@BLUETTI_CARE There is one test I did not do during my review of the Elite 100 v2, due to the device being installed in my 4 x4.
This is in relation to my observation, along with others, relative to the 1,800W inverter not running compressor devices such as Refrigerators and small RV Air Conditioners. Especially, in that the devices I have work from a Honda petrol (Gas) generator with a constant load of only 1,600W.
As noted in other posts, I have a 375W Victron PSW Bluesmart inverter which I have now removed from my 4x4 as it will not charge the Elite 100. One of the tests during my initial review was on my small drinks fridge. It is a 90lt fridge with a small (ice cubes) freezer section, running on 240VAC at a rated 90W, not a high load.
It failed to run from the Elite 100 v2 and since then I have tested it to run from all of the power stations I have. AC70, AC180 & AC200P. This fridge FAILED to run on any of them.
On to this mornings test, I connected the Victron 375W inverter to a spare fully charged 100Ah LFP. The Fridge was then connected to the inverter with a power meter. It WORKED perfectly at between 55-60W draw. (When the compressor started it was 60W and stabilised at 55-56W).
When trying to run from any of my Bluetti’s, the compressor made clicking noises and the power meter wattage shot up to around double what it draws from grid power, then zero and repeated this for around 30 seconds, at which point I cut power to prevent damage to the fridge.
So, my question is this - If the fridge works seemlessly from the grid at 240-242VAC at around the 60W power draw and works seemlessly from a Victron 375W Inverter at a similar power draw and at 230VAC, Why does it not work at 230VAC from a 1,000W, 1,800W or 2,000W Bluetti inverter?
Given that it works from a 375W inverter, Start up or in rush current is definitely not a factor.
Hmm that’s interesting! What frequency is your bluetti set to? Being your using 240v, I’m assuming you’re located in the EU? In which you should probably be set to 50hz rather then 60hz here in the states. It’s odd cause you mentioned none of the other bluetti’s would power it either when I use a little eb3a to power a freezer as a backup power source for over 3 years now, and haven’t had issues with that old little beast. What error code is popping up?
I am located in AU “down under” and yes all of my power stations are set to 50Hz (Set on delivery, but non the less checked by me)
Not to restate that said several times in other posts. I have a total of 5 fridges. Three, are the 4x4 Engel, the RV Dometic 110lt and the 30lt RV drawer fridge. They are all nominal 12V fridges, the 30lt 12VDC only (hardwired). The Engel is a different compressor and inbuilt power supply. The 110lt is a 12V run from the house batteries, its 240VAC supply is a power brick that converts 240VAC to 12VDC. Their 240VAC inputs all work from Bluetti’s
My main home fridge is a 240VAC only inverter model at 540lt (not small) It works from all the power stations stations. With one reservation - Although it works from the Elite 100v2, the Watts on the power meter are higher than the grid, the other Bluetti AC*** and the E100’s display shows double that load. (Not normal and noted in my previous testing posts)
The issue I highlighted is the Husky 90lt drinks fridge I own, rated at 90W, it won’t work from any of the noted PS’s, but will from the Victron inverter or Grid with no issue.
Believe me, I have tried everything I can think of. (FYI I am a retired electro/mech designer, with Quals in both fields, the last 30yrs in Aerospace R&D). Simple logic speaks to me saying, “process of elimination points to something in the design or componentry of the Bluettis this fridge does not like”. Others have noted fridges, airconditioners & dehumidifiers experiencing similar problems.
I am not disrespecting the Bluettis, I really like them. They power my RV’s 240VAC devices, except the aircon and my home grid out backup. Everything else works well. My experience tells me that designing for every device out there will run into some hurdles, lol.
Alsio noted, my RV Aircon draws around 1,200W, it works from a Honda 2kVA with a continuous run of 1,600W. Yet an 1,800W power station continuous run load won’t. It’s compressor “hammer’s” and won’t run. (I only powered it for around 10 seconds as I did not want to blow up the aircon.
I just need to remember to turn off the Husky fridge before throwing the generator transfer switch over to power stations in a grid out and never run the RV aircon from one. 
Just in case you ask - Yes all Firmware is up to date and regularly checked. Except the 200P, not App connected.
I had an issue with my chest freezer using the E100V2. The compressor would start, with E100v2’s display saying it is pulling 2x the expected power, then stop after less than a minute, only to try and repeat again later. The freezer would never really run. My larger Apex300 and real utility grid doesn’t have issue. I corresponded with BLUETTI on this and eventually received a firmware update, after the update, my freezer would run fine, even though the E100v2 wattage indicator is 30% higher than an inline measurement using another power meter. I attributed that to measuring VA rather than Watts given the inductive power factor. What firmware are you on?
@snowstorm The same as you
IOT v8024.11
ARM v2186.14
DSP v2200.12
BMS v1083.07
And yes, my 2 x AC70, 3 x AC180 and Charger 1 are all up to date as well. However that update is recent, so standby I’ll recheck the Husky using the Elite 100v2…
Oki, 10 minutes later, lol - I rechecked the Elite 100 operating the Husky, Lo & Behold, it works. The compressor runs smothly, however, I have the same issue as you note.
As pictured, the App shows a 94W AC load, the Elite’s display shows a 92W AC load (close enough). However my external power meter shows the actual load the fridge is using is 52.7W, that’s a 39W difference.
@BLUETTI_CARE So, I’ll tag this to Bluetti; Given the fridge is using 53W and the Elite 100’s display is showing 92W being provided, does this mean that almost 75% more power is being provided to run this fridge? Or, a more pertinent Q is, When calculating run time, should I use the Elite’s displayed W rather than the actual power consumed?
My second Q. To date, none of my AC70s or AC180s will run this fridge. Can a similar firmware update be provided to those power stations to correct a similar issue? Please forward to the Tech Team for analysis.
And from my perspective, a big thankyou for this latest update re the Elite 100. I will retest my AC70s & AC180s operating this fridge, recheck their update versions and post the results later today.
FYI, the first AC180 was a pre password version, the other 2 I own, have that App function. does this make any difference to their functionality re firmware update?
I’ve retested one of my AC70s & my original AC180 to run the Husky fridge;
- Their respective Firmware versions are both at the latest versions.
- The AC70, showed 53.8W from the power meter, and 102W from both the App & AC70 display. However, there was a clicking noise when my ear was against the fridge cabinet.
- The AC180’s display and external power meter, shot up to 478W for around 7 seconds, then cut out all together. (The Fridge cutout, not the AC180) I ended the testing as this is 5 times the rated maximum of the fridge.
I then reconnected the Elite 100 to the fridge. When the thermostat restarted it showed the same results as my previous pictured post working ok, no clicking. Finally fridge back to grid and low 50sW draw, working ok. So at least I didn’t blow up the compressor.
Conclusion - The AC70 worked after a fashion, but with the clicking noise, I would not risk long term use, The AC180 watts surge, means I definitely won’t be running that fridge from any of the AC180s and as they are the Grid backup units, I still need to disconnect it from its power outlet before transferring power for the house to the AC180s. I would then need to connect it directly to the Elite 100 if I wanted a cold beer, lol.
You may need to give the fridge a 5 min break if you disconnect power while the compressor is running, before plugging it back in. It builds up pressure and the next start would be really hard, which may cause the surge and give up situation.
I wonder if the E100V2’s display which reads high is showing VA including reactive power while the external watt meter is measuring real power only. Fridge compressors are highly inductive and that may cause the difference.
I’ll keep this in mind, I’ve packed everything away for today, but will try again at some oportune time.
Does your Husky fridge has a “conventional” compressor with one of those PTC starting circuits? My Wallmart small Fridgidair would not run propery until the latest FW.
There is something odd about the inverter and the PTC device where it seems it not heating up enough to fully disconnect the start circuit.
But my E100V2 has no trouble running my old school small window AC.
Regarding your watt display, I used one of the kill-a-watt style plug in meters and it shows ~60watts where as the E100V2 shows like 150 or so.
I don’t know what kind it is, but its a Cheapy.
@SoulGen No I haven’t, the type pictured is of no use here in AU - 240VAC.
However, I will try that a different way. The fridge has a 3 pin plug including earth. If I connect the AC180 to the wall outlet, but with the power switched off, the earth pin will earth the AC180 at its outlets and the ground screw. They are all connected internally and yes I have checked continuity.
Then try running the fridge from the 180’s inverter. But that, as mentioned will need to wait a day or two as I have other priorities.
I’ll post the results once I have done this as I also need to let the compressor rest as noted by @snowstorm, when I try.
Hi @Mandp, Regarding this question, please note that the AC70, AC180 and Elite 100 V2’s LED screen displays apparent power, which includes active power and reactive power. Therefore, the value displayed will be higher than that recorded by your electricity meter. This is normal.
The instantaneous power of a refrigerator’s compressor during startup can be several times higher than its rated power. This can cause the AC70 and AC180 to be unable to handle the load of this refrigerator. Currently, we do not have firmware that can increase the output power.
Regarding the password issue you mentioned on the AC180, I’m not entirely sure which type of password you are referring to. Could you please provide a screenshot for clarification?
@BLUETTI_CARE The password I refer to is the Bluetooth password. My first AC180 did not and does not have that function. Whereas a year or so later the 2 additional units, I purchased, do. (This is set in the App)
Some More Testing - I recently purchased a 2,000W Induction Cooktop for my RV and whilst testing it, decided to compare the AC180 & the Elite 100 v2 running it and the RV 700W microwave oven.
As the microwave is the easier, it’s first, here are the results.
Of note, the actual load W is reasonable close to the rated W measured on the power meter. The provided power from both the AC180 & Elite 100 were also similar to each other, but approx 15% higher than that used. This is to be expected, give Bluetti’s comments above.
Next post Induction Cooker…
After scrolling through the various settings, the induction cooktop can be adjusted from 300W, 500W, 800W and then in 200W increments to 2,000W. I noted via the power meter, that when set to 300 & 500W the induction did the stop start to average that power, so did not include that data. I also found during testing, that at 1,800W & 2,000W, the load exceeded the 1,800W limit of the Elite 100 & AC180. Therefore also no data.
Here are the results -
Of note, the loads measured, either each Power Station’s display or the Power Meter were similar for both units. Also, the difference between display & power meter was noted, but a lower % than when using the microwave.
Conclusions;
- The current up to date firmware of the Elite 100 has resolved all of my issues during original testing in PT 1.
- So far, all my devices seem to work in the same manner from either power staation and at similar power consumption and supply.
- As a replacement for the AC180, the Elite 100 v2 does everything it does and more. I’m still to find a use for the 2 x D5521 ports as I have no devices that use them.
As an aside - The maximum wattage I can safely use with the induction cooktop is 1,600. That still gives it a lot of uses for my needs. Plus, at around 11kg, the Elite is a much better option than my AC200P at over 27kg.
Hi @Mandp, Thank you for your confirmation. That’s correct — only the newer version of the AC180 comes with the built-in Bluetooth password feature, which was added later.
We also appreciate you sharing your test results. It’s great to hear that the Elite 100 V2 performed so well. Your feedback will be very helpful for users considering upgrading from the AC180, especially those who often power higher-wattage appliances.
The DC5521 ports are designed for some traditional low-power devices, such as speakers, radios, and routers. We once considered removing this interface in newer models, but decided to keep it after receiving user feedback requesting its retention.
@BLUETTI_CARE - I guess the saying "You can please some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time…etc goes a long way, lol.
I’m heading away at the end of next week for 7 days and am really going to see what the Elite will do. I’ll be remote, no cell service and using Starlink for coms, email etc. I’ll be taking the Elite 100, one of my AC70s and a spare 100Ah LFP. The ingredient missing, I’m not taking a fuel generator with me.
I’ll have an on roof 160W panel and 2 x 150W on ground angled solar mats to charge my 200Ah house batteries. Also, 2 x 120W solar blankets, that I can get some angle on half of them when on the 4x4 roof & hood for the power stations. Plus, the Charger 1 as a back up, providing I go for a drive, which I’m not intending to do much of. The AC70 will be in car to power Starlink as required, the Elite 100 will be for 240VAC use in my caravan. (microwave. induction cooktop etc.)
A diary will be kept where I will log times on and used, loads and SOCs etc which I’ll post on return. This might help others estimate run times and or charging cycles. The spare 100Ah LFP has approx 1,300Wh of spare capacity and initially I’ll use this to charge the Power Stations via the Charger 1 if needs be. It will have a DC power meter between the LFP and C1 to record what is used.
Between the house batteries, power stations and spare LFP, I’ll have approx. 4.7kWh of capacity before needing to drive. As I have a total of 700W of Solar, hopefully the weather Gods will keep me self sufficient. I will note that info as well, including solar harvest data. Stay tuned, lol.
<Hopefully, I’ve sized my system correctly, but theory is one thing, practical use might be totally different.