Victron Smart Shunt 500A/50mV

Victron Smart Shunt 500A/50mV

Easy to setup and use. Information provided is relevant and useful.

Victron Smart Shunt 500A/50mV

The product took 5 days to be shipped, I ended up receiving it 9days after I placed the order including two weekends. It was still within their commitment of shipping within 2-5 days though. But still, that is really slow delivery in this day and age. I buy a lot online, and I have to say that this is the slowest delivery service I have experienced.
The product is good though and very well priced too.

I bought this towards the end of 2021 and was lukewarm on the product as there was no trending available of the important variables (voltage, current, SOC% etc). However Victron do issue firmware updates and I was pleasantly surprised a year later to see long term trending (over a month) - see screen shot below. I can now easily track how my batteries have performed over the short term. For example during load shedding I can see the DOD% of my batteries during the 2 and 4 hour blackouts.There is a bug with one trace though - the consumed Ah doesnt work and hopefully will get fixed in a future update. The above price of R2109 is actually ~R80 cheaper than what I purchased it for. 5 star product for sure.

Although on the upper end of the price range (as all Victron kit is) I am still satisfied with the unit. I have learned that one forgets the price you paid, but a inadequate item will always remind you of it's failures or deficiencies.

Pros:
* It has the ability to monitor both batteries (in series, 24V) as it gives the midpoint deviation.
* Good documentation / manuals.
* Many online forums where one can hunt for info.
* Installation was quick, including the Victron Connect App.
* Everything you need is included, including fused cables.
* I like the way the cables connect - push in. I have had too many devices where the screw terminals are fiddly. This unit: Instant connect without tools.

Cons: Bluetooth signal not very strong. Fails to connect in the adjacent room - about 6m away (signal passing via brick wall). May be old BT standard, so probably within spec.

Overall impression: Good. I dipped my toes into the Victron pool to see if I should consider going the Victron route for my inverter installation - and it did not disappoint. However from my research Victron does not have single 3phase inverter unit. This add complexity and cost for my particular solution - but Victron is still in the running.