Victron BMV-712 Battery Monitor

This Victron 500A BMV series smart battery monitor uses a high-precision battery shunt designed to expertly measure vital charging and performance data for your batteries. This smart model features additional advanced functions such as Bluetooth communication ability, a secondary input for optional monitoring of an auxiliary battery bank, and an extremely low current draw from the battery bank (0.7Ah per month for a 12V system). Statistics such as battery voltage, charge / discharge current as energy flows in to and out of the battery, Amp Hours consumed, state of charge and time-to-go are displayed on the LCD monitor for convenient viewing. The inbuilt Bluetooth enables remote system monitoring (with real-time data displayed) and programming of settings via any Bluetooth-enabled mobile device, such as a smartphone or tablet.

Battery data

The smart battery shunt measures the vital parameters relating to the battery condition and the energy it receives / provides, and transmits this information to the LCD monitor, where it can be viewed by the user (and where some settings can be amended if necessary). This information includes:

• Battery voltage: Displayed for the main battery / battery bank, and also for an optional auxiliary battery which can be connected via the secondary input.

• Battery midpoint voltage monitoring: For battery banks constructed of several individual batteries, the smart monitor is able to maintain balance by taking the voltage measurements from the midpoint within the bank, and if the voltage deviates from this point of balance, an alarm will be generated. For such battery banks, the voltage value is also displayed for the battery bank as a whole, and additionally, for the 'top section' and 'bottom section' (i.e. 1st half and 2nd half) of the battery bank.

• Battery state of charge: Indicated as a percentage value from 0-100%.

• Battery charging / discharging current and power: The current (A) and power (W) flowing out of the battery (load consumption) are displayed as negative values, while the current and power flowing into the battery are displayed as positive values.

• Battery temperature: The smart monitor can be connected to an optional Victron battery temperature sensor (sold separately. This temperature measurement can be used to adjust available battery capacity as the temperature varies. An alarm will be activated when battery temperature falls outside of the safe range.

• Amp hours consumed: For example, if 12A is drawn from a fully charged battery during a period of 3 hours, the monitor will show -36.0Ah consumed by the battery.

• Time-to-go: The monitor is able to estimate the approximate length of time that the battery will continue to support the current load, before the battery requires re-charging. 

An in-depth data log also records historical data to enable the user to evaluate usage patterns and determine overall battery health. This includes values such as the highest/ lowest recorded voltages (for the main battery and auxiliary battery), deepest recorded discharge, time since last full discharge, cumulative Amp hours drawn, time since last full charge, total energy charged/discharged and many more.

Customisation

The user can set high/low thresholds for battery voltage (either battery), battery state of charge (main battery) or the battery temperature (additional sensor required). If any of the above parameter fall outside of this specified range, the battery shunt will transmit a signal to a relay which activates an audible alarm. When the alarm is triggered, the LCD monitor will sound, the backlight will flash and an alarm symbol will appear on the display. This smart battery monitor has also been designed to minimise power consumption and therefore features a bistable alarm relay, meaning that the current draw remains low regardless of the position of the relay.

Further customisable features include the option to specify which parameters are displayed on the monitor, adjustment of the scrolling speed of the values on screen, the option to 'lock' settings in place, and a fully adjustable backlight on the LCD display.

Advanced communication

This smart battery monitor features inbuilt Bluetooth, enabling the user to wirelessly connect their mobile device to the monitor. Then, using the VictronConnect App on a smartphone or tablet, you will unlock numerous possibilities for advanced programming and remote monitoring of your battery system. 

The VictronConnect app is compatible with most mobile devices and computers, including Android and iOS smartphones, tablets, iPads, MacBooks, Windows PCs/laptops.

Compatibility

This battery monitor is suitable for use with any 12V, 24V or 48V Lead Acid / Gel / AGM / Lithium battery or battery bank. The maximum admissible nominal current through this device using the supplied shunt is 500A.

The following items are supplied with this product: a 10m cable to connect the LCD monitor to the battery shunt, 2 x 1m positive supply cables with a fuse to connect the battery shunt to up to two battery banks, a square frame for the LCD monitor and 4 x mounting screws.

Dimensions:

• LCD monitor diameter (front): 63mm
• LCD monitor diameter (back): 52mm
• LCD monitor depth: 31mm
• LCD monitor square frame: 69 x 69mm
• LCD monitor weight: 70g
• Shunt dimensions: 120 x 25 x 50 mm
• Shunt weight: 315g