Solar regulator question (1 Viewer)

[simbadog]

Hello, I have fitted a 100w panel on the roof & wired it in with fuse etc.
The controller I have is hopefully shown below, the instructions are pretty hopeless and I'm a bit confused by what is happening.
Perhaps someone else out there has the same thing & can advise?

The left hand lamp which I think is the charge light is flashing green, the second one that is I think battery state is not on, however I think it is charging according to the vehicle battery state indicator (I ran it down to 12.3v with lights, fridge & TV & it's now back to 12.7v in about
15 mins.

Any suggestions welcomed

 

[simbadog]

Well, all my investigations point to something being wrong, anyone got a suggestion for a better regulator, ideally something that shows the charge? :Confused:

 

[magicsurfbus]

I have virtually the same charge controller.

Wires from the panel should go in the left hand two sockets, wires to the battery should go in the middle two sockets. The right hand two sockets are for low amp current if required.

On mine, a solid green light on the left lamp means the panel is working, and when the middle lamp flashes green it means the battery is full (at around 13.6-13.7v).

The colours drawn on the battery diagram on the front of the controller are showing you what the lamp(s) will do. Orange (left lamp) means low voltage in the circuit, solid green (left lamp) means panel voltage OK, flashing green (middle lamp) means battery full. You don't have to do anything about overcharge, that's what you bought the controller for.

Bear in mind that your battery state indicator may be giving you a snapshot of the voltage in the system, so at noon on a sunny day it'll look very healthy due to the solar panel working. The 'true' voltage in the battery is what you see after sunset. This is why I always recharge 12v gadgets in the middle of the day.

[Latest Edit] I've just looked at the instructions and agree that they're contradictory and useless. I can't ever recall seeing my left lamp flashing - might be worth checking the circuit with a multimeter to make sure everything is properly connected. My system managed to disconnect at the battery terminal a couple of weeks ago, but the controller display looked fine. It was only having a volt meter permanently in one of my 12v sockets that revealed the fault - when the sun came out the voltage didn't increase.

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[Dubiousp]

Slightly different question but related to this controller. Ive been looking at a set up of panel with controller, the panel will mount on the roof above locker where the switch panel is (Eldis autoquest 130 09 plate) do I run cables back to battery or can I connect in cupboard some where

 

[simbadog]

Slightly different question but related to this controller. Ive been looking at a set up of panel with controller, the panel will mount on the roof above locker where the switch panel is (Eldis autoquest 130 09 plate) do I run cables back to battery or can I connect in cupboard some where

I would put the regulator in the cupboard & then run cables to the battery from it, would advise fitting a fuse in the positive feed to battery.

Hope your regulator is better than mine! My problem was a faulty one :Angry:
Swapped it for a different one & it's all working fine now.