I’ve just purchased a camper van and the solar isn’t working. On the app it says that the solar charger is off. I have changed the leisure battery but it’s still not working. All the fuses and connections are good.
Hi Clare, and welcome.
To help us troubleshoot the issue you’re experiencing, could you please provide us with the following information?
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What MPPT (solar charger) do you have?
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What type of batteries do you have, and are they managed?
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Do you have a SmartShunt?
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Could you please provide the specifications for your solar panels? A link to their website or a picture of the sticker on the back of the panels would be very helpful.
Any other equipment you have to please.
If you are not sure what you have pictures of each bit of equipment will be helpful.
Have a read of this blog post below too.
VictronConnect v5.26 - Why is the charger off? - Victron Energy
Dave
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The app should have something to click at the bottom of the screen saying “why is charging off”. Have you read the manual, there is s good trouble shooting section. Do you have a multimeter. Have you connected the battery backwards, are there any breakers, did you disconnect the solar before changing the battery.
Post a screenshot of the settings page and the status page, it may show something.
This is what’s in the van and then 2 solar panels on roof. The battery is a lithium battery with Bluetooth.
From that screenshot you are connected to the battery 13.16V, so it will be about 50% charged.
The MPPT however is not connected to the solar panels, 0.00V. You need to check your solar panel wiring, are there any breakers on this, could it have been disturbed during the battery swap, did someone disconnect one of the panel connectors and not reconnect it.
Where would I find the breakers? Sorry for the stupid questions but this is all new to me!
Did you do the new batteries or get someone in to do it. Call them to see if they disconnected anything.
I would expect breakers to be on the electrical.panel you photographed but sometimes people hide them in odd places. If there are none on their then follow the wires. If there are no breakers then check the roof of the van.
On the app, press the settings cog wheel, top right, then select battery, then check that the charger is enabled.
Have you clicked on “why is the charger off” yet.
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Nothing else was disconnected when the battery was changed. This is what it says. Will check the roof. Thank you.
Says what was expected. If everything is connected, try disconnecting the MC4 connectors and reconnecting them. Then you need someone with a multimeter who can check for the break in the wiring.
Agree with @pwfarnell
To troubleshoot this, your first step should be to locate where the solar wires go and check all connections. Depending on your comfort level with electrical work, you can either attempt to check the remaining possibilities with guidance from us, or we recommend getting a trained professional to inspect it for you. You will need a multimeter to take a few measurements tho.
So we have checked all the wires and connections and all is ok. We are so stuck with what to try next!
Multimeter to check the voltage at the solar input terminals just in case the MPPT has been damaged and has a fault which is why it is not reading a voltage. Without a multimeter can not do any real fault finding.
Link below is a full troubleshooting checklist for solar systems.
Ok will get one from Amazon! Thank you for all your help