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Todd Wallace avatar image
Todd Wallace asked

No power or efficiency information in VictronConnect app for VE.Direct Phoenix 12/500 Inverter

So I finally got the bluetooth dongle for my 12/500 VE.Direct Phoenix Inverter and got it setup. All I see in the VictronConnect app other than the "speedometer" of load was voltage in and voltage out. I remember reading in the inverter manual that with the app you could view more detailed information like the load in watts, or load percentage, DC current in, and even current efficiency. I cannot find that anywhere. What am I doing wrong? I've attached a screenshot. I did the firmware update first thing when setting it up.

Phoenix InverterVictronConnectVE.Direct Bluetooth Smart Dongle
img-0537.png (171.9 KiB)
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4 Answers
Guy Stewart (Victron Community Manager) avatar image
Guy Stewart (Victron Community Manager) answered ·

Hi Todd,

Unfortunately the current reading from these smaller VE.Direct inverters was not very accurate. It was displayed in the app for a time, but this was leading to other issues (as people assumed that it was more accurate than it was, when they were given a numerical figure), and these questions were re-occuring.

Given the accuracy in those smaller units wasn't precise enough for a number the decision was made to show the indicative load instead.

Apologies but that is the way it is now. I will make sure the manual is updated to reflect the change. Both were a compromise given the data available, but this one is a truer representation of the reading from the inverter.

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Todd Wallace avatar image Todd Wallace commented ·

Wow that is very disappointing. The dongle is like $50, and all it does is tell me what i already know. I don't need any of the small amount of settings it offers. Is this a limitation of the hardware itself and so future firmware cannot fix it? Victron has such amazing monitors for all their gear. It's odd that your inverters would be so limited. I'll keep the dongle if a future firmware update is expected to bring back some of that information, but if not, its not worth it to me. Thanks for your reply.

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Guy Stewart (Victron Community Manager) avatar image Guy Stewart (Victron Community Manager) ♦♦ Todd Wallace commented ·

This is fundamentally a hardware limitation.

The software could possibly change again, to give you more ‘interpretation’ of available data than the percentage, but I would not count on it.

If you have a BlueSolar MPPT charge controller, or a BMV, you may find the dongle more valuable when connected to them.

You can use the demo mode in VictronConnect to see which devices get which data. The larger VE.direct inverters do provide more data.


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Todd Wallace avatar image Todd Wallace Guy Stewart (Victron Community Manager) ♦♦ commented ·

It's kind of frustrating because my system has various other loads connected, and if I can see on the BMV that there is a 15 amp load on the battery, it would be valuable to know if the inverter is using 5 amps of that 15, or 10? or only 2? It doesnt have to have millivolt precision. And while i'm glad the more powerful (and alot more expensive) Victron inverters do provide that kind of information, that doesnt help me :( maybe there could be a switch in the settings in the future that enables more information with a warning that they are just ballpark figures, and not necesserily completely accurate. just my 2cents as a huge Victron Energy fan :)

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panos avatar image panos Guy Stewart (Victron Community Manager) ♦♦ commented ·

I have a Phoenix 24/3000 pure sine inverter connected to a Bluetooth dongle and I cannot even see the inverter. Any explanation please??

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Todd Wallace avatar image Todd Wallace commented ·

Or at least maybe we could get a numerical value of percent of load instead of a hard to read graph

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Sascha Nicklich avatar image
Sascha Nicklich answered ·

Hello, I have a Phoenix 12/500 inverter and as stated above, it does not show the load as Watts. So far so good, but if I connect it to the Venus GX, I am getting a Watts reading, but the number is far to high (140W with only 105W battery load measured by BMV712). Is there a way to turn off the reading or change it to load% like in the connect app?

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georg-cz avatar image
georg-cz answered ·

Hello there, I've just connected my Phoenix 24/800 and I have the same problem. Is it a problem, or feature even for larger Inverters? If feature, how can I get the latest firmware supporting even unpunctual gauge? It is quite strange to see output 0W inside the VRM portal. I bought three VE.Direct cables for all my equipment, so I wouldn't use it for something else. Thank you for each help

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durval avatar image
durval answered ·

Does the same apply to a Phoenix 12/1200?

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Related Resources

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Phoenix Inverter Smart product page

VictronConnect Manual

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