question

bryce davis avatar image
bryce davis asked

how do i setup my controller to fully charge my sla batterys to 14.8v

this is the voltage info and i've set the settings up using a float voltage of 13.8 but my battery's dont charge up to 14.4 like they should they only charge to about 13.8 i was wondering what im doing wrong

smart solar set-up help
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2 Answers
JohnC avatar image
JohnC answered ·

Hi Bryce. Your system is still in 'Bulk' phase in that screenshot, which means it's still trying to reach it's target V. When you see Absorb or Float in that box, only then can you compare set vs actual V's. It can only find 164W, typical of say 200W of panel, or bad weather.

If you've drained your batts, or have a load on at the same time, it may never actually reach it over the course of a day. In the washup that may mean your system isn't big enough to handle your load demands. All 'offgridders' experience this sometimes. Bad weather for me today too, and you've just reminded me to go check my genny fuel.. :)


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bryce davis avatar image bryce davis commented ·

there's actually 1000w of solar so i'm not sure whats going on with it. and when i check it with the old controller it caps at 48 amps (overload) right this second its at float at 13.6

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JohnC avatar image JohnC ♦ bryce davis commented ·

I didn't spot the 9:30 am (my bad), so may be typical of 1000W pv at that time depending on where you live and cloud cover. Maybe take a look at your history to see what's been happening over the day. If it's reached Float, it must have passed through Absorb (higher V), and suggests all is well?

This newest screenshot suggests well-charged batts, and taking a broad stab, maybe you have 200Ah of batts @ 12V? How close am I? :)

The Vfloat deviation from setpoint may be temp compensation, but it would have to be pretty hot there for that much.

Maybe grab a $20 multimeter to check the actual batt V vs reported V. And I note your batts have a wide range of recommended charge V's. You may find better batt life if you select the ones at the lower end.

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bryce davis avatar image bryce davis JohnC ♦ commented ·

when it gets dark it drops to 12.8 instantly (live shot) i've checked with a multimeter and it matches what the victron smart controller reports within 0.01v right now but that may change when its charging

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bryce davis avatar image bryce davis JohnC ♦ commented ·

your right on the money there 200ah of deep cycle sealed lead acid batteries in parallel

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JohnC avatar image JohnC ♦ bryce davis commented ·

Haha, my psychic powers. Ahh no, sadly, just the figures you've provided suggest that for a well-running system, and I can't actually see that your system has any fault at all. You did have a bad day '2 days ago', maybe cloudy or something, but we all have those.

By all means keep fiddling & asking, tis what we offgridders do. But I really think you're ok. You don't even drain your batts overnight as much as I do..

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bryce davis avatar image bryce davis JohnC ♦ commented ·

2 days ago we had a mini flood with no sun at all just black skys. we get as much as 12 hours sun though on good days so it makes up for it really easily. thank you for the help :) i've been trying really hard to take care of my batteries and not over drain them i'm also getting more before i invest in a victron inverter

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Paul B avatar image
Paul B answered ·

Using the Victron connect app , have you setup your battery parameters correcty under setting (top right corner of the screen select the cog icon then select battery)

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bryce davis avatar image bryce davis commented ·

i've set them up but it just resets to victron deep discharge gel

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solgato avatar image solgato bryce davis commented ·

You have to name and save it once you’ve made changes, then it will be in the list of options.

So make your changes, then go to battery presets>create preset and save its name and it should default to your newly created preset.

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