Mppt solar panel night mode help needed

A

andy74

New Member
Hello, my solar charger seems to be stuck in night mode and therefore not charging. I’ve had the multimeter on the terminals for the panel and it’s showing zero. On the battery terminals it was showing 12.7v. Looked at the instructions but it doesn’t say how to get off night mode or has the panel had it. It is about 3 years old. Any thoughts? 5AE431E6-3679-45EC-A58B-7765A18097BF.jpegCheers, andy
 
Is it possible that your battery is fully charged hence being in sleep charge mode.
 
0v on the PV side (in daylight) would indicate a problem with the panel.

You should always see voltage when the sun is out...

Example 12-20v.

I'm assuming that's why the controller is showing night, as it's not seeing any power from the panel.

Id check the panel and connection..

Got any more pics?
 
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Cheers for the reply. Sounds like the PV is knackered then. Looks like a real simple system of a cable from the PV to the controller and a cable from the controller to the battery. Both cables look in good condition so I’m presuming it’s the PV as you suggested. I’m not very techy so any recommendations for a suitable replacement PV would be much appreciated. There is a hole already in the roof and it’s a straightforward cable run.6AA2535B-0273-408F-BD0C-FBCC25D8006C.jpeg
 
Remove the PV wires from the controller.

The test with volt meter.

You should see a voltage if it's daylight.

Take some close ups of the panel and it's I'd tag.

.


Screenshot_20220607-194307_Chrome.jpg
..

That looks like a rear entry panel with a gland on the back.

Not sure on size? ... But I'd guess 100-160w ish?
 
Dellmassive said:
Remove the PV wires from the controller.

The test with volt meter.

You should see a voltage if it's daylight.

Take some close ups of the panel and it's I'd tag.

.


View attachment 159649
..

That looks like a rear entry panel with a gland on the back.

Not sure on size? ... But I'd guess 100-160w ish?
Click to expand...
Spot on 120w just found the receipt that came with the van. It was fitted in July 2019 so 3 years old. 9127934C-43F3-4BCB-B6D7-664D3FD1065D.jpeg07764E0F-BED1-47EB-888D-35CF0F114817.jpeg
 
Check with the installer....

These panels are normally rated for 10years warranty / life.

You might me able to get a warranty replacement with that paperwork you have.
 
Hi sorry to gate crash your post are they rated very good these panels was actually just look online at the 200w version I also have a victron 100/30 mppt to run with it I’m new to all this any advice would be appreciated it’s to run a lion 100ah leisure battery also thinking of adding another battery the same beside it

76F77B19-B8E0-4548-8F41-0E562644BDD0.png

0C5A3EE0-C495-4B4B-8043-98343A2F896D.png
 
Resurrecting this thread as I have the exact same set up with the exact same result i.e. my panel has failed and is only 4 years old. I have done some research on the web and it appears this is more common than it should be. Several folks have reported these panels failing far too early. Some reporting failures within 2 years (and unable to get any assistance as the warranty is 1 year).

As they are not cheap at circa £300 they should definitely not be consumable and failing so early in my view.

I now need to replace my panel so was wondering whether anyone has experience of panels that have lasted longer than 5 or even 10 years as I am loathed to purchase another panel from this particular vendor knowing that it is likely to fail early (according to the reviews).

Any recommendations welcome.

Cheers.
 
I have just had the exact same120w panel fail after 12 months. The company who installed my roof managed to get it replaced under warranty but they did advise that after good longevity, there seems to be an increase in the number of recent failures
 
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