What type and size of cable for a victron mains charger

[Donk]

Hi all I would like to fit a victron mains charger IP22 smart charger I have a 300Ah lithium battery the battery will be 1 mtr from the charger and will be going direct via a 30 amp breaker fuse could any members give me advice on size and type of cable that would be best
many thanks in advance Dave aka Donk

 

[funflair]

The terminals take 16mm2 cable so I would go with that and it will be on top of the job, if you know the cable run length you could double check here,

Four metre run at 30A is 2.5% voltage drop.

 

[Two on Tour]

I used a flexible multi strand 10mm2 rated at 70amp on my IP22, anything bigger is spending more money than needed.

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[autorouter]

There are various models of Victron IP22 charger, for example I have a 15A version. Which model do you have? I expect with 300Ah of lithium it will be more than 15A.

For a 1 metre run, I think 16mm2 is a bit OTT, with a voltage drop of 0.63%. 6mm2 would give a voltage drop of 1.4%.

If it's a 30A charger, then a 30A breaker is too low. The charger will be pushing out a constant 30A for maybe hours, so the breaker would be always at its limit. A 50A breaker would be better.

 

[Donk]

Hi thanks for the advice the charger is a 30amp so the advise for a 50 amp fuse gratefully received thankyou
Dave aka Donk

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[cmcardle75]

6mm will do fine, unless Victron recommend more.

Thicker would be better, but not strictly necessary, unless the cable is routed through insulation, where current capacity of the cable may drop below 30A, or if grouped with other high current cables, which might require a grouping adjustment.

Big fat cables are more useful for high current applications (particularly inverters) and split charge relays, where voltage drop is much more critical in terms of charging speed. In a smart charger application, the charger will just up the voltage to compensate for the voltage drop during bulk phase.

 

[cmcardle75]

Hi thanks for the advice the charger is a 30amp so the advise for a 50 amp fuse gratefully received thankyou
Dave aka Donk

I'd go for 40A unless recommended otherwise. You could almost go for 30A, but I guess the charger isn't 100% efficient and 30A is the output rating. You don't want to fuse too high, or you'll end up with less effective short circuit protection.

 

[cmcardle75]

I'd go for 40A unless recommended otherwise. You could almost go for 30A, but I guess the charger isn't 100% efficient and 30A is the output rating. You don't want to fuse too high, or you'll end up with less effective short circuit protection.

Actually scratch that. It's the output fuse we're talking about, not the input one! I would use 30A after all, as the device limits current to that value. You don't have to allow any wiggle room, that is already accounted for.

 

[gerry mcg]

6mm2 cable is rated at 50A, so should be adequate