Hello,
What’s happening with Victron Blue Smart chargers? Newly purchased IP22 models appear to be faulty and are being returned to sellers in large numbers due to voltage/current pulsing. Replaced devices are also faulty…
Many such cases have been reported on other forums. So far, neither Victron support nor the sellers have provided any explanation…
Where are you going Victron?
I work for a distributor in Germany and we don’t have large numbers of returned units.
I can take a closer look tomorrow.
What exact model are you talking about?
In a forum/Facebook you will only find negative comments from users that are having problems not the other hundreds/thousands of users that are having no problems.
Hi,
Mostly IP22 12v. The issue is at least in Poland.
Hi,
Are these pulses normal? Is this a normal charging process?
No, it is faulty.
What battery do you have?
Can you confirm that it is not the battery cutting off the charge?
60Ah 590A.
It’s the same on three batteries. All three are working.
Resetting the settings didn’t help.
This happens on both the custom and automatic settings.
The update was done on first startup.
What battery exactly (chemistry)? Lithium? Lead?
Lead CaCa
Hi @jacek33wawa
I have forwarded your post to the product director and asked for a comment.
I have exactly the same problem with an IP22 12|30 (1) (serial number starts with HQ2539…).
As soon as the current gows down to ~4 amps it falls down to 0,0 and then starts to go up and down repeatedly between 0,0 A and 6 or more amps.
No balancer can to it’s work under those conditions!
I checked it with two LiFePo4 batteries ensuring that it is not caused by balancer cutoffs. It also can happen in float mode at 13,5 V.
I just have bought it, so I immediately will return it.
Can you please keep us informed if this affects the whole series or if it is safe to order a new one?
Is it possible that this problem has been caused by inadequate packaging?
In my opinion, this rather heavy device was completely inadequately packaged:
There was no padding in the shipping box, nor was there any padding inside the product box. The charger was simply wrapped in a plastic bag inside the product box. And the product box was loose inside the shipping box. Is this normal?
Btw. this seems to be the same problem too:
Problems and faulty units are relatively common, but they’re mainly detected by users who have a deeper understanding of charging and device operation. The average user suspects it’s normal or supposed to be this way, and for them, a fault is only recognized when something actually doesn’t work—whether it doesn’t turn on, doesn’t charge, doesn’t connect via Bluetooth, etc. Polish distributors have a large percentage of faulty units, and Swedish distributors have also experienced some. Russian forums are full of information about this, primarily with HQ25XX chargers, and occasionally with HQ24XX chargers. The main problems are Bluetooth modules, faulty relays, or software bugs. The chargers don’t charge smoothly, deviate from the V and A parameters, or, in absorption mode at low currents, begin to “fault,” lose checkpoints, reverting to bulk mode, failing to transition to other modes, or experiencing a lack of Bluetooth communication, communication freezes, or general algorithm bugs, manifesting differently or a combination of these defects in different configurations.
Hi Matthias
I have been trying 7-8 IP22 15A with a seria starts with HQ25XX and all have been faulty.
Also have a few AGM’S fully charged, half charged and empty ones and a charger is charging all batteries in the same way.
After that I bought a IP65(HQ24XX)and charging all the batteries as should. Even a FLOAT stage is perfect.
Believe me or not on one IP22 even a storage mode(not charging) wasn’t stable which one connected to a new cars may caused a huge damaged.
From my knowledge a Victron is informed by my distributor, and I also have been with contact Victron directly and mentioned them a problem.
My friend from a Germany and from Switzerland also have had a problem with IP22 seria HQ25XX
Victron won’t told us where was a problem, but in my opinion they should reverse all chargers and safe time and money for seller and buyers.
Warranty won’t be effective at all.
Yes, I also agree and confirm this, as I inspect and test various charging devices upon request. Yes, this is also one of the symptoms of the defect. I have owned several Victron chargers, and all of them, before the end of production, the HQ24XX, work properly. The HQ25XX, mainly IP22, has many defective cases, but among them, there are also some good ones.
I’ve noticed that regardless of the distribution region, distributors and Victron itself are keeping their mouths shut. There are attempts to sweep the problem under the rug because the complaint rate is likely too low for the intended scale. Victron products were and are considered the best, defect-free and of high quality, but how does this seem to be changing, or is it the result of some kind of sabotage? It’s also strange that many people receive defective units several times despite warranty replacements. It’s possible this is due to strange practices by sellers and their distributors, which customers have no control over, and those responsible lack adequate information about the actual problem. I don’t know; this is just speculation, but it seems puzzling, and trust is dwindling. I wonder how many users have defective units without even knowing it… Manufacturing defects do happen, of course, but on such a scale that in a recent post on another battery and charger forum, out of 10 purchased, 8 are defective, which is very suspicious…
Hello,
Thank you for the feedback.
At the same time, I would like to emphasize that my goal—and likely that of all the participants in this discussion—is not to blame Victron, but rather to draw attention to a broader issue that may have gone unnoticed by your company until now. I am convinced that our discussion will help Victron identify the problem and resolve it effectively.
PS. Personally, I own two Victron chargers: an IP22/20A and an IP65/10A purchased in 2022. Both work flawlessly, and I am very satisfied with them. Many people choose Victron because of its quality and its almost legendary support.
I was hoping that a software update would provide a solution… but I’ll have to contact the seller 
I would agree. I recommend Victron chargers because of their reputation for being rock solid and complete adjustability of all parameters. If there’s an endemic issue with 2025 manufactured units it would be better to know sooner than later. The problem is there’s really nothing else that I know of that can do a similar job.
For example, the problem with some ip65 12/15s, problem acknowledged: