I had installed a 2nd set of panels. Everything seems to be working fine except one thing. After we added those panels, the shown SOC on portal and console can only reach 89%. It seems the system doesn’t want to charge the batteries higher than that. One set of panels goes into float mode at that point, I guess to prevent overcharging the batteries. I tried resetting the inverter a couple times to see if it would then log the SOC differently.
I’m wondering whether
a. the batteries are actually at 100% but the SOC is only showing 89% for some reason
b. whether there is a setting somewhere to make sure the panels keep on charging even after 89%
c. If there is a mismatch between the SOC shown and the real SOC of the batteries, how do I fix it so it shows accurately?
Some information on what is supplying the SOC you refer to and details of what settings you have for the battery monitor. Are you using the inverter for the SOC, is this a multiplus or quatttro. Adding to solar can affect the performance of this. Do you have a GX device.
We use a multiplus inverter. We do not have a separate battery monitor. Do you think it’s important to get one?
We have a raspberry pi for monitoring most of the settings.
The multiplus has a setting “State of charge when bulk finished”, you could try increasing this by 10% so there is less charge to count in after bulk has finished. i recall a setting in Venus OS several years ago to take account of solar if the MPPTs were connected by VE Direct but I have no idea if this is still there. With solar the Multiplus SOC calculation is not always accurate and the addition of a SmartShunt will be more accurate.
@AnthDFC if you are using the multiplus as the battery monitor perhaps you can share the settings for charge efficiency. If the charge efficiency is low it may track a little lower than it should.
When using the Smartshunt as a battery monitor, when charge current reduces enough when absorption voltage is reached, the battery is deemed to be 100% SOC and the shunt “syncs” to 100%. If this happens during a discharge/charge cycle the SOC is set as accurate and errors cannot accumulate and getting worse each discharge/charge cycle. I am not sure if that happens with the mulitplus.
The battery monitor (smartshunt or mulitpluuses theortical numbers to track the practical profile of the battery. The charge efficiency and Peukert values are an attempt to model the battery so the battery monitor can give a calculated best guess at the SOC. If those numbers are slightly out, the best guess is no longer particularly accurate and errors can accumulate over time. That is why the sync to 100% is important to set a datum at some stage in the discharge/charge cycle that is accurate at that point in time. That way even if the charge efficiency and peukert values are slightly out the SOC is reset to accurate once every charge cycle.
Thank you. In my remote console, it it set that the multiplus does the battery monitoring. But I don’t see where in remote console to change the charge efficiency. I found some settings that might be relevant, let me include photos of that.
Also, I used to have ESS assistant on. But I don’t see it there now. Turning the inverter off and back on, should not remove the settings right? Because I don’t know how it would have suddenly disappeared when it was there….
We are talking about settings on the Multiplus itself which you access via either of the options below, detailed instructions in the links.
A smartphone using the VictronConnect app with a Mk3 USB interface between the phone and the Multiplus.
A PC/laptop using the VE Configure program with a Mk3 USB interface between the PC/laptop and the Multiplus. I am not sure in VictronConnect on a PC/laptop can work like this or not.
A PC/laptop using the VE Configure program through a GX device if you have one connected to the Multiplus and the internet. This is VE Remote Configure.
@AnthDFC yes as @pwfarnell says, those settings are in the multiplus itself as is the ESS assistant. Those settings do not go away when the Multiplus is power cycled.
Everything has been working pretty well, the ESS is back on and working. Can someone guide me how to know whether I should have it set to Optimized with BatteryLife or Optimized Without BatteryLIfe or Keep Batteries charged?
I noticed that for a few weeks it was charging up to 100% during the day or in the 90s. But the past few days it keeps getting lower and lower, charging only up to the 80s now, and seems to get lower each day. Yet from previous experience we should be able to completely recharge the batteries each day compared to what we use in terms of power. We live in Uganda and it’s super sunny all day long every day right now.
If your battery is reaching target charge voltage then it is getting fully charged.
You would have to verify that.
If the ve bus is not saying 100% it can be because it does not know that there is another charger in the system. Although i see you have DVCC enabled to it should help t0 some degree.
Are both the mppt and the inverter set to the same charge settings and battery type in each of their own settings?
If you have done anything like update firmware on the inverter then it is likely this was reset and has been removed
Thank you for your message. It is not reaching target charge voltage. Not only is the SOC going down each day the past few days, but the voltage is only reaching around 26 whereas before it was getting up to almost 29.
We have two PV chargers and two sets of panels.
In the remote console, what should I check for under each of the PV chargers in terms of settings to change? I’m trying to see where I need to make sure there are what you said - “the same charge settings and battery type" in each of their own settings” .
Where do I do that?
Some additional information. It’s about 11:30pm here and super sunny and hot. Have panels on each side of the sloped roof. But now they are working less hard compared to an hour or two hours ago. One set of panels is doing 6watts (almost nothing), and the other better panels are doing 574 (when before they would usually be over 1000). Can’t understand why it’s not doing more.
I tried something just to see. I turned everything off, including the inverter and charging panels. Then I restarted everything. Now suddenly one PV charger is going at 897watts, and the other at 336watts. Why would restarting everything suddenly make them start working appropriately?
Hello all, I would really appreciate some more help. Confused as to what is happening. It seems like after resetting it, everything works perfectly. We can get the batteries charged up to 100% by 1pm. Then over the following days, it stops charging at 95%, then the next day stops charging and goes idle at 90%, then the next day at 85%, and so on. This keeps happening each day. When we reset the system, suddenly it stops idling, and charges at fast speed and charges up to 100% SOC.
Any advice? Do we just need to make sure to turn off everything and turn everything back on once a week? Why should we need to do this? It seems really odd.
We don’t have an external battery monitor. We have it set for the inverter to be the battery monitor
I found this in one of the manuals. Is someone able to explain it to me in an easier way?
”3.8.2. BatteryLife
This chapter only applies if the virtual load output is used.
When the solar charger is not able to recharge the battery to its full capacity within one day, the result is often that the battery will
continually be cycled between a ‘partially charged’ state and the ‘end of discharge’ state. This mode of operation (no regular full
recharge) will destroy a lead-acid battery within weeks or months.
The BatteryLife algorithm will monitor the state of charge of the battery and, if needed, day by day slightly increase the load
disconnect level (i.e. disconnect the load earlier) until the harvested solar energy is sufficient to recharge the battery to nearly the
full 100%. From that point onward, the load disconnect level will be modulated so that a nearly 100% recharge is achieved about
once every week.”
It doesn’t seem like this should apply to me, because it has the capacity to go to 100% each day.
Battery life only applies if you are using the load output.
We are struggling to help because we do not know your system in any detail, you have not described it, nor have you provided any detail on what your solar chargers are doing such as screenshots from VictronConnect nor anything on settings, especially as you say you are using ESS.
Let me know if you need more than this. I have had the grid breaker switched off completely for the last couple months because it is unstable voltage right now and the power company is refusing to fix the transformer. So to be safe we have kept it off. And we don’t need it anyways, as the panels can fully charge all the batteries easily without the grid.
If you have the grid turned off then why not disable ESS and just let the solar charge the system every day according to the solar charger settings. You probably have something in ESS managing the SOC targets, but I do not know ESS. If it works without ESS then it is ESS settings. It is always said not to run ESS in off grid situation.
