How It Works

GenStart connects your off-grid inverter to any generator with electric start for automatic power backup.

System Overview

How GenStart Works☀️ Solar PanelsDC power tobattery bank🔋 Inverter + BatteryOff-grid inverter(EG4, Sol-Ark, Victron...)Battery low?Closes dry contact relayDry ContactSignal⚡ GenStartControllerESP32 + Relay BoardWiFi + OTA UpdatesAC Freq DetectionStart + StopRelay Control🔌 GeneratorAny electric-start(Honda, Champion, Generac...)Auto-starts whenbattery is lowAC Powercharges batteriesWiFi☁️ Cloud Dashboardgenstart.acidni.netReal-time telemetry, alerts,start history, OTA updates📱 Your PhoneMonitor fromanywhere📡 Wireless Bridge(Optional Add-On)Extends dry contactsignal wirelessly wheninverter is far away
1

Install the Controller

Mount the GenStart controller near your generator. Connect the relay outputs to your generator's start wires, connections vary by model. Connect the dry contact inputs to your dry contact signal source.

2

Connect to WiFi

Power on GenStart and connect to its setup hotspot. Enter your WiFi credentials and register with your genstart.acidni.net account using a pairing code.

3

Automatic Operation

When your inverter closes its dry contact relay, GenStart automatically sends the start signal. Once batteries are charged, the inverter opens the relay and GenStart shuts down the generator.

4

Monitor from Anywhere

View real-time telemetry, start event history from the cloud dashboard at genstart.acidni.net.

Wiring Overview

Dry Contact InputSignal inputDetects when inverter requests generator start
Start RelayRelay outputSends start signal to generator (supports push button start and rocker switch start)
Stop RelayRelay outputSends stop signal to shut down generator
AC Frequency SensorSignal inputDetects engine running via generator output
Power Supply5V USB-C or 12V DCPowered from generator's 12V battery system

Compatible Systems

Inverter

Any Inverter

With dry contact/relay output (EG4, Sol-Ark, Growatt, Victron, etc.)

Generator

Any Generator with Electric Start

Portable or standby generators with push button start and rocker switch start (Generac, Honda, Champion, etc.)