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bobbo1953 asked

Bluetooth fails every morning MPPT 100/30 Smartsolar

The issue is with a new 100/30 SmartSolar MPPT. I installed it last week and it showed up in VictronConnect along with my 2 100A Victron lithium smart batteries. The next day MPPT was not on VictronConnect, batteries still were. I did all the tricks recommended. Then I climbed up on the camper and disconnected the 2, Zamp 170A solar panels and then the battery connection on the MPPT. When I plugged it back into the panels and batteries, it showed up on the app again for a day. The next morning it was gone again, I did the same routine and it came back. The next morning it was gone. Did it again. Came back again. Gone this morning. I cannot be climbing up on top of the trailer every day to do this. What needs to be done?


Bluetooth
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klim8skeptic avatar image klim8skeptic ♦ commented ·
Any led activity on the mppt?
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bobbo1953 avatar image bobbo1953 klim8skeptic ♦ commented ·
Yes. But now it blinks every 4 seconds but seems to charge the batteries. Each stage's LED blinks. The batteries still show up on the app and appear to be charging properly.


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Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) avatar image Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) ♦ commented ·

Hi @Bobbo1953

Was the MPPT visible in VictronConnect but greyed out or was it not even shown in the device list?
Do you have other things in your installation, like a BMS?

Kind regards,

Thiemo van Engelen

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bobbo1953 answered ·

When it was there, it was blue and worked as advertised. New issue this morning. The MPPT was blinking blue every 3 seconds and the BMS was clicking. The lights in the camper would flash with each click. I disconnected the MPPT from the panels and the battery again. But now there is no power in the camper at all.

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bobbo1953 avatar image bobbo1953 commented ·
I have unhooked the Victron Mini-BMS which was wired through a Victron Cyrix-Li-Charge which is also now disconnected. I connected the batteries and the panels and I have power again in the camper. But the MPPT is flashing its blue LED every 4 seconds, whatever that means - the manual does not describe that well. The MPPT showed up on Bluetooth again as it has the last 4 times I disconnected the panels/batteries. The batteries both show up there, too, and show they are charged and balanced. I don't know which device is screwing things up or how to proceed. Is it OK to charge the batteries with the MPPT but not the BMS? Will it damage the batteries?


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Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) avatar image Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) ♦ bobbo1953 commented ·

Hi @Bobbo1953

Can you please give a complete description of your installation which includes what is connected where?

Kind regards,

Thiemo van Engelen

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bobbo1953 avatar image bobbo1953 Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) ♦ commented ·
On the roof, there are 2, 170W Zamp solar panels. They are connected to the 100/30 Smartsolar controller as are my 2, 100A Victron Smart Lithium batteries. The batteries are connected to a Victron mini-BMS and a Cyrix-Li-Charge. The BMS and Cyrix are currently disconnected. When the Cyrix started clicking, battery power was lost. I think it is locked up. Since disconnecting, the MPPT is charging (but all 3 of the LEDs are flashing when the MPPT switches to each one through the charge cycle every 4 seconds) and the batteries were charged yesterday. Do I need the BMS and Cyrix with this MPPT? This morning the MPPT was still connecting to Bluetooth for the 1st time in a new morning for the 1st time. But its LED is still flashing as it starts a new charge cycle.
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bobbo1953 avatar image bobbo1953 Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) ♦ commented ·


Also, from the Cyrix:7ad43eca-54bb-4cdf-a668-1ef3858fc7e6-1-102-o.jpeg

Left bolt: from MPPT +

Right bolt: To battery +

Front middle connector on Cyrix to the center of BMS connector.

Rear middle on Cyrix to left of middle BMS AND to battery -

Left 2 BMS have a jumper connecting them both.

BMS far right goes to Battery +

The dongles from the side of the batteries: 2 connect the batteries, 2 go to the BMS.

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7ad43eca-54bb-4cdf-a668-1ef3858fc7e6-1-102-o.jpeg (1.2 MiB)
Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) avatar image Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) ♦ bobbo1953 commented ·

Hi @Bobbo1953

Thanks for the extensive description and the image. Although unrelated to the bluetooth, I am wondering how the rest of the camper is powered as you mentioned that it lost power or the lights flashed when the BMS was clicking?

Regarding the bluetooth, there is indeed a very similar issue reported by @drlbradley, but we haven't figured out what is causing the problem. It will probably have something to with the fact that the MPPT is disconnected from the battery every night and only slowly comes under power due to a slowly rising PV voltage (while still not being connected to the battery), but any attempt to reproduce this and thus find a root cause failed so far.

Kind regards,

Thiemo van Engelen

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bobbo1953 avatar image bobbo1953 Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) ♦ commented ·
When the Cyrix was clicking, that's when the lights were flashing. When it lost power, there was none anywhere in the camper until I disconnected the Cyrix and BSM. Then it returned. That's when the MPPT's LEDS started blinking every 4 seconds but it seems to be charging the batteries as it is supposed to.
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bobbo1953 avatar image bobbo1953 Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) ♦ commented ·
I just checked on it and the MPPT showed up on Bluetooth this morning and is charging the batteries and the batteries seem to be balanced and full.


The MPPT's LEDs are still blinking every 4 seconds. Is that a concern?


Also, the BMS and Cryix are not installed. Do I really need them?
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Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) avatar image Thiemo van Engelen (Victron Energy staff) ♦ bobbo1953 commented ·

Hi @Bobbo1953

Thank you for confirming the issue does not occur in this case. I am not really surprised that the MPPT is still there as it never lost power, because it was directly connected to the battery and not via the Cyrix.

Regarding LED codes, they can be checked using our Victron Toolkit app: https://www.victronenergy.com/support-and-downloads/software#victron-toolkit-app. If I interpret it correctly, the bulk blink every 4 seconds just means that it is powered but not charging.

Regarding the BMS and Cyrix: with Lithium batteries it is strongly advised to use a BMS to prevent excessive charging by disconnecting or disabling chargers (which is handled here by the having the Cyrix disconnect the charger) and excessive discharging by disconnecting or disabling loads (which is not handled in your installation, based on the information that is provided).

Kind regards,

Thiemo van Engelen

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drlbradley avatar image
drlbradley answered ·

Not that it helps you, but I posted a very very similar issue last week.

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Stefanie (Victron Energy Staff) avatar image Stefanie (Victron Energy Staff) ♦♦ commented ·

@drlbradley

As far as I know, there is the RPC error (unable to connect to the RPC broker. Configuring the device is not possible. Error Code: #R2) whenever the app has been put in the background of the mobile phone for a certain amount of time (while it has been connected to the MPPT via VRM) and is then brought to the foreground again.

I can't remember it ever being different and can reproduce it. If the app is in the background, there are no more updates from the MPPT and at some point the connection is lost, which is acknowledged with the RPC error.

Closing the app properly and then opening it again will reconnect to the MPPT via VRM.

It probably has nothing to do with the Bluetooth problem. Just for your info.

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