question

nomeat1 avatar image
nomeat1 asked

Victron 48V Phoenix Smart 1600VA does not perform to specification

The inverter overheats and shuts down periodically after 1.5 to 2 hours of operation on a resistive load of 1175VA shown in the app.

resistive-load-1-20220402-155517.png


at 25C ambient temperature. All external wiring is correct and does not get warm.
There is plenty of space around the inverter.
The DC input power is 1340W so a loss of 165W, no where near the 94% efficiency claimed in the specification.
Measurements with an infrared thermometer show over 80C on the large toroid transformer near the NTC sensor.

overheating-img-20220315-181733-733.jpgThe cooling principle of this inverter is a disaster. Rather than upwards it blows air horizontal towards the wall with an air gap of about 1cm if mounted just with the provided bracket on the wall. This forces some of the hot air back down on the rear where the toroid is mounted
creating a thermal runaway.

I tried mounting it with an air gap of 10cm from the wall and at least it didn't smell like burnt plastic anymore.

The high thermal capacity of the transformer means it takes very long before it overheats and the normal user might just switch on a microwave for 20 minutes will not notice this, but these inverters are specified to run CONTINUOUSLY with 1600VA (1300W real power) at 25C.

The zero load power is 26 watts, more than double what is claimed in the specification.

I also tried the voltage setting 210V and the recently downloaded app shows 192V.
My multimeter measured the correct 210V.
That is a bug and evidence that Victron do not run sufficient tests on their products.

app-error-1-20220331-185009.pngMy distributor contacted Victron and they claimed they are not aware of any issues.
Therefore my distributor suggested to post here.

My distributor also kindly replaced the inverter and all above issues remain. This is not an isolated incident.


Phoenix Inverter
2 |3000

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1 Answer
yaulong avatar image
yaulong answered ·

Hi , got the same Issue with an Phoenix Smart 12/3000. The Inverter gets hot even @ 2100VA Load with 14°C ambient air. The Issue is the Transformer i added a Fan to it . Now it runs better.

img-20230526-123543.jpgimg-20230526-114010.jpgimg-20230526-153236.jpg

If Victron could release a schematic of the NTC wiring and what value is what temp the issue could be resolved by adding a resistor. Or Victron could change the software threshold.



2 |3000

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