Need some help with Solar issue

[TallPaul_S]

yep defo, as @TallPaul_S says.

connect it now. . . you should see something. even if its only 10W.

well maybe 1W lol . .

View attachment 239608

As it's a portable panel, just hold it closer to the sun, right?

 

[MrD]

Yes definitely. If you can, plug it in now - you might only see 1v but that would be enough to confirm the MPPT is ok. Obviously the battery won't charge at that.

Gents I am doing nothing more today I am done it’s been horrible in n out the rain today , up n down in n out the pop top (too bloody small for me) and my head is fried. I fear the only thing I am doing now is opening up a bottle of Mcguigan black label red and quietly whine to myself.

Thanks sooo much for the really helpful pointers today it’s been really great and a learning curve.

 

[TallPaul_S]

Well tbh if it's raining and with the sun so low then 0a is probably about right tbh. Pray for sun tomorrow

 

[GruB]

@MrD whilst your frustration is palpable please take solace in that you and Lee and Paul are helping others like me understand what we have purchased.

If I understand correctly you are seeing 0.01V as below? That screenshot was just now, no sun just all cloudy overcast sky. My home roof panels are showing 0.27kW though.





But the above does explain why the status is off.
Love your wine choice too.

 

[Dellmassive]

just for comparison. . .

this is my vic` MPPT on the shed.

weather is overcast . . .




i have 4x100w panels in series . . . . . .




connected to a Vic` 100/20 . . . .




that giving me 106w at that point. . .


W = V x A

so 70.18v x 1.5A = 105.27w ( rounded up to 106w)





+

and incase you wondered.

the four panel are in series - so the voltage adds, but the current stays the same.

my panels would be 17.5v +17.5v +17.5v + 17.5v = 70v at 1.5A


.

 

[MrD]

Updates……

Van in sun
Plugged all back in…..Vic shows nothing
Unplugged tested cables ….shows 22-24v BUT no Amps
Tested cables straight from PV same as above

Tried 100w portable PV …. 23-24v BUT no Amps
Attached portable PV to Vic …. Nothing
PV out in garden …. 22-24v BUT no Amps
PV plugged into battery bank shows 41w incoming

Sooo is my Meter rubbish on Amps as PV clearly works. Is my Vic stuffed too?

Or am I testing poorly. Think I might buy another Vic mppt to eliminate.

 

[Dellmassive]

have you ever used the AMPS setting on the meter befor?

they are normally fused inside at 10A on the AMPS socket on the left.

its possible the fuse has blown? if you tried measuring voltage with the red lead plugged into the wrong socket?


++++++++++


If you get 41w from the mobile panel on the PPP,

have you tried connecting the mobile panel to the Vic?

also there is a fuse on the Vic, have you checked that?

 

[MrD]

@Dellmassive

Have tried the mobile on the Vic earlier….nothing
Mobile panel is putting 58w into the battery bank

I may have done something amiss in the past with the test meter I don’t know

I will recheck the fuse on mppt but think I did that already plus it’s flashing blue on battery set up. Do they need resetting at all?.

 

[Dellmassive]

fuse for the meter will be under the rear cover - normally a 10A glass tube type.

the Vic mppt doesn't normally need a reset, but if it does, remove the power battery + solar for 60secs.


...

have you got another power source? small battery? 12v battery?

any dc power (11-75v) can be used on the PV port of the MPPT, - to check if its working.

.....


if you test the mobile van and get the VOC, then you should see the same voltage when the wire are screwed into the Vic, . .

unless the Vic is defective, - very unlikly.

but you should also be able to test the current from the panel with the meter in AMPS mode, so something not right here,

two possible issues,

id start by looking at your meter or get a second know good one.




new test meter? - same day delivery for £20 odd?

https://amzn.to/4drHt9S

.



.



.

 

[GruB]

@Dellmassive - your shed hasn’t got a split charger like a van requires.
The settings for mine detects if the engine is on and references a minimum voltage or the panel will not work.

This video explains it.
But how can you test your kit is all working in the van?

 

[MrD]

fuse for the meter will be under the rear cover - normally a 10A glass tube type.

the Vic mppt doesn't normally need a reset, but if it does, remove the power battery + solar for 60secs.


...

have you got another power source? small battery? 12v battery?

any dc power (11-75v) can be used on the PV port of the MPPT, - to check if its working.

.....


if you test the mobile van and get the VOC, then you should see the same voltage when the wire are screwed into the Vic, . .

unless the Vic is defective, - very unlikly.

but you should also be able to test the current from the panel with the meter in AMPS mode, so something not right here,

two possible issues,

id start by looking at your meter or get a second know good one.




new test meter? - same day delivery for £20 odd?

https://amzn.to/4drHt9S

View attachment 239671

.

View attachment 239673

.



.

Ok I checked the Vic fuse all ok.

Checked the fuse in meter it looks ok but is solid see image.

With mobile panel in Vic got no VOC . Anything that’s shows VOC shows nothing on the Vic.

Already bought another Vic delivered tomorrow.

I also think my test meter is stuffed on Amps ?

 

[TallPaul_S]

Ok so it's possible the A test on your meter is faulty as we know the portable panel is outputting 42w into the power pack.

But 0v and pa when connected to the Victron.

Can you connect the van solar to the power pack? Can't see you tried that. That would confirm if the van solar and cabling is working with a known working charge controller.

 

[MrD]

@TallPaul_S

Plugged power bank into panels on van and result 47W incoming. This leads me to believe the Vic is not well?

 

[TallPaul_S]

@TallPaul_S

Plugged power bank into panels on van and result 47W incoming. This leads me to believe the Vic is not well?

View attachment 239691

Yep, either that or there's something else in your system that's causing the issue. Is there a fuse between battery and the Victron MPPT? Double check that.

So we now know the panel is good and the wiring is good (up to the MC4 connectors used with the portable power pack).

 

[MrD]

The Vic is or has been connected to the battery fine for weeks and showing Volts/state just no PV . There is a fuse which is fine . I think this all stems back to when I first fitted the Vic and mixed up the cables between PV and Batt so the PV had Batt connected , that gave issues with the 30A fuse blowing until I realised my dumbassery .

 

[Dellmassive]

The Vic is or has been connected to the battery fine for weeks and showing Volts/state just no PV . There is a fuse which is fine . I think this all stems back to when I first fitted the Vic and mixed up the cables between PV and Batt so the PV had Batt connected , that gave issues with the 30A fuse blowing until I realised my dumbassery .

oh, , . . . so it was connected up wrong before?

maybe its fried then?

very unusual for Victron, but possible,

they always say to connect the battery before PV to prevent any damage.


the new unit will be a good test - roll on tomorrows delivery.

 

[Dellmassive]

@Dellmassive - your shed hasn’t got a split charger like a van requires.
The settings for mine detects if the engine is on and references a minimum voltage or the panel will not work.

This video explains it.
But how can you test your kit is all working in the van?

that video just details the fact that the victron mppt will wait for a PV voltage of 5v over the battery voltage before switching on,

this stops the mppt from cycling on/off in the mornings and evenings..

so example battery voltage 12.2v - the mppt wont turn until it sees a PV voltage of 17.5v

++++++++++++

the solar shed has a 12v lithium setup with no dc-dc charger.

but the van has DC-DC charger and solar MPPT, - the same testing applies for both systems.

 

[MrD]

oh, , . . . so it was connected up wrong before?

maybe its fried then?

very unusual for Victron, but possible,

they always say to connect the battery before PV to prevent any damage.


the new unit will be a good test - roll on tomorrows delivery.

@Dellmassive

I “did” fit Batt cables first then the PV cables ……. Which resulted in a pop so I replaced said fuse and it popped again immediately….. then I realised my error as the Vic cables connect in a different order to my PWM controller which was PV > Batt > Load. My error not checking complete mix up on my part.

 

[MrD]

Indeed roll on tomorrow

Thanks all for your inputs and help , very much appreciated.

 

[Dellmassive]

hmm . . . . not good.

well lessons learned and all that.

make sure you connect up the new one correctly . . .