small solar system 12v, 200w

[JimJimmy]

bright sunshine, in north Florida.
does this seem low, shouldn't it read higher?

 

[Substrate]

Hard to tell exactly what is considered low (voltage / amps?), but my suspicion is that you have attached your 200w panel / controller to a battery that is at or nearing full charge, where the normal action of CV is to reduce current.

Try putting a bit of a discharge on your battery and try again if amperage seems to be a concern.

If 14.1v is low, when you have set the battery for something else, like 14.4 - 14.6v perhaps, remember that a solar charge controller's temperature compensation will be active in a hot Florida summer day, and automatically reduce the voltage.

(If you are using LiFeP04, then temperature compensation should be something you DISABLE in your SCC)

Just guessing without a bit more detail of your system.

 

[Short_Shot]

Substrate got it all summed up.

What kind of battery do you have? Lithium, flooded lead acid, sealed lead acid, agm, something else?

 

[JimJimmy]

it is a LA but I have a LiFePO4 on the way. I use the 200watt system to charge the battery to run my fridge and lights in the rv. the lead acid battery is the problem, it doesn't hold a charge and just drains out rather quickly.
everything in the rv is 12v as it came from the factory. I added the solar to keep the battery charged.
I am new to the workings of electricity and solar, so everything leads to a question.

 

[Short_Shot]

As long as the charger is set for lead acid, then I'm guessing it's just registering as a full battery and cutting output for that reason.

 

[JimJimmy]

yes the battery is connected to a 20amp Renogy Rover controller, and is set to LA.

 

[Short_Shot]

Try discharging the battery or putting a bigger load on it to see if it kicks up.

 

[JimJimmy]

will do, and I have the panels set in series like in the diagram.