Solar support
I've recently purchased a portable solar charger 100W to keep the Leisure battery topped up when off grid. I selected the model made by "Spark " as it was the only one who claimed waterproofness. I wanted to float charge as in the case of a fixed solar system. It appears that the regulator is possibly faulty as it takes the battery voltage to 14V plus! The caravan system then shuts down. Anyone else had a similar experience? Should I have disconnected the battery from the caravan to charge (which is not what I wanted)?
Comments
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What is the battery voltage with the solar charging input disconnected? Although a fully charged battery should register about 12.7v on a voltmeter, the charging voltage will be higher, up to about 14.6v with strong sunlight and good panel orientation.
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Yes Billthanks for your reply. The voltages are as you suggest and as I expected when the panels were connected: 14.6V however the voltage keeps on rising slowly to 14.9 and beyond. The panel in the van flashes the 14Volt LED and the electrical system shuts down totally until I unplug the solar.
No problem today though- no sunshine, just wind and rain
😏
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Yes, agree that the regulator might well be faulty. I think I’d start there. A 12v flooded battery will generally take whatever is thrown at it and just gas/boil off the water, so your system is probably doing it’s job - detecting the overcharge and shutting down in response before the battery is cooked.
I have occasionally seen 15v solar output without drama, but the fact that your system is shutting down suggests a fault.
Just a thought....are your solar panel and regulator correctly matched? It’s quite easy to fry a controller if overloaded.
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JHM, it sounds as though the solar controller is not working as it should. The solar controller should cut off any supply to a fully charged battery no matter what it’s chemistry. What sort is it? I suggest A good quality MPPT Controller would solve the problem. There is a group on Facebook called the Caravan and Motorhome Off Grid Group and there you will find all the information and help in the world to go off grid. It was set up by myself and John Clifton who owns a CL 21 months ago and already has 16,000 members. Off grid is becoming very popular and with the advent of Solar Panels and Lithium batteries life off grid now is as good as having the EHU IMHO. Visit us and find out more about this growing trend.
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