ProSine 2.5 Strange problem

Boat is 2001 model, the inverter was installed when new.
Been working good so far.
4 days ago I noticed the house bank was drooping 10% every day. (No load, no charging)
Turned on the charger, topped of the batteries and turned the battery switches OFF to start trouble shooting: If the house bank stayed around 100% for a week or so, the drop would have to be a ghost load, a corroded contact or something external. IF the capacity drop continued 10% per day with the switches off, bad battery. (The house bank is two T-105s, 2 years old, boat is an Albin 28TE, pocket trawler)
When I turned off the battery switches, an alarm from the ProSine inverter panel started beeping and a few lights was flashing.
(Done this numerous times before, battery switches off if I leave town for a few day, bilge pumps are wired straight to the batteries anyway, no alarm in the past)
Looked up the fault code 20 and nothing firm, closest is 201, internal fault...

Turned the battery switches back on and the clouds parted, sun shining and all is normal.
(Right now I am equalizing just to test all modes)

Question: Shold the warning/alarm come on when battery switches are off?
(Does the inverter have an internal memory battery that may be shot
And now it needs 12 volt power at all times?)
Question: What is a modern replacement for the 18 year old ProSine 2.5
Inverter, preferably with the same foot print and same connectors?
Question: Anybody know a good marine electrician in Fort Lauderdale?

The inverter "stores" power in the capacitors. It allows the inverter to appear on, when it is not powered. If loaded it would die quicker under a power loss.

The fault codes on that unit are 3 digits, so I think you might have missed one. Easy to do when reading things at angles, etc. I suspect what you saw was a code of 002 -- low battery voltage.

As Choices said, those things have some capacitance or stored charge, so they stay on for a bit after the battery is gone -- but can't invert. That's perfectly normal.

You could try getting an "inexpensive" (probably $75) multi-meter with current clamp at home depot or amazon or harbor freight or the like. Put the current sensor ring around a battery wire and see what happens.

It could possibly have been that one or more of the batteries got a surface charge on it that was tricking the charger, especially if, for example, they got unbalanced. And, running them down a bit and letting them charge up got them leveled out and charged for real.

I had a ProSine 2.0 in the boat I just sold. I wanted another one in my new boat, but they don't make/import them anymore. I ended up with a Xantrex Freedom Hfs 2000 Pure Sine inverter.

I'll say this much -- I wish I'd taken the ProSine for my new boat and installed the Freedom HFS in the one I sold. I'm sure it is as capable and reliable of an inverter and puts out as good a wave. But, the ProSine 2.0 had a much, much more functional control panel. It was much easier to configure and monitor.

Personally, I wouldn't get rid of your ProSine 2.5 unless it gives you trouble.

-Greg

. The fault codes on that unit are 3 digits, so I think you might have missed one. Easy to do when reading things at angles, etc. I suspect what you saw was a code of 002 -- low battery voltage.

Click to expand...

I know the codes are 3 digits, but in my case, only 2 was flashing.
Voltage not low, fully charged batteries.

I kept playing with it yesterday, seems normal now, but I got side tracked with the equalizing process, then a transmission fluid and filter change today.
The batteries held their charge at 100% over night with charger off, so at least that part of the problem is on the right track.
Will look closer tomorrow and try to duplicate the above weird behavior with battery switches off.

I have owned this boat 16 months and never used the inverter and don’t anticipate any need for it in the future.
No TV or VCR, only a microwave which we never use.
With a small house bank of 2 Golf Cart batteries the ProSin 2.5 may be overkill.
Looking to install solar panels in the future to run fridge and lights and if the inverter should fail I am tempted replace it with a good 3 stage battery charger and call it a day.
The inverter may be ok, just scratching my head for now and looking for ideas why it would flash a warning with batteries off.?
(The warnings stops when I pull shore power)

The inverter "stores" power in the capacitors. It allows the inverter to appear on, when it is not powered. If loaded it would die quicker under a power loss

Click to expand...

Perhaps I should actually try the inverter function one day, only used the ProSine to charge batteries.
Thanks for the comments

Hi LN-RTP,

Well, regardless of which error code happened to pop up, I would expect an error code when the batteries are disconnected. If I still had the ProSine 2.0, I'd go check to see which one -- but (sadly) I don't. In any case, without batteries it can't invert -- so it is in an error state.

I wouldn't worry about anything unless (a) voltage doesn't come up when charging, (b) voltage gets too low without charging, (c) it doesn't invert under load, or (d) there is an error code during (what should be) normal operation.

I don't use my inverter for much or necessarily very often -- but it is worth a lot to me. There are a few things that make it worth having -- to me.

For example...
-- Use the Keurig to make coffee for guests (I'm not a coffee person)
-- Microwave some popcorn if I want a quick snack.
-- Microwave a glass of tea, oatmeal, or hot chocolate for me or a guest
-- When I have guests they can plug in their phones/ipads to charge (I use a car charger, but they don't often have those).
-- Plug my laptop in to charge or if I want it to stream video (I could use a small car inverter, but don't need to with the big one).
-- Run a burner on the electric stove to cook some eggs or pasta, or toast a sandwich. (In my old boat, I used a hotplate, because the range wasn't on the inverter)
-- Some guests have wanted to use a hair dryer or charge an electric razor.
-- And, my #1 favorite use...don't laugh...one of those $99 countertop ice makers is amazing for afternoon drinks on nice summer days.
-- If I used a toaster, that would be another great use (the person who owned my present boat before me did).

As you know...just depends on your boating lifestyle, etc. If you don't use it -- you probably don't need it (But, I still wouldn't take it out, unless it is broke).

Cheers!
-Greg

Thanks Greg, yeah I am sure there can be multiple uses for an inverter, especially with guests and their various needs.
Looks like we do have a different boating style.
I used to be liveaboard on a sailboat 34 years ago with no amenities, no fridge, no microwave, no TV, no Air Condition etc. (and no Autopilot, no GPS, no windlass, no dink outboard, no nothing except pure sailing and nature at it’s best)
Loved it and didn’t miss a thing,
(We make stove top popcorn and stove top coffe, got 2 butane burners on the Albin)

Soo, the inverter is low priority, it just sits there and charge the batteries when plugged in.
Hopefully it’s ok, hate to do surgery on the boat, tight spaces and all.