Seeking clarification on AC200PL UPS Modes: PV Priority and Customized UPS

Product Discussion BLUETTI Apex & AC Series
1

Dear community,

I would appreciate your help in clarifying how the BLUETTI AC200PL operates in PV Priority UPS and Customized UPS modes.

1. PV Priority UPS mode

Am I correct in understanding that when PV Priority UPS mode is selected and the charge limit is set, for example, to 50%:

  • When SoC is between 50–100%, the unit stops charging from the grid and switches to charging from PV only?
  • At that point, does the load stop being powered via grid bypass and instead get powered from the battery (with PV supporting the battery if available)?

Is this behavior correct?

2. Customized UPS mode

2.1 Customized UPS – Only Grid, No PV

Settings:

  • Charge limits: 20–80%
  • Time of Use: OFF
  • Charge From Grid: ON

Is the behavior as follows?

  • If SoC < 20% → both battery charging and load are supplied from the grid.
  • If SoC is 20–80% → battery charging and load are still supplied from the grid.
  • If SoC > 80% → battery stops charging, and the load is powered from the grid via bypass.

Is this correct?

2.2 Customized UPS – Grid and PV

Settings:

  • Charge limits: 20–80%
  • Time of Use: OFF
  • Charge From Grid: ON

Is the behavior as follows?

  • If SoC < 20% → both battery charging and load are supplied from the grid.
  • If SoC is 20–80% → battery charging and load are supplied from the grid.
  • If SoC > 80% → battery charging continues from PV, and the load is powered from the grid via bypass.

Is this correct?

2.3 Customized UPS – Grid and PV with Time of Use ON

Settings:

  • Charge limits: 20–80%
  • Time of Use: ON
  • Charge From Grid: ON

Is the behavior as follows?

  • If SoC < 20% → both battery charging and load are supplied from the grid regardless of Time of Use settings.
  • If SoC is 20–80% → during Discharge Time, charging and load are powered from PV.
  • If SoC > 80% → during Discharge Time, both battery charging and load are powered from PV.

Is my understanding correct?

Thank you in advance for your clarification!

2

Correct. PV Priority doesn’t mean it ONLY charges from solar, it just prioritizes it from the range you set. If you had solar and then a bad rain storm hit and you got 0 watts, it would operate as a normal grid power UPS at that point, even if the percentage is 75%. If your solar can’t keep up with load demand, once it reaches say 48%, it kicks in grid power to compensate.

The charging circuits each have their own connection to the battery and charging logic.

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For discharging, on the DC side it uses a DC-to-DC converter that regulates the voltage to the corresponding device. For 12V cigarette lighter, its 13.6V I believe, and for the USB appliances, it converts that DC power to whatever the port is (USB Type A (5V/3A), USB C (20V/5A), etc. Even though its DC, you still need to regulate the charge so it doesn’t kill your devices.

When you plug in an AC appliance, the inverter which is connected to the DC side of the battery takes that power and simulate pure sine wave AC power using various electrical components (transistors, oscillators, transformers, etc). Good enough to fool the AC appliances. Though its not perfect. Some compressor based appliances which have high start up surges or lower tolerances CAN tell and will refuse to run, or the waveform will cause the unit to surge and you’ll kill the compressor if you leave it on too long.