Cerbo gx questions

[mick qc]

I’ve been looking at one of these. I want to connect three pieces of hardware my shunt, DCDC charger and my solar controller, all victron..
my question is does the cerbo come with the appropriate cables to connect these or are they something I have to buy separately,,

 

[Two on Tour]

I’ve been looking at one of these. I want to connect three pieces of hardware my shunt, DCDC charger and my solar controller, all victron..
my question is does the cerbo come with the appropriate cables to connect these or are they something I have to buy separately,,

You will need to purchase Victron VE.Direct cables to connect to your Victron devices.

 

[fishplug]

Interestingly, I've just done this using a Raspberry Pi.

A lot cheaper than the Cerbo GX and the software if fully supported by Victron.

Setup is really simple and doesn't need any real computer knowledge to do.

There are YouTube tutorials on how to put the (free) VenusOS onto a microSD card and plug it into your Pi.

After that, you connect to the Pi via bluetooth and configure everything else from the Victron App.

On the suggestion of OldAgeTravellers, I then got a 4-way hub from Duppa which took about a week to arrive and got some cables from them too for a fraction of the price of the VE.Direct cables. The JST connectors are the ones that plug straight into your Victron devices.

The hub needs power from a USB-C cable which is the only other thing you would need to buy.

If you wanted the touch screen monitor then you're straying into slightly more complex territory with a Pi (but again there are lots of online guides you can follow) but I just use the app on my phone.

Not sure if that's a path you want to explore, but it's an option you may not have been aware of.

 

[Two on Tour]

Interestingly, I've just done this using a Raspberry Pi.

A lot cheaper than the Cerbo GX and the software if fully supported by Victron.

Setup is really simple and doesn't need any real computer knowledge to do.

There are YouTube tutorials on how to put the (free) VenusOS onto a microSD card and plug it into your Pi.

After that, you connect to the Pi via bluetooth and configure everything else from the Victron App.

On the suggestion of OldAgeTravellers, I then got a 4-way hub from Duppa which took about a week to arrive and got some cables from them too for a fraction of the price of the VE.Direct cables. The JST connectors are the ones that plug straight into your Victron devices.

The hub needs power from a USB-C cable which is the only other thing you would need to buy.

If you wanted the touch screen monitor then you're straying into slightly more complex territory with a Pi (but again there are lots of online guides you can follow) but I just use the app on my phone.

Not sure if that's a path you want to explore, but it's an option you may not have been aware of.

The RasPi can also monitor other devices such as water and LPG levels, plus temperature sensors as I have on my RasPi

 

[mick qc]

All sounds very interesting. Might look into it. The cerbo is now £185

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[mick qc]

You will need to purchase Victron VE.Direct cables to connect to your Victron devices.

Ouch. There not cheap.
Don’t know why I’m surprised

 

[Two on Tour]

Ouch. There not cheap.
Don’t know why I’m surprised

You can make your own for about a fiver each, which is what I have done.
I can point you in the right direction of where to buy what you need if you want to go that route.

 

[mick qc]

You can make your own for about a fiver each, which is what I have done.
I can point you in the right direction of where to buy what you need if you want to go that route.

Yes please. Thanks

 

[Abacist]

Of course the whole point is to get data about your installation sent up to be stored by Victron on their website so the you can access it from anywhere via a computer, tablet or phone.

You can do the same with bluetooth from within or close to the van but not if you want to monitor a van over winter in a storage yard remote from your house.

You therefore also need an onboard device like a router with a data sim in it to let the Cerbo transmit its data up to Victron which is a further cost to consider if you don't have one already. I am now using a 1p mobile SIM since my IQ contract was cancelled when they moved to a fair use policy for roaming.

 

[mick qc]

Of course the whole point is to get data about your installation sent up to be stored by Victron on their website so the you can access it from anywhere via a computer, tablet or phone.

You can do the same with bluetooth from within or close to the van but not if you want to monitor a van over winter in a storage yard remote from your house.

You therefore also need an onboard device like a router with a data sim in it to let the Cerbo transmit its data up to Victron which is a further cost to consider if you don't have one already. I am now using a 1p mobile SIM since my IQ contract was cancelled when they moved to a fair use policy for roaming.

Yes. I have the ZTE 5001 and an IQ sim.

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[Buster30]

Can you install the Cerbo and get the display on an iPad or iPhone, would like to install it but don’t want the gx display but would like to mimic the screen

 

[mick qc]

Can you install the Cerbo and get the display on an iPad or iPhone, would like to install it but don’t want the gx display but would like to mimic the screen

I don’t think you can but you can view on the victron portal

 

[AdrianChen]

Can you install the Cerbo and get the display on an iPad or iPhone, would like to install it but don’t want the gx display but would like to mimic the screen

Yes - The Cerbo can join the local WIFI network on the van, or you can connect to the Cerbo's own WIFI, and show the Console over the local network, even through a smart TV if you have one! I use the Mifi to monitor the van in storage but that's over the internet through Victron Remote Monitoring.

 

[Buster30]

Does the portal show this screen / if you log directly onto the cerbo do you do it through the normal Victron app ?

 

[mick qc]

Just updated the victron app on my phone and it gives you a lot more detail on the main screen.
Considering the only 3 devices I would be connecting to the cerbo have all the data on the app, is it worth the extra cost.
Only difference is I can view online without having to be in Bluetooth range as in the app

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[AdrianChen]

Just updated the victron app on my phone and it gives you a lot more detail on the main screen.
Considering the only 3 devices I would be connecting to the cerbo have all the data on the app, is it worth the extra cost.
Only difference is I can view online without having to be in Bluetooth range as in the app

Thats the idea of the Bluetooth smart network, you can connect the various devices together over bluetooth, to get most of the functionality in a small system that you would get by cabling everything and using a Cerbo for a larger (expensive) system. If you don't need remote monitoring or extensive history, then stick with Connect, and connect all your devices to a BlueTooth Smart Network so they share voltage data. Good if your shunt has a temp sensor attached, then Voltage and Temp is shared, so with LA batteries temp compensation works well, and if Lithium you can cut off charging at say 5 degrees C. Orion XS B2B is much better with the networking stuff than the older Orions, but not sure which you have.....

 

[mick qc]

Cheers
Yes just connected the Orion xs 50a.
I’ve always used the connect app even with older Orion.
But now with the upgraded app all the data is on the home page.
Don’t have a temp sensor as I have agm bats. Would get one if I ever got lithium.
I did think about connecting my water gauges but it seems I’d need the tank device as I have the cbe gauges.
So more expense.

 

[AdrianChen]

Cheers
Yes just connected the Orion xs 50a.
I’ve always used the connect app even with older Orion.
But now with the upgraded app all the data is on the home page.
Don’t have a temp sensor as I have agm bats. Would get one if I ever got lithium.
I did think about connecting my water gauges but it seems I’d need the tank device as I have the cbe gauges.
So more expense.

With AGM a temp sensor will allow the chargers to use temp compensation which will be good for the batteries in cold or hot conditions.

Yes mine uses CBE stuff, the two prong type senders, so need a tank unit or I would have done that too. When the senders gum up I'll change to something more accurate and pop them on the victron system......