Unboxing the Victron MultiPlus II 48v / 5000VA / 70Amp Charger / Inverter

[@craigchamberlain]

Hi, thanks for the video. I got one of these exact same units back in September and you’re right, it is a great bit of kit. It’s 30kg and as you’ll have discovered by now it’s very top heavy which makes it a bit tricky to handle initially. Mine is all installed and ready to go but there is a regulatory issue in the UK at present which prevents me from officially commissioning it but hopefully that will be resolved soon. I also got the Cerbo GX device and it’s a really nice bit of hardware which makes operation really pretty easy, but also flexible at the same time. I don’t have any PV panels at present so intend to use it initially as a time-of-use tariff shifting mechanism in conjunction with my Pylontech LiFePo4 battery modules. So far I have 9.6kWh of battery capacity which is enough most days to get us from the end of our cheap rate energy window (02:30hrs) to the start of the next cheap rate window (21:30hrs). My intention is to add a ~6.5kwp solar PV array in the spring which will hopefully reduce our reliance on cheap rate grid energy to a large extent. We do have an EV though so it will most likely continue to charge at night during this window since it has a 33kWh capacity and typically needs around 12kWh each night for our usage. Depending on how often we run out of battery storage, I might get another 4.8kWh battery module because I’d rather be storing energy than exporting it, especially since I’m unlikely to get any benefit from exporting since this was a DIY install and therefore not MCS registered. Our local grid is already saturated with renewable energy so really it’s better all round if I store and self-consume rather than export. Looking forward to seeing your project come together. Best of luck.

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

Hi Craig, yeah I heard about the Victron delays but I know they're working on resubmitting their paperwork so the MultiPlus II will soon be approved I'm sure. When you start charging your car you'll have the same challenge I will have, how to charge the car AND the battery at the same time when it's cheap... Watch this space, I think I have a plan ;-) Good luck with your project, keep us up to date and make sure you subscribe as I'll be installing all the kit you've mentioned here as well!

[@craigchamberlain]

@@TheKilowattChallenge yeah, hopefully they'll get it sorted soon. Already subscribed to your channel - looking forward to your next instalment. :) As for charging the car at the same time as the house battery, you can install the ESS assistant and set up a scheduled charging period on the Cerbo to coincide with the cheap rate period. My EV charger also has a scheduled charging function so I just need to make sure the EV doesn't try to charge outside this window and that will prevent the Multiplus from attempting to charge the EV. I've got a 100A fuse on my DNO cutout so it can easily supply the 7.4kW to the EV at the same time as the ~3.5kW for the house battery charging. I use a CT clamp connected to the Multiplus and clipped to the grid meter tail between the meter and DB1 to measure grid import/export which allows the Multiplus to balance supply with demand even on the DB1 loads. I also have my EV charger, range cooker and electric shower on a separate consumer unit to the one which is attached to AC-Out1 on the inverter. So it goes like this: Grid -> DB1 (SPD, Cooker, Shower, Garage inc EV) -> AC Isolator -> Multiplus (AC-In) -> Multiplus (AC-Out1) -> DB2 (Everything else). And I have a changeover switch fitted upstream of DB2 to allow it to be fed directly from DB1 instead of from the Multiplus. So once I get the go-ahead from the DNO I can simply switch the AC isolator on and flip the changeover switch. In theory at least. :)

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

What a great setup you have there. As soon as the MP2's are approved you'll have everything you need! I'm connecting everything to AC-Out1 so I'm converting my house wiring to TN-C standard at the moment. I've bought the Victron EV charger! More news on that soon ;-)

[@Sylvan_dB]

Instead of lifting out of the box, tilt box up on end, rock it out of the box onto the bench (vertical), move box out of the way, lay it down. Looks like a very nice inverter. Seems comparable to Schneider but the Victron network to integrate all components seems superior.

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

Yeah I think the VE Can/Bus network is fantastic as well. I'll already hung the inverters on the wall now, hopefully I never have to lift those again LOL

[@MrSummitville]

Actually, Victron does sell an All-In-One and other combination units, like an integrated MPPT with an Inverter. Many customers are complaining about the loud noise and humming coming from the MultiPlus-II.

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

Actually, it's funny you should say that, they are really loud! List to the last 10 seconds of my last video and you'll hear it!

[@AvocaSingleTrack]

can you daisy chain two together for 120v-Neutral-120v , for two 120v legs and 240v ? You only mention three phase

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

Good question, I would give your local Victron supplier a call and check your local rules will permit how the Victron daisy chaining works. Yes you can configure them in different ways but I'm not 100% sure they'll do what you're looking for.

[@MrSummitville]

@AvocaSingleTrack - He does not live in the USA.

[@offgridwanabe]

You are the only I have seen with 3 Victrons, I guess you will sell on all three phases if your utility will allow that. Basically North America only uses 3 phase for industrial service. Will be interesting to see how you wire it up. Cheers

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

Yeah 3 phase is surprisingly common here in Europe for domestic properties. Yep, I can export up to 15kW here, that's 5kW/25amp per phase. Money, money money!!! :-D

[@offgridwanabe]

@@TheKilowattChallenge That is a big array 15 -20 kw or 3 small ones lol

[@MrSummitville]

@@TheKilowattChallenge Those inverters *cost* money.

[@renepost452]

13:30 I’m going to save you from a lot of head scratching. VE.BUS does NOT use terminators!!!

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

So you don't need the terminators... Interesting :-)

[@renepost452]

It’s discussed here -> kzbin.info/www/bejne/kJ_Xo4Fjf5erobM

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

Yeah I just watched that part of the video... Very interesting!

[@renepost452]

I believe the 2 ve.bus ports on the MultiplusII are used to daisy chain several of them together. You then hook-up either an MK3, smart dongle or GX device to one of the free ve.bus ports in order to control all devices on the chain.

[@smartazz]

Nice bit of kit that is.

[@TheKilowattChallenge]

Yeah it really is and the software is incredible, I'll be doing a deep dive video once its all up and running ;-)