Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed the video! It's a ton of info but I found an awesome video that goes into the technical differences between PWM and MPPT. Check it out here if you're interested in learning more of the "dirty details" → ruclips.net/video/wmyuxKmlBCk/видео.html. Let me know if you have any questions and I'll do my best to answer as many as I can... see you all on the next one 😎 ☀️
im about to buy a system for my VW Rialta RV and i have 2 batteries already ran off the car that charges them but i want i want my own boondockind tech deck for my fridga nd computer and camera gear n tv basiclally everything but the AC! amazon has alot of decent deals around 60$ for 200 watts is what i want and i have a 2000 inverter already to hookup,so what solar panel, ,controller and baterry should i get?? ..btw cant afford Lithium yet..
A question about the size of the controller : my system and my batteries are 12V, what If I connect my 2 12V 135W solar panels in series, do I divide 270 by 24 or by 12 ?
very easy to understand even from someone like me, a senior woman, who does not know anything but wants to build a solar powered small home. Thank you.
Hi There Its Beare Ramlal here from Gauteng, South Africa. Your videos are extremely useful. I'm currently designing a solar system for my small holding (small farm) Thanks for this initiative
Just came across this video. Holy smokes, Outstanding vid, out of dozens, this is the BEST, most concise and easiest to understand I have seen!!! A little late but many thanks!! ☺
As always incredibly clear and concise information that even I can comprehend, not that I'm unintelligent, my brain was just never wired for any electrical information; looks like that is slowly changing thanks to you. Thanks for sharing.
Simple and concise explanation of the controller differences. This is going to help me build my solar system on my Overland truck build. Thanks for being so factual
Incredible knowledge. I watched all three videos - panels, batteries, and controllers. Now I feel more comfortable talking with the solar companies. Thank you.
As a practical matter in the context of a RV, except for very large arrays in very exposed situations and very careful panel placement, a PWM controller will come very close to most MPPT. Shading as you have noted is important and can be an overwhelming factor in a solar rig that moves from place to place and is affected by AC covers, campsite locations etc.
On smaller systems, it's worth noting that under 10watts MPPT stop tracking - so I use PWM on a small 20 watts system on my shed for charging car batteries with a well-matched panel that peaks at 17.5v - and an MPPT on my 280-watt system on my motor home where the panel peaks at 32volt and the lifepo4 battery is charged at 14.4volt. So i would say well-matched panels on sub 40watt systems PWM works well
Love it. Thanks. I find the simple illustration all I need. I am not too tech savvy so your videos will help me select what I need. Stay well & keep having fun.
Just found your channel. U do the best job I have seen simplifying the solar process. Will subscribe. Look forward to watching the archived stuff. Peace!
To make it simple for folks the way to go if you do not live where the sun shines all day and is cloudy alot, go with a MPPT controller. In a 12 volt battery system wire your panels for a 24 volt system. The MPPT can handle the higher voltage and charge your 12 volt batterys. The advantage is when cloudy the panels will still be putting out higher voltage with fewer amps to the controller. The controller changes the voltage into more amps to charge the batterys at 12 volts. But if you're out in the desert or where you get sunshine most of the day, either type MPPT or PWM will work fine. I found that a MPPT charge controller taking in wired for 24 volts solar panels will be charging a 12 volt battery system at nite parked under a street light!!!
Would love to see a vid about the differences between mppt vs own. I want to learn as much as I can about solar so I can engineer mine. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!
Hey Todd. There is a link to the technical video on these two types of controllers in my pinned comment on this video. Hope this helps give you all the info you need. Thanks for watching!
So I connected a square foot solar panel to a 12 volt battery that was drained to 11 volts. The solar panel puts out 24-28 volts. After a few hours, the battery was back to 12 volts. Please explain why I need a "charge controller"..thank you for the video-better than most....
So I'm planning on making a solar system with 2 100w solar panels and I'm not to make a battery with eve 280ah cells with a daly 200a or higher bms and I was wondering if I was able to use a pwm charge controller for that kinda of system or would I have to get a mttp charge controller I'm building it for a micro camper
I understand the 50 amp requirement for the 600 watt solar system. But do a 600 watt solar array ever produce 600 watts. Most panels are only 15 to 20 percent efficient. Cheers great video
I’m only charging one deep cycle battery for my camping fridge for weekends ,I think I will stick with my PMW , and it’s shows me on the back when the fridge is using or isn’t using ,
Thank you. Amazing videos. Can you make a video about different types of inverters like Growatt or Must and what does hybrid means and being PH or PV... Thanks
I have a 100 watt panel output about 18V and need to charge 2 12 volt deep cycle batteries in parallel on my camper, is there anything besides what amp charger I should be concerned with?
Thanks for the guide, and about sizing, is it okay if you already have an available 20a SCC but then you only have a single solar Panel , can you use it to the 100w panel , while you are still planning to have a parallel Solar array soon? Or do I really need to calculate the panel and battery 1st and follow the recommendation for the SCC size? Thanks again...
Nice😊 But pannels dont produce exactly 12 volts.. they can go up to 20 volts.. So keeping this variation in mind.. how can we select a solar charger both in MPPT & PWM
Controllers come with an open (max voltage allowable) voltage rating. Use that figure for calculations.. BTW...I have panels labeled as 20 volt, 30volt and 80 volt. Get a multimeter and starty measuring maximum voltage and current. Be careful.
Is there a charge controller that when your battery is full it uses the energy directly from the solar panels saving the batteries only when the sun is down, if so please name the brand so I can purchase it
Hello, Just got the SMK MPPT Solar Charge controller, Please i need to understand the parameters,I know PV means voltage from sun P means charging power and U means voltage of battery what does Today mean? and when do u know the battery is fully charged as well as when do we know we are using the solar panel for grid and not the charge stored in the battery?
I have a 200 (2 panel) Renogy kit with PWM controller with 2 6 volt golf cart batteries totaling 225 amps at 12 volt. I plan on getting a 2000 watt pure sine inverter so I could run my microwave along with other things on the RV completely off grid. I would like to be able to use 110 amps per 24 hours and completely recharge that amount. Would I get more efficiency buying two more hundred watt panels and keeping my pwm controller or 1 - 100 watt panel (bringing the total to 300watts) and a MTTP controller?
I have a similar system and the problem is not the panels or controller but the batteries. If your microwave is a small 600 watt unit that is 50 amps at 12 volts and over 100 amps if a 1200+ watt microwave plus if you are running anything else. Batteries to not last long if you discharge them much over 20-25 amps load or below 50% charge. For example your 225 amp hour battery will last much longer at a 25 amp per hour discharge for 4 hours than 100 amps per hour for one hour. Yes, I know you will not run your microwave that long but the idea is to keep the battery load below 25 amps per hour. l would add more battery capacity. My AGM 110 amp hr 12 volt batteries 10 years old and working well.
GIGman azmt yah but having more panels is necessary or you could under charge consistently. You will need both. More panels and more batteries. And an mppt controller. Morning stars you can do up to 60amps I believe, and about 5 panels to max. 110 amps per 24 hours constantly? That’s a large load for that system it sounds like. Maybe you mean 110 amps in a 24 hour period.
please can you do a video on how to properly size your charge controller for you solar pales. Example lets say i have 64 panels of 150watts each. how can i select a suitable charge controller?
I need a video on 4, 6 volt batterys wired sitting side by side to make 12 volts with positive wire to a trailer on the left side and ground on the right side then attached a solar wireing from a controller attached along with a 3000 watt inverter attached,,,, every other battery banki see on RUclips is set 2 on top 2 below mine is 4 across the tongue of my travel trailer can ypu help me ?
i cant find anywhere what is the maximum voltage i can put into a mppt charge controller. i want to wire my panels in series but isnt there a limit on the voltage?
Thank you very much for the awesome videos full of information. But one suggestion please which many you tubers neglect. When you show some diagram, please show it for a long time. We can hear your voice but we miss necessary information in the diagram. A diagram conveys more information than what you talk the same. You can talk in the background but please show the diagrams for a long time. Thanks and sorry if I annoyed you or anybody.
I had hoped you would cover the MPPT, with a 24 or 36 volt series array, into the MPPT controller at the high(2x), voltage, then exiting(voltage reduction), to charge a 12 volt array and 12v load
What if your solar panels have solar charge controllers on them and the solar generator has a solar charge controller on it would that be a bad thing? Is it better if the solar panel have a charge controller on itself then feed a regular charge controller. Or once the solar panel sends voltage from the panel controller it can go directly to battery without any worries? Reply
Would it be too hard to slow down or do you have a time constraint limiting the length of the videos? I keep having to stop your videos and back up to have time to absorb what I’m learning from you. Thank you. Good stuff!
Great video Michael: Solar Edge advertises that they have panels that have individual controls so one damaged panel in a string does not compromise the rest. Does the MPPT charge controller also do this ? I hope you cover this later in the series
big question is, how do i ratio the panel and batteries, if my batteries 12v / 200ah / 20hr, sealed batteries is to expensive so how many panel and batteries do i need to set up, i know it depend how much load. if solar panel stats 12/ 100watts.. to much panel may goes wrong, to much batteries disadvantages may exist.. solar controller depend how much panels and inverter it depend what load do i have. am i right ?
marigold limbo yes depends on your loads. I have a solar powered shower with a 12v battery charge controller and two 100w panels. 300 gal cistern and a instant hot water heater and a 12v water pump 40 psi. It keeps the batteries nice and fresh. We have a lot of people who take showers. On our heaviest days it carries day and night showers and only once or twice have had to isolate to charge. And that was due to weather. Remember that 100w panels will not give you 100w. Maybe 50-75w. Typically.
What if your solar array produces more amps than what you can find an average MPPT controller? Can you hook up two controllers to the same battery bank? For example, I want to have 8 - 310w solar panels. Each panel is rated at, (36.54V and 8.49A) which is (36.54V x 8.49A=310.22 rated watts per panel) even at 48v system configuration, it would be 51 amps.
I've had a Tristar PWM for years and it's worked well. But for the last year it's barely ever diverted overcharge to my dump load, and always indicates state of charge as being below maximum even on long, sunny days. I measured my batteries and they're waaay overcharged...up to 30% over. I'll go to an MTTP I reckon.
Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed the video! It's a ton of info but I found an awesome video that goes into the technical differences between PWM and MPPT. Check it out here if you're interested in learning more of the "dirty details" → ruclips.net/video/wmyuxKmlBCk/видео.html. Let me know if you have any questions and I'll do my best to answer as many as I can... see you all on the next one 😎 ☀️
Duet Justus thanks
hi
how to making solar
im about to buy a system for my VW Rialta RV and i have 2 batteries already ran off the car that charges them but i want i want my own boondockind tech deck for my fridga nd computer and camera gear n tv basiclally everything but the AC!
amazon has alot of decent deals around 60$ for 200 watts is what i want and i have a 2000 inverter already to hookup,so what solar panel, ,controller and baterry should i get?? ..btw cant afford Lithium yet..
A question about the size of the controller : my system and my batteries are 12V, what If I connect my 2 12V 135W solar panels in series, do I divide 270 by 24 or by 12 ?
very easy to understand even from someone like me, a senior woman, who does not know anything but wants to build a solar powered small home. Thank you.
Hi There
Its Beare Ramlal here from Gauteng, South Africa. Your videos are extremely useful. I'm currently designing a solar system for my small holding (small farm)
Thanks for this initiative
Just came across this video. Holy smokes, Outstanding vid, out of dozens, this is the BEST, most concise and easiest to
understand I have seen!!! A little late but many thanks!! ☺
As always incredibly clear and concise information that even I can comprehend, not that I'm unintelligent, my brain was just never wired for any electrical information; looks like that is slowly changing thanks to you. Thanks for sharing.
Simple and concise explanation of the controller differences. This is going to help me build my solar system on my Overland truck build.
Thanks for being so factual
Incredible knowledge. I watched all three videos - panels, batteries, and controllers. Now I feel more comfortable talking with the solar companies. Thank you.
You have been the only one that has broken it down in an understandable manner. Thank you!!
Excellent explanation without too much wordies.
As a practical matter in the context of a RV, except for very large arrays in very exposed situations and very careful panel placement, a PWM controller will come very close to most MPPT. Shading as you have noted is important and can be an overwhelming factor in a solar rig that moves from place to place and is affected by AC covers, campsite locations etc.
With each video, I get one step closer to installing solar on our rv! Thanks...VERY helpful, VERY informative!
You're so welcome Tom!
This is exactly what I have been looking for! Thank you. Great video!
You articulated everything well, and were concise, so I gave you a sub for not wasting my time! This is what I look for in videos
On smaller systems, it's worth noting that under 10watts MPPT stop tracking - so I use PWM on a small 20 watts system on my shed for charging car batteries with a well-matched panel that peaks at 17.5v - and an MPPT on my 280-watt system on my motor home where the panel peaks at 32volt and the lifepo4 battery is charged at 14.4volt. So i would say well-matched panels on sub 40watt systems PWM works well
Love it. Thanks. I find the simple illustration all I need. I am not too tech savvy so your videos will help me select what I need. Stay well & keep having fun.
😎 👍🏼
Just found your channel. U do the best job I have seen simplifying the solar process. Will subscribe. Look forward to watching the archived stuff. Peace!
I spent hours trying to get these answers through other videos. Thank you for sharing this info! Super informative and helpful👍🏼
Awesome! So glad it is helpful!
Hey, i love your simple and straight explanation. It really helps me. Thanks mate.
To make it simple for folks the way to go if you do not live where the sun shines all day and is cloudy alot, go with a MPPT controller. In a 12 volt battery system wire your panels for a 24 volt system. The MPPT can handle the higher voltage and charge your 12 volt batterys. The advantage is when cloudy the panels will still be putting out higher voltage with fewer amps to the controller. The controller changes the voltage into more amps to charge the batterys at 12 volts.
But if you're out in the desert or where you get sunshine most of the day, either type MPPT or PWM will work fine.
I found that a MPPT charge controller taking in wired for 24 volts solar panels will be charging a 12 volt battery system at nite parked under a street light!!!
Great info here. Thanks!
For real
THX MUCH HOGCAT
We get one step closer to installing solar on our rv! Thanks
Great articulate and informative videos sir. Thank you.
Can I buy a bigger amp controller than what I need? I plan on buying more panels and want to be prepared
A lot of useful content in 7 minutes. Thanks!
thx for your video and also for the reference to the AU Direct video... both much appreciated.
You have been helpful in your explanation and its really amazing thank you so much for those details.
Fantastic! Crystal clear explanation and exactly what I was looking for. Thanks.
Would love to see a vid about the differences between mppt vs own. I want to learn as much as I can about solar so I can engineer mine. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!
Hey Todd. There is a link to the technical video on these two types of controllers in my pinned comment on this video. Hope this helps give you all the info you need. Thanks for watching!
Thanks I always learn something from your videos! I always wondered about the amp size controller needed. Thanks so much.👍
You're welcome Darrell 😊
Thanks for keeping it simple.
Keep up the video, this is a must have info.
Good well laid out information. I like the comparison charts too.
Please I would like to know how to detect the current the charger controllers produce
Nice and appreciative,but i need to see the diagram of the panel to the inverter to the battery and the building
always you are in right track ,informative
Very good videos. I am always learning. Best regards from Holland
Clear concise explanation. Thanks
So I connected a square foot solar panel to a 12 volt battery that was drained to 11 volts. The solar panel puts out 24-28 volts. After a few hours, the battery was back to 12 volts. Please explain why I need a "charge controller"..thank you for the video-better than most....
So I'm planning on making a solar system with 2 100w solar panels and I'm not to make a battery with eve 280ah cells with a daly 200a or higher bms and I was wondering if I was able to use a pwm charge controller for that kinda of system or would I have to get a mttp charge controller I'm building it for a micro camper
Thanks for explaining.
I will change PWM to MPPT soon!
Great teacher
Can I connect two solar controller from the same solar panels?
I understand the 50 amp requirement for the 600 watt solar system. But do a 600 watt solar array ever produce 600 watts. Most panels are only 15 to 20 percent efficient. Cheers great video
Which 2 videos where you talked before this one?
I’m only charging one deep cycle battery for my camping fridge for weekends ,I think I will stick with my PMW , and it’s shows me on the back when the fridge is using or isn’t using ,
another great video ! well done !
I have a Fronius primo inverter - not suitable for batteries in the future. Can you expand the Fronius system with an MPPT charger and batteries?
wow good explanation thanks keep it up
Great video 👍
Question? Can a MPPT charge controller be used with lead acid batteries? THX
Thank you. Amazing videos. Can you make a video about different types of inverters like Growatt or Must and what does hybrid means and being PH or PV... Thanks
I have a 100 watt panel output about 18V and need to charge 2 12 volt deep cycle batteries in parallel on my camper, is there anything besides what amp charger I should be concerned with?
Yes I want to see the in details video please
Thanks for the guide, and about sizing, is it okay if you already have an available 20a SCC but then you only have a single solar Panel , can you use it to the 100w panel , while you are still planning to have a parallel Solar array soon? Or do I really need to calculate the panel and battery 1st and follow the recommendation for the SCC size? Thanks again...
how to choose between high volts and high amps ? what are the possibilities we can go through them. i mean which charges the battery faster ?
which MPPT charge controller is the best to buy for a 3000 watt 24-volt system
Thank you so much ... very clear with you
Very well explained
Thank you for your video.
Very informative.thanks
Can you post the video that you talked about it ?
Nice😊
But pannels dont produce exactly 12 volts.. they can go up to 20 volts..
So keeping this variation in mind.. how can we select a solar charger both in MPPT & PWM
Controllers come with an open (max voltage allowable) voltage rating. Use that figure for calculations.. BTW...I have panels labeled as 20 volt, 30volt and 80 volt. Get a multimeter and starty measuring maximum voltage and current. Be careful.
Is there a charge controller that when your battery is full it uses the energy directly from the solar panels saving the batteries only when the sun is down, if so please name the brand so I can purchase it
Does it matter if you have a higher charge controller than you need
Hello, Just got the SMK MPPT Solar Charge controller, Please i need to understand the parameters,I know PV means voltage from sun P means charging power and U means voltage of battery what does Today mean? and when do u know the battery is fully charged as well as when do we know we are using the solar panel for grid and not the charge stored in the battery?
Wonderful information! Very helpful and clear. Thank you very much! 👍👍😊
😊😊😊👍🏼☀️
I'm a home stead homie checking out your channel
Welcome Lisa! Thanks for stopping by! 😎 It's great to have a fellow Homestead Homie along for the ride.
how to calculate the solar panels needed tfot 10HP well water pump?
Thanks for the straight forward en simple explanation. Ma question is how do you do the setting on the mppt charge controller?
very good information Thank you,
What about 48v system with mppt vs pwm with 55v panels
Thank you For the formula.👍
Can I use 60a SCC for 4pcs 455watts panel in a 24v system?
I have a 200 (2 panel) Renogy kit with PWM controller with 2 6 volt golf cart batteries totaling 225 amps at 12 volt. I plan on getting a 2000 watt pure sine inverter so I could run my microwave along with other things on the RV completely off grid. I would like to be able to use 110 amps per 24 hours and completely recharge that amount. Would I get more efficiency buying two more hundred watt panels and keeping my pwm controller or 1 - 100 watt panel (bringing the total to 300watts) and a MTTP controller?
I have a similar system and the problem is not the panels or controller but the batteries. If your microwave is a small 600 watt unit that is 50 amps at 12 volts and over 100 amps if a 1200+ watt microwave plus if you are running anything else. Batteries to not last long if you discharge them much over 20-25 amps load or below 50% charge. For example your 225 amp hour battery will last much longer at a 25 amp per hour discharge for 4 hours than 100 amps per hour for one hour. Yes, I know you will not run your microwave that long but the idea is to keep the battery load below 25 amps per hour. l would add more battery capacity. My AGM 110 amp hr 12 volt batteries 10 years old and working well.
GIGman azmt yah but having more panels is necessary or you could under charge consistently. You will need both. More panels and more batteries. And an mppt controller. Morning stars you can do up to 60amps I believe, and about 5 panels to max.
110 amps per 24 hours constantly? That’s a large load for that system it sounds like. Maybe you mean 110 amps in a 24 hour period.
Great man..i want to run solar panel and wind turbine togethere .can i attach both different energiese in one battery bank and inverter?
I have a 100 W topsolar panel with a pwm charge controler just to charge a normal car battery...it will not charge battery properly
please can you do a video on how to properly size your charge controller for you solar pales. Example lets say i have 64 panels of 150watts each. how can i select a suitable charge controller?
I need a video on 4, 6 volt batterys wired sitting side by side to make 12 volts with positive wire to a trailer on the left side and ground on the right side then attached a solar wireing from a controller attached along with a 3000 watt inverter attached,,,, every other battery banki see on RUclips is set 2 on top 2 below mine is 4 across the tongue of my travel trailer can ypu help me ?
Hi Michael. I have 6-495w panels,with 4-170amp agm batteries, what size MPPT would I need. Thanks Reg.
These panels are 11-45amps. Thanks Reg
my pwm 20/20 ...12 24 48 volt charge controller it won't work with my single house solar panel 180 watt ..why ???
Great video!
i cant find anywhere what is the maximum voltage i can put into a mppt charge controller. i want to wire my panels in series but isnt there a limit on the voltage?
Yes there is, it is different from one charge controller to another and is written on the box
Curious about this. Some PWM charge controllers will output 12v with a 24V input from the panels.
Why do you believe this cannot be done?
Thank you véry much.Was well explained.
Thanks very clear explanation
whats the maximum input of a charge controller? thanks
I'd love to see the video
Do you still need BMS when u have mppt?
Thank you very much for the awesome videos full of information. But one suggestion please which many you tubers neglect.
When you show some diagram, please show it for a long time. We can hear your voice but we miss necessary information in the diagram. A diagram conveys more information than what you talk the same. You can talk in the background but please show the diagrams for a long time. Thanks and sorry if I annoyed you or anybody.
pause it
Why is mppt limited to 4 panels only
I had hoped you would cover the MPPT, with a 24 or 36 volt series array, into the MPPT controller at the high(2x), voltage, then exiting(voltage reduction), to charge a 12 volt array and 12v load
That is a different subject which I thing you will find elsewhere on this channel. The truth is out there...google will help.
Talk about more functions of the mppt
What if your solar panels have solar charge controllers on them and the solar generator has a solar charge controller on it would that be a bad thing? Is it better if the solar panel have a charge controller on itself then feed a regular charge controller. Or once the solar panel sends voltage from the panel controller it can go directly to battery without any worries?
Reply
Hi i want to buy solar controller from loom solar in India, not sure which one to buy?
Would it be too hard to slow down or do you have a time constraint limiting the length of the videos? I keep having to stop your videos and back up to have time to absorb what I’m learning from you. Thank you. Good stuff!
You can slow down the video in the setup gear.
Great video Michael: Solar Edge advertises that they have panels that have individual controls so one damaged panel in a string does not compromise the rest. Does the MPPT charge controller also do this ? I hope you cover this later in the series
big question is, how do i ratio the panel and batteries, if my batteries 12v / 200ah / 20hr, sealed batteries is to expensive so how many panel and batteries do i need to set up, i know it depend how much load. if solar panel stats 12/ 100watts.. to much panel may goes wrong, to much batteries disadvantages may exist.. solar controller depend how much panels and inverter it depend what load do i have. am i right ?
marigold limbo yes depends on your loads. I have a solar powered shower with a 12v battery charge controller and two 100w panels. 300 gal cistern and a instant hot water heater and a 12v water pump 40 psi. It keeps the batteries nice and fresh. We have a lot of people who take showers. On our heaviest days it carries day and night showers and only once or twice have had to isolate to charge. And that was due to weather. Remember that 100w panels will not give you 100w. Maybe 50-75w. Typically.
What if your solar array produces more amps than what you can find an average MPPT controller? Can you hook up two controllers to the same battery bank? For example, I want to have 8 - 310w solar panels. Each panel is rated at, (36.54V and 8.49A) which is (36.54V x 8.49A=310.22 rated watts per panel) even at 48v system configuration, it would be 51 amps.
what batery bank implemetation creates additive amp-hour results
I've had a Tristar PWM for years and it's worked well. But for the last year it's barely ever diverted overcharge to my dump load, and always indicates state of charge as being below maximum even on long, sunny days. I measured my batteries and they're waaay overcharged...up to 30% over. I'll go to an MTTP I reckon.