Solar charger control help & advice please

[Elfit]

Hi All

I have been given a solar panel and I need to buy a charger controller but I haven't a clue what to buy!
Please can someone advise me about what to buy ( perhaps with a link)

The panel I have has the following written on the back

120W Max
7.7A Isc
21v Voc
7.1a Imp
16.9 v

I just want to use it to charge a stand alone 110a leisure battery

Many thanks

 

[Rob H]

Sola charger control.

Hi Elfit,

Take a peak at, Victron Blue Solar MPPT 75/15 (battery management + some capacity in hand for doubling up on your panel > 200 watt should you want ... 'more power to the engines Captain Kirk', ... reasonable output on a horizontal / roof mounted panel in winter months).

Rgrds,

Rob H.

 

[maingate]

Hi All

I have been given a solar panel and I need to buy a charger controller but I haven't a clue what to buy!
Please can someone advise me about what to buy ( perhaps with a link)

The panel I have has the following written on the back

120W Max
7.7A Isc
21v Voc
7.1a Imp
16.9 v

I just want to use it to charge a stand alone 110a leisure battery

Many thanks

For the use you need it for, just buy the cheapest 10 amp regulator you can find.

Crocodile clips will do for attaching to the battery unless you are making it a permanent (ie non-movable) arrangement. Then you need proper connectors.

 

[Wooie1958]

If the solar panel is going to be stand alone as well stick one of these to the rear of the panel

10A 12V/24V Solar Panel Charge Controller Battery Regulator Safe Protection New | eBay

Attach the cables from the panel directly to it then more cables with crocodile clips to the battery as maingate suggests.

 

[vwalan]

Solar Panel Charger Battery Regulator Controller Converter Auto 12V 24V 30A | eBay
i use these , the 30amp is a bit over for you but doesnt hurt . been using mine for about 7 years now . lots of friends use them as well.

 

[Elfit]

Many thanks for your help.

I've ordered a control from ebay

All we need now is sunshine!

 

[neillandyboy]

cheap Chinese copy

Be very careful I bought a 30 amp control panel from eBay for around £20 an for a while it worked fine .

then after about a month it just stopped working without any worning after doing some research on the net i found i had the Chinese copy.

so i bought another unit for not much more money it looks just the same as the first one apart from some white writing and the buttons being a different shape this one is now working great much better than first unit.

 

[oldish hippy]

well i got a cheapy and it working wellstilland was working well today

 

[listerdiesel]

Hi All

I have been given a solar panel and I need to buy a charger controller but I haven't a clue what to buy!
Please can someone advise me about what to buy ( perhaps with a link)

The panel I have has the following written on the back

120W Max
7.7A Isc
21v Voc
7.1a Imp
16.9 v

I just want to use it to charge a stand alone 110a leisure battery

Many thanks

120W is the absolute maximum you'll get from the panel, at the equator on a clear day.

Anywhere else and it falls away quite a bit.

7.7A is the short-circuit current the panel will generate
21V is the Open Circuit voltage with no load on
7.1A is the maximum power output current in ideal conditions
16.9V is the output voltage at full power.

So, 16.9 X 7.1 is where your 120W comes from.

If you want to make the best of it, get an MPPT controller, but they are not cheap for a good one, we have four of these in service in the trailer and the Mercedes:

Solar charge controller regulator MPPT 20A 12V LCD max 50Voc | eBay

20A on the trailer and 25A on the Mercedes.

What you get out of the rig will depend on the conversion of the controller from what the panel puts out to what the battery needs.

Our oldest units have been in service for four years with no failures.

Peter

 

[Mastodon]

Putting a fuse in where the +ve meets the battery is a good idea.