Good afternoon everyone,
We recently (last week) upgraded our 680ah of AGM to 780ah of LifePo4 and are now turning our attention to our panels as they don't seem to be keeping up/charging sufficiently.
The existing panel configuration is:
I have an existing FlexMax 80 MPPT and it is new, with less than 1 yr of operations. If I didn't purchase an additional MPPT, I assume I would be forced to config as follows but am concerned that the panels will exceed MPPT ratings (I believe I have the option of wiring in parallel and then series but don't know how stepping up voltage at pv array effects 12v operating system):
If I elect to purchase an additional FlexMax 80, I could split the panels as follows, but I don't know if the added cost is worth the output received. (to be clear, I'm okay with spending money to get this setup optimized. I'm lacking the technical expertise.)
Any recommendations for research or other areas I can educate myself on the best way to configure our system, it would be greatly appreciated.
As a side note, given the limitations of wind and hydro power generation, I've concluded that it would be best to size the pv array so that I can primarily depend on that system for charging and fall back on the Balmar on my stbd engine if we run into multiple overcast days or for running energy hogs such as the water maker, A/C, water heater, etc.
Thank you in advance and I'm happy to provide any additional details needed.
Kindly,
Kevin Fort
We recently (last week) upgraded our 680ah of AGM to 780ah of LifePo4 and are now turning our attention to our panels as they don't seem to be keeping up/charging sufficiently.
The existing panel configuration is:
- 2 - 165watt panels
- 4 - 100 watt panels
I have an existing FlexMax 80 MPPT and it is new, with less than 1 yr of operations. If I didn't purchase an additional MPPT, I assume I would be forced to config as follows but am concerned that the panels will exceed MPPT ratings (I believe I have the option of wiring in parallel and then series but don't know how stepping up voltage at pv array effects 12v operating system):
If I elect to purchase an additional FlexMax 80, I could split the panels as follows, but I don't know if the added cost is worth the output received. (to be clear, I'm okay with spending money to get this setup optimized. I'm lacking the technical expertise.)
Any recommendations for research or other areas I can educate myself on the best way to configure our system, it would be greatly appreciated.
As a side note, given the limitations of wind and hydro power generation, I've concluded that it would be best to size the pv array so that I can primarily depend on that system for charging and fall back on the Balmar on my stbd engine if we run into multiple overcast days or for running energy hogs such as the water maker, A/C, water heater, etc.
Thank you in advance and I'm happy to provide any additional details needed.
Kindly,
Kevin Fort