Excellent new 12kw inverter for off-grid use
When I started shopping for an inverter system to run my off-grid workshop I looked at 3 main products: the EG4 12000 XP, Eco-Worthy 10000W AIO inverter, and the WattCycle 12000W inverter that was brand new to the market. So far I have had the inverter installed in my workshop for 1 month and it has performed flawlessly. Since it was brand new there were not a lot of videos on it yet, but a few have popped up recently on YouTube that walk you through the install. The manual is very descriptive and helps you with the initial install and setup. It is well-written with normal English that is easy to understand. The inverter comes with cable lugs and mounting screws, and a WiFi adapter. In early forum discussions people were having difficulties with the WiFi adapter but mine has been working perfectly. I use it with the SolarMan app (not the WattCycle app) and it shows current information for my system. You can also access the same information on the SolarMan web portal. Being an SRNE inverter I felt like I wasn't taking a huge risk on a new product because I know of the reliability of SRNE inverters.
Comparing the WattCycle inverter to the Eco-Worthy AIO, they are the same size and weight, and have the same basic connections on the bottom. For the same price, the WattCycle is a 12000W inverter compared to the Eco-Worthy 10000W inverter, and this helped push me towards the WattCycle inverter. Also, the touch screen on the WattCycle inverter is fantastic and I definitely prefer this over the 4 buttons on the Eco-Worthy. The WattCycle screen is bright, the touch screen is very responsive, and almost all of the information you need is on the main screen without needing to click into the sub menus. Setup is also much easier on the WattCycle with the touch screen, as you are not just seeing a number and having to reference what that number means in the manual to make a change. The WattCycle inverter settings just present basic choices in English and you touch the choices that you want to set. One last benefit of the WattCycle inverter is the 24000W solar input capacity on the new version, compared to 11000W of solar input on the Eco-Worthy. While I am not using anywhere near that amount right now, it is nice to know that I can upgrade my solar in the future without maxing out my inverter.
Comparing the WattCycle inverter to the EG4 12000XP, the EG4 inverter is well known for its reliabilty and being a workhorse. This was a tougher decision once EG4 dropped the price to $1899, bringing these two much closer in price. For the extra $300 you do get a battery disconnect, AC in and out breakers (compared to just the AC in breaker on the WattCycle) and a built in PV disconnect switch. The 12000XP also has 24000W of PV input, just like the WattCycle inverter. The 12000XP is also much bigger and weighs twice as much as the WattCycle inverter, which can make installation more challenging to lift a 100+ pound inverter up onto the wall. The 12000XP has a non-touch screen and you have to make use of buttons to change the settings with numbers, just like the Eco-Worthy. After doing the setup with the WattCycle touch-screen I can't imagine doing it any other way. I would have loved to see an AC-out breaker and PV disconnect on the WattCycle inverter, but at this price point I can't really ask for all those extras that you get on a more expensive inverter. It's easy enough to buy a separate PV disconnect, and I ran the AC-out into a breaker on my panel instead of using the main lugs so I would have a protected circuit.
Overall, I am very happy with this product so far. It has easily put out enough power for everything that I have used. I can start my 240v metal lathe which has a surge of approximately 8000w on startup, as well as my mill, TIG welder, shop vacs, air compressors, mini-split, and everything else that I've used with it. I have not needed to contact WattCycle support for any reason, so I can't comment on that. Hopefully this inverter continues to be reliable in the future, and only time will tell but so far I'm incredibily pleased with it.
