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Fozalinko


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Have no idea
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I have a solar set up with the control box being private suitor it has 2 Anderson plugs coming out of it, one has thicker wires than the other. Then there is the one Anderson plug coming from the batteries, no matter which ones I plug in I cant get battery power to the van. I am complete novice so any info will start me on the learning curve.

Regards Fozalinko



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Peter_n_Margaret


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Get someone who knows what they are looking at to advise you before you wreck something expensive, or worse.
Alternatively post some pics here showing some detail of what you have.
Cheers,
Peter

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JeffRae


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This is fozalinko's image



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Jeff & Rae travelling in a motorhome
Are We Lost


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And here is a Youtube review of it. A cheap supposedly MPPT solar controller but apparently only PWM. But no drama with that. The review shows there is no current reporting which is a significant shortcoming. Apparently still useable but insuffucient information to know what is happening.

Perfect Suitor review

The video shows the connections and you can probably make notes on the user manual contents. If it really does not have amps displayed I would be getting a decent brand to replace it .... e.g. Victron is well known and respected and this $76 one appears to be equivalent. Up to 30 amps solar input. There are probably cheaper suppliers.

 

Victron BlueSolar 30a PWM solar charger

 



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Fozalinko


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Yes I have watched that video, I had it all working for a while and now nothing works, so dont know where to start to sort out the problem or do I just get an auto electrician to get the ball rolling?

Regards Fozalinko



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TimTim


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Fozalinko wrote:

I have a solar set up with the control box being private suitor it has 2 Anderson plugs coming out of it, one has thicker wires than the other. Then there is the one Anderson plug coming from the batteries, no matter which ones I plug in I cant get battery power to the van. I am complete novice so any info will start me on the learning curve.

Regards Fozalinko

 Ok lets start at the begining because we have no idea what you have done.

Disconnect the two anderson plugs. The one from the solar panels first and then the one to the battery.  Wait a couple of minutes then connect the battery up to the controller with the battery symbol.  Again wait a minute till the controller has settled and is reading the battery voltage.  Then connect the solar panels up.

 

The third connection on the controller are your loads to your van which are normally indicated by a light bulb.  If your load connection is plugged into the van then they may have been turned off.  If you have a multimeter test across the two load terminals.   That is where u start.  If no voltage across terminal then we start looking at your manual to turn on loads.   If you do have voltage across terminals then we start looking for fuses.

So first question is do you have a multimeter if not run and get a cheap one.

Good luck

Tim

 



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TimTim


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We crossed posts.

If it was working before it is unlikely to be the loads are turned off but check with a multimeter.  Check for fuses.  Have u turned off the main power switch anywhere?

Just looking at that photo it doesnt show anything connected up.

Tim



-- Edited by TimTim on Sunday 21st of January 2024 11:19:02 AM

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Are We Lost


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Warning. The controller should always have battery power BEFORE connecting the solar. If you connect solar while the controller is off it can blow diodes, fuses or worse. Disconnect the solar before disconnecting from the battery. I believe a quality controller would protect somewhat from this, but being a cheap import, less likely.

If you have voltage at the battery where it plugs into the controller and the controller does not come on, then it is probably a fuse or internal problem at the controller.

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Fozalinko


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Thanks for the reply Tim I will do what you have said and get back to you.

Regards Fozalinko



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TimTim


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Ok I can see that your solar controller is on but it is not connected to solar or to your caravan loads.  if you havent disconnected the battery before then there is no need to disconnect it now for any testing.

The pair of leads from the right hand side terminals are you load terminals for the caravan.  It is that Anderson plug that you must connect up to the caravan loads.  It will also have a low voltage cut off so you will need to check the voltage from the terminals and also the battery voltage.

I also see what appears to be a singe wire covered in black tape coming from a battery terminal to an Anderson plug.  I may be wrong in that it may be twin cable.  More photos would help to confirm what exactly it is.

Your system is effectively very simplistic and you should learn exactly how it works.

Good luck

Tim



-- Edited by TimTim on Monday 22nd of January 2024 12:47:34 AM

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Jaahn


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Fozalinko my comment.
If there has been any doubt about the sequence of connections in the past setup then I recommend that you do a controller power down and reset. Disconnect the solar and the load and then the battery. This will power the controller down and any memory that may be incorrect will be lost. Leave it for some minutes.
Then carefully connect the battery terminals to the controller, (battery must be in its normal voltage range, not very flat below 10V.) This will enable the controller to decide what the controller voltages will be and it will remember this.
Then connect the solar panels and then the load to the correct terminals or plugs. You should be careful with the + and - polarity at each step to avoid any problems. The controller should protect itself from the wrong battery polarity but will need to be powered down and start again if that happens.
Good luck jaahn

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Dick0


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Jaahn wrote:

Fozalinko my comment.
If there has been any doubt about the sequence of connections in the past setup then I recommend that you do a controller power down and reset. Disconnect the solar and the load and then the battery. This will power the controller down and any memory that may be incorrect will be lost. Leave it for some minutes.
Then carefully connect the battery terminals to the controller, (battery must be in its normal voltage range, not very flat below 10V.) This will enable the controller to decide what the controller voltages will be and it will remember this.
Then connect the solar panels and then the load to the correct terminals or plugs. You should be careful with the + and - polarity at each step to avoid any problems. The controller should protect itself from the wrong battery polarity but will need to be powered down and start again if that happens.
Good luck jaahn

 Good advice.

I would only add, that when solar and battery are disconnected, ensure battery is fully charged before reconnecting to controller.

Good luck and let us know how you go. smile

 



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Cheers, Richard (Dick0)

"Home is where the Den is parked, Designer Orchid Special towed by Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited"

"4x250W solar panels, Epever 80A charger and 3x135Ah Voltax Prismatic LiFePO4 Batteries".
Fozalinko


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Thanks for the replies, I haven't had time as of late to advance any further on working out the solar set up, but appreciate all feed back and to Jaahn that is great but I need to understand a little more before I tackle that. Ok so in the picture the Anderson plug with the cover on it goes into the control box and says Solar, then the next one goes into control box and goes to load then the last Anderson plug goes into the van. So I plug one going into van and the load but nothing happens. I assume this is the way to go. Control box is on. (What would happen if I plugged the solar one and the one into the caravan in together, which I may have done). Also if you plug the one going into the caravan and then plug that into the one that says load then what is the solar Anderson plug for? As I have the positive, negative clips for the solar set-up and Anderson plugs that go to solar panels. Sorry for being so basic with all of this.



-- Edited by Fozalinko on Monday 5th of February 2024 05:45:13 PM

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TimTim


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You will need to do exactly as Jaahn as specified otherwise your controller may not work.

Once we are sure that your sequence of connections are correct then we can look for the other possible solutions if your system still isnt working.

Good luck

Tim



-- Edited by TimTim on Friday 9th of February 2024 10:04:39 AM

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TimTim


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In your first photo we can see the solar panel and loads are disconnected.  I am unsure of what Anderson plug you have in your hand but as Jaahn has stated you need to disconnect the battery from the solar controller and start the sequence of connections again.  Connect battery first, solar second to determine that solar is working and then connect the loads.

The centre connection is the battery.  Connect that first.

Tim



-- Edited by TimTim on Friday 9th of February 2024 10:16:22 AM

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