|
|
Post by jordanlloyd on Jul 29, 2016 12:42:34 GMT -8
Hi all,
I attempted to test out my 100w kit this past weekend, but basically I'm not getting the PV/panel LED to light up at all. Battery LED is fine, and I am able to set the battery type as well. But when I connect my panel the LED does not come on? Not sure if my controller is defective or not, but it doesn't appear to be working. Any troubleshooting steps I can take to try and figure out what is going on?
Thanks in advance.
-Solar newb.
|
|
|
|
Post by stl303 on Aug 22, 2016 8:17:41 GMT -8
Same issue here.
Tested panel and I have about 22.4v+ at 5.4A coming in. Still no light.
Disconnected both panel and battery for several hours, re-connected (battery 1st), still nothing.
Anyone?
|
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Aug 23, 2016 7:14:09 GMT -8
Hello,
A common cause of the Panel light not turning on is if you have reverse polarity. You could Check the voltage at the PV terminal and if you get a negative reading on a digital multi meter then you have reversed polarity. Simply disconnect the PV panels switch them if this is the case. If you continue to have any issues please call our technical team at 800-330-8678 and we will do our best to make sure we figure out what the issue is.
-A.L.
|
|
|
|
Post by carter2 on Aug 26, 2016 3:32:55 GMT -8
All,
I experienced the same conditions...my first time to hook everything up (Renogy Wanderer 30A Controller, 100W panel, Optima YellowTop Battery, in my vehicle, in sunny FL) and the battery type and BATT LEDs lit up (BATT LED orange), but no PV light. I checked all connections and polarity, which were all ok (battery voltage at 11.25, output from panel 17.7V (=Vmp)). I left everything connected and went to the computer to check for troubleshooting ideas. Found basic tips which suggested doing what I'd already done (and this forum topic). I returned to my vehicle about 20 minutes later and found all lights to be on: PV slow flashing green, BATT solid green. I let it run for about 3 hours, and nothing changed except the battery voltage, which increased to 12.5V. At this point, I'm concluding that everything is working as expected, but would like some input as to why the BATT LED did not light when I first connected the components.
Thanks,
Carter
|
|
|
|
Post by jsb2000 on Aug 26, 2016 9:58:19 GMT -8
The thing that stood out (to me) from your description was how low the battery was when you first connected it. 11.25V is a sign of a highly depleted (if not damaged) battery. It's likely that the voltage was too low for the controller to properly configure itself. Or, the controller recognized that the battery may be overly depleted and refused to charge it at all. It's best to start with a battery which is within a reasonable range for proper charging. In my opinion, for a 12V system, that voltage should be above 12.37VDC which would be 70% of full charge. An absolute minimum would be 12.10VDC (50% of full charge). At 11.25VDC, yours was at less that 10%! You simply cannot expect to hook up a solar configuration to a dead (or nearly dead) battery and reasonably expect it to bring it back to life. It's like trying to feed an emaciated man a full course dinner and expect him to be able to do housework afterwards! Not.Going.To.Happen. |
|
|
|
Post by carter2 on Aug 26, 2016 12:43:34 GMT -8
Thanks...I understand that a battery at 11.25V is not going to do the work of one that is fully charged. However, I do expect that a battery that is not under load at 11.25V will begin to charge when properly connected to a charging device - whether it accepts and retains the charge is a different story.
The battery is, unfortunately, depleted due to less-than-desirable charging for a period while the vehicle is undergoing "remodeling". It has only received periodic, brief periods of charging via the alternator, which is not the best situation for a deep-cycle battery. It was not showing any signs of being "damaged" prior to the beginning of the projects I'm undertaking.
The Renogy manual states that there may be no LED indicator when the battery is connected to the charge controller, as a minimum of 9V is required to power on the controller. If the condition that I (and the two other folks who mentioned this in the last month, tho we don't know the status of their batteries - see above) experienced, then I would hope that it would be so stated in the manual.
|
|
|
|
Post by jsb2000 on Aug 26, 2016 13:21:30 GMT -8
I do expect that a battery that is not under load at 11.25V will begin to charge when properly connected to a charging device - whether it accepts and retains the charge is a different story. Then reality may not meet with your expectations when dealing with a modern charge controller. A modern charge controller is designed to be "smarter" than a regular "dumb" charger. The former looks at what it's trying to charge to determine whether or not it's safe to do so and, if that decision is "yes," what rate(s) to do it at and for how long. The latter will pump current into a battery regardless. Under some conditions, that could cause said battery to go boom. The battery is, unfortunately, depleted due to less-than-desirable charging for a period while the vehicle is undergoing "remodeling". It has only received periodic, brief periods of charging via the alternator, which is not the best situation for a deep-cycle battery. It was not showing any signs of being "damaged" prior to the beginning of the projects I'm undertaking. Unfortunately, depleting a battery in this manner is what causes the kind of "damage" we're talking about here. Like it or not, a deep cycle battery depleted to 10% has suffered some damage. Some can recover. Some cannot. But I wouldn't expect a solar charge controller to handle that situation. It's a solar charge controller...not a device meant to revive or desulphate abused/misused batteries. The Renogy manual states that there may be no LED indicator when the battery is connected to the charge controller, as a minimum of 9V is required to power on the controller. If the condition that I (and the two other folks who mentioned this in the last month, tho we don't know the status of their batteries - see above) experienced, then I would hope that it would be so stated in the manual. Agreed. It would probably be best if Renogy stated specifically in its literature that their controllers are meant to charge new or at least healthy, well maintained batteries and not ones that are dead/dying/found sitting in the back of someone's garage after several years. But if they did that, they'd also have to include other things..such as: "Solar panels must be exposed to sunlight in order to generate power." |
|
|
|
Post by carter2 on Aug 26, 2016 13:36:53 GMT -8
Thanks again...tho I wish you were offering something that I did not know or some information that pertained to the original question, and avoided the snarky answers.
|
|
|
|
Post by spiderbob on Aug 27, 2016 6:49:45 GMT -8
You can bring a "dead" battery back, as long as the plates are not distroyed. But, it takes a special charger that is designed to do just that. I am not aware of a solar manufacture that will make this, or add this to their logic for the controller. I have a trucharge 2 that is capable of that. I replace my regular WAFCO 55 controller with that, just in case, as I do a lot of boon docking. Back to the dead battery, it is dangerous to bring a battery back, that is why, I think, manufactures for the most part, don't do it. Even in my instructions with my controller, it states that charging must be attended at all times while in this process, and water levels checked often. As jsb 2000 mentioned a battery can explode under some of these circumstances and I've personally have had 3 batteries do this over the last 50 years.
|
|
|
|
Post by carter2 on Aug 28, 2016 15:02:33 GMT -8
All,
As a follow-up to the test data I mentioned previously (above, Aug. 26), I performed a new test today with the results provided in the table below.
Initial conditions: the battery has maintained 12.3 volts since terminating the last test (see above) without additional charging or load. The sky is clear, tho an occasional cloud passes through.
Battery CONTROLLER DISPLAY
TIME Volts LOAD* TEMP* PV LED BATT LED
1:00 12.3 No N/A None Green
1:30 12.3 No N/A None Green
1:35 12.1 Yes 73 None Green
1:40 12.0 Yes 73 None Green
1:50 12.0 Yes 70 None Orange
1:57 11.8 Yes 64 None Orange
1:58 12.3 Yes 63 Fl. Grn Orange
2:00 12.4 Yes 59 Fl. Grn Green
2:15 12.1 Yes 41 Fl. Grn Green
2:30 12.6 Yes 30 Fl. Grn Green
3:09 12.2 Yes 32 Fl. Grn Green
3:24 13.0 Yes 30 Fl. Grn Green
5:12 12.4 Yes 34 Fl. Grn Green
5:40 12.6 Yes 30 Fl. Grn Green
6:30 12.4 Yes 30 Fl. Grn Green
*The LOAD is from a 12V fridge, TEMP is that of the fridge.
In summary, the PV LED did not light for a period of almost an hour, and not until the battery voltage dropped below 12.0V.
I'm hoping that Wanderer 30 users can comment on their experience with the conditions that initiate PV LED lighting, and that a Renogy rep. might comment on how the PV LED is expected to operate.
Thanks,
Carter
|
|
|
|
Post by carter2 on Aug 28, 2016 15:07:02 GMT -8
Sorry, noted that the data in columns moved upon publishing. The first column is "Time"; second column is "Battery Volts"; third column is "LOAD*"; 4th column is "TEMP*"; 5th column is "PV LED"; 6th column is "BATT LED". Hope you can get some use out of all of this...questions, please ask.
|
|
|
|
Post by carter2 on Aug 29, 2016 9:15:03 GMT -8
OK, a little more information (overload?)for those who are interested...after resting (no charge, no load) from 6:30pm yesterday until 12 noon today, the battery measured 12.3V. Upon connecting the panel to the controller, the PV LED lit up immediately (flashing green) under no-load conditions, and the battery voltage measured 12.5V. After about a minute, I added the same load as I did yesterday (fridge) and the PV LED continued to flash (BATT LED solid green), and the battery voltage stayed at 12.5V. At this time (after +/- 1 hour), the battery voltage is 13.7V. Thus, 3 "tests" and 3 different results...if anyone can make sense of all this and provide a plausible explanation of the PV LED's performance so far, I look forward to hearing it. Cheers
|
|
