Hello
I have replaced the battery of my off-grid solar installation with a Victron GEL deep cycle 12V 220Ah (holiday home in the mountains, 95% of the year, the regulator is the only consumer). I have also bought a new regulator, a Victron Smartsolar 100/20 MPPT.
I have a few questions about that. They have already been discussed in this forum but I find no conclusive answers.
- Which exact voltages should I choose for absorption/float/equalization? What is better for the life of the battery? On the data sheet of the battery, each of theses voltages is given as a range. E.g. 14.1 – 14.4V for absorption: should I use 14.1, 14.4 or something in the middle? Or user preset "Gel Victron deep dischage (1)" or "... (2)"?
- Until now, I thought that sulfatation was always a problem with lead acid batteries and that equalization acts against it. Should I switch equalization on for this battery and if yes, at which voltage? There is no mention about that in the data sheet of the battery.
Thanks and regards
Patrick
