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  • #16
    Originally posted by SunEagle View Post
    FWIW = "For What It's Worth"

    PWM = Pulse Width Modulation (lower efficient charger) It works by using the amount of amps your panels produce and charges the batteries at that amperage. (amps in = amps out)

    That Tracer 2115rn is an 30Amp MPPT type charger and uses the total panel wattage divided by your battery voltage to generate charging amps (watts in = watts out). So with 350watts of panels and a 12v battery ( 350w /12v = 29.2amps.)

    So that Tracer should work just fine with those 2 x 175 watt panels and is more than enough to charge a 220Ah 12volt battery. If you battery Ah is less than 220 then you might charge them a little too fast but I think the issue is that the batteries have been over discharged and now need to be returned to health.
    Ok. Thank you very much for taking the time to help explain this to me. Your help is greatly appreciated.

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    • #17
      Originally posted by Mike90250 View Post
      To quote another "Oh Dear". Headline: Batteries murdered again.

      You don't have nearly enough solar PV to recharge the batteries in the short winter days. With weeks of deficit charging, the batteries have gotten sulfated, finally now to the point they are useless.

      Fridge 55W x 24 hr =1320 wh
      350w PV x 3 hr sun = 1050wh x.75% eff = 787Wh harvested
      HF panels =0
      2000w inverter idle loss 20w x24 = 480wh
      and a bunch of other losses

      you are consuming 2x as much as your harvest. Sorry, turn the fridge off, and after a week of sunny days, your batteries may finally charge enough to test them with a load tester.
      On the fridg 55wx24 hours, do some refridgerators run 24 hours 24/7? Or is this just a approx. example. If not, I had better check mine out and look over my usage calcs.

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      • #18
        Originally posted by davidb View Post
        On the fridg 55wx24 hours, do some refridgerators run 24 hours 24/7? Or is this just a approx. example. If not, I had better check mine out and look over my usage calcs.
        Best bet is to get a killawatt meter and determine an actual consumption where you can - na Energy star big fridge today can be in the 750 watts/day range. You can see that at the energy star web site.
        [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

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        • #19
          Originally posted by Sunking View Post
          You are welcome glad I could help. You could do it with your solar but it would take several days and cannot reverse the damage because the charge current is to low. To dissolve soft sulfate crystals needs to up at least C/12 and preferable C/8, where C = the battery AH capacity. GC2 6 volt batteries are around 220 AH so C/8 = 220 / 8 = 27.5 amps.

          That also jives with matching panels and batteries together. Example a 12 volt 220 AH battery needs a minimum C/12 charge current up to C/8 (18 to 28 amps) If using a MPPT controller means a minimum panel wattage of 230 watts and no larger than 360 watts. That is how we can tell real darn quick when there is a mismatch. FWIW if using PWM that goes up to a minimum of 320 watts up to 500 watts. You have PWM right? See a problem yet? I do instantly.

          I have a similar problem that I, a baaaad person to my pv/batteries system, have been discharged the batteries beyond 11.3 volts for quite sometime and after having read this thread I am now turning off the inverter at 12 volts. Not quite sure I understand C/12 or C/8 in relation to charging perhaps? What I have = 3 phono panels of 250W each to Midnite Classic 150 MPPT charge controller to two Kirkland and two Interstate Deep Cycle 12V Group size 27DC 115AH batteries are in parallel to Samlex SA-3000K-112 to run a fridge (1.2 kWh per day as monitored on killawatt meter before) and for the past three days the inverter has to be turned off at 8PM because the voltage drop to 12.0 volt. I have noticed the charging stages from bulk to absorb to float indications on the MidNite charge controller and when it at resting mode the voltage indicate 12.7 volts but quickly drained to 12.0 volts four hours roughly after as mentioned before and I used to leave the fridge running all night long and in the morning the voltage drop below 11.3 volts and this was going on for close to a month before searching around for "why batteries no longer fully charged?" duh!

          Questions; do I need to search for a suitable "commercial charger" (is Schumacher XC103W will do the trick? This is what I have right now or which is the suitable commercial charger would you recommend?) to properly desulfating the batteries individually? Better yet with the indications right now should I replace the batteries or is it worth to continue to charge the batteries with my current setup and allow the batteries to return to health however long it might be? So, the charge controller log indicates 1.4-1.9kWh each day but the discharge rate from 12.7 to 12.0 volts is roughly within four hours before I turn off the inverter and plug the fridge to the AC receptacle for the night. My thought was to add more batteries so that the fridge can run all night long but then how much more would be right? During the day the fridge is plugged in and ran for about 10 hours prior to disconnecting because the voltage drop to 12 volts and plug into house AC outlet for the night. Maybe it is wishful thinking to design a device to cutout automatically to prevent the over discharge the batteries beyond the point of no return. 1) Can these batteries be salvageable? 2) How to better size the batteries to store energy from 5 phono panels of 250W each because it is safe to handle by MidNite Classic 150? 3) You know, I have to ask this even if it is stupid or weird ="is there such an animal to cutout the battery automatically whenever voltage drops below 12.0V? 4) And lastly, do you call yourself a "Sailor" with that name???

          Many thanks in advance and may fair winds in the follow sea you bada$$.

          Comment


          • #20
            Message/question rescind

            Originally posted by hankuru5ki View Post
            I have a similar problem that I, a baaaad person to my pv/batteries system, have been discharged the batteries beyond 11.3 volts for quite sometime and after having read this thread I am now turning off the inverter at 12 volts. Not quite sure I understand C/12 or C/8 in relation to charging perhaps? What I have = 3 phono panels of 250W each to Midnite Classic 150 MPPT charge controller to two Kirkland and two Interstate Deep Cycle 12V Group size 27DC 115AH batteries are in parallel to Samlex SA-3000K-112 to run a fridge (1.2 kWh per day as monitored on killawatt meter before) and for the past three days the inverter has to be turned off at 8PM because the voltage drop to 12.0 volt. I have noticed the charging stages from bulk to absorb to float indications on the MidNite charge controller and when it at resting mode the voltage indicate 12.7 volts but quickly drained to 12.0 volts four hours roughly after as mentioned before and I used to leave the fridge running all night long and in the morning the voltage drop below 11.3 volts and this was going on for close to a month before searching around for "why batteries no longer fully charged?" duh!

            Questions; do I need to search for a suitable "commercial charger" (is Schumacher XC103W will do the trick? This is what I have right now or which is the suitable commercial charger would you recommend?) to properly desulfating the batteries individually? Better yet with the indications right now should I replace the batteries or is it worth to continue to charge the batteries with my current setup and allow the batteries to return to health however long it might be? So, the charge controller log indicates 1.4-1.9kWh each day but the discharge rate from 12.7 to 12.0 volts is roughly within four hours before I turn off the inverter and plug the fridge to the AC receptacle for the night. My thought was to add more batteries so that the fridge can run all night long but then how much more would be right? During the day the fridge is plugged in and ran for about 10 hours prior to disconnecting because the voltage drop to 12 volts and plug into house AC outlet for the night. Maybe it is wishful thinking to design a device to cutout automatically to prevent the over discharge the batteries beyond the point of no return. 1) Can these batteries be salvageable? 2) How to better size the batteries to store energy from 5 phono panels of 250W each because it is safe to handle by MidNite Classic 150? 3) You know, I have to ask this even if it is stupid or weird ="is there such an animal to cutout the battery automatically whenever voltage drops below 12.0V? 4) And lastly, do you call yourself a "Sailor" with that name???

            Many thanks in advance and may fair winds in the follow sea you bada$$.
            I got it from reading some of your sticky notes and others in the offgrid forum and guess that the only question remaining is actually a hope that these batteries are salvageable and right now they are holding the charge and being cutoff at 12.0v to prevent further discharge. If and some more if's I have found this site b4 tingle with this curiosity about solar then it wouldn't be so messy like it is right now, but live and learn some more at least there is a direction to march on from here. I have learned so much more from reading those sticky notes than from books about solar FWIW many thanks for keeping the light on for us all. Best regards, Ole' Hank

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