VICTRON SMART SHUNT INSTALL - Lithium Battery Setup for Off Grid Camping

This week Craig run's through the installation of a Victron Energy Smart Shunt for our lithium battery bank...No more guessing what our state of charge is!
Anyone who does off grid touring will understand how important it is to have an accurate reading for the state of charge of your batteries, especially when they are getting low.
I'm no expert, but I'm willing to give it a crack!
We would love to hear from you so please leave us a comment or feedback on the video 🍻
Thank you for your support, catch ya out there!
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[@moremolecules]

Great video, really enjoyed it! Exactly what I needed to get my shunt going.

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it and were able to get your shunt going. Thank you for watching 😁

[@herkko61]

You explained everything just fine. Pretty short video full of good information. The graph about difference of the voltages between lithium and agm batteries tells so nicely why a shunt is needed with lithium. It would be impossible to know the lithium battery fullness with a voltage meter.

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thanks mate! Yep definitely need the shunt, otherwise it is just a guessing game really. Thanks for watching!

[@MrNowstill]

Thankyou for your install video on the shunt. I have just replaced my Agm battery with a lithium battery in my 4x4 allso I fitted a victron dc to dc charger. I did this just before my last off grid camping trip for two weeks. I did not have the shunt and like you was trying to save some money. I wish I had included the shunt it was so hard to know how much charge was left in the battery and flattened the battery a couple of times thinking I had charge in it. I run a 95l fridge freezer from the battery and on the cloudy days did not get enough charge to top the battery up. So had to run the car to charge it but still I didn’t know how much charge I had. It was a nightmare. I wish I had the shunt. Your video was great it shows how easy it is to install I will get one before my next trip. Thanks again.

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thanks Brian! Yep we had the same issue mate, definitely worth the money to not have the stress hey! Happy and safe camping, thanks for watching!

[@DoingLifeWithYou]

Thanks for making this! You should give yourself more credit because you explained things quite well. The accountant analogy was perfect for my peanut brain to understand lol

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thank you! Really appreciate that 👍 glad it has helped you understand a bit better. These things can be a bit confusing to understand cant they! Thank you for watching 😁

[@DoingLifeWithYou]

​@@RoaminintheRobboNo problem! Great video

[@jasonnevill643]

Awesome thanks for the video 👍

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Your welcome mate, thanks for watching!

[@marcelallenke26]

Hey mate just purchased 2 itechworld 120ah lithiums to put in our 2019 robbo as I have one in our prado and its freakin ace! I was legit just looking how to install the shunt in the robbo as its all pre wired & i assumed there was a bit more involved but then i stumbled across your vid. Very well explained and this is coming from me who has installed a whole 12v setup with shunt in my prado. Well done & thank you 🤙

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thank you Marcel! Good luck on your install. We can't wait to use the camper now we have installed it. Good to hear you are super impressed with your set up in your prado. Thanks for watching mate 👍

[@staceymulgrew1485]

Nice one! We definately found that out in our lithium set up too!! Shows high and full …. And then when it goes - drops really fast!!

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thanks Stacey! We thought we could get away without the shunt but quickly worked out you can't!

[@markwentz8332]

Nice trailer! thank you for the video. i've got one to install in a upcoming car audio build, also got the temperature monitor to keep an eye on that for me.

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thanks Mark, we love our Robbo! Appreciate you watching mate, good luck with your build and install!

[@plokijij7856]

I think the Will Prowse review on these he said to ensure the batteries have been charged to 100% and allowed to equalise over night before connecting the shunt. This ensures correct calibration. The temperature sensor you can get for these is handy also and very easy to connect.

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hey Flow Rider, Thanks for your feedback. It wasn't part of the vid I did, but as part of the calibration process, I charged the batteries to 100% and the following day I set the 'State of Charge' within the app to 100%. I'll look into the temp sensor, as any extra level of safety/performance monitoring is always a plus. Thanks for watching. Craig

[@theobotha1009]

I would’ve like to see the battery settings, otherwise nice explanation, keep the videos coming 👍

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hi Theo thanks for watching mate! As for the battery settings I just used the settings that were recommended by the place were we bought the shunt.

[@rodkessell2248]

Another great video.. Still waiting for the "Roamin in the Robbo" merchandise to come online!

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thanks Rod! Appreciate your support mate, will get looking into getting some merchandise made up 😁

[@rodkessell2248]

@@RoaminintheRobbo Get onto the merchandise before the Chinese do..😄

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

😂😂 definitely looking into it! 😁

[@johncarvill1397]

Hi, To use the victron smart shunt do you need to have internet connection to connect from the phone app to shunt? What happens when your out bush with no internet conection ?

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hey John, No internet connection required (other than the occasional firmware update). Just the smart phone app. Cheers mate

[@GrabLifeByTheGourlays]

Awesome vid and very informative! 🤙🏽

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thanks Jez and Deb! Glad you enjoyed! 😁

[@matthewwakeham2206]

I was a bit concerned about those exposed battery terminals. I always keep at least one covered since I accidentally shorted a car battery with a spanner. Only took a small chunk out of the spanner but it was a bit sparky.

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Oh no really!? Good to know thanks for the feedback Matthew! And thanks for watching 😁

[@philthompson5320]

Not a bad Vid. Question What is the green yellow wire doing still connected to the neg side of the battery?

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hey Phil. Well spotted. That is an earth wire just leading to the chassis (not running an appliance). I don't think it will matter and to be honest I didn't have the correct size terminal lug to mount to the shunt but it will be shifted. Cheers for watching.

[@andrewford80]

Hey man, thanks for the video. Very well presented. Do you remember where you got the hydralic crimper? I bought a crimper from Jaycar that was mechanical and it's a piece of shite. I notice that Sydney tools etc sell the crimper, but ebay has what looks like identical ones for a bit less. Cheers!

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hey Andrew, Cheers for watching. I also found out how crap the mechanical crimpers are. They're fine for the light weight stuff but for the heavy duty cable lugs...they suck. I actually borrowed the hydraulic crimper from my next door neighbour. I think he got them from Sydney tools and cost him around $90. I can't comment on the ebay ones other than saying you usually get what you pay for. If they're the same brand it should be fine but if they're just look alikes then you wont know until you try it. sorry, not much help. best of luck. Craig

[@andrewford80]

@@RoaminintheRobbo Nope, thats all good, I will hit up Sydney tools then. Jaycar are about to get a call from Consumer Affairs Vic if they don't take this other crimper back. It is literally useless. Appreciate the reply mate, keep up the good work! Love your videos.

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

@andrewford80 thanks Andrew, appreciate that mate. Good luck with Jaycar!

[@poppie290357]

Earth cable from battery 1 was connected to ??????????. Did you kep it connected to battery 2 earth post prior to connecting to the shunt. Thank you.

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Yes, I did. Cable connects Earth post on battery 1 to earth post on battery 2. Then, earth from battery 2 connects to the shunt. Hope this helps.

[@davidpowell4345]

Did you disconnect the existing shunt in the camper?

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hey David no not yet mate, it is still connected.

[@tonya6403]

Doe the bluetooth work ok? Thinking about getting one but lot of bad reviews on the BT range

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hi Tony we have only done a few trips since installing it, but we have had no issues with the Bluetooth so far. I have to say we have been really impressed with the unit and are re ally glad we installed it!

[@tonya6403]

@@RoaminintheRobbo got one today and installed it. So far really good

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

@@tonya6403 awesome work mate! Glad you are happy so far! Certainly takes the guessing game out of where you are with the batteries.

[@MrBlinksy]

If you disconnect and reconnect phone (ie bluetooth/turn it off and on) does the history stay there? Spme reviews say that it loses it every time.. they are old though. Let me know as its holding me from buying. Cheers

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

The 'history' remains, but the 'trends' page refreshes every time you open the app. Hope this helps.

[@JeepTJay6]

9:24 I’m curious to know why that might be a bad location. 🤷‍♂️

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

I don't know that it is? It just seemed a bit strange to me at the time, to mount it onto the battery bracket. Cheers for watching.

[@salsepulveda494]

Are you also using a Victron Solar Charger?

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hi Sal, No I'm not. I'm just using the solar input on the redarc dc charger. I also have a victron 15amp ac charger for when 240v is available.

[@dazza0485]

So no push notifications to tell you your battery is low?

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hey dazza, you're able to set low % alarms. Cheers

[@dazza0485]

@@RoaminintheRobbo thanks. So will it come up as a visible and audible notification when the app is closed on my phone?

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

@dazza0485 I'm not actually entirely sure Dazza as I have ours set to 20%, but we have never had the batteries go that low. So not sure what sort of notification you get. Sorry mate.

[@WolfKillerLestat]

Can I put my charger straight onto the minus on the shunt..

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Hey James. The 'to system minus' on the shunt is effectively now your negative terminal. So all appliance negatives, including chargers, need to be connected to it or downstream of it. So yes, the negative from your charger can be connected straight to the system minus of the shunt. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching Craig

[@WolfKillerLestat]

@@RoaminintheRobbo thank you for the reply i have yhe charger leads straight on to the battery terminals i will change it to shunt 👍

[@scaredyet]

The intro is too long mate

[@RoaminintheRobbo]

Thanks for the feedback mate 👍