PDA

View Full Version : Solar Regulator



knp
14th April 2010, 11:04 AM
Just wondering if anyone has any knowledge or experience of connecting the vehicle battery/alternator to the panel input of a solar regulator? The aim is to achieve reliable charging of 2nd (dual) battery when using a mixed setup of flooded starter and AGM batteries.

The solar regulator can be set to charge either GEL, AGM, or flooded so it would be a good "vehicle charger" methinks. The one I have is from Jaycar MP3722 with a 32A peak input current. It also has over current protection but It's not clear if this is on the input or not.

Would I need to have a current limiter between the alternator and solar regulator? Does anyone already happen to have an appropriate circuit diagram I could use? Or would a 30A fuse be all that's required to protect the controller?

Any help and suggestions re this would be much appreciated.
Cheers
Peter

bee utey
14th April 2010, 12:35 PM
Just wondering if anyone has any knowledge or experience of connecting the vehicle battery/alternator to the panel input of a solar regulator? The aim is to achieve reliable charging of 2nd (dual) battery when using a mixed setup of flooded starter and AGM batteries.

The solar regulator can be set to charge either GEL, AGM, or flooded so it would be a good "vehicle charger" methinks. The one I have is from Jaycar MP3722 with a 32A peak input current. It also has over current protection but It's not clear if this is on the input or not.

Would I need to have a current limiter between the alternator and solar regulator? Does anyone already happen to have an appropriate circuit diagram I could use? Or would a 30A fuse be all that's required to protect the controller?

Any help and suggestions re this would be much appreciated.
Cheers
Peter
Haven't done exactly what you want but I have the programmable 20 amp regulator like Jaycar sell. The output voltage under load is 0.1 to 0.2 volts lower than the input. Forum member Blknight suggested a thermal resetting circuit breaker in line, with a large globe wired across it to allow reduced current to flow when it goes over your chosen current limit. You would need to measure your peak vehicle charging voltage to see if it was sufficient to drive the regulator successfully. I would wire it directly to the alternator for that reason.

weeds
14th April 2010, 01:44 PM
i am about to research the redarc dc to dc charger, apparantly you can program it for the type of battery

knp
15th April 2010, 05:40 AM
Thanks for the info. Will investigate the thermal breaker - didn't know about them.

Anyway I found a couple of circuits that may be of interest.
12 Volt 20 Amp Power Supply (http://www.zen22142.zen.co.uk/Circuits/Power/1220.htm)
Regulated DC power supply (http://www.zen22142.zen.co.uk/Circuits/Power/13v820a.htm)
12 Volt 30 Amp Power Supply (http://www.zen22142.zen.co.uk/Circuits/Power/1230psu.htm)

And while there I also came across this.
Winscope (http://www.zen22142.zen.co.uk/Prac/winscope.htm)
Seems it'll also work on a linux box under wine - can't wait to try it out. It should be possible to rig up a series of switched resistors to allow display of a larger input voltage.

d2dave
21st April 2010, 09:28 PM
Peter,
whether or not you can run an alternator through a solar regulator I don't know but if it can be done, as you only have a reg that can handle 32 amps you would have to use some sort of limiter as the alternator can pump out much greater amounts than this.

Dave.