[RE-wrenches] High L16 voltage situation

[John DeBoever]

Nathan,



Maybe the devil is in the details... Maybe the controller is confused and "sees" a 24V system... Just thinking...

Kindly clarify few points:

o   At which voltage the PV array is configured?  2x PV modules in parallel 12V or  2x PV modules in series?

o   Does the SunSaver Morningstar controller at the site is a 12V or a 24V version?

o   What is the Vmp of the PV module?



John
John F. DeBoever
Global Technical & Projects Director - Renewable Energy
Trojan Battery Company

12380 Clark Street
Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670
Tel: +1-562-236-3000 Ext. 3139
Cell: +1-845-514-7600 - NY office time zone: USA EST (GMT-5)
Skype: john.f.deboever
Fax: +1-562-236-3239
jdeboever at trojanbattery.com<mailto:jdeboever at trojanbattery.com>
www.trojanbattery.com<http://www.trojanbattery.com/>





-----Original Message-----
From: re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of Nathan Jones
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2012 4:36 PM
To: re-wrenches at lists.re-wrenches.org
Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] High L16 voltage situation







Mick,

Pesky is a nicer term than I had been using. I clamped the charge circuit and watched the amperage come in on final phase of absorb then drop to zero. (Since the voltage stayed at the same 15.6VDC when the amperage dropped off there was some current but my meter could not read it. That is the pesky part. Everything seems to be behaving as it should be. I will try the splitting of the parallel battery strings and check each string. And as Jay suggested, take a different brand of controller with me next time. What is frustrating is this should be as simple as things can get and yet it is so perplexing. Keeps me humble.

Thanks,

Nathan Jones





------------------------------

On Tue, Jul 17, 2012 11:19 AM CDT Mick Abraham wrote:



>Hi, Nathan~

>

>Your pesky overcharge situation sounds like a real pain given the long

>commute. 15.6 volts on a "12 volt" battery implies zero restriction of

>the incoming energy, so this looks like a controller problem...or maybe

>it's a wiring problem that prevents proper controller operation. Make

>sure there's a -12 in the model number for your Morningstar Sunsaver

>controls, as those are voltage specific.

>

>Eliminate as many variables as possible, Nathan: unhook two of the 6v

>L-16's, leaving only two in a 12 volt string. Connect only one PV

>module through the 12v controller and see if the voltage will regulate properly.

>If you have a clamp style DC ammeter, clip around one lead in the

>charge circuit & read the amps with good sun. If the battery voltage

>continues high while you see ~ 7-8 amps PV charge...the controller is

>failing to do its job.

>

>Jolliness,

>

>Mick Abraham, Proprietor

>www.abrahamsolar.com<http://www.abrahamsolar.com>

>

>Voice: 970-731-4675



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