Multiple charging systems?

[Raspy]

I think I posted this in another thread, but here is what we did on my friends Oliver.

We took out (4) Trojan 200 AH, 6volt AGM batteries, and replaced them with the shown (3) Battle Born batteries. The batteries added up to the perfect length, but were a little narrower than the tray.

I put in the Victron MPPT 100130 solar controller, and the BMV-712 monitor with bluetooth. We kept the Progressive Dynamics charger. Battle Born offers a "drop in" conversion for the Progressive Dynamics charger, for the battle Born batteries, whatever that is, to better match the voltage, but the stock voltage is close, and he has solar, which we decided would make up the difference.

The system is working better than it ever has.

I seems the root of the problem was a bad solar controller that looked like it was working, but never got the batteries up to full charge. It was replaced and still didn't work, which took out at least one battery in the process.

It also seems to be important to ask Battle Born for their specific programming on the Victron, and to do any updates on the software and firmware.

[JAR]

Early in the thread a portable solar charging solution was discussed. I know Harbor Freight is a low end choice but their 100 watt portable solar panel kit is only about $145 on sale and reportedly works well in the shade. Might be worth a look for just occasional use.

[Raspy]

Originally Posted by JAR

and reportedly works well in the shade.

I gotta see that.

[WaltP]

I don't have any way to know if there are substandard solar panels, but I've certainly heard of lower quality controllers.

Walt

[WizWid]

Originally Posted by Raspy

I gotta see that.

Of course they work in shade.
Same way as you will get sunburn on cloudy days.
Just takes longer.
If you can see, there is light energy out there to be harvested.

[Raspy]

Originally Posted by widgetwizard

Of course they work in shade.
Same way as you will get sunburn on cloudy days.
Just takes longer.
If you can see, there is light energy out there to be harvested.

Technically, or generally speaking, you are right. But specific numbers are more important than generalizations. And "working well" doesn't tell us much.

If I "shade" my system, and only depend on reflected, indirect light, the performance goes down to about 2% of its rating. That, in my book, is not working well. Setting up a portable solar system under a big tree, while camping, will likely lead to disappointing performance. Buying a solar system because somebody said it "works well" in the shade, will likely lead to disappointment.

As I understand it, and I could certainly be wrong, sunburns happen from ultraviolet light, while solar panels rely mostly on visible light. Getting sunburned is not a very good way to predict solar panel output.

[Markz]

The answer you seek is a CTek ds250. They make one for lead acid and another for lithium.