In the quest for a perfect solar inverter, you may have come across way too many names to even remember. We understand your frustration, and to aid that decisional dysphoria we bring you Fronius inverter review. In this piece of content, you will find all the authentic information about Fronius inverter coming from an unbiased perspective, all the pros as well as the limitations of Fronius.
So, without further ado, lets hop right in to the review.
Table of content
- Where Are Fronius Inverters Manufactured?
- What is PV Evolution Labs Top Performer?
- Available Models of Fronius Inverter in the Australian Market
- Side by Side Comparison of Fronius Inverter
- Advantage and Disadvantage of Fronius Inverter
- Fronius Inverter Monitoring System
- Warranty of Fronius Inverter
- Are Fronius Inverters Any Good?
- Conclusion
Where are Fronius Inverters Manufactured?
One of the most talked about fact of Fronius is probably this, where are these one-of-a-kind inverters manufactured? You would be delighted to know that this is an all European ‘born and raised’ inverter. Fronius is extremely proud of their roots in Austria (not Australia) which is where it all began, and till this date they are manufacturing their extremely popular inverters there.
Also, their inverters are CE Certified. Is it mandatory to be CE marked in Australia? Not really, but the CE certification proves that those products have gone an extra mile for their consumers and proved their claim of being premium quality. Being CE marked means that the certified product meets the EU environment, health and safety precautions. That’s always a plus.
In addition, they have been carefully assessed by the manufacturer to meet all the requirements to be CE marked. To keep it concise, to be CE marked means the product checks all the boxes to be marketed within European Union, it means the product passed a certain quality check that is not a mandatory box to check off, but it gives the consumer- meaning YOU, assurance.
Did you know they have an office in Australia too? Yup! They do, and it’s situated in 3043 VIC Tullamarine, Melbourne. Having an office within the country means you will be sure to have a solution ready for you, that too in a short period, in case anything goes wrong, which is very unlikely with Fronius.
What is PV Evolution Labs Top Performer?
PV Evolution Labs (PVEL) is the leading independent test lab for the global downstream solar industry, and it works in partnership with DNV GL. Solar panels, solar inverters and other solar products are eligible to get tested and they have to meet a certain set of strict criteria to be called one of the top performers.
Fronius has also gone through the same procedure and emerged victorious. Afterwards they were rightfully crowned as one of the PV evolution labs top performers. Let me remind you that it is no easy task to be recognized in this list, only those who prove their superior quality and are able to withstand the harsh environment get called the top performer.
Available Models of Fronius Inverter in The Australian Market
Here’s a list of available models of Fronius inverter in Australia, ready to be picked up by you.
Fronius GEN24 Plus- The Versatile Inverter
The Fronius GEN24 Plus is a comparatively new addition to the product line. Within this line they have some excellent inverters which are mostly similar, only distinguishable in size and connectivity. The GEN24 Plus complies perfectly with their vision of 24 hours of sun – a world with 100% renewables, which is one of Fronius’s noble missions.
The GEN24 Plus line offers you-
- PV Pont- Integrated basic backup power supply up to 3kW in an event of power outage. It’s a low-cost backup power solution.
- The power with which the storage system can be charged and discharged is one of the most critical selection factors for a hybrid inverter. The GEN24 Plus’s battery input has a large current carrying capability, allowing charging and discharging power of up to 9 kW depending on the storage system attached.
- An integrated active cooling system that results into higher yield, also makes the installation process fairly easier. Additionally, the active cooling allows you to spend less on maintenance eventually saving you money in the long run.
- The specialty of this model is its ability to be mounted easily. Thanks to its quick release screw and well sought-after mounting system, the cost of installation is very low.
- Upgrade system without any hassle as it’s easy to open and close back down in one piece.
- Different roof orientations and shading of strings do not pose any problems, thanks to its Superflex Design.
- Sophisticated backup power solution works in combination with an energy storage system.
There are essentially two different versions of the GEN24 plus inverter, differentiating in the following factors –
Symo GEN24 Plus (6-10 kW)
- Three-phased.
- Hybrid inverter, meaning it comes with backup facilities.
Primo GEN24 Plus (3-6 kW)
- Single-phased
- Hybrid inverter, with full battery backup.
Fronius SnapINverters
- The key feature in the name, it’s a snap-in-inverter. Which means, the installation is as easy and quick as snapping your fingers.
- The installation process is safer than ever in comparison to other brands.
- The inverters contain a number of built-in open interfaces that allow third-party components to be easily connected.
- Integrated energy management function
- Would generate maximum yield even in the events of partial shading
- MPP trackers
- Easy connection of the inverter to the internet via LAN/WLAN
- Selected loads, such as a heat pump, an electric car, or an air conditioning system, could be efficiently regulated using spare PV energy thanks to integrated energy management system.
There are essentially two different versions of the SnapINverters inverter, primarily differentiating in the following factors –
Primo SnapINverters (3.0-8.2 kW)
- Single-phased
- Transformer less
Symo SnapINverters (3.0-20.0 kW)
- Single-phased
- WLAN ethernet connection
Fronius Symo Hybrid – Flexible Hybrid Inverter
- Integrated multi flow technology ensures intelligent management of the various energy flows such as solar, wind, power plant etc.
- Enables DC or AC coupling of battery storage.
- Offers numerous open interfaces
- Fully integrated backup feature, enables your house to stay lit up in the event of a power failure (possible with BYD)
- MPP tracking algorithm with tolerance for shading.
- Easy connection to internet via LAN or WLAN
- Easy to install and maintain
Fronius Symo Hybrid – Flexible Hybrid Inverter : Specifications
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Side by Side Comparison of Fronius Inverter
| Models | FRONIUS PRIMO GEN24 PLUS | FRONIUS SYMO GEN24 PLUS | FRONIUS PRIMO | FRONIUS SYMO |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inverter Type | String | String | String | String |
| Battery Ready Option | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| MPP Trackers | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Rated AC Power Output | 3000 Watt | 6000 Watt | 5000 Watt | 3000 Watt |
| Maximum PV input power | 22 / 12 A | 25 / 12,5 A | 18 / 18 A | 1 x 16 A |
| Maximum Inverter Efficiency | 97.60% | 98.20% | 98.10% | 97.70% |
| Dimensions(W’H’D) | 474*530*165 mm | 595*529*180 mm | 431*645*204 mm | 430*654*204 mm |
| Weight (KG) | 19 | 28.5 | 21.5 | 19.9 |
| Water and Dust Proof Certification | IP66 | IP66 | IP65 | IP65 |
| Ethernet | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| App | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| Warranty | Up to 10 Years | Up to 10 Years | Up to 10 Years | Up to 10 Years |
Advantage and Disadvantage of Fronius Inverter
Now that you know about all the individual models, let us take a look at the entire Fronius inverter arrangement and see their pros and cons at a glance for a better understanding.
Advantages
- Fronius inverters are known for their ease of installation and repairing methods to make your life easier.
- They have a variety of options for you to pick out from.
- To yield the most out of the inverters all of them have integrated MPP trackers.
- Integrated LAN/WLAN for easy connection to the internet, to be able to monitor the activities from anywhere you want.
- Active cooling system for your inverters to stay cool to give you a higher yield.
- An Austrian brand, this info is for those who are skeptical of the quality.
- Maintains EU standards.
Disadvantages
- The fan noise can be something where Fronius has room for improvement.
Fronius Inverter Monitoring System
In order to monitor the inverter, Fronius has an app that gives you excellent insight of the inverter on a real time basis. Starting from the PV energy consumption to daily energy yield everything will be there presented to you in the Solar web app.
Fronius Solar.web makes it possible to address service cases swiftly and despite of location: Solar web’s automatic service notifications notify you of system faults quickly. The online tool can do the initial mistake analysis right away. SOS could well be utilized for further in-depth mistake investigation as well as requesting replacement parts.
- The current energy flows are displayed in a user-friendly manner.
- Regular reports and automatic reminders
- Over the life of the PV system, production and consumption are displayed on a daily, monthly, and yearly basis.
- The latest three days’ daily production and consumption graphs are displayed.
- All Fronius system components receive automatic upgrades.
Warranty of Fronius Inverter
Fronius has rarely failed to impress its customers with their excellent customer service. Usually their fail-proof mechanism doesn’t require much attention, however, if an incident occurred where the inverter fails, Fronius has promised its consumers to arrange a replacement within 3 to 5 business days. Of course, we have to take the current situation into consideration in this case.
You as an Australian customer have access to an additional 5 years of warranty on top of the standard 5-year warranty that Fronius offers. All you have to do is just register here- www.solarweb.com.
Are Fronius Inverters Any Good?
If you want a short answer to the question then yes, a big yes from us. They are not just good but excellent in our opinion. Their Austrian origin and EU check mark makes them all that more attractive for those who are genuinely looking for good options to make a switch to the renewable energy.
Please note that, while Fronius is a quality option for everybody but they can be on expensive side of the spread. Don’t forget that, a solar system is an investment so, a little splurge now can save you a lot in the longer run. My duty as a reviewer is to tell you both sides of the stories so that you can make an informed decision. So, are they good? Indeed, but are they good for you specifically? that you have to find out by yourself.
Conclusion
With that we have reached to the end of the Fronius inverter review blog. We have tried to give you an honest insight of the inverter from an unbiased point of view. If you want to know in greater details about the product or the process itself, we can arrange a free consultation session for you with one of our solar experts at your convenience. What do you have to do? Just reach out to our email or leave a comment down below!
