Hi all , looking at building a system with a 12/3000 Multi-plus and battery bank, Question is will I need to build a switch into the system when i hook up to shore power or will the Multi-plus automatically sense shore power is connected and switch its self? and the second part is shore power fails will it auto switch or will i have to manually swithc back ?
Hi @Stavarda, the MultiPlus has an integral transfer switch, so it will switch itself back and forth from shore power to inverted power with remarkable seamlessness.
That being said, you should of course have a shore power inlet breaker, and if you have another source of AC power like a generator, then you would want an external ATS to switch the Multi's AC input between the two possible AC sources, but other than those things, the answer is: it will automatically switch.
For more information regarding this functionality, please see the User Manual (I linked to the 120v version there, but you can quickly access all the MultiPlus user manuals here) and the operation and various settings pertaining to the transfer switch functionality are detailed in multiple sections throughout the manual.
Hi @Justin Cook - Bay Marine Supply USA i will be adding a Neo 5000i later on down the line can you explain the External ATS switch as i thought i had read that the Neo 50001 can be lined into t switch on automatically ? thanks
Hmmmm sorry, I'm only a Victron/Sterling/Battle Born expert, I have no idea what a Neo 50001 is?
@Justin Cook - Bay Marine Supply USA the Neo5000i is A Fisher Panda Generator, thanks for info too.
@Stavarda ah! Yes, then you will need an ATS (automatic transfer switch) to switch between the AC sources; Victron's Filax 2 is a viable solution, or of course there is a vast array of 3rd-party ATS offerings on the market.
Hi @Stavarda
If you're adding in a generator, you could also consider a Quattro, rather than a Multi (if available in your size/V). It has the same functionality but 2 ac inputs, so you could hardwire in both your ac input supplies and it will choose between them depending on how you have it set.
https://www.victronenergy.com/upload/documents/Datasheet-Quattro-3kVA-15kVA-EN.pdf
They're more expensive, but does away with the need to select your ac input, whether by changing plugs, manual switch, or external ATS (expensive too).
@Stavarda Couple of other items that may be worthy of a look. Not sure of your supply voltage but if 120 VAC (Shore) then 3kVA will be around 25 Amps which may be more than your shore power can handle and you will trip the shore side CB (or worse kick off the whole marine arm - which pleases no one). Automatic switching sounds sort of great but in terms of control this may not be your ultimate desire. I want to know what my external AC source is at any time and as such have a three-way CB which is mounted on the DIN rail and selects 'Shore' or 'nil' or 'Generator'. In this manner I know what to set (or expect) as the maximum draw I can use. I use the remote control panel to limit the draw on the shore power and set the Multi max current to the max continuous rating of the generator. If you turn off the shore/gen or disconnect the Multi will seamlessly switch to inverter supply (as stated by @Justin Cook - Bay Marine Supply USA.
My setup up (DIN rail) next to the AC selector is another 3-way. This is to select to 'bypass' the inverter and supply external AC (Gen or Shore) directly to the AC distribution board. I found out the hard way that when my inverter was off on a warranty job it was obviously disconnected - too late I realised that notwithstanding that I had plenty of AC power via the Generator (out and about) or shore power; I was unable to access this without the Multi in the circuit. Now this is a simple switch if needed.
To close off my selection DIN rail I also have a 'Solar' selector which is misnamed but what it allows me to do is select the normally AC1 fed hot water system (700 W 230 VAC here in Aust) and supply it from the inverted power. I do this manually at the moment because the Venus does not tidily handle switching on relays (Relay 1 only) when Battery Volt is high enough and turn off when either no solar or low volts.
Hope this adds some value. Best of hunting.
