Corrected Victron BMV-712 Smart shunt connections

[Lmitc210]

I have a 2023 Escape 19' with dual 6-volt lead acid batteries and a single 190-watt roof mounted solar panel, Victron BMV-712 Smart battery monitor and Victron MMPT100/30 solar controller; all items were installed by ETI.

While camping this past week and playing with different battery loads, I noticed the amperage reading on the BMV-712 monitor display would increase toward the positive values when increasing the amperage draws from the battery. However, the manual states that current flowing out of the battery should be shown as a negative number, while current flowing into the battery should be shown as positive (no sign). The manual also states "If charge and discharge current are inverted, the power cables on the shunt must be swapped." This led me to believe that ETI reversed the shunt connections during install.

When I got home, I took a closer look at the shunt connections and sure enough they were backwards: the "battery only" terminal on the shunt was connected to the negative side of the load and the load terminal was connected to the negative post of the battery array. I couldn't easily swap the cables due to limited cable length, so I simply reversed the shunt mounting.

After reconnecting everything, I now show current flowing out of the battery as a negative number and current flowing into the battery as positive.

I'm thinking this was more of a "window-dressing" issue as everything seemed to work fine with the reversed connections, but I was always wondering why current outflow didn't show as a negative reading, and at least I feel better knowing it's hooked up per Victron's instructions!