Inverter briefly switches off after battery is fully charged

DIY
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1

Hi all. I just received some older hardware, that was sitting in the storage somewhere for approx. 5 years.

  • Inverter MultiPlus - 1600VA (48 Vdc)
  • Battery Dyness B4850 (LiFePo4, 2.4 kWh) with CAN bus connection
  • Display CCGX (Color Control GX - seems to be a bit older, limited documentation exists)

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After a full day of wiring, configuring and figuring out correct pinouts for a CAN bus, got the system working. CCGX was updated to the latest version. Can’t update the inverter as I don’t have the interface for a computer.

DIP switches are set according to the manual, for a lithium battery.

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Note that datasheet for the battery states that charging voltage is 53.5 V, which is lower than what the inverter’s lowest setting could be selected…

I can monitor both devices from the display, integrated website, VRM portal, HomeAssistant. SOC source is selected to be the Battery (not the inverter).

I want to use this as a powerful UPS. Mostly for a 3D printer, NAS and smart home installation.

What works: Pass-through, Inverter, Charger. When grid (AC input) is disconnected, inverter promptly kicks in and takes the load. After AC comes back, it stays inverting for about 10 seconds and it switches to grid + charger starts.

What does not work: AC out is turned off for a short time after the battery is full. This is the sequence of events:

  1. Inverting
  2. AC in comes back
  3. Bulk charging
  4. Battery reaches 100%
  5. Inverter switches to OFF! AC Out is disconnected!
  6. After 30 seconds AC out is switched back on
  7. Charging - Absorption
  8. When battery re-charging starts again, there is no drop-out. But when charger finishes, Inverter goes again into OFF mode and AC out drops out again for 30 seconds. And this repeats. See below:

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Battery voltage seems fine - there are no errors from the battery module about any overvoltage, temperature or imbalance conditions. No errors or messages on the inverter. Latest turn-off events occur even though the battery voltage never exceeds the maximum (53.5 V), so I think BMS is not cutting off the battery.

What else should I check or change? Who decides to switch off the charger? Voltage on the charger or SOC or BMS in the battery? Why is charging-finished event followed by power-off for 30 seconds?

TIA!

2

You have a ccgx and an internet connection there is no reason why you cannot update the inverter or not program it properly even without the mk3.

That should be your first troubleshooting step.
You seem more than capable you have other monitoring integrated.

This is a depreciated product. But still can receive updates just not ota. But v3.55 is sufficient for most new features.
There is an entire manual for it. At rhis point it is not the issue the issue is the two above.

3

Thank you so much, this information led me onto the correct path. System seems to be working fine now.

TBH there is so much information and different products and settings that a new user easily gets lost. :slight_smile:

4

I know its a pretty steep learning curve.

Its so insanely customisable. Both a blessing and a curse. :upside_down_face:

5

STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE to set up a custom battery and the inverter. For anyone that ends up in a similar situation.

  1. Collect all the manuals and datasheets. Especially technical data for a custom battery.
  2. Find correct wiring diagrams. Also for communication links. In my case the Dyness battery talks through the CAN bus (500 kb/s).
  3. CAN bus port on the Dyness battery is different than the Victron VE.CAN. Build a new cable.
  4. https://communityarchive.victronenergy.com/storage/attachments/dyness-battery-and-victron-inverter-setup-manual-2.pdf
  5. Wire the system. Set the DIP switches on the battery for correct communication. Set DIP switches on the inverter for the lowest possible battery charging voltage (usually LiFePo4 setting).
  6. Power up the system.
  7. If you have a display unit that can connect to the internet, configure internet access. Create an user account for the VRM portal. Log onto it.
  8. if you don’t have such a display or communication device, then you will need an adapter to convert between VE.Bus to MK3 to USB.
  9. Download the software called VEConfig. Will be needed even for the devices with internet access.
  10. Without internet: Connect the MK3 adapter, run the software, connect to the COM port. Update firmware of all devices. Then go to step 16 below.
  11. With internet: follow this guide: VRM: Remote VEConfigure [Victron Energy] - especially the video.
  12. on the VRM portal first update firmware of all the connected devices.
  13. then download the settings file.
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  15. After file is downloaded, find it, and double-click it. Do not open the software directly, as it does not have an easy way to load the file!
  16. You will be presented with the current settings of the inverter.
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  18. Click battery type and select Lithium. This will preset some defaults. It’s for a start, but not final. Open battery’s datasheet and copy values into both Charger and Inverter tabs.
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  20. Listed settings for the battery will create maximum performance and capacity. If you want to prolong the battery life, you can increase the Shutdown voltage and reduce the Charging voltage. Experiment a bit to reach desired SOC (typically 15-85% for a very long-living system, but you loose 30% of capacity).
  21. Close the software. It will ask to save the changes to “remote” file. Click Yes.
  22. Upload the changed file back to the VRM portal. See button marked “2” above.
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  24. Settings will be transferred to the inverter and restarted.
  25. Check that everything works correctly.