Off grid solar generator--wont charge past 11.8V

[Wy_White_Wolf]

What order did you hook the wiring up in? You should hook the charge controller to the battery first and then hook up the solar panel.

WWW

[PNjunction]

There is also the possibility that the battery is toast even though it is "new". Long periods of shelf-storage, high heat etc can do it in before it gets into your hands.

If you don't know what to look for, I agree with Logan - get a smart charger on it. My personal favorite for this type of setup would be a Tecmate-Optimate 6 charger. There are a lot of automative chargers out there that are too agressive, too loose in their specs, etc, but the Optimate 6 is a no brainer for decent charging, testing, and maintaining. Make the connections and walk away (no buttons to push), or totally geek out like we do deciphering the led status indicators.

Thing is, when the Optimate isn't maintaining or charging your battery when there just isn't any sun, you can also use it on your vehicle batteries keeping them in shape. Maybe the hubby will come around when he sees that!

[Raj]

I agree with Logan005, you need 2 50 watt panels to charge the battery. The reason for this is that the PWM CC you have only converts 33 watts of the panels 50 watts into usable power. The 35 AH battery needs 5 to 7 amps to charge effectively. Your charging amps with one panel is only about 2.75 amps. 2 50 watt panels wired in parallel would give you about 5.5 amps, which should work well even in Michigan.

[jwpookie47]

Thank you. I didn't even know that undercharging the battery could damage it. Will follow your advice. Much appreciated.

[Logan005]

Your panels should be angled southish and unobstructed. There should be no shade. I would use a smart charger on this battery ASAP to minimize any damage you may have done by under charging it for the past 7 days. In your location I would recommend adding another 50 watt panel to insure proper charging and useable power for your needs.

[jwpookie47]

I have a 50 W monocrystalline panel, 10 Amp CC-see pic below...both lights are green. There is no load on it: Everything on this setup is brand new.we bought the panel and CC from Renogy. I have it hooked up to a 12 V/35 AH Sealed Lead Acid battery (brand new)---we attached it all to a dolly for portability-so we could move it for best sun and also for using it in different areas.
Here is my question and problem: we can't get the battery to charge past 11.8 V We are not using the inverter on it, we'd been waiting until the battery was fully charged. We are in Michigan and it's winter but Ive been charging the battery for a full 7 days- the indicator on the charge controller is green which should mean that it's charging--still 11.8 V
Any guess out there as to whether the problem is with the solar panel or with the charge controller? Or how to test either to determine? OR...do these panels just really need full, bright sun to fully charge?
Any advice is very much appreciated. I'm a newbie to this stuff and I'm kind of on my own as hubby doesn't want any part of it.