’ve found less impressive. When I made the call on the Goodwe there were no Sunsynks or Deye inverters, I was told the Goodwe was a simple to use inverter (plug and play) while the Victron was more complex but could be configured in many ways.

At the moment aspects of the Goodwe that I did not know at the time, inability to parallel, can’t add a generator, limited reporting and terrible communication is frustrating. I dislike not being to make changes to the system except on site via solar-wifi. Poor to no documentation on something like the eco mode would make me hesitate to recommend it to any one.

My friend has a Victron and the reporting, linking the inverter to weather is far superior. Changes to the system can be done remotely. I’m scared to change any settings in Solargo as often I get a message that my inverter is not supported and not always sure that entered changes were in fact applied. With the SEMS system I cannot extract data on power sent to the battery or power delivered from the battery. The link to the server has a frequent problems.

I would like to find out from other Goodwe users what their experience has been as well as their thoughts on staying with Goodwe or changing to another brand?

2

Let’s hope someone responds…

3

Unsure I would recommend it.

For some of the problems you have, it was easy for me to work around by linking to Home Assistant, which by the way has superb integration with our 5048ES inverter. You can then build whatever graphing/reporting you want. You can also control the inverter far better than any eco mode settings can. I change the mode on the fly, I change DoD on the fly depending on various complex conditions.

That said, this is when you learn how unstable the wifi device on these inverters are. Once every 2 months, the system fails to stay connected to wifi, even though, I installed a Unifi AP in the same room as the inverter, there is no excuse for bad wifi there. This forces me to do a complete shutdown of the inverter to get it back online. The direct cause is how much my Home Assistant is communicating with the device.

So, even with workarounds, I still can’t recommend it. Its not a plug and play device in my opinion. Its needs far too much tinkering and has issues, which I don’t know how to get fixed.

Sadly, I am in the same situation as you. Bought the Goodwe in 2020 before Sunsynks and Deyes etc joined the CoCT approved inverter list. I think this inverter has had its time. Most installers don’t install these anymore. They all(well most) moved on to the Sunsynk/Deye bandwagon.

Lets be honest, the Synsynk/Deye really hits a good spot for value for price. If you want/need better, there is the blue brand.

4

I’m in a similar situation to @tinuva : Bought Goodwe over Victron because it was a little cheaper and more all in one. 6 months or so later Sunsynk was selling like hotcakes.

I think the hardware is actually good quality, and it’s been reliable. The first problems I ran into were with the firmware. Or the plural thereof because there are two sets of firmware, one for the actual inverter functionality, and a second for the wifi.

The inverter firmware was upgraded within weeks of the install (Wifi within days). But actually that it was firmware makes no real difference. The GOODWE was misbehaving - that’s how a customer would state it.

But I was on my own really, until I found another forum where solar power was being discussed. Up until then I’d had multiple problems with the battery especially (Revov) and was getting to be quite good at rebooting the system to bring the battery back into play. I was thinking that maybe this is the way it is with solar, that it’s not really that worked out yet and you get all these bits and pieces from different vendors and they don’t work happily together.

I do now have remote control over inverter modes (maybe other settings, but I’m not really interested in those and don’t know what most of them are) via the SEMS app. I don’t have to be at home. I probably could have had this a lot earlier if I’d met the right people and known that such a thing was possible.

For me the problems are the supporting apps, SEMS and a very opaque support structure. SolarGo is improved these days, but doesn’t win the prize for being the friendliest app on my phone. Irritatingly the latest version defaults to bluetooth and so won’t find my inverter, I have to tap the “WiFi” label and then it starts working.

My understanding is that the latest iteration of the ES inverter can be paralleled, also has a higher maximum current on the MPPTs.

But see above: When I started this journey I started from a place of complete darkness. I had no idea. Maybe this is the way it just is. I had nothing to compare it to. None of my neighbours had PV, so I couldn’t swop experiences. The only guy I had some sort of access to was the neighbour of a friend. Friend’s neighbour had got an axpert, some panels, some lead-acid batteries, had installed it all himself and was telling all and sundry you could go off-grid for 40K and tell Eskom to shove it (he was also involved in constant arguments with City Power, and I thought that was a bit odd for somebody who claimed to be in a position to tell Eskom to shove it).

So at the time I just selected from the two options the installer presented me (Goodwe and Victron). Had I known about Victron’s superior remote management, I might have paid the extra and got that system. Early on I was working at the office, 50km from home, with the battery not playing nice, and I often felt like I would like to intervene but couldn’t,

Most of this instability was removed by changing from a Revov battery to Freedom Won. That was the moment the scales fell from my eyes. I was transported from a state of thinking that Solar was just a bit flaky, required regular interventions, was a bit of a PITA but still worth it, to just sitting back and letting the system run. Another problem reared it’s head (this is documented on this forum) and that was resolved by a firmware update.

Would I do it again? If I were starting now I’d probably still take what the installer recommends. What’s the point of working with an installer if you’re telling them what to do and what to supply?

Sunsynk changed the market in this country. It was much closer than anything else to a single box, set and forget system.

I’m glad that Goodwe were able, over the years, to fix various problems with firmware upgrades. But maybe it shouldn’t have been necessary. I don’t read about these weird issues with other brands (or the chats don’t smack me as hard in the eye because they don’t have the word “Goodwe” in the topic line). I suspect (and that’s all it is) that they have tried to do very clever stuff inside that machine, and so the firmware had to be more complex and had more scope for bugs.

But it’s in place now. An upgrade to another brand? I got quotes. It’s basically a new install. Which I begrudge but also understand. If they’re going to give me a guarantee, they’re going to have to fit new cabling, new breakers etc rather than use the 4.5 (and a bit) year old stuff that’s in there.

My big concern now, and I’m starting to see signs of this gap being filled, is maintenance going forward. Not just for me, but for lots of folks who are going to need panels cleaned, connections checked and so on.

And there I’m at a disadvantage, in this country anyway, because a lot of good, capable guys have never seen a Goodwe, let alone understand it.

5

In my opinion, the Goodwe is (in terms of hardware at least) a better inverter than the Sunsynk. They are partnered with GE in some places. It is a bit of a shame that they got bypassed in South Africa and/or that the support was at times lacking.

I used to think that Goodwe is a more established brand as well, but it turns out they are younger than “Ningbo Deye” by about 3 years, 2007 v 2010.

6

They also have a very large range of products. I think that when we say “Goodwe” in South Africa we really mean “ES”. They certainly have models in their range that can be parallelled, can be used in three phase applications, and/or can handle a lot more than 4.6 kW.

What they NEVER have is a panel and buttons with a menu you can step through. Some might say this is a feature.

Also they tend to not have fans for their domestic inverters.

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7

One small titbit I have learned, from my own experiences (and that is a LOT btw), others on forums over the years, friends, and family, is that the day you need support from the actual inverter manufacturer, that that is the day you either smile or have to start asking “Would you recommend XYZ”.

Yes, price does matter, but in the end, after-sales support matters more.

Cause these systems are supposed to be with us for 10-20-30 years. The only question is: Will the support/repairs be around simultaneously?

Keeping in mind, installers come and go.
Importers come and go.
Warranties change unbeknownst to us, we learn that when we have a warranty repair.

I don’t care when things work well.
I want to know for when it does not work: “Who you gonna call?”

To answer the question:
The first time I became aware of Goodwe “behind the scenes” was when I told my connection to email GoodWE international.
They in turn eventually put GoodWE SA on the job who in turn told the big-name GoodWE importer/seller to sort this shiite out now! Took months with still an unhappy customer in the end.

FWIW, my connection always punted how good GoodWE was … I know it was “times up” when he asked dead seriously about Victron pricing, to chuck the GoodWE.

And it did not mean a completely new install either, to honor warranties.

8

Found this write up on powerforum from an ex Goodwe user, he experienced very similar issues with the Goodwe to the ones mentioned here. He did a review on a Solis 6kW hybrid inverter Solis S6 Pro Hybrid Inverter Review - Product Opinions & Reviews - Power Forum - Renewable Energy Discussion that I found interesting. Its good to know there are alternatives to the Goodwe although it appears that there are still issues, (also with the Sunsynk/Deye). Goodwe also seem to have a new 6kW gen 2 inverter, however it will probably have the same communication issues experienced with the ES range.

9

The one constant in life is change. .

The charging whilst grid is down has been addressed. Note that this was done via the installer who clearly has a hotline to Goodwe even though they don’t install that hardware anymore (this says good things about the installer as the system is over 4.5 years old, but they still provided some support).

SolarGo updated last night and is now faster. Finds the inverter faster and populates the on screen data faster. I no longer have to tell it to look using wifi rather than Bluetooth.

So the only current puzzlement is Economical mode, but this is just curiosity. It is clearly designed for TOU tariffs so that you can make money by exporting when the tariff is high. I have no interest in exporting (in City of Johannesburg), so as long as I can charge I am happy. But folks elsewhere could use this feature and it should be documented.

I can change settings remotely. This requires getting admin rights on the inverter, and Goodwe can make that happen (users in SA would probably do better to work through Goodwe EU).

I am wondering about support. Who should they be supporting? In one sense it makes sense for them to assist installers who they know and trust, not arbs like me. But the problem is that you can buy these things off the shelf and DIY. Maybe in this case the retailer should be providing 1st line support, but since the retailer doesn’t oversee the install they can’t take responsibility.

There’s an electronics supplier up the road from me. They sell security related stuff. Fence energizer, gate motors, cameras etc. They won’t sell anything to me. Not the simplest component. They ask where I live. I tell them. They give me a card and say “call this guy”. Doing it this way means they are working with installers and repairers they know and trust. But it annoys folks like me who get ideas above their station.

10

Apparently they are busy setting up a local repair center, so perhaps there is some hope that they might start taking the public perception seriously. If support is good, I will definitely recommend them. The build quality is very good, design has only one flaw somewhere in the surge protection of the 5048 (that ends up killing the battery converter DSP). The important thing is that they run a lot cooler than most of the competition, which is the main thing that determines longevity (if you don’t have any design flaws). If your earthing strategy is good and you have adequate external protection, they are still better than most in terms of surge resilience.

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11

Ja. I keep thinking that Goodwe is yesterday’s option, and has been since Sunsynk hit the market. But yet lots of folks are still stocking their stuff and offering it.

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12

Something is very wrong here. I can make changes at home as long as I’m connected to the same wifi that the inverter uses for an internet connection.

It was a bit of a struggle, but I can now change the config remotely over the internet using the SEMS app (not the web site). The struggle was really with a long communications change where the granting of administrator access was handed off to people somewhere in Europe. But I have it now.

You talk about limited reporting, which suggests you have access to SEMS and the inverter can update that. So there should be no need to change wifi to reconfigure.

13

Same as most, I picked and ES as it was allot cheaper than Victron and no Sunsynk / Deye at the time.

My neighbours have Deye.

I did a self install, so when their Deyes act up, I am the point of call as installers seemingly do not bother with after sales service. My father in law has victron.

So this is my experience from someone with zero official training in any of the systems.
Goodwe:

  • much quiter and cooler.
  • it appears somewhat quicker to react and balance batter/solar/grid when demand fluctuates.
  • I personally feel the Apps are better, although I liked Pv master more than the current SolarGo.
  • My experience with email support was actually quite good and rapid.

Biggest Flaw, I to loose wifi connection every so often that requires a total shutdown reboot. I also have my unit on Home Assistant, didn’t think that can cause it.

Also, remote changing via SEMS appears unreliable and times out to much, but it is there.

Deye:

  • I like the screen and that you can change things right on the unit.
  • the generator port is usefull
  • My 1 neighbour cannot get Solarman going, and none of them has success with Deye’s own app.
  • it also does not appear that any of them can/or know how to change things remotely. (i am not interested in learning how to on their behalf)

Both Goodwe and Deye is somehow affected by Chinglish, but I feel Deye more so.

Victron

  • You can change alot. And I am sure some gets value from that. But for most I am sure the Deye/Goodwe changeables is enough.
  • It’s just so expensive (or it was when I looked). My FIL wanted to add solar, and as the Inverter does not have a build in MPPT, the price is just prohibitive for him using 300kwh a month.

Will I buy Goodwe again.
Yes, but I will go high voltage. They actually have a South African specific HV inverter with all the switchgear and changeover switches neatly built in.

14

Also, I feel like Victron can compete in the manual arena as well. While Chinglish might not be a problem, occasionally some Dutchlish may be encountered. Much much better now that we have people whose job is to write manuals, but in older manuals there were a few cases where you were told to “press button B during 3 seconds”.

15

I can access the different modes via SEMS.

My meter shows a lower reading than what I reported (it can reverse) at the end January, I want to stop export for a couple of days, the only way I know of doing it is via solargo and solar-wifi. However when via advanced setting I go to export its already at 0, when I logged out and back in it changed to 6000w which was the setting that I recall. I changed it to 0, and could hear the inverter clicking when asked to reset, but it continued to export, I repeated this a couple of times. Eventually I just turned the grid off at my DB board. Sorry a bit of a winge, but this behaviour appear to be the rule rater than the exception, and causes frustration.

Screenshot_20240229-113854_SolarGo
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16

Ah yeah that happens because the app uses udp to communicate with the inverter. IE. easily affected by packet loss and is why it can show the wrong value but also not always accept the new value. If you add something like home assistant that now also use udp, the processing power on their useless esp wifi device also causes packet loss, so it gets even worse.

You can actually set the export power using home assistant, and the home assistant plugin does verification of the setting change unlike the goodwe apps. Far more reliable in fact. I never open the goodwe apps, purely because my user experience is better using home assistant to the inverter.