Phocos any grid 3kva/5kva

I just ordered the Phocos Any-Grid 3000W. It should be a pretty fast installation as I am replacing a defective all in one inverter. I will post my review after it arrives and I have some time with it.

The unit arrived yesterday. I unpacked it, read the manual and started my installation. First thing was an inventory, everything was there, even cable glands. Since I was replacing an inverter, all wiring, breakers, disconnects, combiner box, grounding, PV and so on is in place, and ready to go. Step one was to remove the display/cover to access the inputs/outputs for wiring. There are three cables to disconnect from the display/cover. Two are very easy to identify and easily unplug directly from the display interface. The third was not so easy. It is not connected to the display per a plug, but hard wired to the interface. It has a white connector on the wire about 4 inches from the display. Normally you could just disconnect it and remove the display/cover.

Well, the cable is too short and the connector only comes out half way from the inverter case. If I were to unplug it, the other half would have fallen inside the case, and it could not have been retrieved without opening inverter. So I got tweezers and a flashlight to see why it could not come out farther to safely unplug it. I could see nothing and thought it may be hung or snagged on something inside. So I pulled gently and the cable came out in my hand. The cable unplugged from inside the inverter. You cannot open the inverter due to warranty. It is a very small two pronged computer plug that is in my opinion an extremely bad design. Now I have a warranty issue.

So, after a full 15 minutes in actual installation time, the unit cannot be used due to a ridiculous design flaw on such a small part. Fully frustrated, I packaged the unit back up and requested a refund. These may be good units, but I do not want to keep it knowing that with just very minor force, this cable could very easily come out again. The cable needs to be connected to the board and secured so that this cannot happen. The cable needs to be longer to ensure there is sufficient length to unplug it. Also, the cable should be secured to prevent it from falling inside the unit after it is unplugged.

These are design changes that will not happen overnight, and leads me to believe there are other design flaws as well. This unit is new and is not ready for prime time in my opinion. I hope this information helps someone.