News overview

Victron Energy News Update

September 16th, 2021

The first newsletter in a long time! Our apologies for not having sent updates.

Let’s start with a short overall summary. Despite the “COVID-induced abnormality” combined with continuous significant growth, product availability is rather good. Of course there is a myriad of challenges, such as shortages on raw material, ICs and other silicon devices. Also all global issues in logistics, such as shortages on shipping containers, closed ports and reduced capacity on air freight all add to the challenge.

The good news on all of that is that we are able to handle most of it. For example by aggressively buying components, even for far higher prices if need be, as well as not hesitating to ship 100s of inverter/chargers by air, in one occasion even over a 1000 Quattro 15kVAs (!).

The results are visible in E-Order.

The fourth quarter is around the corner, which is the time for a new pricelist. One thing can already be said: we do not see a reason to increase our prices. Business as usual, that is our aim.

Then, back to more normal topics: various exciting new products have been launched. More about those, as well as the many blogposts, videos and other updates below. It is a long list!

Yours sincerely and all the best,

Reinout and Matthijs Vader

Product news

The SmartSolar MPPT RS solar charge controllers are Victron's solution for systems with large series-connected PV arrays charging 48 V DC battery banks. This product is perfect for large off-grid, and grid-connected battery systems.

All in one power solution. The EasySolar-II GX combines an MPPT Solar Charge Controller, an inverter/charger and control hub in one enclosure. The product is easy to install, with a minimum of wiring.

The GX Touch 50 and GX Touch 70 are display accessories for our Cerbo GX. The five inch and seven inch touch screen displays give an instant overview of your system and allow you to adjust settings in the blink of an eye.

The GX Touch wall-mount accessory allows easy mounting of the GX Touch onto a solid wall. No drilling or cut-out is required, other than the three screws that fix it to the wall.

The Lynx Smart BMS is a dedicated Battery Management System for Victron Lithium Smart Batteries. There are multiple BMS's available for our Smart Lithium series of batteries, and the Lynx Smart is the most feature-rich and complete option.

The SolidSwitch 104 will switch DC loads of up to 70V/4A and can be controlled by a low power digital signal. Due to its extreme low standby draw, its perfect to for example control an alternator from a BMS.

The GX Tank 140 takes readings from up to four tank level sensors. Its compatible with 4-20mA as well as 0 to 10V type sensors. At its competitive price point, its a great addition to our now even more complete offering on tank monitoring and alerting. It is an accessory for the Cerbo GX and other GX devices.
Above new tank page has been added to the GX devices. It can be used on the GX touches, Color Control GX as well as Remote Console.

The Blue Smart IP22 chargers can now be configured for synchronised charging. With this feature, make a 12V 60A, or 24V 32A, or even higher power charger that is (a) parallel redundant, (b) easy to mount in tight places, and (c) very attractive cost-wise.

The Anti-Islanding Box 63A single- and three-phase is a combination of an anti-islanding device, the Ziehl UFR1001E, two in-line contactors and main circuit breaker. Earlier this year, our 8kVA, 10kVA and 15kVA Quattros have been certified for ESS use, when installed together with a Ziehl relay. Ask your sales manager for more information.

The Battery Switch ON/OFF 275A adds to our expanding range of busbars, fuse holders and other DC connection material. See the DC Distribution systems & fuses page on our website for an overview.

Inverter RS Smart

Added to E-Order this week, the Inverter RS Smart is a powerful 48VDC, 6kVA 230VAC inverter. It is the same as last years introduced Inverter RS Smart Solar, but then without the Solar input. It features the same design and high frequency technology, weighing only 11kg it has excellent efficiency, low standby power, and is very quiet in operation.

Firmware & Software releases

VictronConnect

The highlights are: (1) Per already a while ago, it is possible to set-up parallel, three- and split-phase systems with VictronConnect. (2) More recently we added the cell-status of our Smart Lithium batteries: VictronConnect now shows wether those cells are balanced or not. (3) Bluetooth connectivity has been improved as well as background scanning has been added.

For all details, scroll through its change log.

Venus OS

Recent highlights: (1) new tank page, more customisation options for tank monitoring in Venus OS v2.71. (2) A reset to factory defaults has been added. (3) User configurable override for DVCC max voltage, to help overcome initial imbalance issues in managed batteries, and (4) further more mostly new product support, such for the Inverter RS, the Lynx Smart BMS and more new products, has been added.

For details, see All firmware blogposts.

VRM portal

Recent highlights: (1) Since a few weeks ago, we started adding more details to the Dashboard, for example the actual power reading for all connected MPPTs. There are still more details to come, for example for the Generator. (2) Managing many installations has become a lot easier.
Many more smaller improvements have been made as well, for details there is the VRM Portal Change-log.

New video's

We also have many new video’s that we would like to share with you. Some of them were made by our own video cameraman Jonathan Cecil, Jono for short. This is our latest video from him: Electricity creating frighteningly fast speeds.

For more video's see our video page in Victron Professional.

Victron’s massive North America Training Tour!

Victron Training goes mobile
Victron Energy is coming to town! Our massive North America Training Tour has hit the road and will be pulling up at venues right across the continent. Professional or DIY, everyone seriously interested in marine, mobile and off-grid power systems is welcome to swing by and ask questions, or even receive professional training on seven popular system types - all in one day!
On our dedicated tour webpage we will continually update the information about training dates and locations and share all the latest news.
The next training will be on:

September 15^th, Scandinavian Community Centre, Burnaby, BC, Canada
September 16^th, Northwest Career & Technology Maritime Center, Anacortes, WA, USA
September 30^th, Tampa Convention Center, Tampa, FL, USA

New and updated documents

This is a summary of the modified datasheets, manuals, etc. for the past month:
(please make sure to always check our website for the latest and updated documentation)

You will have noticed that the appearance of several manuals has changed. That is because we are moving all our documentation to a new system, and we're starting with the manuals. From now on we will upload new manuals in PDF and HTML5 onto our website. Already complete and on our website are, for example:
- manual MultiPlus-II 12V/24V/48V 3k, 5k, 8k 10k 230V.
- manual EasySolar-II GX
In the manual Lynx Shunt VE.Can the Power Consumption has been corrected in the table of the Technical specifications
In both manuals SmartSolar and BlueSolar MPPT 100/30 & 100/50 the Max PV short circuit current has been corrected.
In the manual MultiPlus 1600VA the Example Settings of the DIP switches have been corrected and we also added the correct dimensions of the MultiPlus 1600VA in Appendix G.
Now on the website the Enclosure Dimensions for the:
The datasheets for the BlueSolar Monocrystalline Panels and the BlueSolar Polycrystalline Panels have been updated.
The Quick Installation Guide for the Quattro 3kVA 230VAC has been corrected to: AC IN 1 on the left side and AC IN 2 on the right side
A note has been added to the table regarding the range of the Bluetooth signal in the SmartShunt datasheet.
In the table in both the datasheet and the manual of the Blue Smart IP22 charger, we corrected the battery connection/screw terminals to 16mm2 / AWG6"
The following datasheets have been updated:
- 12,8 & 25,6 Volt lithium iron phosphate batteries Smart - bullet 3 in the section Battery Management System (BMS)
- Blue Smart IP22 Charger 120 VAC - added °F, lbs and inches to the table, and 5 new sections to the text
- Blue Smart IP22 Charger 230 VAC - added a number of new sections to the text
- Blue Smart IP67 Charger 120VAC - added °F, lbs and inches to the table, and section: fully discharged battery recovery function
- Blue Smart IP67 Charger 230VAC - added section: fully discharged battery recovery function
In the table of datasheet - Skylla Charger 24V universal input and GL approval - Charge current starter battery has been updated.
The last column in the datasheet Shore Power Cable has been updated.

New certificates

The certificate - SAA-160401-EA - AS/NZS 60335 - Blue Smart IP67 Charger has been renewed
The renewed certificate ISO9001
New on the website: Certificate Safety IEC 60335-1 - Inverter RS 48/6000 230V Smart Solar
Also new on our website is the Certificate Safety IEC 62109-1 - SmartSolar MPPT RS 450/200-Tr
And also new on the website is the Certificate Safety EN/IEC 62109-1 - AS/NZS - SmartSolar MPPT RS 450/200 -Tr

Victron training events

October 5th, Formation pratique – Bases d’un systeme Victron in Sainte Tulle, France
October 7^th, Advanced training in Almere, The Netherlands (English)
October 7^th, Technical training in Almere, The Netherlands (English)

Make sure to always check our website.

Webinars

September 13th, Presentation gamme produit Victron Energy (French)
October 4^th, Convertisseur chargeur (French)

For more training events and webinars, see Victron Professional.

Upcoming exhibitions

Check our exhibition schedule online if you are interested in visiting an exhibition in your area over the coming months. The following exhibitions are still scheduled for 2021.
Please refer to our website or the event's website to check if the event's date has been changed or cancelled:

September 16^th – September 18^th, Transport 2021 in Herning, Denmark
September 18^th – September 26^th, Interboot 2021 in Friedrichshafen, Germany
September 28^th – September 30^th, Solar Solutions International in Haarlemmermeer, The Netherlands

OUR LATEST BLOG POSTS

Vaccine storage for D. R. Congo

Solar Power provides UPS for critical storage facility

A vaccine storage facility, known as The Kinkole Hub has been commissioned by the Expanded Vaccination Program office of the Ministry of Health in the Democratic Republic of Congo with funding from UNICEF.
The Kinkole Hub is a temperature-controlled facility built to store medicines.
Power blackout protection has been assured by choosing a private electricity supply based on solar energy. The Ministry of Health chose this option because it offers cheaper, more reliable energy.

Farm Estate aims for Carbon Zero

The Redflow batteries helping farming go green.

Simon Hackett is aiming to make his 170-acre Tasmanian estate energy self-sufficient. There are a number of dwellings; outbuildings; farm sheds for sheep and cattle farming; electric vehicles – and, unusually, an electric-motor powered self-launching glider, which he flies from his own runway.
Simon is the architect behind the Redflow Battery Management System. The system was installed by DMS Energy of Tasmania. Simon says it looks great and works brilliantly. In this blog post he tells us about his system and its performance.

Solar-powered sailing around the world

Helping the sun go down on diesel.

The first thing Tiger Brisius and his partner Julia did in preparation for their planned circumnavigation of the world was to remove the diesel engine from their thirty-two foot Olle Enderlein yacht and replace it with an electric motor.
The motor is a GreenStar Marine E20 rated at over 10kW max. GreenStar Marine are taking great interest in this project, supplying one of their prototype units and modifying the control for a 48V supply.

Read more about the preparation for their journey.

Reliable power in the Australian Outback

The Cattle station where business is growing silently

South Australia is home to farming stations which are among the remotest inhabitations on earth. The people who work them have to be pretty self-reliant.
600km from the nearest city of Adelaide, the Wertaloona Station – which was established 170 years ago – have just installed a solar based power system to run their three homesteads, water pumps, cooling rooms and shearing sheds.

Read more in the blog post.

Off grid Spanish mountain cabin

Solar employee, Manolo Llongo, sees the light

Manolo Llongo works for solar distributor Krannich Solar Spain where he has been kept so busy for the last ten years that he has only just found the time to install off-grid solar energy for his second home in the mountains.
With the support of solar installer Eraeco, Manolo and his family will enjoy even more sustainable visits to his property at weekends, and in summer.

Catch up on our previous blog posts, too: