Victron MPPT error codes
- Lyall Burgess
- 4 days ago
- 11 min read
On the odd occasion we will receive an email from one of our customers that they're getting an error code on their MPPT controller. Maybe they notice that they're not getting as much solar charging as normal or maybe even no solar at all. Or they might notice a few flashing LED lights on the front of their MPPT controller.
Victron has a great little app called Victron Toolkit which helps identify what all the flashing lights mean on your MPPT controller. This will help you determine what the error code is and next steps to take.
It's a good idea to make sure you have the latest version of the Victron Connect app, and that any firmware updates for the MPPT controller have been completed.
You may see a notification in the app with a red warning triangle, and a message pop up identifying an error code. By clicking on it you will get more detailed info and action to take.
For example in this screengrab:
Error Code 21 - Current sensor issue
The current measurement is out of range.
Disconnect all wires, and then reconnect all wires, to make restart the charger. Also, make sure the minus on the MPPT charge controller (PV minus/Battery minus) is not bypassing the charge controller.
This error will not auto-reset.
If the error remains, please contact your dealer, there might be a hardware defect.
In summary the go to action is often the old "turn it off and on again" trick, but with a few more steps. It does mean disconnecting all the wires to the MPPT controller (solar side and battery side) and letting the MPPT controller sit idle for 5-10 minutes and then re-powering it up again. Before disconnecting the solar wires we would recommend covering the solar panels with a dark towel/blanket, or if possible flipping them upside down, if installed trip the breaker between panels and MPPT or complete this after dark - all steps to help stop the panels being "powered up".
Hopefully this does the trick and you're back up & running charging with solar. If the problem persists send us an email with more info. The next steps on our side will be to contact our Victron dealer to see if they have any recommendations before we ship the controller back to them for diagnosis. They will then recommend repair or replace and if this is under the Victron warranty.
The Victron MPPT controllers do have a 5-year warranty, but there are a few scenarios where it will not be honored if there has been incorrect installation. The Victron dealer is very good at recognizing where the fault is and will happily replace if the Victron equipment is at fault.
Below are some of the Victron MPPT Error Codes, click the button for the full list of MPPT and Inverter error codes:
Err 1 - Battery temperature too high
This error will auto-reset after the battery temperature has dropped. The charger will stop charging to prevent damaging the battery. The battery temperature can be received by an external sensor (like Smart Battery Sense or BMV), or measured by the charger when this feature is available.
Err 2 - Battery voltage too high
This error will auto-reset after the battery voltage has dropped. This error can be due to other charging equipment connected to the battery or a fault in the charge controller. This error can also occur if the battery voltage (12, 24 48V) is set to a lower voltage than the connected battery.
Err 3, Err 4 - Remote temperature sensor failure
Check if the T-sense connector is properly connected to a remote temperature sensor. Most likely cause: the remote T-sense connector is connected to the BAT+ or BAT- terminal. This error will auto-reset after proper connection.
Err 5 - Remote temperature sensor failure (connection lost)
Check if the T-sense connector is properly connected to a remote temperature sensor. This error will not auto-reset.
Err 6, Err 7 - Remote battery voltage sense failure
Check if the V-sense connector is properly connected to the battery terminals. Most likely cause: the remote V-sense connector is connected in reverse polarity to the BAT+ or BAT- terminals.
Err 8 - Remote battery voltage sense failure (connection lost)
Check if the V-sense connector is properly connected to the battery terminals.
Err 11 - Battery high ripple voltage
High DC ripple is usually caused by loose DC cable connections and/or too thin DC wiring. After the inverter has switched off due to high DC ripple voltage, it waits 30 seconds and then restarts.
After three restarts followed by a shutdown due to high DC ripple within 30 seconds of restarting, the inverter will shutdown and stops retrying. To restart the inverter, switch it Off and then On.
Continuous high DC ripple reduces the inverter life expectancy
Err 14 - Battery low temperature
The charger is stopped to avoid charging LiFePO4 batteries at low temperature as this damages the cells.
Err 17 - Controller overheated despite reduced output current
This error will auto-reset after charger has cooled down. Check the ambient temperature and check for obstructions near the heatsink.
Err 18 - Controller over-current
This error will auto-reset. If the error does not auto-reset disconnect the charge controller from all power-sources, wait 3 minutes, and power up again.
Possible causes for an over-current on the battery terminals:
switching on/off a very large load on the battery side.
sudden change in irradiance causing a temporary over-power in the mppt.
overloading the inverter ac output.
Possible solutions:
if possible provide adequate cooling for the unit, a cooler unit can handle more current.
reduce the load on the inverter.
charge the battery before using the inverter, at higher battery voltages the same amount of power requires less current.
Err 20 - Maximum Bulk-time exceeded
Solar Chargers:
The maximum bulk time protection is a feature that was in the chargers when they were just released (2015 or earlier) and later the feature was removed.
If you do see this error, then update to the latest firmware.
If you then still have the error, perform a reset to factory defaults of the configuration, and reconfigure the solar charger.
AC Chargers:
This protection is default enabled on the Skylla-i and the Skylla IP44.
This error is generated when the battery-absorption-voltage is not reached after 10 hours of charging.
The feature of this safety protection is to detect a shorted cell; and stop charging.
Err 21 - Current sensor issue
The current measurement is out of range.
Disconnect all wires, and then reconnect all wires, to make restart the charger. Also, make sure the minus on the MPPT charge controller (PV minus/Battery minus) is not bypassing the charge controller.
This error will not auto-reset.
If the error remains, please contact your dealer, there might be a hardware defect.
Err 22, Err 23 - Internal temperature sensor failure
The internal temperature measurements are out of range.
Disconnect all wires, and then reconnect all wires, to restart the unit.
This error will not auto-reset.
If the error remains, please contact your dealer, there might be a hardware defect.
Err 24 - Fan failure
This error indicates that the fan is powered on but the circuit does not measure any current draw by the fan. Most likely its either broken or obstructed.
Please contact your dealer, there might be a hardware defect.
Applies to Skylla-IP44 & Skylla-IP65 chargers only.
Err 26 - Terminal overheated
Power terminals overheated, check wiring, including the wiring type and type of strands, and/or fasten bolts if possible.
This error will auto-reset.
Err 27 - Charger short circuit
This condition indicates an over-current condition on the battery side. It can occur when a battery is attached to the unit using a contactor. Or in case the charger starts up without a battery connected but connected to an inverter that has a large input capacitance.
This error will auto-reset. If the error does not auto-reset disconnect the charge controller from all power-sources, wait 3 minutes, and power up again. If the error persists the charge controller is probably faulty.
Err 28 - Power stage issue
This error will not auto-reset.
Disconnect all wires, and then reconnect all wires. If the error persists the charge controller is probably faulty.
Note that this error was introduced in v1.36. So when doing an update, it might look like the firmware update caused this issue; but it doesn't. The Solar charger was then already not performing 100% before the update; updating to v1.36 or later merely made the issue more visible. The unit needs to be replaced.
Err 29 - Over-Charge protection
This error will auto-reset once the battery voltage drops below the float voltage. To protect the battery from over-charging the battery is disconnected.
Possible causes:
Over-sized PV array configuration, if there are too many panels in series the battery voltage cannot be reduced any further. Consider wiring more PV panels in parallel to reduce the voltage.
Configuration issue, check if the battery settings match with the installation (especially absorption and float voltage settings).
another charger in the system raises the battery voltage above the expected level.
Err 33 - PV over-voltage
This error will auto-reset after PV-voltage has dropped to safe limit. This error is an indication that the PV-array configuration with regard to open-circuit voltage is critical for this charger. Check configuration, and if required, re-organise panels.
Err 34 - PV over-current
The current from the solar-panel array has exceeded the rated current limit. This error could be generated due to an internal system fault. Disconnect the charger from all power-sources, wait 3 minutes, and power-up again. If the error persists the controller is probably faulty, contact your dealer.
Err 35 - PV over-power
Applies to the MPPT RS, Inverter RS and Multi RS products.
Please upgrade your firmware to at least v1.08 as the issues causing this error have been addressed.
If you are using firmware v1.08 or newer this error indicates that the internal dc voltage is too high. This error will auto-reset. If the error does not auto-reset disconnect the charge controller from all power-sources, wait 3 minutes, and power up again. If the error persists the charge controller is probably faulty.
Err 38, Err 39 and Err 80 to Err 87 - PV Input shutdown
When these errors show, the PV Input is internally shorted in order to protect the battery from over-charging.
Prior to any other trouble shooting, make sure to update to the latest firmware version.
Possible reasons for this error to occur:
The Battery voltage (12/24/36/48V) is set incorrectly. Use VictronConnect to set the right Battery Voltage.
There is another device connected to the battery, which is configured to a higher voltage. For example a MultiPlus, configured to equalise at 17 Volts, while in the MPPT this is not configured.
Error recovery:
Error 38 and Errors 84 to 87: First disconnect the solar panels and disconnect the battery. Wait for 3 minutes, then reconnect the battery first and next the panels.
Error 39: The charger will automatically resume operation once the battery voltage drops below its maximum voltage setting (normally Equalisation or Absorption voltages). It can also takes a minute to reset the fault.
Errors 80 to 83: First disconnect the solar panels and disconnect the battery, then follow the reset procedure described here.
If the error persists the charge controller is probably faulty.
Err 40 - PV Input failed to shutdown
If the charger is unable to turn off the PV input, it will go into a safe mode in order to protect the battery from over-charging or having a high voltage on the battery terminals. In order to do that, the charger will stop charging and disconnect its own output. The charger will become faulty.
Err 114 - CPU temperature too high
This error will reset after the CPU has cooled down. If the error persists, check the ambient temperature and check for obstructions near the air inlet and outlet holes of the charger cabinet. Check manual for mounting instructions with regard to cooling. If error persists the controller is probably faulty.
Err 116 - Calibration data lost
If the unit does not work and error 116 pops up as the active error the unit is faulty, contact your dealer for a replacement.
If the error is only present in the history data and the unit operates normally this error can be ignored safely. Explanation: when the units power up for the very first time in the factory, it does not have calibration data and an error 116 is logged. Obviously this should have been cleared, but in the beginning units left the factory with this message still in the history data.
SmartSolar models (not the BlueSolar models): upgrading to v1.4x firmware is a one-way trip, you cannot go back to an older firmware version once you upgrade to v1.4x. Reverting to older firmware gives error 116 (calibration data lost), this can be fixed by re-installing the v1.4x firmware.
Err 117 - Incompatible firmware
This error indicates that a firmware update did not complete, so the device is only partially updated. Possible causes are: device out of range when updating over the air, a cable got disconnected or power was lost during the update session.
To fix this the update needs to be retried, download the correct firmware for your device from the Victron Professional Portal
When your GX device is connected to VRM, you can do a remote firmware update using this firmware file. You can do this via the VRM website or using the VRM tab in VictronConnect. VictronConnect can also be used together with the firmware file to update using a Bluetooth connection.
The procedure to add the file to VictronConnect and start the update is described here: 9. Firmware updates
Err 119 - Settings data lost
The charger cannot read its configuration and stopped.
This error will not auto-reset. To get it working again:
First, restore it to factory defaults. (top right in Victron Connect, click on the three dots)
Disconnect the charge controller from all power-sources
wait 3 minutes, and power up again.
Reconfigure the charger.
Please do report this to your Victron dealer and ask him to escalate it to Victron; as this error should never happen. Preferably include firmware version and any other specifics (VRM URL, VictronConnect screenshots or similar).
Err 121 - Tester fail
If the unit does not work and error 121 pops up as the active error the unit is faulty, contact your dealer for a replacement.
If the error is only present in the history data and the unit operates normally this error can be ignored safely. Explanation: when the units powers up for the very first time in the factory, it does not have calibration data and an error 121 is logged. Obviously this should have been cleared, but in the beginning units left the factory with this message still in the history data.
Err 200 - Internal DC voltage error
The unit performs internal diagnostics when activating its internal DC-DC converter. This error indicates that something is wrong with the DC-DC converter.
This error will not auto-reset. Check the installation and restart the unit using the power-switch. If the error persists the unit is probably faulty.
Err 201 - Internal DC voltage error
Applies to the MPPT RS, Inverter RS and Multi RS.
This “Internal DC voltage measurement error”, is raised in case an internal (high-) voltage measurement does not match certain criteria.
First, make sure to update the firmware to v1.08 or later. The limits were too strict in earlier versions. And it could trigger falsely during MPPT start-up in the morning and MPPT shutdown in the evening.
If the error still occurs after updating to v1.08 or later, then it means that a measurement circuit inside the unit is broken.
This error will not auto-reset. Check the installation and restart the unit using the power-switch. If the error persists, even after above mentioned firmware update, the unit is most likely faulty and must be sent in for repair/replacement.
Err 202 - Internal GFCI sensor error
The sensor used to measure residual current did not pass the internal self-test.
This error will not auto-reset. Check the installation and restart the unit using the power-switch. If the error persists the unit is probably faulty and must be sent in for repair/replacement.
Err 203, Err 205, Err 212, Err 215 - Internal supply voltage error
The unit performs internal diagnostics when activating its internal voltage supplies. This error indicates that something is wrong with an internal supply voltage.
This error will not auto-reset. Check the installation and restart the unit using the power-switch. If the error persists the unit is probably faulty.
