SmartSolar 75/15 configured to charge at 14.4 but it is charging at 13.3. Similar thing happened with my Orion XS. Phoenix 50/12 charges at 14.4.
I checked voltage at both sides of bus bar and at output terminal, and they are all the same.
Photos attached.
Thanks in advance, Mark
Your solar controller isn’t charging at 13.3, it’s reading the battery voltage as 13.3v. The controller is in Bulk stage, where it’s charging at a constant current until the battery reaches the configured voltage, in your case 14.4v, at which time the charge controller will switch to Absorption.
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Thanks very much! I assume the same is true for my Orion XS.
When my Phoenix 50/12 is enabled, it shows output voltage as 14.4. So, both the solar charger and XS show battery voltage but the Phoenix shows an output voltage? Do the different chargers charge differently?
I wouldn’t think so, but I’ve never needed to have a Phoenix 12/50 on my test bench so I’m not positive how it displays things while it’s charging.
Are you sure the Phoenix is actually charging? A lot of times when a charger shows its programmed output voltage at the “battery voltage” line, and the battery isn’t full, it’s because there’s a high-resistance circuit between the charger and the battery, like a loose connection, blown fuse or breaker, improper wire type or gauge for the round-trip circuit length, that sort of thing, so the charger isn’t actually seeing the battery voltage but only its own.
Another explanation could be if the charger is in “power supply” mode rather than “charger” mode, though I -again, since I’ve never needed to have a Phoenix on my test bench- I don’t offhand know if the Phoenix has a power supply mode - that’d be in the user manual.
The Phoenix is charging. The 14.4 i’ve seen is in the output section. Currently the output is 15.37 with battery at 13.9. See attached photos. Does this make sense? I guess the solar and XS don’t show “output”.
Do you think i have a lose connection, or is all normal?
Thanks for helpi g me understand this. Mark
Ah - yes, so the interface there is different though - the Phoenix has “Output Voltage” line and “Battery Voltage” line, so you can read both.
The Orion and solar controller only have “battery voltage” line, so you can’t see the output voltage until the battery voltage has risen to your configured settings.
So, with the evidence I’ve seen so far, I’d say all is working perfectly!
Ah, so the only thing that’s “off” here, is ME!
Many thanks for the education! Mark
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Oh it never hurts to ask - and you’ll note my caveat “with the evidence I’ve seen so far”, which is specifically to not discount a possibility of something being amiss in the system. If you have reason to suspect that something’s awry, absolutely check everything over to be sure it’s all working properly - all I can say for certain is that the evidence presented thus far is not in itself indicative of a problem.
Happy to help though!
Thanks again, Mark
Actually, I see the same thing that Mark reports with a newly installed smartsolar 75/15 with firmware updates current as of about 4 weeks ago.
I may be ignorant, but if the absorption voltage is configured to be 14.4 v and smart solar states the charger is in absorption mode, I would expect the battery voltage to match, barring temperature related compensation. Same for float mode. In bulk mode, where constant current is normally maintained by a charger (e g. Shore power charger), I can understand why the voltage might not match that programmed for absorption mode. If it is otherwise in float or absorption mode, it seems to me there is a problem, assuming the battery voltage is properly reported by SmartSolar. If I am wrong, I would be interested in a detailed explanation of what IS being reported by SmartSolar as battery voltage
I have observed the same issue with a 100/15 with latest firmware.
That would be a different issue, if your solar charger is in Absorption. In that case, depending on what you’re seeing, check for high-resistance in your circuit like poor connections, Amazon breakers or fuses, or incorrect wire type/incorrect wire gauge for the round-trip circuit length, that sort of thing.