I’m itching to turn this on.
Maybe not.
If you are the only person accessing the display, do it … what can possibly go wrong?
Joke, yes, but also serious. Do it.
Just adds more options on the main screen for you to control the inverter, or fewer screens to go through, that’s all.
And if you want to switch the inverter off there … your inverter, your button. 
The smaller the device, the less accurate the readings. That is a wee bit rough.
BMV/Smarshunt will give very accurate batt readings, as will a Carlo Gavazzi on the main DB give for AC.
Or is that a Lithium batt with a BMS?
It’s exactly that that I was thinking about! I’ve been flipping the inverter mains at 18h00 to carry on on battery until 21h00 (or 20h00 if I start to feel panicked) and I thought: nah, rather switch off the inverter altogether and carry on on house mains until 21h00: more battery available if there’s a sudden outage (that low voltage thing is happening lots and it’s not “browning out”) and less battery to recharge.
But the second screen really made me draw back in caution 
Will go have a good look at the manual before I do.
Or is that a Lithium batt with a BMS?
I think so. Freedom Won eTower, which I infer from the manual has a built-in BMS (and another “don’t touch this” warning): para 2.2.12 Circuit Breaker “… There is no way to force off the BMS and nor would it ever be necessary.”
I’ve invited the friend who’s going to have a look + gave him “full control” and he’s going to nudge the installer to give “real full control” because he can’t get to the battery settings as things stand 
I’ve got the household to install the app + look at it first before switching any appliance on + keep a log of appliances’ draw on the kitchen blackboard . There’s already the rule: “you must look but don’t touch anything in the app; only I will touch” 
I figured a fortnight for orientation and averages but if the app’s readings are only approximate, then it messes up my planning and is very rough 
And I was so pleased that in two separate monitoring sessions, the washer read 200W on Wash, 200W on Rinse and 600W at the top of the Spin cycle Other things seemed reasonably accurate to me though: microwave: 1500W; kettles at 2000W and 650W; the individual computers and peripherals at their ratings; electric blanket: 100W; fridges at 100W and 150W, which is how they’d tested on a borrowed Kill-A-Watt once before.
The smaller the device, the less accurate the readings. That is a wee bit rough.
How can it be that a 5kVA is “small”. I thought entire average households ran off a 5 
(and I’m pretty sure we’re below average: 150kWh a month + 50 for the geyser after it and every inch of the pipes was wrapped in Aerolite. The 5kVA was overkill but I got the casting vote because I wanted my hob connected because I hate cooking on gas. My other half, who’s away in a part of the world where there might not be electricity at all and who is untroubled by that sort of thing, asked “oh dear, is your new toy annoying you” 
so I had better get to grips with this if I’m not to be teased )
The smaller device in the context of 500VA vs 5000VA … for some weird reason I had in mind a small Victorn invertertjie. My bad.
Probably because a 500 was all that was strictly justified for the true criticals i.e. computers and fridges 
(I’m not that spoilt that I held out for the 5000 just for weekday breakfasts though. I find it easier to work from home / live in the office and my computer is on 16, 18 hours a day. I foresee that the next few months will be as many planned outages as unscheduled outages / substations out of order for hours on end, so the ability to work without anxiety and interruptions was the priority, followed by basic food, followed by hot water. That’s also why I want to know the ins and outs of the inverter: I don’t want a situation where I’ve got to teleport into a meeting in five minutes time and the Smurf is throwing a shoe.)
Get the access “given” back, and start there … Ps. Takes 1 click to give you full access if that is of any interest. 
Ps. Takes 1 click to give you full access if that is of any interest.
Don’t be coy! Spit it out!
… for them to give you full access to your site, they click one box.
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A bit more detail, please!
I’ve been nudging the installers politely since last Friday because I know they’re busy,
and have volunteered that Trusted Person X will do the necessary (who happens to be the person who referred me, is himself an old Victron user and a Pr Elec Eng to boot, and who manages several Victron systems for parents and friends because he’s just a nice guy)
and I then took the initiative to invite TPX with full control (and he says “hell, I can’t access stuff; will get hold of the installer to unlock”)
and I’d like to do a still polite but now firmer nudge to say “Please unlock so that TPX can do the necessary (and walk me through). Isn’t it just clicking this specific Box X? Please please please click now while we’re on the phone!”
It’s frustrating that I can’t see the entire map of the system = unknown unknowns 
I don’t mind known unknowns or unknown knowns, but my mental map is going to be a mess if there a bunch of unknown unknowns
(Further frustration: trying to connect the Cerbo by Bluetooth to the VictronConnect app. App says use default PIN 000000. Bluetooth is not interested in six zeroes. I pick up in passing (on the wretched Facebook of all places) that newer models ship with a unique PIN on a sticker on the Cerbo, which sticker is now tucked away behind the neat install 
I hope they took a photo beforehand or made a note or it’s written somewhere else Offends my orderly soul. Edit: tracked it down in Remote Console 
The learning curve 
Ordinarily it would be the “What does this switch do” curve but everything comes with a “Are you certain you want to touch this ” warning )
Snap 
This was where I had a scratch the other day to invite my mate. The three users are Installer, Mate and me. Whatever “full control” is, he can’t see the battery settings and we’re still petitioning for real full control.
This is vaguely terrifying.
Sensible Smurf took one look at 250V and went “I would prefer not to” connect to that grid. (But I see that under/over-voltage is 180V to 260V per Clearline’s TripConnect so perhaps Smurf’s being overly sensitive. Otoh, the up-down up-down looks freaky.)
I must say that I’m enjoying this read read read "VE Bus, not VE Can; what is a bus and what is a can? … Chapter 10 of the manual to see what’s been set as under/over-voltage values … Install Remote VE Configure, is this a third application! Is all firmware up to date, check; two-way comms to be enabled and active, check; bookmark Assistants as interesting and useful; there will be an rsvc file to edit; reminder to read page 1 again: look but don’t touch … "
Nope, Remote VE.Configure is a web application. Runs in your browser. It pulls down the config file, you open it in VE.Configure (which has been around for about a decade, but in the past you needed a mk3-usb dongle to communicate with the Multi), make your changes, and re-upload it via VRM. I’m sure we have installers here who remember the old days before we had this.
The terms are confusing at first. But all you really have to know is that the VE prefix just means “Victron Energy”.
These names are just different ways of connecting to things. Think of it as the different ways your computer connects to its pheripherals. You connect to the network using Ethernet, which has an RJ45 socket. You connect to the keyboard and mouse using a USB cable. You connect to the monitor using an HDMI cable.
VE.CAN could probably be likened (from a long distance, with lots of handwaving) to your computer’s network connection, while VE.Bus is a serial protocol and thus closer to a USB connection (by analogy). Put the right plugs in the right sockets, and you’re good.
There are three: VE.Bus (only used for Multis and Quattros, and some old chargers), VE.Can (used for some solar chargers, and the new Inverter-RS and Multi-RS products), and VE.Direct (used for solar chargers and low-end Phoenix inverters).
Mapping my corner of the universe and understanding the terminology has been a bit (very!) uphill but it’s starting to fall into place.
Question: VEConfig 3 still seems to want an MK3 or MK2. Screenshot off the Special menu: High Speed wants an MK3 and USB wants an MK3 or MK2.
Port Selection > Com port > autoDetect likewise wants a gadget to tether the MPII to the computer. But what if one is away from the MPII when one needs to Configure?
But in the meantime, I’m having a terrific snoop around “Fake target from (actual) file (downloaded through Remote VEConfigure through the VRM Portal)” with the help of WhatsThis/Ctrl-H 
My first sortie (very much with the help of my babysitter - I can actually hear the rising alarm in the poor guy’s voice when he said “Well, VEConfigure is really for installers and managers because there are technical settings that it might not be a good idea for users to change without knowing exactly what it’s there for” ) was to reduce the AC input current limit so Smurf is not hoovering up 2000W as soon as the grid is back. We’ve reduced to 25A from 50A and this evening will be the first real-world test. (It didn’t really make sense to me because the 2000W corresponded to 9 or 10A, so why would a change from 50A to 25A decrease the hoovering to a more sedate 1000W? I’ll find out whether it does.)
If consequent changes need to be made to the AC input limit, even though I can’t make them though VEConfigure, I can through Remote Console on the VRM Portal or App. (I can’t say I love the Remote Console GUI though. It’s like playing a handheld Atari game but with a mouse, not two thumbs.)
And back in my “Fake from file”, I see why I can make this change through Remote Console: ‘AC input current limit’ is ‘Overruled by remote’. All learning is precious.
The voltage was chaotic today. The Smurf spat back the grid at least three or four times around 253V.
A too-high voltage will always be a nuisance until it is sorted by your supplier.
Your contract of supply specifies that your supplier delivers a voltage less than 253V, you may as well start the ball rolling asap, to get it sorted.
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The fun really starts when you upload your newfound “custom for you” settings one day.