Hi guys. So I started with my solar installation and opted to go bigger from 10 kWatt to 15 kWatt. I now have 36 Canadian Solar 405 watt panels and a 15kWatt Victron Inverter. I have 3 Victron 250/100 MPPT solar chargers all interfaced to a Victron Octo GX controller. The equipment is mounted inside my garage but I would like to view what's happening via a monitor inside the house.

Is it possible to connect a Victron Color Control GX or any other monitor to the Octo GX controller? I would like to fix a monitor inside my kitchen which is about 15 meters away from the garage. With the monitor in the kitchen everyone would be able to see the current battery power consumption and load without having to use a phone.

Any ideas?

3 hours ago, Russell said:

Is it possible to connect a Victron Color Control GX or any other monitor to the Octo GX controller?

Possible, yes. Easy for the average non-computer programmer... no.

The easiest way to do it is mount a tablet of some kind on the wall and browse to the console on the Venus device.

Hi Russel

You can also look into the Victron canvu-gx I think that it would solve your problem.

https://www.victronenergy.com/panel-systems-remote-monitoring/canvu-gx

Next best thing would be to use a tablet like plonkster mentioned.

But I think this is more off an replacement doubt that it can connect to the venus-gx.

2 hours ago, andriesmalan said:

canvu-gx

Canvu is more for the marine market. If you look at it carefully, it has more in common with Raymarine or Garmin MFDs. Also, that's not really a "remote" panel, it's a new device, as you noted.

The Octo-GX is a beaglebone, just like the Venus-GX. It just provides more connections. So this issue is analogous to having a remote console for the Venus-GX, and the way to do that is a web browser on some kind of tablet.

The downside at the moment: Only one concurrent connection is allowed. So you can't have multiple displays, and if you connect from one device the others will be disconnected and you'd have to "swipe down to reload" them.

You could also look at the MFD integration web app, by appending /app/ to the end of the url. Or you can look at deepsquater's dashboard which does something similar, making a web application that feeds from mqtt.

7 hours ago, Russell said:

Is it possible to connect a Victron Color Control GX or any other monitor to the Octo GX controller? I would like to fix a monitor inside my kitchen which is about 15 meters away from the garage. With the monitor in the kitchen everyone would be able to see the current battery power consumption and load without having to use a phone.

Sorry, what am I missing? Why not use a small tablet in the kitchen that connects to the Octo's to show you all you need either via WiFi or a network cable?

2 minutes ago, The Terrible Triplett said:

Sorry, what am I missing? Why not use a small tablet in the kitchen that connects to the Octo's to show you all you need either via WiFi or a network cable?

The complaint I get most often is only one connection is allowed. So if I access it from my phone... then the display in the kitchen dies until I reload it.

There are ways to auto-reload it, for example there are auto-reload plugins for chrome. So you can hack it quite nicely. I'm just pointing out the whole exercise has some caveats to it 🙂

Edit: Also, some people want to hide the "soft buttons" on the right. Again, possible with some CSS hackery, but someone has to do the work.

Edited August 30, 20196 yr by plonkster

3 minutes ago, plonkster said:

Edit: Also, some people want to hide the "soft buttons" on the right. Again, possible with some CSS hackery, but someone has to do the work.

THIS - it needs to be "read-only" cause of kids, domestics etc.

5 minutes ago, deapsquatter said:

THIS - it needs to be "read-only" cause of kids, domestics etc.

The promise of broken fingers can go far they say. And tell them there is a camera and you can see who did it. 🙂 

But, hold on ... someone did remove the buttons ... I just cannot remember who? 

 

9 minutes ago, plonkster said:

The complaint I get most often is only one connection is allowed.

There is also this, the App.

How many times a day do you think your domestic will hit that Off button? No thank you 🙂 Not for a kitchen tablet.

Edited August 30, 20196 yr by deapsquatter

5 minutes ago, The Terrible Triplett said:

But, hold on ... someone did remove the buttons ... I just cannot remember who? 

 

I did - it just looked a bit fugly.

Just now, deapsquatter said:

How many times a day do you think your domestic will hit that Off button? No thank you 🙂

Sounds to me that:
1) you don't trust much.
2) people living with you is out to get you!
3) you believe all drivers on the roads stop at stop streets and robots - they don't yet you let your family drive around.

🤣

No serious. There is a time to worry and then there is a time to trust people to not to push buttons.

And if they touch ... like one of my pals always had this need to push the button on my inverter ... so he did it ONCE.
So I went to his house ONCE after that and promptly switched off their main breaker on their DB.
Ja, ok, the wifes did not find it funny at all with the kids getting excited and all that but I can laugh at myself ... the tears where flowing so they eventually they all joined me in laughter.
And so as they say: "Problem begone". 

 

4 minutes ago, deapsquatter said:

I did - it just looked a bit fugly.

And?
You don't want them to touch, so you remove the buttons.
But that looked fuggly?
O my. 🤣

3 minutes ago, The Terrible Triplett said:

Sounds to me that:
1) you don't trust much.
2) people living with you is out to get you!
3) you believe all drivers on the roads stop at stop streets and robots - they don't yet you let your family drive around.

 

And?
You don't want them to touch, so you remove the buttons.
But that looked fuggly?
O my. 🤣

young kids (tablets are magnets) - they ARE out to get me.

design matters - Have you seen the new Tesla Solar App?

Edited August 30, 20196 yr by deapsquatter

3 minutes ago, deapsquatter said:

young kids (tablets are magnets) - they ARE out to get me.

Ok, I give in. My kids are 20+ so yea, maybe them buttons are a red herring to the young ones. 

4 minutes ago, deapsquatter said:

Have you seen the new Tesla Solar App?

You know you want to do that ... 🙂

27 minutes ago, The Terrible Triplett said:

There is also this, the App.

 

What... where... where is this?

Just now, stoic said:

What... where... where is this?

See the web address ... add XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX/app/ at the end.

Just now, The Terrible Triplett said:

See the web address ... add XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX/app/ at the end.

Is this part o the venus GX by default?

Just now, stoic said:

Is this part o the venus GX by default?

Jip. New thing they are working on for boat owners to view the details at the helm of the boat.

Just now, The Terrible Triplett said:

Jip. New thing they are working on for boat owners to view the details at the helm of the boat.

I feel like a dinosaur... how did i not know about this  i check these forums every day.

Just now, stoic said:

I feel like a dinosaur... how did i not know about this  i check these forums every day.

It is "new" so they are not making it mainstream yet. Use it report bugs but don't bother us yet. 

23 minutes ago, stoic said:

I feel like a dinosaur... how did i not know about this  i check these forums every day.

It's hidden under an item named "MFD integration". MFD == Multi Function Display. Raymarine and Garmin are the most well known.

22 minutes ago, The Terrible Triplett said:

It is "new" so they are not making it mainstream yet. Use it report bugs but don't bother us yet. 

It's mainstream. It was the largest bullet point for the v2.30 release 🙂

 

5 minutes ago, plonkster said:

It's mainstream. It was the largest bullet point for the v2.30 release 🙂

I missed that part.