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Harry Keith avatar image
Harry Keith asked

Multiplus 12/3000/120-50 cycling continuously

I installed a new Multiplus 12/3000/120 in late 2021 or early 22. I used it full time in the summer of 22, and part time in 23. When aboard, we used it for about 1kW of load for about 1 hour each morning, and normally turned it off when not in use. It also has provided a lot of shore power pass through and battery charging. Very nice piece of gear.
This winter, I was on the hard for a while, and also had most of my solar off while replacing the arch (batteries kept up with 200W of very tired Solbian flexible, good for 3-4A combined). I spent a fair amount of time with the battery switch off (so no power to the inverter). Also worth noting that I use a mechanical switch wired in for ON/OFF control, as the unit is hard to reach. Also, I have both a Bluetooth Smart Dongle, and a MK3 USB device. I have VictronConnect, VE.BUS system configurator, and VEConfig (I really don't remember which program does what....LOL). I know in the past I have had the ability to use the MK3 to set parameters. I say all this to basically say that I've lost the bubble on what happened, when it happened, and what might have been going on at the time.

I am back in my slip, I have 800W of new solar installed. Batteries are full, and the season starts on Memorial Day. And I have a problem -- the inverter won't start/run/be useful. Some facts, as best as I can recall.* I have disconnected the remote switch, just to minimize confusion.* When shore power is connected, I have 110V at the Line In terminals (but not at the line out)
* I have 12V at the actual plates in the unit (so no losses in fuses, terminals, etc). By "12V" I mean full battery volts, high 13 to low 14.* If I switch to ON with no shore power, I get a cycle of "Invert" and nothing, about 15 seconds each. When Inverting, I do get 110 at the panel. The bluetooth connection (on my phone) cycles between "inverting" and "initializing."* If I switch to ON with shore power provided, I get a cycle of LED's showing "Invert," nothing, and "bulk," again about 15 seconds each. Again, when inverting, it really does provide power.* The above two items (the cycling) only occur if the SmartDongle is connected. If not connected, the MultiPlus is completely dead and non-responsive. This does mean that my RJ45 cable is live and functioning (I have tried both ports just in case).
* I can't seem to get a stable connection of shore power through the inverter to the panel in any condition.* None of the programs will recognize the MK3. When the MK3 is connected, the inverter acts the same as without the SmartDongle -- totally dead.

So, with all that, does anyone have any suggestions? I searched, and found a very similar post that ended up with a warranty replacement.

I should note that my dealer has not responded to email (he is a one man show 4 time zones away, so he might respond at some point) but more importantly his on line store is not on line. I fear he is out of business. This means that I may need to engage Victron directly for support. But a small (or large?) issue -- when I enter my serial number on the Victron support page, it can't find it.
MultiPlus Quattro Inverter Charger
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2 Answers
Harry Keith avatar image
Harry Keith answered ·

I reached out to Peter Kennedy (PKYS.com), and he graciously emailed me a "general troubleshooting guide" that he wrote, and the Pre-RMA guide from Victron. The Pre-RMA guide has a series of steps that must be done before any warranty work can be done -- I guess it is normally the technician that does it, but the steps are straight forward and any good DIY can follow them. It still needs to be "officially" done -- if it ever gets that far.

In my case, about 10 steps in is a line that reads "Check if the remote link is in place. If not, place the link." Memories start to come back.

I have installed a physical switch to control the Multiplus. My system is fairly simple, and all the extra stuff adds complexity and expense with little return, and I passed on that. The physical switch is easy -- if you don't get confused. First detail -- the unit switch MUST be in "ON" for the remote switch to work. I got confused over the winter, may have intentionally or accidentaly moved the switch, and the works are gummed up. Of course, the fact that the Multi "thinks" about any action for 10 seconds (which is 2 seconds longer than my attention span) makes it even harder to trouble shoot. I made matters worse by "helpfully" removing the switch and its wires to remove that from the equation -- forgetting that without the switch, you need the "remote link" (a short jumper that the remote switch replaces). Set the unit switch to "ON," reconnect the remote switch, remember what the positions on the remote do (I haven't labeled it, but when you use it twice a day it's easy to remember), and bingo, all is good.

So, if anyone finds this post with similar problems, I hope this helps.

Now I'm going to lable the remote, and put a note on the Multi that the unit must be "ON."

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bostonbuzz answered ·

Thanks Harry. I had a 12/3000 - 120 that would cycle on and off every 10s. Long story short, the simple remote switch doesn't work for this unit and you have to use the jumper.

I had the Inverter Control VE.Direct switch connected and plugged the inverter into the batter ypower. No power or lights until I connected it to my cerbo gx and turned it on using the software through the cerbo. Then it would cycle on and off repeatedley when I hit the switch on the unit 'on'. The remote switch seemed to have no effect.

Then I removed the remote switch and did the jumper. Worked perfectly and stopped cycling, except of course my inverter is not in a convenient place to operate the switch on the unit. Trying the remote switch again, I soldered the connectors on the left instead of using the screw terminals. This would make the "on" function work, but when off, (and with the inverter physical switch 'on') it would still cycle repeatedley.

Going to go retry after switching the unit off on the cerbo, but my fix is that the remote switch will render the unit non-operational and you have to use the switch on the unit or the $110 fancy switch - which is bizarre since it's a simple 3- position switch. I don't want to have to go into my settings on my cerbo just to turn on ac power. And the thing uses 15W idling, so don't want it on all the time either...

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Justin Cook avatar image Justin Cook ♦♦ commented ·
In this case, the issue is just that you had the wrong switch - the Inverter Control VE.Direct switch is for the small VE.Direct inverters, not the large VE.Bus inverters or inverter/chargers.
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