Victron Charger/Inverter .. too clever ? Forums

ScotJimland

Some of you may recall I installed a Victron 70 A Charger / 1600 watt invertor some months ago.. and as the title of the post suggests it is a clever bit of kit, if it had legs I'm sure it would plug the EHU in by itself..
Loss of EHU for whatever reason results in a seamless change over to the inverter without you ever knowing, it continues to power everything on board that was previously using shore power .... but, this is the problem.. you don't know this until you've ran out of battery power and it shuts down on low voltage There is however an option on the Victron for 'Charge Only' which I now use while on EHU. Ideally I need to install an alarm for 'Loss of Shore Power'

The second issue is really only RV related, when not on shore power and using the inverter you need to ensure you have switched off all 110v appliances, fridge, water heater etc .. however, it's still powering the transformer.. not good, off load the tranny still uses juice. To overcome this problem I've installed a 45A 240 v switch for the tranny inside the RV, when switched off this also ensures that no 110 v appliances are inadvertently powered up and the tranny isn't sucking away at the batteries.

One of the best features is it's ability to supplement a low power shore supply by using the inverter, then recharging when the load is reduced..

A great bit of kit ..if a little on the pricey side, highly recommend it.

See Manufacturers Description for better explanation..

Quote:
Multi Compact -functional (Multi Compact / MultiPlus Compact only)
The Multi Compact gets its name from the multiple functions it can perform. It is a powerful true sine wave inverter, a sophisticated battery charger that features adaptive charge technology and a high-speed AC transfer switch in a single compact enclosure.
Beside these primary functions, however, the Multi Compact has several advanced features that provide a range of new applications as outlined below.

Uninterrupted AC power (Multi Compact / MultiPlus Compact only)
In the event of a grid failure, or shore or generator power being disconnected, the inverter within the Multi Compact is automatically activated and takes over supply to the connected loads. This happens so fast (less than 20 milliseconds) that computers and other electronic equipment will continue to operate without disruption.

PowerControl – Dealing with limited generator or shore side power (Multi Compact/ MultiPlus Compact only)
The Multi Compact is a very powerful battery charger. It will therefore draw a lot of current from the generator or shore side supply (nearly 5 A per Multi Compact at 230 VAC). With the Phoenix Multi Control (PMV) a maximum generator or shore current can be set. The Multi Compact will then take account of other AC loads and use whatever is extra for charging, thus preventing the generator or shore supply from being overloaded.

PowerAssist – Boosting the capacity of shore or generator power
The feature that distinguishes the Phoenix MultiPlus Compact from the standard Multi Compact is PowerAssist. This feature takes the principle of PowerControl to a further dimension allowing the MultiPlus Compact to supplement the capacity of the alternative source. Where peak power is so often required only for a limited period, it is possible to reduce the size of generator needed or conversely enable more to be achieved from the typically limited shore connection. When the load reduces, the spare power is used to recharge the battery
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Snelly · Eastern Rally Co-ordinator

Sterling do a similar system.

nukeadmin · Site Admin

I too can sing the praises of the Victron kit having installed one myself in my old van.

Cant remember if you bought it as well Jim but Victron do a little control panel which allows you to see not only how much capacity remains in the battery(ies) but due some clever calculations based on present load, temperature etc it can also tell you how long in hours and minutes you have left Smile

ScotJimland

DABurleigh

Jim,

I wouldn't call it too clever, just flexible and thorough Smile

You have 3 options to address the problem you pose of inadvertent loss of EHU switching instantaneously to leisure batteries without you knowing (intended to be a feature rather than a bug!) and thereby discharging your batteries:

1) As you do now, switch the toggle switch to charger-only. The manual says:
"NOTE: When only the charger function is required, ensure that the switch is switched to "charger only". This prevents the inverter from being switched on if the mains voltage is lost, thus preventing your batteries from running flat."

2) Use the built-in functionality of your Victron unit to configure as you wish the switching of an alarm. The software, transistor switching and relay are all there, you just need a sounder connected:
"3.6.4 External Alarm Relay and Virtual Switch
An open collector output is available to connect a relay that can be used for remote alarm and other purposes (a. o. generator start signal).The maximum voltage/current that can be switched (open collector transistor): 66V 40mA. The open collector output can be programmed with VEConfigure.

3) Set an alarm in the optional battery monitor.

Dave

carol

Gosh Dave, this sounds like I would need something like a degree to be able to work it.... and with my technical understanding, perhaps I am better off without it...... ;-(

Carol

ScotJimland

Hi Dave ..

Thanks for that, Option 2 is the way to go , I'll look into fitting the sounder .. a tad cheaper than a monitor Wink

Cheers
Jim

carol