Can’t get a charge

[Don B. Cilly]

Actually, as a field ammeter (I've had that one for more than 30 years)... I recently bought a little thingy I'm quite pleased with.
It looks like this:


It has a two-decimal voltmeter, takes 150A as an ammeter, gives you W, I paid... lemme check... €12.99 for it :·)

 

[Hedges]

In the case of you panels, you would probably also want to measure current (A) to get a read of what they're actually putting out.

fyi - that's an improvement over not measuring current, but I have seen panels with decent Voc and Isc but low Vmp & Imp.
I had a string I knew was under-performing, and I tested panels individually using an oil-filled electric radiator as load. So really V-load and I-load. A couple panels showed low Isc, while a couple more had good Isc but low I-load.

 

[Zil]

If you do not have a multimeter, even a free one from Harbor freight, Do Not play with electricity.

 

[Hedges]

You can buy a meter for as little as $5 or $10 (they warn us at work not to use them for AC utility mains, because they aren't protected against fault currents that can cause arc-flash explosion. Use a Fluke or equivalent)

Very handy is a DC clamp ammeter when working with PV. You can measure solar panel current without interrupting the circuit. May be as cheap as $30, I paid $100 at Harbor Freight, some cost a few $hundred.

 

[Jaketx22]

I have been doing some more thinking since I am waiting to check the panels. I realized I did unhook my battery from my charge controller with the solar still hooked in. Could this have anything to do with it?

 

[Don B. Cilly]

From what I read, doing it "occasionally" isn't likely to do much damage.
Have you tried following this advice?

I would fully physically disconnect all the wiring, and start over, connecting the wire from the battery to the controller first. Let the controller boot up, and only after it's booted reconnect the solar input wires.

It just might work. Maybe let it lie for a few minutes before reconnecting it.

 

[Don B. Cilly]

I mean, I always disconnect the PV first if I have to do anything that needs disconnecting the batteries.
But... anecdote, the other day, my motorcycle battery went flat.
I had a crappy poly 12V panel lying in the grass. Someone gave it to me, had no use for it.
I also had a leftover (can't remember from what) cheap-as-it gets PWM controller in a drawer.
I propped the panel on a piece of wood, checked polarity and short-circuit current, connected the battery to the controller... then realised I had connected it to the PV input terminals :·/

Well, it didn't smoke, didn't spark, I reconnected it properly and the next day my bike's battery was fully charged :·)

 

[Jaketx22]

Ok, just got done checking everything. Panels good, but when I went down to the wire it was next to nothing. So I cut off the piece of wire I had crimped on and it checked on the original wire. It’s showing 20.5 volts. I crimped in 10 gauge to my 8 gauge solar panel wire, I can’t believe it dropped it that much.

 

[MichaelK]

Ok, just got done checking everything. Panels good, but when I went down to the wire it was next to nothing. So I cut off the piece of wire I had crimped on and it checked on the original wire. It’s showing 20.5 volts. I crimped in 10 gauge to my 8 gauge solar panel wire, I can’t believe it dropped it that much.

I'm having a bit of trouble following what you are trying to say here?

The wire coming out of the solar panel is 8 gauge? That seems too high? Most wires I've ever seen are either 10 or 12 gauge.

What was crimped to what? Do you mean you crimped a 10 gauge wire to your 8 gauge wire, or did you mean a 10 gauge terminal connector?

So, you are seeing 20.5V right at the bare copper wires of the electrical panel? That sounds about right for the Voc of a single 12V panel.

But it sounds like you are making progress. The next time you make connections, I'd recommend soldering them. That should guarranty a proper electrical connection.

 

[Hedges]

PV voltage dropping to near nothing might be:
1) wired reverse polarity to SCC, and you got lucky the design has diode to clamp reverse voltage so nothing gets blown up.
2) PV panel defective/damaged so can't produce any current.

If you have an ammeter you could check short-circuit current, also current into scc.
Volt meter, you can check Voc (which you have done), V into scc (which you have done), but especially note polarity and see if correct.

 

[Jaketx22]

Ye

I'm having a bit of trouble following what you are trying to say here?

The wire coming out of the solar panel is 8 gauge? That seems too high? Most wires I've ever seen are either 10 or 12 gauge.

What was crimped to what? Do you mean you crimped a 10 gauge wire to your 8 gauge wire, or did you mean a 10 gauge terminal connector?

So, you are seeing 20.5V right at the bare copper wires of the electrical panel? That sounds about right for the Voc of a single 12V panel.

But it sounds like you are making progress. The next time you make connections, I'd recommend soldering them. That should guarranty a proper electrical connection.

Yes the wire is 8 gauge, I had crimped a 10 gauge wire to it to get to the new spot I put the charge controller. I cut it off and have moved my charge controller back to where I can connect to the original 8 gauge wire. I hooked in my battery but the red light came on saying it’s overcharged. Don’t know if I need to charge the battery before I attach my solar.

 

[Jaketx22]

Ok, I charged up my battery enough to hook everything back up and it’s working like a charm! Thanks everybody for the help!