John Frum
Tell me your problems
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But wouldn't it be cool if they did.
Battery fuse blew?
- Thread starter JonL
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Sillyputty
Solar Enthusiast
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Solar panels don't "store" electricity in the sense batteries do. They are either "charged" or "powered" when sunlight is available and they then generate electricity which is available to supply a battery or a load, or they are "uncharged" when no sunlight is available.
Then why do they say to cover them up or you’ll get shocked?
My panels were down for almost 2 days, and when I turned them back on I could feel the heat coming through the wires, in the area I mentioned. There had to be some kind of surge of electricity going after it was down that long.
Or are you saying it all came from the battery?
Because they are a high voltage power source when converting solar radiation to electricity. When sun isn't shining on them, they're just wires and silicon chips.
Your panels could be down for a year. There's no accumulation of energy. Whatever the heat was was unrelated to your panel's down time.
Significant heat is either normal, or insufficient conductor size or a bad connection. Note that anything above 45°C, which is a normal temp, will feel hot to the touch, and 60°C, which is the minimum insulation rating, can burn you.
Sillyputty
Solar Enthusiast
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Are all of the wires in question after the battery (discharging it) or before the battery (charging it)? If the heat was felt on wires coming from the solar panels and/or after the charge controller before they get to the battery, then (because solar panels don't store up electricity and release it like a battery does) the only thing I can think of is the wiring from the solar panels to the batteries was undersized in the first place, or has poor connections.
If the wires getting hot were after the battery, then it doesn't seem likely that the solar panels are causing it, unless there is some other kind of wiring issue that I'm unaware of, and the fault likely lies with those after-battery discharge wires and their connections.
The wires that were hot were at three points. Before the fuse & after the fuse and right after the battery disconnect. The circled lugs indicate the wires in question.
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No. I don’t have that kind of equipment. But I tighten them down the same way I did all the others and nothing happened. Nothing is loose.
Then you've likely identified your problem, or are at least on your way.
Under-torqued connections provide insufficient pressure between contact faces and often result in excessive resistance at the junction. This manifests itself as heat. Poorly crimped ring terminals are another source.
Each location you circled has a crimp and a bolted connection. If this is the only place you detected heat, this is where the problem is.
That sounds reasonable, except the crimps are superb as I used Will Prowses own recommendations of equipment. There as tight as I can get them without damaging them. ?
Well I recrimped them and they still have the same issue.
Sillyputty
Solar Enthusiast
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Ok - at the discharge (output) side then so it's not solar panel or solar charge controller (input) related.
So I rechecked all the wires and connections. I found one I didn’t like so I redid it and then I changed the wire length on one wire and removed the short wire that was close to the first battery in the bank. Then I put another wire connection from the battery switch and connected it to the other side of the battery bank on the positive end. People have been telling me to do this, so I did it finally. Pictures enclosed.
I feel better already! I will test in the next few days. ?
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MisterSandals
Participation Medalist
Happen to have a pic of your entire battery bank wiring?
Yep ?
Updated.
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Happy to see all the blue.
Connecting both main leads to the closest battery causes substantial shift of load to that battery. If you've pulled over 100A from the system routinely, you've likely subjected that battery to currents beyond rated.
Better late than never.
Connecting both main leads to the closest battery causes substantial shift of load to that battery. If you've pulled over 100A from the system routinely, you've likely subjected that battery to currents beyond rated.
Better late than never.
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