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Old 06-05-2015, 10:47 AM   #21
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14.2V is simply where I have the controller set as the point where it move's from full charging to float mode. I can adjust that level, but thought I understood that to be the correct battery voltage where that should happen.


The are standard Deep Cell 12V batteries in parallel.


there is a temp sensor on the controller, so I'm assuming that it self adjusts the actual charge voltage to compensate
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Old 06-28-2015, 08:02 PM   #22
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Don, is there any impact to the converter when the solar controller is applying 14.2 V on the common power buss?
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Old 06-29-2015, 08:41 AM   #23
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Converter will be fine. Multiple chargers hooked to the same battery works fine. They "push" against each other but the higher voltage will win.

The only issue I have read about is some 12v appliances not liking high voltage that you may experience during an equalization stage. 15+ volts. Typically invertors will shutoff if the input voltage gets too high. Fridge electronics??? Mostly just rumors though. But your user manuals should tell you what the max voltage is for each appliance.

You should look up the specs for your batteries from the manufacturer. If it is set at 14.2v with temp compensation the voltage reaching the battery would be lower than that in a hot climate (over 25° C, 77°f). They will still charge at that voltage but it will take longer.

Cheers
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Old 07-01-2015, 09:33 AM   #24
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There are no issues with having the TT's battery charge controller (newer 3 stage models) with SOLAR charge controllers while connected to shore power. The TT's charge controller actually compliments the SOLAR controller as clouds pass or if shade covers the panel.
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Old 07-06-2015, 07:59 AM   #25
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We were just out for the last 5 days and it was very sunny. We were at a powered site but I found a breaker labeled "Converter" in my power center and turned that off to just let my solar panels handle the battery. 95% is the lowest I saw on the gauge the whole trip. We used lights, fans, radio and the furnace once or twice during the night.

I was interested in testing the solar setup but I also noticed that the "float" voltage from our converter was 13.6 all the time. Sounded a bit high for float so I wanted to see if I could turn off the converter. I would much rather have my solar charge controller maintain my batteries than the convertor.

I should get a part number off the converter to see what it is supposed to be putting out. 13.6 sounds more like a bulk charge voltage from a converter???
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Old 07-06-2015, 12:37 PM   #26
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Subaru297 View Post
I should get a part number off the converter to see what it is supposed to be putting out. 13.6 sounds more like a bulk charge voltage from a converter???
The first thing to do is look up your battery charging specifications on the batteries mfr site. See what they recommend for each of the 3 modes. Most batteries use the 13.2 VDC number, but some require a little higher float voltage. Voltages between 14.1 and 14.8 are usually the charging voltages.

Get the recommended voltage and see if your converter can be adjusted to that voltage.


How much SOLAR do you have?

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Old 07-06-2015, 01:35 PM   #27
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I have the Rolls 6v batteries which call for 13.2 float which is what I have programmed my solar charge controller with.

300 watts of solar (two 150 watt "12v" panels).

That would be ideal if my converter can be adjusted. I'll have to look into that.

Thanks
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Old 07-07-2015, 07:58 AM   #28
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We just returned from YNP and Teton. Spent two weeks just outside the parks in the forest dry camping.

I installed new LED bulbs just before the trip as well as two 280 watt solar panels with a Morningstar MPPT charge controller and a 2000 watt pure sine wave inverter and two GC2 6 volt batteries. We also have a TriMetric monitor and it never showed below 12.6 volts.

We watched movies at night, popped pop corn in the microwave, ran the heater several nights (31 degrees one night) and never once cranked the generator.

I estimate that the money saved not paying CG fees just about paid for the entire solar setup that we will continue to enjoy.
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Old 07-07-2015, 08:23 AM   #29
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Love the Trimetric monitor!
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Old 07-14-2015, 03:06 PM   #30
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Just for your info..................

to find out how long you run a device solar here is the formula running batteries in parallel.

10X ( the Amp Hours of batteries )
Divided by watts of the device = running hours
Divided by 50% of battery life = total running hours

Example:

Here is my setup........

2 LG 305 Watts mono panels = 610 watts
2- 12 volt Rolls Batteries in parallel at 260 AH each = 520AH
1 500 watt window AC unit

Calculations.......
10 X 520AH = 5200AH / 500 watts ( AC unit ) = 10 hours running at 100% battery life!You don't want to run your batteries less than 50% of you battery life so you dont damage your batteries.

So now divide the total running life of your batteries by 2 ( 50% of battery life ) = 5 hours of true running time.

Hope that helps!
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