I just invested in a new victron system and batteries with solar (not that we are getting that much this season to make a big difference). I cannot seem to figure out what to set to get this to all hum smoothly.
All brand new, I have:
- 24v system, comprised of twelve 6v 235ah batteries in series and parallel, flooded acid
- VE Multiplus 24v 3000w inverter
- VE Smartshunt (external bat monitor hooked up here)
- VE Cerbo GX
- VE 100/50 MPPT Charge Controller
- 11,500 starting watts, 9,000 running watts generator (also brand new)
- 4 Longi 370w 75 cell panels
I live at my off grid home full time just outside Vancouver, BC in Canada on the west coast. I have no appliances that draw electricity. I have no heat generating things here. I use about 2500w to 3000w daily. I know I need more batteries and solar to avoid generator time but I have spent all I had to get what I have now, and can't afford more at the moment... so this is my system for the time being, until I can add to it.
I have not yet hooked up the generator start/stop functionality. I'm waiting on wiring information from the generator company so that I can do that without guessing which wire is which! I also think I need a relay to do it (see this video which is what I'm trying to do next: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q--VUa8OPI4)
I have asked the solar company I bought the victron elements to help me with settings. They will not advise. I have asked the company where I bought the batteries to help me with settings. They will not advise. They keep referencing me to page 10 of the Rolls manual which has a bunch of math and information which I really just do not understand. I emailed a Victron rep and they told me to ask the company I bought the components from... dead end there... The Rolls executive I spoke with did tell me though that based on higher useage like mine (living full time at my home and using the system day in, day out) that "higher useage means faster depletion each day which should equal a higher bulk/absorb setting to 59.2>60v because the harder you work the batteries, the higher you go but not over 60v." Would someone please tell me where to put that information and what that translates into which screen on which device at what value???
Is anyone out there willing to suggest what settings to put into what screens to make it all work smoothly so that I can manage my batteries efficiently and have them last? I did my best setting it up and tried to manually run the generator when my batteries were at 64% the other day... it took 11 hours to get them to 100% and as you can see on my dashboard, towards the last half of the charging, the generator charged less and less the longer it ran! 11 hours was 30 litres of gas! Yet, today I had some time of bright sun when my batteries were at 95% and within one hour, they had the batteries back to 100%. How can that be right?
I've tried to share my dashboard so hopefully this works: https://vrm.victronenergy.com/installation/228757/dashboard
I live alone in the woods by the sea 18km by ocean from anyone. Just a chick in the woods which a bunch of great new shiny gear.
Please Victron Community, help me!