charger

Hi All,

Could anyone help with this issue please?

I've got 2 smart chargers 1p67 24/12 models. I downloaded the Victron Connect app to connect to them to check the settings but the app would not allow me to connect until I did the firmware updates. The chargers had already been powering on and charging batteries and were working ok, I just wanted to check the settings.

So I followed the prompts and updated the firmware for both chargers through bluetooth.

After this now neither charger will power ON. Both are unresponsive, No led's lighting up or anything. The AC supply is checked and OK, I've isolated them form the batteries and the mains power and reconnected but still no good. Looks like the firmware has killed them??

Thanks

Gerard.

Phoenix Smart IP43 Charger no Smart Battery Sense function.

When will the Smart Battery Sense function be added? in the Phoenix Smart IP43 Charger

I have recently replaced my shore power charger with a new Phoenix Smart IP43 Charger along with three Victron 110ah batteries.

I've updated the firmware and mostly it's all working ok. But sometimes when I switch on the power the controller just constantly resets itself. All the lights come on, the bluetooth connection is there and then all the lights go off and it restarts. This repeats.

I can stop this resetting cycle by catching the bluetooth connection and switching to "power supply" and then returning to "charger".

Could this be a problem with the AC supply?

Hello.

I have a MultiPlus 12/2000 in our RV. We have an imbalance issue with our lithium cells that causes an overvoltage condition when absorption charging. Obviously this is not an issue when inverting off the house bank, but connecting to shore power and setting the inverter "On" (in order to energize the relay that connects the MP's AC input to the AC output) also inevitably turns on the charger, eventually tripping the OV relay and shutting down the whole rig. The cell balance issue will get resolved in time, but meanwhile I would like to be able to use shore power.

I see that someone else asked about this issue here, and was told they could use an assistant to set the charge voltage to 0V. I looked in VE.Config and found the "charge current assistant". This seems to allow me to set the charge current to 0V, but also allows "disabling the charger when the charge current should be zero". Does anyone know whether to check this box; i.e., whether disabling the charger would also disconnect the passthrough relay?

Thanks!

/afb

Hi,

I am considering installing a Victron QUATTRO with Pylontech 48V batteries. I would initially purchase 4 batteries to give me around 12kWhr when new. I would like to later add another 4 batteries - maybe 5 years down the track.

I suspect that just paralleling the old and new would be a bad idea due to the original batteries having aged and lost capacity. It would seem better to have two separate battery banks and treat each separately for charging and discharging.

Is this possible?

If so, how would this be accomplished?

What would be the recommended way to add more batteries at a later stage?

thank you,

Ron

I have an Isolation Transformer 3600 and a Quattro 8000. When I plug into the mains it takes about an hour for the charger to click in. When I run the genny it clicks in in a matter of seconds. Grateful if somebody could throw a little light on this.

Hi,

what voltage does the Blue Smart Charger range supply when in power supply mode?

thanks

Hello Everyone!

Recently got "Blue Smart IP65 Charger" to help getting trough the winter months, and it keeps shutting down, after which I'm unable to get it to turn on for up to 12 hours or so.

I have attached it directly to the 100ah AGM battery and it was running in parallel with my MPPT controller.

Could this have damaged the charger? Didn't see anything in the documentation about this.

Thanks for any info.

Hi everyone. I asked a question recently regarding disabling Bulk protection mode on a Phoenix battery charger. The thread is here:

https://community.victronenergy.com/questions/36530/phoenix-battery-charger-bulk-protection.html

During the investigation, with assistance from Victron support staff; we found that we were able to disable bulk protection by connecting a MK2 programming lead and using VEconfigure. So that's our Phoenix charger sorted.

So following on from that, now I have the same question and problem...but with the Skylla Charger. To be clear, this is the older non-I version of the chargers. We have several models installed, all are 24V versions ranging from 24/30 up to 24/100. The boards do not have an RJ45 port so I can't try the VEconfigure trick again. There is another connector on the board which looks like an IDC type ribbon connector, not sure what this is for though. Can't see anywhere else to plug anything in. There are DIP switches but none of these are allocated to bulk protection (according to the manual).

The manual says that after 10 hours of bulk charge, the chargers will switch to float mode to protect the battery. We have not observed this behaviour with our chargers. Our chargers will instead shut off and the fail LED will flash the code for bulk protection activated. These fault codes are not in the original manual but are in the manual for the Skylla-I and appear to be the same. If the charger is switched off/on again charging will recommence for another 10 hours but then the same will happen. Luckily, most of our sites that have these fitted have remote control generators instead of mains power so as long as we monitor our battery voltages we can tell when a charger has gone into Bulk protection mode and reset the generator to carry on charging.

Example: We have a 3000Ah battery bank that was discharged to 23.5V. It took over 30hours bulk charge with a Skylla 24/100 set to 100A charge to charge this back up. During this time I had to:

1. Start generator locally and then leave site. Charger operates at 100A Bulk for 10 hours.

2. After 10 hours, remote monitoring showed that battery voltage had dropped back down to 24V, charger failed on bulk protection.

3. Remote reset generator. Battery voltage seen to increase to 26V on charge again as Skylla is reset.

4. Repeat 2 and 3 every 10 hours

It wouldn't be so bad if the charger did what the manual said and went to float mode, at least this would eventually charge the batteries back up without our intervention, (not ideal charging voltages though). We can't go any higher with our charge currents, we've got 16mm feeders and that's it, space is tight.

So is there any way to do what we did with the Phoenix chargers and disable this mode? Or alternatively make the charger go into float mode instead of failing?

Cheers, Si

Hi everyone. I've got a snag on one of our installations. There are 3 24V battery banks A200 of 12x2V cells 225Ah total capacity each bank. Each is charged using Phoenix 24/16 charger using default factory settings.

During a recent inspection, we depleted each bank to around 23.5V and then charged them back up again. Each Phoenix charger failed after between 6-7 hours. There is a solid red fail LED illuminated but nothing else.

For the main bank, we swapped in another phoenix and exactly the same problem after 6-7 hours. A skylla-TG 24/50 was then installed instead and set to 16A charge current. This failed after 10 hours with a flashing bulk, steady fail LEDs. This indicates bulk protection mode has kicked in (there is conflicting info in the manuals, one of them says it will swap straight to float, but another manual says it will fail with LED code as above).

So I'm thinking we need to increase the charging current to at least 25A for a c/10 rate. I manually set it to 40A just to get the batteries recharged and this worked fine.

My question is. Is this what is causing the Phoenix 16A chargers to fail also? I looked at the manual and also in google. There is no mention of this series having bulk protection mode. Also, if there is bulk protection mode does it default to 6-7 hours? We had exactly the same issue last year on another site, with both phoenix chargers failing after 6-7 hours but just gave up and swapped them for skyllas which have been fine. I can't believe that all our phoenix chargers are faulty though. This does not happen in float mode with already charged batteries, only after bulk mode has been on for 6-7 hours (best I can do from telemetry indications). The ambient temperature is around 10-15 degrees C and there is around 2 feet spacing around each charger. They do not get hot and the fans are working. The batteries are 2 years old. On the other site, they were 3 years old. Fitting a skylla removes the issue (at both sites).

Just to be clear. These are the Phoenix chargers, not the inverter/ multiplus units.

New charger worked fine out of the box, 2 weeks later it cycles (clicks) every few seconds and only about 1 amp output and about 4 volts shown on app... Should be around 27 volts. Lights show Bulk and LiPo, as they should, but not getting 7.8 amps like I did initially. Batteries are at 80% and 60 degrees. Same results using 3 amp output setting. Smart BMV shows spikes on the graph matching the clicking.

My Skyla 1+1 24/80 220V stopped charging. When the unit gets power it puts out 74A for a couple seconds and quits. The 24V, On, Bulk and Abs LED lights stay on but no power output. I have been in the same marina for a month now and nothing was changed. Power at the unit is 240V with 30A breaker.

Hi - I just got the Blue Smart IP67 charger. It states that for Lithium-ion batteries, the charging voltage is 14.2V, and float is 13.5V. My batteries are rated differently: 14.6V/13.8V. Is there a way to reconfigure the charger with the proper voltage? I couldn't find such option in the app. Appreciate any help!

Hi, I have the above inverter/charger on my narrowboat.

For the last few days the orange float light has stayed constantly on, even when the charger is switched off or in boost or equalise phases (charged using a diesel generator).

Fairly standard narrowboat set up with 3 x 110ah leisure batteries.

Had anyone seen this issue before, and is it likely to be a problem?

Many thanks for any advice!

Hello guy's

I've got an issue with an old Phoenix Multiplus compact 12/2000/80 on firmware 1871148.hex ...

My problem is that the value for the low level battery is at 12.4v and it turn off inverter at 12.3V ...

And the second issue is that the charger don't want to be turned on even if its plugged on a generator ( i try 1000w and 2000w generator) and not even when i plug it on the grid ... when i turn the multiplus on charger only i can hear a "Clac" in it, but doesn't work anyway ...

So i almost buy the MK3 Pc ve.bus to change the settings and maybe see if the problem came with some wrong value in it =)

But i read on some victron page that this 1871148 firmware has no Ve.bus (and my pcm have only one rs485 connector that proove that my multiplus has no Ve.Bus)

So can i upagrade it any way ? the Mk3 can work or maybe i read somewhere that i can try with the old Mk2 ? but its a lil bit expansive and i can't buy the two just for a try ^^'

Do you have some ideas why the charger dont want to turn on even on the grid ? or ideas for the limit value of the inverter ?

Thanx for helping me guys and sorry for my approximate english, i'm french ! ;)

Hello Everyone,

I was bench testing a Multi 24/500/10 before I deployed it and I have noticed something very odd.

With the AC IN connected to the grid if you press/touch the front of the multi especially on the edge of the casing, even with the lightest of pressure the transfer switch opens and the Multi switches to inverting. After 10 seconds or so the Multi reconnects to the grid.

It looks like something is not quite right inside. There is no visible movement in the case when you press it but it must be enough to open a dry solder joint or something similar.

I have never had to RMA a victron product but unless I am wrong I will have to contact the dealer.

Has anyone else seen this behaviour?

Peter

Hi, I have a blue smart IP22 charger 12v/30a.

The charger isn't showing any signs of voltage, and it does not charge my battery. When plugged into the mains power, the charger starts up, and I can connect to it via Bluetooth. Just no dc power output.

I've tried a few different cables, no dice.

I tried to take out the fuse by just pulling it, no dice.

I tried to unscrew the screws next to the fuse blade that I thought was holding the fuse in, the screws just spin in its place and not actually coming out. No dice.

What do I do to actually replace the fuse, or know anything else to try?

A forced update to 3.12 has rendered the charger dead. The update will get between 75% and 86% then a B10 timeout error is encountered. Distance is not an issue, I am about 5 feet away.
I am not able to find an older firmware version to load.
How can I load the new firmware?

Current version: none
New version: v3.13
Android device.

Hi together,

I have a question concerning using a BatteryProtect (BP) to disconnect the charge source in a Lithium Battery System with VE.bus bms.

In the BP manual Figure 5 illustrates how to connect the BP for charging situation and it states that "uncontrolled reverse current will flow through a Battery Protect if Vout > Vin."

Now I wonder what happens, when the Voltage of the charger (Vin) drops, i.e. Solar charger when there is no sun or any other charging source that is swithched of. Wouldn't then the Voltage of the Battery (Vout) be higher and thus reverse current flow causing danger?

THanks a lot for your comments, I am abit affraid of burning down my RV...

cheers, Daniel

Hi folks,

Does anyone out there know the voodoo behind the charging algorithm or what, other than temperature, could be causing Quattros and MultiPlus's to not reach their maximum charging currents?

Problem

The inverter/chargers are not reaching their maximum charge rate. A cluster of 6 x Quattro 15000 can theoretically push 1200A. There are 45 flow batteries which can each accept up to 50A during charge.

However, test results on this system showed a maximum of 1050A reached which after 5 minutes reduces to 900A which is then sustained. This is only 150A per Quattro. This results in 9 hours to charge rather than 6 hours which should be possible. This impacts the business case for some clients. This was the same on both a 35 degree day and an 18 degree day (Celcius).

The system is running the ESS module. The tester commented that charging fewer batteries and/or with ESS not running he has observed the 200A charging on other systems, but for some reason, it has not been able to be reached in this system.

Ideas

The comparatively high internal impedance of the flow battery being 80 to 100 milliohms (all connected in parallel) may be causing the algorithm to not adjust the voltage high enough to push enough current into the batteries.

What does the "lithium batteries" checkbox in the charger page actually do/change? Again, I imagine this would change some characteristics of the charging algorithm, even if lithium battery is not chosen from the list of battery defaults. Li

Questions

How does the charging algorithm work for the charger in Multiplus II and Quattros?

Is it possible that the charging algorithm would not raise voltage enough either due to high impedance?

or the ESS module somehow altering behaviour?

Can the Victron Pheonix Smart IP43 charger connect to and use a battery temperature sensor?

I know there's a similar question out there but an answer has been added to that question which really isn't an answer and the question has been ignored for months.

I have a Victron Quattro in my grid tie in system in which is also a Fronius 8kva Solar Inverter feeding an 800ah battery bank and a 13 kva generator. A Color GX allows online monitoring and control of the system.

The problem I have observed is that my Victron Quattro does not charge my batteries at the maximum amps possible (DC 140 amps) when it can. The maximum I have observed (during bulk and absorption charge states) is 80 amps. This happens no irrespective of the mains supplier (Grid or Gen). On VEConfic "General" tab, I have set my "Shore limit on AC 1 (grid) and AC 2 (gen) to over 60 amps and 55 amps respectively which is more that sufficient to meet the charger's demands.On the "Charger" tab, the charge current is also set to 140 amps. I have the ESS assistant running because i don't want any Feed in to grid when the PV is running. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

We are taking our 220v yacht from Europe to the USA this winter. I appreciate that the USA is 60Hz and Europe is 50Hz. Having checked our equipment it will all work on the different frequency - but needs 240V. Which Victron product is best to convert the voltage?

Hi

i running a ESS (MultiGrid 48/3000 FW459, VenusGX FW v2.31with EM24) with AC Coupled third party PV Inverters (via ET340 and ET112) and a Smart Solar 150/35 v1.39 and a BYD B-Box 5.0kWh. (DVCC enabled, SVS disable, Smartsolar has BMS controlled)

The DC Coupled PV system is oriented south and could be enlarged by approx 900 Wp, since currently only 1,8kWp is installed. Maximum charge power to battery is limited at 2000W fixed due to the 35 Amps - i know ;).

In the ESS Settings I enable " Feed-in excess solar charger power" but soon i discovered the the typical behavior of the system was to charge from the East oriented AC Coupled inverters, which means, the the battery is full, sincce there is enough excess. But the south orientated DC coupled PV System was dearted by over 50% due to battery being at SOC 100%, even with the enable option of "feedin excess DC Power". Over have of the production of the south oriented DC coupled PV is derated (see pic attached, redline is potential solar production).

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To prove my hypotheses i changed the ESS Setpoint to activly discharge the battery into the grid, thus a lower SOC than 100% is realized. this enables the BMS controlled Smart Solar to use the full potential of the PV system. (previously 340W production goes up to 900W Production).

See my screenshots and notes

ESS Feed-in excess solar charger power - not full potenial.pdf

Conclusion:

I presume that the Mutligrid doesnt discharge/feedin as much power as the full potential of solar available on the DC side.

I would presume that the voltage Gap between SmartSolar and Multiplus isn't high enough for Multi to discharge the battery more but to keep it at 100% and though making it possible for the SmartSolar to feedin more of his potential solar power.

So propably i will not add any more Modules to the Smart Solar or install another SmartSolar, but install another PV Inverter AC coupled.

If anybody has the same Issue please let me know!

If anybody has an idea how to optimize the use of the DC coupled Solar to feed into the grid, please let me know! I thought already of an external PLC writing the ESS Setpoint into the Modbus register, to actively reduce the SOC during the daytime, to make more use of the DC coupled PV System.

THX

BR

Ossi

I currently have 2 x 265W solar panels connected in series to a Victron MPPT 100/50 Charge Controller which is connected to 2 x LiFePO4 138W batteries connected in parallel. I also have a BMV-712 to keep an eye on things.

My next step is to add in a means of charging the batteries from the vehicle alternator (180A, non-smart alternator), so I'm looking for a DC-DC charger and I'm hearing rumours of a new Victron Smart DC-DC charger about to be launched.

I would also want a means of keeping my vehicle's starter battery topped up from the solar system. Will this new charger be suitable for my needs?

Hi I am looking to buy blue smart charger for my lithium batteries that I can also change to jel . I need a price I also need to know how much it would cost for Delivery to northern Ireland

hello

i am looking for a Victron Product that could handle the Charging of my batteries of my truck Camper went driving. I found this product Sterling Battery-to-Battery Charger | 12V In - 12V Out | 30 Amp Input but would like to stay with Victron ...for a better monitoring and integration with my system.

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