We own a 2021 Kadey Krogen Trawler Yacht . She has an ANG Boost Isolation Transformer that has been getting a workout here at Ortega Landing Marina in Jacksonville Florida. Ortega Landing warns Yacht Owners that Shore Power is 208VAC. Even if you can measure 120VAC on both L1 and L2 and because of phasing it measures 211VAC. As a result I’ve been able to duplicate the interruption of Shore Power pass thru output on both Quattro Inverters/Chargers that are supported with 2400 Amp Hours of Lithionics Lithium ESS Batteries supporting our vessel.
Energy Solutions manufactures a version of the ANG Boost. Energy Solutions bench tested the IsoBoost transformer with dual Quattro's in 180 phase 240VAC application like our Trawler.
"On Victron currently,
• The short answer is that in most cases it will ride through, but not all.
• The longer answer is that it depends on the following –
1. Load on the boat at the time (including charging)
2. Settings in the multi/quattro (best to turn off UPS mode)
3. The point in time on the AC waveform that the step in voltage happens. We obviously can’t control the loads on the boat, and it really depends on the stability of the shoreline in that location. If it (Quattro's) are switching a lot, then this could be a problem. If it (Quattro's) switches two or three times a day, it won’t be a big problem, especially if the majority of the loads are supported by the Quattro inverter until it reconnects. We can’t rule out the possibility that you end up with cyclical behavior like the following:
• Shore voltage drops -> IsoBoost goes into boost -> Quattro disconnects -> Load has dropped so transformer come out of boost - > cycle repeats.
1. If the voltage change is because the whole pontoon has dropped then that won’t happen.
2. If it is because the boat is on a very long cable and is very heavily loaded then it’s possible, but adjustments to settings might improve it.
3. The (IsoBoost) switching is not synchronized against the AC waveform and this makes the most difference. If it (IsoBoost) switches near zero then it all happens smoothly. Making it (IsoBoost) do that every time is possible, but we went for a design that was relatively simple, robust, and cost effective – so contactor not IGBT based, and not zero crossing switched.
Energy Solution
After hearing from Energy Solutions our experience should sound familiar.
Because our Trawler Yacht is supported with 208VAC shore power, the ANG Boost Transformer starts out boosting both legs to 226VAC in standby (no large loads). When a single Air Conditioner comes on the 208VAC drops and triggers the ANG Boost to go from 226VAC to 244VAC, at which point both Quattro’s switch from shore to Invert mode and back to shore. After the Air Conditioner stops, the shore power returns to 208VAC and the ANG Boost returns to 226VAC. .….and the cycle continues. The ANG Boost is doing a pretty good job of providing 120VAC to both Quattro inputs however if you look at the output of the Quattro’s it’s a bit more messy.
I have the capability to Bi-Passed the Quattro’s that are support with 2400 Amp Hours of Lithionics ESS Batteries. We have a Bi-Pass switch and can route shore power from the output of the ANG Boost directly to our Trawler Yachts distribution panel in the event of a Quattro failure. This has eliminated the interruption of shore power to our Trawler Yacht. The Bi-Pass switch also allows me to run both Quattro’s in Charge Only Mode however because the ANG Boost output is coupled to both Quattro’s inputs, they are still switching from charge mode to off mode every time the ANG Boost wants to Boost from 226VAC to 244VAC. Intermittently the Quattro’s report a Dual Quattro “Alarm #1 Device switched off” I’m now attempting to prevent both Quattro’s from switching from charge mode to off mode when they see a change coming from the ANG Boost output. Using Victron Connect, I have configured both Quattro’s by turning off Power Assist, UPS and Dynamic Current Limit modes. I have performed combinations as well. No luck so far. Question for Victron Energy: While here at Ortega I am using both Quattro’s in charge mode only. What programming can I deploy within the Quattro’s so that they can tolerate this change in output coming from the ANG Boost Transformer to prevent them from switching from charge mode to off mode then back to charge mode….and the cycle continues? I really hope that Victron Energy is aware of this issue. We now have clear evidence from two Boost Transformer Manufactures
Thanks Jeff
