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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 9:34:08 GMT
I never see many amps reported on my charge controller. Looking when it's really sunny makes no difference.
Is it because the battery is charged? I think it is. For it to register lots of amps I'd have thought either the battery must be flat or have a large current draw on the system. If it says 0.5-1amp that must mean the battery is near as damn it fully charged.
Am I right?
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Post by pkrboo on Aug 2, 2017 9:41:48 GMT
yes, your controller is clever enough to know when and when not to give the battery some amps. if the battery is full the amps generated by the panel will be dissipated by the heatsink. stick your fridge and heater on and will show some go to the battery then.
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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 9:53:23 GMT
yes, your controller is clever enough to know when and when not to give the battery some amps. if the battery is full the amps generated by the panel will be dissipated by the heatsink. stick your fridge and heater on and will show some go to the battery then. It's not the controller being clever it's just the system/battery not pulling the power. If the battery is only taking 0.5amps it's charged to all intents and purposes. I started this thread remembering how peeps report and photo how many amps their panel is putting out and comparing to others. I always feel like commenting that the battery must be flat when I see a high reading quoted. Another thing - the voltage you input into the controller for it to decide when to go into float is CRUCIAL. Having a posh battery management doodah on the boat I set this voltage for my gel battery manufacturer's recommendation on the solar charger and monitored it with that to see. It went into float when the battery was only 85% charged. I edged it up 0.1v, then another 0.1v and it now charges fully. On the van I have no idea if it switches before the battery is charged. The only way to find out is to disconnect the battery and solar, wait 24 hours, measure the battery voltage and refer to a crude table. |
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Post by pkrboo on Aug 2, 2017 9:55:53 GMT
most of the pics you see are what the panel is producing and then you can see what is being given to the battery. its what the battery id demanding. i think on your controller you can see what is coming in from the panel and what is going to the battery cant you?
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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 9:56:13 GMT
Lastly, mppt is only any help with bulk charging a flat battery. All other charging states are done with pwr so unless you regularly run your battery down it's no real benefit.  |
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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 9:57:27 GMT
most of the pics you see are what the panel is producing and then you can see what is being given to the battery. its what the battery id demanding. i think on your controller you can see what is coming in from the panel and what is going to the battery cant you? I don't think so no. I can't see how it could do that without applying a large load. |
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Post by pkrboo on Aug 2, 2017 10:01:22 GMT
i think thats what the heatsink does. if you hit DEMO on yours doesnt it cycle through each bit and tell you.
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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 10:02:50 GMT
Farkin poopy weather here, I'm buggered if I'm going to force myself oop onto the moors to get the sideways rain effect.
Foot hard down petrol starvation on the way. If one of the carbs filters isn't blocked it must be the smaller vents sucking more petrol? If so it must be running exceedingly rich! Something to do between the rain showers...
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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 10:04:04 GMT
i think thats what the heatsink does. if you hit DEMO on yours doesnt it cycle through each bit and tell you. The only demo thing it does is tell you how efficient it's being on mppt compared to pwr as far as I can see. |
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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 10:04:30 GMT
Pmr? Pwr? Pcm? Whatever it is...
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Post by Robo on Aug 2, 2017 10:16:34 GMT
Its witchcraft I tell ya!
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Post by rickyrooo1 on Aug 2, 2017 10:20:18 GMT
I don't care what it means but I've not had to charge my battery since I fitted mine so winner
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Post by Tuesday Wildchild on Aug 2, 2017 10:35:19 GMT
I don't care what it means but I've not had to charge my battery since I fitted mine so winner That's the important bit. Just fitted a volts reader so I can see when to switch off stuff. |
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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 10:38:03 GMT
I don't care what it means but I've not had to charge my battery since I fitted mine so winner But that would have been me in the boat, I'd have thought it fully charged while it slowly knackered the battery. It could be me in the camper too for all I know as I don't have a gadget to tell me. |
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Post by Zed on Aug 2, 2017 10:43:08 GMT
Temperature compensation could be the thing. The boat main charging system has a temperature doofah stuck on the battery, the boat solar controller has it built in and is mounted a foot above the battery where it's warmer.
The bus one is in the engine compartment. If it was tucked away in a cupboard it would get hot and falsely adjust the charge voltage compensation.
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