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moony avatar image
moony asked

How do you get 70 AMPs 14,4v of instant charging from MultiPlus 1600?

Installed a MultiPlus 1600 12/70 onto a sailing vessel, but it does not charge the 630AH 12v Exide Gel Battery Bank with more than max 13,3 volt. So, when shore power or the vessels AC generator is putting in 230v AC to the multiplus and the unit/charger makes a lot of annoying noise, the battery bank actually continues to discharge. The unit is brand new with all settings set as default.

The point of installing a new Victron Multiplus was to utilize the 70 AMPs charger to charge the battery bank faster especially from the boats 230v AC generator, when the other suppliers of current from the ship (wind turbine, hydro generator and solar) wouldn't be able to cope with consumption. So, the charger-unit has to go into full charge voltage of 14,4v (no more) with 70 AMPs charging current instantly when the MultiPlus is powered from an AC source. even when the battery bank is already charged 90%. The battery bank always must be fully charged before passages or before nights at anker etc. as we don 't want to run the generator when sailing or when sleeping.

Is the Multiplus 1600/12/70 capable of delivering what ordinary stand alone charges can? Or will I have to return the unit to the seller as a faulty product (a battery charger has to be able to charge instantly also on a nearly fully charged battery bank) and reinstall my old Clayton 1213 Sinus Inverter together with a new 70 AMPs ordinary battery Charger?

Best Moony

battery charging
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klim8skeptic avatar image klim8skeptic ♦ commented ·
I have only ever quantified my 12-1600-70 to be able to charge from a small 800w genset/mains limited connection.


I have limited my multi ac input to 3.0a.

It enabled battery charge to about 40a ( from 650w gen input)

What have you set your configuration at?

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moony avatar image moony klim8skeptic ♦ commented ·

Thanks for answering me.

My settings are default settings.

My generator delivers 16A @ 230v AC. Should be sufficient for the Multiplus 1600/12/70. Shorepower at harbour is also 16A.

The issue that I don't understand is the low charging voltage of only 13.3v from the Multiplus charging unit?

The boats diesel engine delivers 14,5 volt charging voltage to the batteries when running at lowest rpm. The engines generator is capable of doing 110 amps. Running the diesel engine is absolutely the fastest way to charge the battery bank - even in low rpms. I hoped the MultiPlus with it's high rated 70 AMPs of charging current was able to pair with that when on shore power.

Best . Moony

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Erik Sporns avatar image Erik Sporns moony commented ·
Im running the same device and ive seen 70amps on my battries.

Are you sure, that you have proper, low loss, connections to the battery? If there is a voltage drop at a point, the device will see increased voltage, even though the battery is still below the desired charge threshold.

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moony avatar image moony Erik Sporns commented ·

I will look into the connections again. However, the diesel engine is able to deliver 14,4 volt charging current through a Sterling Pro Digital charger regulator on the same BusBar connecting the cables to the bank.

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1 Answer
Matthias Lange - DE avatar image
Matthias Lange - DE answered ·

With default settings the charging current is at 2/3 of the max -> around 47A at your system.

So you need a MK3 interface to setup the Multi for your battery bank.

Or you try to use the DIP-switches (not recommended by me),

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rocksteadee avatar image rocksteadee commented ·
So what are the DIP switch settings? As there is not a facility in the manual
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rocksteadee avatar image rocksteadee kevgermany ♦♦ commented ·
Thanks for replying. Mine is the compact version so manual is slightly different.

However there is no mention of adjusting peak charging current by means of the DIP switches

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kevgermany avatar image kevgermany ♦♦ rocksteadee commented ·
Sorry, I just saw the dipswitch/not there.

Not all the settings are on dipswitches.

You'll need to use a MK3 to USB interface and Victron Connect Software on a PC. Gives access to many more settings.

The one you need is under General, AC1 Input Current limit. By default this is configured below the max the unit can use.


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