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Cpt Balu · 02-09-2018, 02:25

Hi all,

I got the mppt charger from tracker with a 140 watt panel.
Some month ago the charger stopped working and now I got a new one. What I measure the panel it brings 17-30 Volt but as soon as I connect the cables to the charger it goes down to 13 Volt. The battery has 12.4 volts and there is no current measurable so nothing is charging.
Dose anybody has an idea what it could be?

Many thanks,
Lasse

Charger
https://www.jws-store.de/solarenergi...isplay/a-1271/

Solar
https://www.jws-store.de/solarenergi...stallin/a-194/

Battery
https://www.batteriespezialist.de/Bo...-12V::320.html

**Paul Elliott** · 02-09-2018, 08:43

Corroded or otherwise high-resistance wires or connectors? Damaged panel?

17-30V is a very large range. What are the conditions? And how are you measuring current?

motion30 · 02-09-2018, 10:44

Voltage with no load means very little. Chances are your batteries are low and that's all it can produce at that state-of-charge leave it hooked up a while to see if the voltage increases

gmakhs · 02-09-2018, 13:17

i will comment that this is a china charger and can be found on aliexpress for 40 euros , plus the panel for 89 , if you bought it from this store they are making the hell of profit .
If the charger is new you should check it with another panel , flexi solars tent to get damaged easy.

Cpt Balu · 02-09-2018, 22:24

But why would you think it’s the panel? It was between sunny and cloudy that’s why the range when it was sunny in the morning I measured constant 30v. That should be more then enough to charge the battery with 12.4 or not?

gmakhs · 03-09-2018, 06:32

Because the charger is new .

GILow · 03-09-2018, 06:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cpt Balu

But why would you think it’s the panel? It was between sunny and cloudy that’s why the range when it was sunny in the morning I measured constant 30v. That should be more then enough to charge the battery with 12.4 or not?

As motion30 pointed out, voltage on its own is no proof the panel is working. An open circuit panel may build to full voltage but still produce practically no current if it is faulty. You need to check the open circuit voltage AND the short circuit current as a first simple step in checking your panel. Both specifications should be listed on the sticker on the panel. If you get full voltage AND full rated current (or close to it) only then should you move onto the next stage of testing.

thomm225 · 03-09-2018, 07:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cpt Balu

But why would you think it’s the panel? It was between sunny and cloudy that’s why the range when it was sunny in the morning I measured constant 30v. That should be more then enough to charge the battery with 12.4 or not?

30 Volts seems high. What is the VOC of the panel.

The panel voltage should drop down like it did when you hooked up the charger if it is connected to your batteries but not quite so far with an MPPT Controller depending on the Sun angle.

Are you sure there's no current flow? How long did you monitor it? Make sure all your connections are good. In other words reseat/move and retighten all connections.

**Paul Elliott** · 03-09-2018, 08:20

The panel specs show Voc at 26V, and V(max power) at 22V. It appears to be a flexible monocrystaline panel with 36 cells. Vmp seems high for a 36-cell panel, and a measured Voc of 30V seems quite a bit higher than I would expect, but I suppose there's no reason to doubt the published specs.

In any case, do check both the open-circuit voltage and the short-circuit current of the disconnected panel. This will tell you if the panel (and panel wiring) is OK.

FionaJC · 03-09-2018, 09:32

I have a similar charger, an EPEVER. There are readings on the LCD dispolay to tell you what is going on in terms of voltage, charge and battery capacity. Have you set it up correctly. Tell us what the readings on the solar charger are, that may help.

Cpt Balu · 03-09-2018, 09:41

Yes. It shows always 13 V no amps and no kWh and the battery voltage with 12.4V

Cpt Balu · 03-09-2018, 09:43

But always 13 V doesn’t matter what cloud coverage or sum angle. If I measure on the connecting cables it changes frequently with clouds +- 19 V

FionaJC · 03-09-2018, 09:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cpt Balu

Yes. It shows always 13 V no amps and no kWh and the battery voltage with 12.4V

The KWH will build up over time. There should be a symbol of arrows from the solar panel to the charger. Page 13 on the manual http://www.epsolarpv.com/en/uploads/...2885787574.pdf

If not then the solar is not supplying any charge.