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I have 2 solar panels each with its own 100/30 controller. When I did the initial setup and connected the system each panel corrected its charge and matched the other by 6-10 watts.
The next morning when the sun came up one charger became the charging unit and the other went to float. This happened two mornings in a row.
im confused as to why this is happening or have I done something wrong?
I have attached my setup
Any help would be gratefully received.
Justin
@Hoverjocki, check the breaker between the controller and battery on your port controller. Even in float, a controller will basically never show 0.0A unless there's something else amiss in the system.
What brand are those breakers? If they're not Bussman brand, throw them both away and replace them... the knockoff brands are known for weird behavior. Also check your crimps and connections along that line; make sure the terminals are tightly secured onto the wiring at the SCC, then check every crimp and connection up and down (controller to battery as well as controller to PV) the line, as a loose connection will often show voltage but still not permit current to pass.
The ones after the controllers are blueseas circuit breakers but I have 2 generic waterproof ones to disconnect the panels. Today I left the chargers off all day and let the batteries run down. I powered up the controllers first at the same time then the panels at the same time. Both chargers read the same power usage the rest of the day. I even shut down both panels again and turned them back on at different times and they equalized out showing the same power draw.
I have attached pictures of the circuit breakers in my system. I will replace the ones for sure from the panels to the chargers. Will blueseas breakers be ok, they seem to have the 285 number on them as the Bussman or just use the Bussman?
When I run my engine the alternator will charge my batteries too, will that effect the system too?
Thanks a lot.
Okay yep, the "Blue Sea" ones are just Buss 285 breakers in Blue Sea retail packaging... you're good with those. Definitely replace the two generic ones though.
...and, my mistake in my original answer - it was the port controller showing 0.0A being put into the battery, not the starboard controller. I'll correct that momentarily. It appears though that when you took those screenshots, 0.0A was being sent into your battery from the port controller... which means that either one of the breakers was popped, or a connection/crimp/MC4 connector was bad on that and wasn't allowing current to flow.
Yes, your batteries being more charged from other sources will mean that less current flows into them from the solar charge controllers, but anytime you see 0.0A from a controller during daylight hours it means that something's amiss... even on fully-charged batteries you'll still usually see 0.3A or something, a little trickle at least, as long as the sun is out.
