MultiPlus II 12/3000 burnt L1 output socket

[Timaz]

I have MultiPlus II 12/3000 with a burnt L1 output socket. That Victron won't warranty. it's 1.5 years old and mounted in my motorhome per the Victron manual. I have a few emails I sent to the national sales person and got nothing, Attached here. I bought it from Inverters R US and don't have a problem with them. Victron will not repair my unit. I had to buy a new one and shipped my unit to them to find out they would not warranty the unit and said they won't repair mine. They are going to ship my unit back and refund the cost of the new LESS $599. When I receive it back I'm going to see if I can have it repaired with screw clamps instead of the spring clamps they use as I see this as the failure. Victron stated it was my fault because I didn't do maintenance on the connections. (I check my connections every 4-6 months). The manual states to check connections every year. You can look on-line and see I'm not the only one having this problem.

If anyone here knows where I can have my original unit changed over to Screw clamp sockets (like the MultiPlus) I would love to know. Hopefully in the southwest.

One email:

Timaz​	Oct 20, 2023, 4:36 PM (12 days ago)
to salesUSACanada, Shaun

I submitted a warranty claim (see subject line for number) for my MultiPlus II that is less than a year and a half old. The A/C output socket burned from arcing. It was denied by Victron for me not doing maintenance. Stating I should have been checking that connections are tight. The manual on page 18 says to check the connections once a year. I live full time in my motorhome and I check all electrical connections for tightness every 4 to 6 months. I was a generator mechanic in the US Army and know the importance of tight electrical connections. I put the cause of the failure on the spring loaded connections on the inverter A/C side. I believe Victron has a better design with the standard MultiPlus as it and every other Victron product I use has screw clamps to tighten wired connections..I'm attaching a picture of required "maintenance" (page 18) from the MultiPus II manual. I am also attaching a copy of my warranty claim. I disagree with Victron not covering this unit under warranty. Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or information you may need.

Kind Regards,

Timothy


Hi Tim,
As discussed, you can use this email as a contact to make a complaint about your warranty claim.
This is the USA Sales manager email address - he will certainly help address any concerns you have
salesUSACanada@victronenergy.com
I have attached a copy of the original form you submitted which includes all your details.
Kind Regards,
Shaun
Shaun Knight
866-419-2616 Ext 9015
shaun@invertersrus.com
www.invertersrus.com

 

[HarryN]

Not dissing on them, but that does not look like a mobile rated connection to me.

A crimped ring lug is mobile rated. Maybe a retained fork. Obviously the mil type bayonet.

So if it were me making that connection, I would usually use either a 10 awg wire plus a ferule or pin terminal.

How close is that to how you had it set up?

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Did you use ferrules?

Victron requires them in this type of connector.



And this is actually a 2x120, not a standard MP II, correct?

 

[Supervstech]

Yikes.
What amperage goes through that connection?

 

[Supervstech]

And the fact MANY are having issue with the unit is the reason YOU cannot get warranty on it.

I bet They don't want to start a precedent

 

[HighTechLab]

Sold hundreds of these inverters and only have had only 1 customer have an issue because they did not strip the wire long enough AND they didn't insert it fully. If you follow my video on how to connect to the spring terminals you will be fine. Everyone wants to make the wires as short as possible and they don't give themselves any flexibility to make the connection properly.

I have one in my personal RV that has been trouble free for two years of heavy use.

That said, if you were my customer, I am setup to repair the inverter with a new PCB, you would be out shipping and the cost of a PCB.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Had to dig a little, but this was the first video I saw on the installation issue:

Proper install requires:

Correct wire type.
Adequate stripped length.
Ferrules.

This connector is installation sensitive, and they have updated the manuals to clarify the requirements.

This is another example of Victron requiring a knowledgeable end user.

I have the 2019 version of Wiring Unlimited, and ferules are mentioned, but with no major emphasis like in the 3/2023 Rev 01 update.

Good chance I would have made the mistake if I didn't have the Quattro with the threaded terminals.

 

[740GLE]

The connections on the MPII are my only hold back on that unit vs just a MP.

I just need a 24v 3k inverter with single 120v output and low idle consumption.