Kisae Abso Sinewave Inverter Charger

[Sea Leggs]

Just wanted to share my experience with the issues I was having with my Inverter-Charger and the successful outcome.
Here are the details of the problem I was having and the outcome below after working with Kisae Technical

I have a 2018 RT 29S and came home from a cruise and the Inverter seemed to be malfunctioning.
Here are my symptoms which I had.
When no shore power, there is no AC on my panel. All breakers are showing no power and the green LEDs are not lit.
When shore power is connected, the main breaker LED is green but no AC voltage is showing on the meter. Every few seconds there is a pulse of AC on the meter but doesn’t stay. The breakers on the left side (outlets, Microwave etc) are all showing no power. The accessories breakers in the middle are showing power(LED Green)
The Remote Display has R2.0 on the display but no status or display light. The Inverter fans are not running.

Outcome:
After contacting Kisae Technical Support they indicated that the R2.0 on the display is the version of software and should cycle through and start up. This did not happen. There are 2 potential causes, the inverter is faulty and not communicating with the remote panel or the RJ12 cable is faulty. I checked the cable, and it was fine. The next thing Kisae had me do was remove the shore power and DC power to the inverter, remove the DC positive lead from the inverter and short the positive and negative terminals on the inverter. This does at times reset the unit and it will start working again. This did not work so Kisae Technical support indicated I needed a new unit.

Kisae Technical Support indicated that the one-year warranty had expired, and they would provide a new unit at a non-warranty price, which turned out to be 50% of the retail price. $538 CAD total which included shipping the new inverter to my home.

I had a tech out today to install the new unit and everything seems to be working fine now. One thing I noticed is that the fan is now running on the inverter which was not happening before.

Kisae Technologies closest office to me was in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada and I reached them by phone at 604-630-8680 Ext 506

Hope this helps others.

 

[dbsea]

Thanks for sharing! This seems to be a common issue I've seen on this board with that inverter charger. I have the same one in my boat, so will be keeping an eye on it for gremlins. They just released a newer inverter charger product that looks like a replacement / upgrade for the ones we have, and it has a bigger battery charger which is a plus:

https://www.kisaepower.com/bic-launch/

I intend to look at these or others that might fit when (if) mine starts acting up.

 

[croakz]

How was it working with Kisae? I have a separate charger and inverter and thinking about getting a combined unit. Sounds like Kisae helped you out, but was it a headache to get them to support you out of warranty? Thanks for sharing!

- tom

 

[Sea Leggs]

Tom,
Kisae was very easy to work with, they returned my calls promptly and followed through with their promises.

Rick..

 

[Gin]

My Kisae hasn't kicked the bucket yet, but it may be headed there.

Recently, when the inverter function kicks on after removing shore power, the voltage meter at the top of the AC panel pulses up to full voltage and back to zero repeatedly, as Sea Leggs describes. Tick-tick-tick. More like a metronome than a voltage meter. :shock: Then (so far) it ticks up to full voltage and stays there, with the inverter working fine at that point. The behavior isn't confidence inspiring and these threads suggest my inverter may be on the verge of failure.

I also think the GFCI on the unit is not working. I discovered that when I was buttoning up the boat after an extended cruise a few weeks back and wanted to power a vacuum off of it. I wouldn't readily reset with a load on it, and I didn't have time to mess with it beyond a quick reset effort.

About that time, Sea Leggs put up his original post about his problem. I copied and saved one of the replies to help me troubleshoot my Kisae when I get back to the boat:

I had that exact problem on my 2021 29 cb two months ago. It turned out the unit was bad and I replaced it.

In the process I learned that the gfi plug on the side of the unit controls everything downstream, so if the outlet is tripped the unit stops doing anything. That’s worth checking before you replace.

I'm going to start by trying to reset the GFCI again. If it resets, maybe my meter ticking issue will go away. If the GFCI won't reset, guess I'll be calling Kisae to see if I can replace it or what else they recommend. And if it resets and the ticking continues, well, hmmm . . . replace it before it fails? Or wait for it to fail at an inconvenient time, which is all but guaranteed?

From the posts on this forum, Kisae's seem to work well while they work. And they work for a few years. But the failure rate after an initial few years seems on the high side. Which is disappointing. But I won't start contemplating whether I'd go with another Kisae until I know for sure that I'm closer to crossing that bridge.

Thanks, Sea Leggs, for the update on your experience.

 

[sgeary]

"One thing I noticed is that the fan is now running on the inverter which was not happening before."

Sea Leggs, for approx. 3 years, the Kisea inverter/charger has offered some additional inverter software options. One of those is for the fan. You can select a few different fan operations via software.

The owner's manual that comes with the inverter/charger has not been updated to reflect these new capabilities. But if you email Kisae tech support, they will provide a link to the newer software options.

 

[dbsea]

"One thing I noticed is that the fan is now running on the inverter which was not happening before."

Sea Leggs, for approx. 3 years, the Kisea inverter/charger has offered some additional inverter software options. One of those is for the fan. You can select a few different fan operations via software.

The owner's manual that comes with the inverter/charger has not been updated to reflect these new capabilities. But if you email Kisae tech support, they will provide a link to the newer software options.

Its worth noting that there are versions of this inverter charger floating around out in the market that still have the old firmware, which doesn't have a lot of these options. I helped a fellow tugnut swap his with a new one and it did not have the new features for the inverter modes or the fan. Conversely, i got mine used off of CL to replace my failing pro mariner and mine has the new features!

 

[sgeary]

When I asked the Kisae tech rep how to determine if an inverter/charger had the updated software options, I received the following reply:
The versions with the two new “manual backup” settings “In5” and “In6”, were released about 3 years ago, so there is a good chance that all our main distributors and their resellers only have the updated version. Anyway, an easy way to be sure is by checking that the serial number is greater than KT1909...... (i.e., being ≥ KT1909……)

The KT122055 inverter/charger I installed last week had a serial number starting with KT2203......
It had all the new Lithium Battery charge profiles, the fan option discussed in the earlier posts, and the reason I installed it for the two new Inverter options. I am using the newish In5 option which does not switch automatically to inverter when the shore power fails. But you can easily select/deselect Inverter from the included remote.

 

[Gin]

Quick follow up to my own post on this topic . . .

I was able to reset the GFCI on the inverter today. After that GFCI reset, I can’t get the inverter to repeat the “ticking” voltage behavior. Was the tripped GFCI causal or coincidence? I don’t know. But the inverter seems to be working fine. Perhaps my Kisae is not in a downward spiral towards inverter death, as I feared. Fingers crossed.

Gini

 

[Rocky Lou]

I just got the dreaded R2.0 message staying steady on my roughly 3 year old inverter. As others have suggested, I contacted Kaiser tech support: KISAE Technology
Attn: Ricardo Torassa
#109 – 18677, 52nd Avenue
Surrey, BC - V3S 8E5
Canada

Ricardo immediately said that if the R2.0 remains on, then, my unit is defective and must be replaced. He then sent an email with instructions and mentioned:
If that is your case and since your unit is out of our one-year warranty period, what we can do is sell you a brand-new unit of IC122055 for $ 405 US (including shipping costs inside the continental USA). We do not offer repair services for these units.
Their suggested retail prices are $759.99 US (without shipping costs), so it is a good discount.

I'm planning to order but am feeling this is another boat part that 'died before it's time'.

 

[Gin]

The $405 price is the best I think you will find on the Kisae 2000. But it is not as deep a discount as it may appear. The going price for the Kisae through InvertersRUS (a very good source) is $479 or so, but shipping is additional. At DonRowe.com (also a good source), the Kisae is $499 with shipping included. But $405, especially if shipping is free or about 20 bucks or so, is the best deal going.

In my last post on this topic, I thought my Kisae had recovered from signs that it might be failing. I was wrong. It continued to behave erratically. I did not want to risk it going out during December, when I spend as many as 20 nights out on the water parading with my inverter running my seasonal lights and display (and even more nights using the inverter at the dock). I was torn over just replacing the Kisae with another one, which would have been both cheaper and easier, versus upgrading. The two high end brands I considered, Victron and Xantrex, are about double the expense. And double the time to install if, as happened for me, the connections require re-routing so that it is not a piece-of-cake swap out. I ended up going with a Victron, in part because I am upgrading other components as well (Cerbo GX, Victron solar charger, Victron battery monitor). The warranty is impressive as well (InvertersRUS gives a standard 5+1 warranty, and right now they are throwing in their optional 10 year warranty for free — dang it, I missed out on that deal!). The fact that Kisae’s warranty is only one year was a significant concern for me.

Going with the Victron was more expense and hassle. For my long terms needs, though, both were worth it to me. But for sure, my wallet took a much larger hit. And the Kisae that came with my boat had been a perfectly good unit for me . . . until it wasn’t. The experience on this forum suggests that a lot of the Kisae units will reliably have a three year or so lifespan. So they outlive their short warranty, and perhaps, in the end, the cost works out over time to be about the same. For anyone thinking about upgrading, though, that 10 year warranty available right now on the Victron is a really good deal. 😉

Gini

 

[dbsea]

Which Victron did you go with ?

 

[Gin]

I went with the Victron MultiPlus 12/2000/80-50 120V.

Gini

 

[dbsea]

I went with the Victron MultiPlus 12/2000/80-50 120V.

Gini

Thanks Gin. I got a “never used” Kisae 2000w one out of some guys conversion van for $200 when my promariner crapped out, and its sounding like I won’t have a terribly long tine with this one. How did you decide on this one vs the compact 2000 one?

 

[Gin]

Glad you asked. I forgot about that model.

I was confused by the "compact" Victron versus the Multiplus. Turns out the compact is an older model (but costs more--go figure). Another good source is PKYS. And on their website, they show the compact as being an older model and the Mutli as a the newer one. https://shop.pkys.com/12-Volt-DC-Inverter-Chargers-_c_865.html

PKYS is more expensive than InvertersRUs by a few bucks and I was able to get the Victron extra quickly from InvertersRUs. Otherwise, I might have gone with PKYS. I've heard great things about their tech support. Check out the technical pages on their website. Super good stuff. And I recall somewhere among their videos may be one with Peter specifically talking about some of the new features of the Victron Multis, but I think the one he uses in the video is one model up (the Multi II 3000) and has some features that the Multiplus doesn't.

It might be worth a call to PKYS. They won't steer you wrong.

Gini

 

[dbsea]

Cool, thanks. I can get the multiplus version for 975 at fisheries supply locally. Will probably do that when the time comes…

 

[Gin]

Something I should mention about the Victron that's a bit of a downside. Or, if you are like me, it's a downside offset by an upside.

Programming most new Victron stuff now is by bluetooth or through the Cerbo interface. But the Multiplus, for major programming, requires a computer and a USB (computer) to ethernet (Victron) interface unit (the MK3-USB, about $70). So the downside is added cost. The upside is total and deep control over the Multiplus programming.

I've had no need to program the Multiplus because InvertersRUS did the initial programming for me. But I've connected the Victron to my computer and looked at it, and it's pretty darn slick. Someday, I will need to replace my batteries, and if not before, I will need to reprogram the Victron then. It will be easy to do, but will require the special MK3-USB unit.

Gini

 

[dbsea]

Thanks Gini. I will most likely get the cerbo gx and a screen when I get the I/c so will plan to manage and update it that way. 🙂

 

[Gin]

Dave, you'll love the Cerbo GX and touch screen! You can change some settings with the Cerbo, but at least with the Multiplus 2000, to program it for battery capacity, incoming amps, etc. you will need the MK3 doodad. Feel free to PM me with any questions before or during your install. Good luck!

Gini

 

[Rocky Lou]

The new Kisae Abso Sinewave Inverter Charger is installed and working. Instead of r2.0, the new panel powers up with r4.0. It's great to have an inverter again! I'm not sure why, however, the left hand (1/3) AC panel does not power up when the inverter is down. For my boat, that means the AC plugs that I use to power my dehumidifiers won't work and this season has been quite wet. Also, my microwave won't work and I recently found out how bad that cold chili, straight out of the can, tastes. I could have used a pan since the electric range did still power up.

Regarding the install, I had a friend do most of it. The instructions have some daunting language about explosion and fire, which is likely a disclaimer on most products with thick electric wires, but, there were too many unknowns (or I think I knows) for me. Now that I have seen it done, I wouldn't hesitate to change out an inverter myself. Doing a like for like replacement makes the job a lot easier as you have the identical mounting and wiring.

I hope to get more than 3 years, of course, but, I don't know if I'll want a different boat by then either. It's still hard to find anything that I like as well as my Cutwater C302, but, the poor performance (fuel consumption) and handling in rough offshore conditions is my top issue and concern. Some of the cats look interesting.