Solar puzzled

[Atraxia]

After connecting my new 250w (x2) solar panels through their MPPT controllers to the batteries (as usually instructed) I get everything but charge.
The controllers show that the batteries are being charged and even go through the 3 stage sequence of Bulk, Accept and Float. My Xantrex 2000 panel shows the voltage is there but not the Amps. The battery hours continue to drop.
The batteries are actually continuing to discharge while being charged by the solar panels. This does not happen when running the motor. The Xantrex panel shows the Amps are coming in and battery hours increasing.
Another issue is the solar controllers heat up extensively when the sun is up and beating.

Any thoughts, recommendations, solutions will be most appreciated.
Thanks
Ron

[Lancerbye]

I suspect that you do not have the charging information from your solar panels and controller going to the Xantrex 2000, so the Xantrex only reads the normal output current which is fed back to it via a shunt. Do you have the controller output going directly to the battery?

[noelex 77]

Originally Posted by Lancerbye

I suspect that you do not have the charging information from your solar panels and controller going to the Xantrex 2000, so the Xantrex only reads the normal output current which is fed back to it via a shunt.

+1
If the volts are rising when the solar is outputting then the solar output is likely to fine.
Moving the solar controllers output from the battery to the shunt side of the batter monitor should solve the problem.

[CampDavid]

It does not matter where the + connection is located, be it the battery or at the panel, it is all about where the - negative is connected to the system.

It must connected above the shunt so that the current passes thru the shunt and then to the battery. The shunt is on the negative side of the battery circuit, there should no wires connected between the shunt and the battery other than the cable. all curcuits should be above the shunt.

Fletch

[smac999]

if you have lots of stuff on (lights, etc) you might still be neg with the panels. but I would check the shunt. make sure everything is turned off to confirm you have charging amps.

[Atraxia]

Thank you all for your replies!

I just changed the connection from directly to the battery to the main bus and it reads fine.
Now just remains the question why do the controllers heat up so much?
I have never encountered hot controllers before.

[djmarchand]

MPPT controllers have about 5% power losses in their circuitry. With as much as 250 watts going to them, 12.5 watts will be converted to heat. That is the same or more than a typical incandescent dome light. Feel how hot one of these gets and compare.

David