EPEVER solar mppt system

[TheEntertainer]

Good day all,

Hope you all had a great weekend.

My father in law has installed a EPEVER MPPT system with two 200amp batteries and 5 x180watt panels.

Only problems is the max charge that goes into the battery is 12.6V, i’ve checked with the multimeter and nothing over 12.6V goes into the battery.

Any advise on how to set it up so we can get a decent charge out of it.

Thanks

J

[p38arover]

Hi Jan,

That's basically the battery voltage - that's not the charge going in.

What current is flowing into the batteries? Switch the multimeter to the 10A (or preferably greater range) and connect in series with one of the leads to the battery.

Are the panels in series or in parallel? I assume in parallel.

Are the batteries in series or parallel? By the voltage I assume in parallel.

[Ferret]

Might help if you state what model the Epever regulator is.

Is the regulator capable of handling the current that you may be getting from an array of 5x180 watt panels if connected in parallel or the voltage from a 5x180 watt array if connected in series?

Have you blown a fuse on the regulator?

[TheEntertainer]

Hi Ron,

They are in parallel, I'll check the voltage when we go up to the property on the long weekend.

I also have a Nationa Luna dual battery monitor connected on them, they max out at 12.6v. The same monitor on my car shows 13.6 when my car and dual is charging when driving. So I kinda expected the same to happen with then solar system. I have some pics and will add them a bit later.

Cheers

Jan

[TheEntertainer]

Hi,

Eperver Tracer MPPT, not sure if its the 30Amp or 40Amp unit.

I'll find out.

Thanks heaps

Jan

[Ferret]

Eperver Tracer MPPT, not sure if its the 30Amp or 40Amp unit....

5x180 watt panels could produce ~900 watts of power.

If your 2 batteries were wired in parallel they would require ~14v to charge. If the batteries were to draw a large current during that charging cycle your solar array could potentially supply up to ~64 amps.

If your regulator handling capacity is only in 30 - 40 amp range then you're are probably a bit 'under gunned' for your purpose.

A decent regulator will probably protect itself somehow against exceeding it's max rated PV current - fuse or something more sophisticated. The point is it will probably shut down in some manner, hopefully before the excess current destroys it.

Given the information you have supplied you seem to have a mismatch between rated solar capacity and rated regulator sizing.

If all the above is indeed the cause of your troubles then you either need to drop out some solar panels to match your regulator sizing (assuming your regulator stills works) or get a bigger regulator.

[DiscoMick]

Hi Ron,

They are in parallel, I'll check the voltage when we go up to the property on the long weekend.

I also have a Nationa Luna dual battery monitor connected on them, they max out at 12.6v. The same monitor on my car shows 13.6 when my car and dual is charging when driving. So I kinda expected the same to happen with then solar system. I have some pics and will add them a bit later.

Cheers

JanSounds like you're reading the state of the battery, not the input.
12.6 is a fully charged battery (6 x 2.1). 13.6 is a typical alternator output when the engine is running. Those are normal numbers.
What is the charging limit the batteries can accept? Might say on the battery.
The MPPT should adjust to what your batteries can safely accept.
5 x 180 watt panels is a lot of solar capacity. Maybe too much.

[TheEntertainer]

Hi,

Just had a chat to FIL.

5 x 100watt.
2 x AJ-FORCE 200AH deep cycle batteries in Parallel.

With the sun out I would expect them to charge at 13.6 - 13.8 with the multi meter.

The epever is a 40amp.

[Ferret]

In that case, your regulator is sized correctly.