How do you work out if yr solar panel is charging battery , hints or where to read up please.
travelyounger said
09:44 PM Sep 15, 2019
Hi you can get digital voltage led readout that you can wire up to your solar output and battery that will give battery voltage and what solar is coming in .You can get them at most 4x4 shops or 12 volt solar shops and they can help you with the setup cheers
Jaahn said
01:07 PM Sep 16, 2019
jeepnudger wrote:
How do you work out if yr solar panel is charging battery , hints or where to read up please.
Hi
You do need some sort of metering to know what is going on !! As travelyounger said there are simple LED row of lights meters that are simple to use and easy to wire in. Or indeed perhaps your solar regulator has some reading to look at. With a meter you will learn what is happening normally and then know if there is a malfunction.
If you rely on your solar it would be good to buy a multi meter also and learn how to use it for checking things. There is a discussion on another thread if you look.
Jaahn
Aus-Kiwi said
02:34 PM Sep 16, 2019
Voltage meter on solar , voltage meter on batteries. A good battery controller will cycle solar amps and battery voltage . Or trust LED lights showing state of charge . Ours is green flashing , fully charged , green light .. trickle charge , ampler is lower battery voltage and flashing is lower . Then there is red . You never what to see . But it often happens
On overcast days . Then it time for 240v and battery charger . Or ( generator) to top up battery with good smart charger .. I find in this situation two or three 20min runs keeps batteries charged . We dont get overcast days for more than 2 or 3 days ! Although will in south WA a we did . Since then Ive increased solar and batteries/ storage . Its horses for courses to what you use etc .
T1 Terry said
03:00 PM Sep 16, 2019
If you really what to know what is going into or out of the battery buy a Victron BMV meter and set it up to suit the chemistry battery you are using. Around the $300 mark, you can even get one that talks to your phone now so you can see the numbers in big print if needed all clearly laid out so it's easy to understand.
lights and volt meters require you to understand just what you are seeing with the knowledge of just what condition your battery is in. A voltage reading of 14.4v could mean the battery is past the 75% state of charge, if the battery is sulphated it could just mean the battery can't accept any charge at all. The Victron BMV will make that much easier to understand just what the numbers mean.
T1 Terry
Aus-Kiwi said
07:51 PM Sep 16, 2019
Either way you still need to know . As you just explained the voltage!!. Our system Has both..
-- Edited by Aus-Kiwi on Monday 16th of September 2019 07:54:20 PM
Either way you still need to know . As you just explained the voltage!!. Our system Has both..
-- Edited by Aus-Kiwi on Monday 16th of September 2019 07:54:20 PM
See the two connections in the centre of the controller marked "battery sense" are they connected to each side of your battery terminals? This tells the controller what the real battery voltage is resulting in much better recharging times and much closer to fully charged each cycle. This is one of the things to look for when looking for a quality controller, can it read battery voltage independently rather than just through the battery charging leads. This goes for all types of chargers.
T1 Terry
Aus-Kiwi said
05:34 PM Sep 17, 2019
Yes it cycles solar , battery and load on digital screen . . All the load connections are at battery . Have amp & volt meter at fuse box . Take it all for granted till things go wrong !
-- Edited by Aus-Kiwi on Tuesday 17th of September 2019 05:41:10 PM
Worth the effort to wire in those other 2 wires. They only need small conductor size cable because they are only voltage signal wires, but you will really see the difference in how quick the battery reaches the control voltage and how well it holds up the current until that voltage is reached.
Hi
You do need some sort of metering to know what is going on !! As travelyounger said there are simple LED row of lights meters that are simple to use and easy to wire in. Or indeed perhaps your solar regulator has some reading to look at. With a meter you will learn what is happening normally and then know if there is a malfunction.
If you rely on your solar it would be good to buy a multi meter also and learn how to use it for checking things. There is a discussion on another thread if you look.
Jaahn
On overcast days . Then it time for 240v and battery charger . Or ( generator) to top up battery with good smart charger .. I find in this situation two or three 20min runs keeps batteries charged . We dont get overcast days for more than 2 or 3 days ! Although will in south WA a we did . Since then Ive increased solar and batteries/ storage . Its horses for courses to what you use etc .
lights and volt meters require you to understand just what you are seeing with the knowledge of just what condition your battery is in. A voltage reading of 14.4v could mean the battery is past the 75% state of charge, if the battery is sulphated it could just mean the battery can't accept any charge at all. The Victron BMV will make that much easier to understand just what the numbers mean.
T1 Terry
Has both..
-- Edited by Aus-Kiwi on Monday 16th of September 2019 07:54:20 PM
See the two connections in the centre of the controller marked "battery sense" are they connected to each side of your battery terminals? This tells the controller what the real battery voltage is resulting in much better recharging times and much closer to fully charged each cycle. This is one of the things to look for when looking for a quality controller, can it read battery voltage independently rather than just through the battery charging leads. This goes for all types of chargers.
T1 Terry
. All the load connections are at battery . Have amp & volt meter at fuse box . Take it all for granted till things go wrong !
-- Edited by Aus-Kiwi on Tuesday 17th of September 2019 05:41:10 PM
T1 Terry