 | |  | |  | |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Sub-Sections |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Solar Charge Controller Information |
| Main Sections |
| Grid Tie Backup by Price | Grid Tie Backup by Array Size | Grid Tie Only By Price | Grid Tie Only By Array Size |
| Search OY Not Solar |
| All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2006 - 2010 OY Not LLC Pea Ridge Arkansas USA. Phone 479-488-6048, Contact: sales @oynot.com |
 |
| A solar charge controller of any type should have Temperature compensation, However, only the better controllers have it. The best temperature comp is an external temperature sensor (normally sold separately). With an external sensor the battery temperature is checked and adjusted for and not the room temp. Batteries are full of mass so it takes a while for them to adjust to room temp. You need a higher voltage in the cold and a lower voltage in hot areas. |
| Digital readout is a great way to check charge efficiency. Get the input voltage and amps times each other and you have the input wattage. Then do the same for the output voltage and amps. Compare these two numbers and you have your efficiency. Wattage is the best and only way to check efficiency. Divide the out put watts by the input watts. Power requirements for charging a battery bank are 5% to 10 % of the total amp hour rating of the bank. 10% is better but double the cost. Charge controllers come in sizes to charge from 12 volts to 48 volt battery banks. In multiples of 12 volts. Don’t pick 36 volts because there are not any power inverters that I know of that will use that voltage. Just a note from my observations: Some controllers will allow your battery voltage to drop to 12.4 volts before it will start charging. The better charge controllers will hold the battery voltage at the set float voltage. What I mean by this is if your batteries were fully charged by noon and you started watching TV the charge controller will not start charging till the voltage is down to 12.4 volts. It might make it till dark or late after noon to reach 12.4 volts and you start the night with a low battery bank. It should have been holding the float voltage from the time it reached float at noon. When you set the float voltage the controller should hold that voltage if it has the input power to do it. It should not allow the battery to discharge or even use the battery voltage as long as the sun is shining. Your load should first be supplied by the solar panels and if the requirement was too high then tap the battery bank. Your batteries are your battery backup and not meant to be used unless there is not enough light for the solar panels. The panels should recharge them every morning and then maintain them the rest of the day at float voltage. This all leads into the charging cycles. Bulk charge, Absorb and Float. One other charging type is the Equalization charge. Everyday your charge controller will start a bulk charge by putting everything it can into the batteries to reach your set bulk charge voltage. Normally about 14.8 volts depending on the brand and type (lead acid or gel etc..) of the battery. Same for the float voltage based on the battery brand and type. The bulk charge brings the batteries up to a bubbling state which helps clean the lead plates in the battery. At this point it goes into the absorb mode which holds that voltage for an hour or two depending on your settings. After the absorb time say 2 hours it will switch to the float stage where it just holds the voltage you pre-set. Your panels are at idle at this point or only using a few amps from them. Un-like windmills or hydro generators will not need a diversion load. Most charge controllers have a hookup and or setting for this. Not having diversion will not hurt your solar panels in anyway. Just means you waste your extra solar electric. You will find something to use it for I’m sure. Battery Equalization or "EQ" is a once a month thing (or couple of months) for lead acid batteries only. Equalization charging is the deliberate process of charging a battery or battery bank at a high voltage for a set period of time to remix the electrolyte and destratify the internal plates. Equalize charging helps to remove sulfate buildup on battery plates and balances the charge of individual cells. The charge controller Equalization holds the voltage above the bulk setting for 1 to 2 hours by 1 volt at 12 volts or double for 24 volts times 4 for 48 volts.
|
| OY Not Solar Disclaimer Solar Charge Controller Information OY Not Solar Privacy Policy |