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jdsadventures asked

multiplus does not always turn on

I have a 12 volt 3000 120 multiplus which is brand new and seemed to work fine for a couple hours. Now 4 out of 5 times the inverter will not turn on and the low battery led is flashing even though the batteries are fully charged.


The low battery led is the only one that is flashing and I cannot find what that error means. It is not in the victron toolkit or the manual. The battery voltage is fine at the multi-plus terminals. I am using AGM batteries which are newer and test good.


It does not appear to be an actual low battery alert or a low battery warning according to victron's toolkit and the manual since it is only the low battery led flashing (not solid which would indicate a low battery warning and shutdown). The inverter led does not light up either and the inverter does not turn on so it is not a low battery alert either.


Notes: I'm running the latest firmware. the battery is fully charged. the voltage looks good everywhere. There are no assistance or virtual switches running. There are no loads on the inverter. AES is disabled. UPS is disabled. Multi plus is set up as a standalone. Cut out voltages are set low 12.25 for alert and 12.00 for cutout. batteries are showing 12.8~13.3 at the multi-plus terminals when it happens. This is an off-grid system in an RV. I do have a cerbo GX as well as a victron solar controller 100/30. The RV is not connected to shore power and the generator is not running or connected. There are no ac loads on the inverter when I try to switch it on.


What am I missing any help is appreciated thanks.

low battery warning
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knownot avatar image knownot commented ·
I've had similar when I set the dc low input restart too high (to max because of my weird setup) the system was off during the DC rising above that voltage, then when turned on it had dropped below and latched itself there. I don't think this is your problem though, but double check all your settings, power cycle etc.
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jdsadventures avatar image jdsadventures knownot commented ·

Actually, I had that same thought myself as well last night. The DC low input restart is set to 13.00v and I'm wondering if there is a quick drop in voltage when I power on the inverter which triggers a shutdown and usually when the inverter does work the voltage hovers around 12.9 just below the restart level. So if the voltage is dropping to 11.9 for like an undetectable millisecond on startup it would make sense that the multiplus goes into shutdown and then doesn't turn back on since the voltage doesn't come back up to 13. I didn't think that was it since the error code is only the low battery light flashing and according to the manual and the Victron toolkit a low battery shutdown is a solid low battery light. Maybe the toolkit and manual need to be updated. Knownot was your low battery light flashing or solid when it happened on your system? I'll lower all the DC Input voltage settings, see what happens and post results. Thanks for the reply.

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snoobler avatar image
snoobler answered ·

Cut out voltage of 12.00V is going to make your usable battery capacity pretty minimal, and you're likely going to trigger it if you use any heavy loads at all.


I'm guessing you're trying to limit discharge to 50%. AGM voltage to SoC relationship only applies when the battery is completely unloaded, not charging and has sat dormant for 2+ hours.


Recommend you get a BMV 702 or 712 with temp probe, enable DVCC SCS, STS and SVS on the GX to ensure your chargers are getting actual voltage/temp data. You can establish a cut-off on the basis of actual SoC. You can signal the inverter to cut off at an actual SoC of your choice via the BMV relay.



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jdsadventures answered ·

@Jason - UK Sorry I should have updated this after resolving the issue: So, I lowered my "DC input low shutdown to 10.5v and the restart to 11.5v and put the alarm to 12v. Way lower than I wanted but it instantly fired up once I saved the settings and has not happened again. It appears there is something awry about those settings in the latest firmware since I never detected the voltage dropping below or even close to the previous values. Also, I'm disappointed in the "Victron Toolkit" since the error codes it displays do not match what the inverter actually displays. The "Victron Toolkit" is a great concept but it through me for a giant loop since the error codes do not actually line up with what happens :(. I'm running the latest firmware as of 04/21/2022 but I'm not there to check the firmware number for you sorry. Hope this helps. Thanks!

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Herve RV Nizard avatar image
Herve RV Nizard answered ·

interesting . facing the same problem. installed a new Multi 48/3000. had been on test for settings for 3 days. then off 2 weeks. installed friday. no ac connected yet. no loads at all. batteries full. inverter left ON. After a few hours , now inverter is off. won't start. red low battery light is steady. battery is 53v. have you found what was the problem ? thanks

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Jason - UK avatar image Jason - UK commented ·

@Herve RV Nizard what firmware version do you have? By any chance are you also using Firmware version 496?

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Jason - UK avatar image
Jason - UK answered ·

@JDsadventures By any chance are you using Firmware version 496? I have been having similar issues where regardless to the settings in VE configure, the low voltage warning comes on way above my setpoint, then the inverter stops again way above my set point. I have a Multiplus II 5kva 48V GX unit but with similar issues but as I am grid tied, my inverter just switches over to the grid so I dont lose power but its really annoying how the inverter had behaving under this latest firmware version if that is the issue.

https://community.victronenergy.com/questions/134682/whats-the-lowest-inverter-operational-dc-input-vol.html


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Herve RV Nizard answered ·

Thanks . I will double check but indeed I think it is running on 496. Will let you know.


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