Dangerous Ecoflow kit? (3 Viewers)

[Otter Spotter]

New update video has been posted

Will he ever learn ?

 

[Mike123]

Can anyone explain what the advantage of this system is over upgrading to lithium batteries from normal leisure batteries ???

 

[dpsuk999]

Supposedly all PLUG & PLAY

 

[The Wino]

Supposedly all PLUG & PLAY

Maybe plug and fry!!

 

[Tombola]

Can anyone explain what the advantage of this system is over upgrading to lithium batteries from normal leisure batteries ???

pretty much none, the whole selling point was plug and play.

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[Swifter]

I posted this earlier tonight Otter Spotter in another thread . Sorry I didn’t see this post .
GJ is right to tell the truth about the negative experience. I found the video very informative

 

[Tombola]

I havent watched the whole videos, I seen the install a few weeks back when he unpacked the kit, but did he get this one the free then for "promoting" it,
if so , at least hes give an honest opinion that its shite after all, a lot would have kept quiet, to scrounge more gear,
ECOflow wont be happy, oh dear !

 

[MisterB]

GJ gets a lot of bad press, but in this occasion it really isn't down to him. The system he installed was supposed to be plug and play and IF it worked would have been a great option for self builds.
Looking back on it, the bit I don't understand is why did he post the initial video, before allowing the company the opportunity to 'make good' or resolve the problem. All he seems to have done is destroy a companies reputation and limit his chances of getting his money back.
I'm not suggesting he shouldn't have 'gone public', just that he should have perhaps given them the opportunity to investigate and resolve the issue or take ownership of it.

Life is full of things that go wrong, it's how they get put right that really matters.

 

[Swifter]

I havent watched the whole videos, I seen the install a few weeks back when he unpacked the kit, but did he get this one the free then for "promoting" it,
if so , at least hes give an honest opinion that its shite after all, a lot would have kept quiet, to scrounge more gear,
ECOflow wont be happy, oh dear !

Apparently he paid for it . I’ve never been a fan of GJ as you know but I think ( and hope ) in this case he’s checked his facts and has a legitimate complaint over this system . If he’s bodged something then this video will be deleted

 

[Swifter]

GJ gets a lot of bad press, but in this occasion it really isn't down to him. The system he installed was supposed to be plug and play and IF it worked would have been a great option for self builds.
Looking back on it, the bit I don't understand is why did he post the initial video, before allowing the company the opportunity to 'make good' or resolve the problem. All he seems to have done is destroy a companies reputation and limit his chances of getting his money back.
I'm not suggesting he shouldn't have 'gone public', just that he should have perhaps given them the opportunity to investigate and resolve the issue or take ownership of it.

Life is full of things that go wrong, it's how they get put right that really matters.

The fact he went public makes me actually respect him a little bit , but this has happened before with GJ and lithium technology so I remain open minded .

Ps
I still need to collect that dam fridge off you

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[Two on Tour]

Apparently he paid for it . I’ve never been a fan of GJ as you know but I think ( and hope ) in this case he’s checked his facts and has a legitimate complaint over this system . If he’s bodged something then this video will be deleted

Would not be the first time that he has measured something wrong, ......... just saying.

 

[MisterB]

The fact he went public makes me actually respect him a little bit , but this has happened before with GJ and lithium technology so I remain open minded .

Ps
I still need to collect that dam fridge off you

its still here LOL

re GJ 'going public' - i understand and also think he did the right thing in going public, its just down to timing - i think he should have given them time to try to address the issue, i don't understand his haste, especially as he is now complaining that he hasnt heard back from them since posting the video on line. i suspect the next thing he hears from them is via a lawyer .....

i wonder just how long it was from noticing the problem to posting his video ...... i also wonder how much damage he has done to his 'case' by cutting open the cable sheathing to 'investigate' the problem. perhaps he might have been best served by documenting his 'observations' and returning the cable ....?

the one thing i am pretty sure about though, is that he didnt cut the cable himself during installation and try to join the cable together again, in the way it was joined together !!

 

[Robb]

I've found Ecoflow very good to communicate with. I've checked my cables and no splices found. I believe all the manufacturing is in China, so maybe more Ecoflow Quality Control is needed there. The default B2B charging is 30 amps, but you can increase that up to 60 amps, I did that for the first time on Saturday and at engine idle speed I saw 14.0 volts, 846 watts and 60.3 amps, maybe I'll stick with 30 amp charging for a while until the issues are clarified or sorted!

 

[Wissel]

Looking back on it, the bit I don't understand is why did he post the initial video, before allowing the company the opportunity to 'make good' or resolve the problem. All he seems to have done is destroy a companies reputation and limit his chances of getting his money back.

I'm going to give the benefit of the doubt and assume he posted to do the right thing.

IMO, that system is just overpriced junk. To give an example, I can't see how a plug in connector (instead of bolted) can deliver enough power via an inverter and be safe?

It didn't catch fire, but it was pretty close. I know he's done daft things (including his new solution in the video, again IMO), but it doesn't make him a bad person. He's a YouTuber, not an expert. I think he has just cut off a fair chunk of money for others benefit. Which I can't complain about.

As for EcoFlow, I've had talks with them myself about supplying their products. It didn't take much of an email exchange to put them on ignore.

 

[Carpmart]

Cynical old me just views the whole thing as GJ looking for more clicks, more likes, more of us suffering the adverts, so more money for him. Everything has to have drama in it, good content innit!

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[Robb]

I think Renogy have offered something and now the clicks count!

 

[Swifter]

especially as he is now complaining that he hasnt heard back from them since posting the video on line. i suspect the next thing he hears from them is via a lawyer .....

After a rubbish day at work this was absolutely hilarious to read .
This whole EcoFlow situation seems to be getting ridiculous on YouTube.

 

[Swifter]

I think Renogy have offered something and now the clicks count!

Bring back the vanlife YouTube funny channels lol . Apparently travel trolls got them all shut down lol

 

[Gizmouk]

Absolutely nothing wrong with jointing cables - if it's done correctly. We regularly used to joint up to 630mm2 CSA singles - anything bigger was too much of a fight. I've seen the type of jointing shown in the video in a few Asian countries - we used to sing the "twist and wrap", although not sure they ever realised we were taking the P. Even seem them do it on overhead LV lines
My best guess is that the cable was damaged someplace, and someone bodged the repair.
However, If someone had taken into account fault discrimination when sizing the protective device to the cable size and load, then the fuse / MCB would have blown / tripped.

 

[Gizmouk]

I'm going to give the benefit of the doubt and assume he posted to do the right thing.

IMO, that system is just overpriced junk. To give an example, I can't see how a plug in connector (instead of bolted) can deliver enough power via an inverter and be safe?

It didn't catch fire, but it was pretty close. I know he's done daft things (including his new solution in the video, again IMO), but it doesn't make him a bad person. He's a YouTuber, not an expert. I think he has just cut off a fair chunk of money for others benefit. Which I can't complain about.

As for EcoFlow, I've had talks with them myself about supplying their products. It didn't take much of an email exchange to put them on ignore.

At the end of the day, it's a box containing an inverter and a battery - it's basically an UPS.
I wouldn't want to rely on plug in connections for more than anything more than a few hundred Watts - given that it's going to be installed in a vehicle bouncing around potholes and fields.

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[Swifter]

and someone bodged the repair.

I just hope he didn’t. At the moment GJ is calling EcoFlow out for being rubbish. I guess we await their results and response

 

[Peregrinator]

You should never solder crimped joints it really is asking for trouble.

No, the solder is not holding the joint, the crimp is, the solder is only to fill the miniature cavities that exist under normal crimping (just a touch of solder nothing more) then crimped again while under heat, this enables 99.9% none resistance, the joint then shrinks when cooling to enable stronger hold, idea of this kind of joint is to reduce resistance nothing more, the compression and the shrink holds the joint in place, these are crimps at either end, never, ever in the middle.

 

[Manic]

If he did pay for the kit, it will be interesting how he gets on with a refund.

 

[Otter Spotter]

Can anyone explain what the advantage of this system is over upgrading to lithium batteries from normal leisure batteries ???

No, I haven’t seen any explanation, but in fairness I think it’s supposed to be a quick and easy 12v/230v system that anyone with little or no experience fit in their van. But that said Ecoflow should ensure the kit is safe enough to fit. I thought that it would be designed to eliminate amateur joints and connections so make it safer
Regarding GJ posting this video, I think it really scared him, it could have killed him later down the line so I have a bit of sympathy for him but with utubers constant need to fuel the channel there must be a lot of ‘humble pie’ eating when mistakes like this happen.
I hope he gets his money back though I think he may struggle now.

 

[Gromett]

Absolutely nothing wrong with jointing cables - if it's done correctly. We regularly used to joint up to 630mm2 CSA singles - anything bigger was too much of a fight. I've seen the type of jointing shown in the video in a few Asian countries - we used to sing the "twist and wrap", although not sure they ever realised we were taking the P. Even seem them do it on overhead LV lines
My best guess is that the cable was damaged someplace, and someone bodged the repair.
However, If someone had taken into account fault discrimination when sizing the protective device to the cable size and load, then the fuse / MCB would have blown / tripped.

You are absolutely correct that there is nothing wrong with jointing cables if done correctly. There was a whole section of my EITB training course as part of my apprenticeship on the subject. Everything from single core joints to armoured jointing.

The way this was done was wrong in so many different ways. And no, if the protective device was specced correctly to the cable (unjointed) it wouldn't have tripped. The joint was a resistive load which generated heat and reduced the current flowing through the cable. Protective devices require a fault condition and don't operate based on the temperature of a hot spot on the cable.

It was criminally bad.

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[Pausim]

Perhaps it was all a giant conspiracy by one of his competitors? If GJ’s van was gutted by an electrical fire no one would be surprised and it would be put down to operator error. The nearly perfect crime.

No I am not being serious, for once there might be something to learn from his videos.

 

[Carpmart]

Perhaps it was all a giant conspiracy by one of his competitors? If GJ’s van was gutted by an electrical fire no one would be surprised and it would be put down to operator error. The nearly perfect crime.

No I am not being serious, for once there might be something to learn from his videos.

Hey it’s YouTube… anything for the clicks, subs and likes goes!!!

 

[Mike123]

With electrics installation in a van, do you not have to have them signed off as per a house by an approved sparky ?

 

[Lenny HB]

With electrics installation in a van, do you not have to have them signed off as per a house by an approved sparky ?

No, even in a house the wiring you are not supposed to do yourself is the kitchen and bathroom.