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I had one on my previous van, it was great. But then again I never tried any other types and just went for the best one I could find.
forgot to mention, I will be using 24V solar panels on my Bus and using an Mppt chargers to step this down to 12V. 24V solar requires thinner cables and has lower losses.
I can't give specifics as I have never used any other type of controller. However I was getting a lot more charge than anyone on here had predicted.
I will be using one on my Bus conversion purely because of the 24v step down to 12v facility which will give lower losses on the cables and smaller cable sizes.
Just thought I would resurrect this post to see if anyone has any experiences they could share.
The claims by some manufacturers suggest that outputs from MPPT exceed PWM by up to 33%. That could in some circumstances make it cost effective to upgrade existing panels using MPPT controllers instead of adding additional panel(s) to achieve better charging
My interest in this is a little different as Morningstar (and others) claim that the most gain in output will occur during winter months with loweroutside temps. Also MPPT technology works better than PWM at low angles around dawn and dusk.
This could have a marked improvement on the viability of solar during winter. Remember solar has always been an issue in winter when you draw off most battery power for least solar return.
In my own case this could add a theoretical 10amps per day in early Jan - equal to adding panel of around 100W. I stress this is all theoretical hence the request for information
Of course the downside is cost with MPPT controllers costing around £200 - still less than the cost of a 100W panel (and fitting) though
I cant offer any additional info but its good to see that someone thinks it actually makes a difference using one.
We have x2 80watt BP panels through a steca 20amp mppt controller and 1 120w through a cheap sunsaver controller. The steca controller doesnt give you any figures for what its producing, it just tells you whether its charging and the state of the battery, ie low charge, charging, fully charged etc.
I really liked the claims of roughly an extra 30% in certain conditions ie winter, this is the reason why i decided to try one and why i started the thread.
I thought that there would be loads of people post with specific info on if they were any good or not.
I think there has been some confusion about MPPT in this thread mixing electronic tracking with physical solar tracking ie moving the panel.
I have just scrapped what I was writing for this very succinct explanation from blueskyenergyinc.com
"Maximum Power Point Tracking, frequently referred to as MPPT, is an electronic system that operates the Photovoltaic (PV) modules in a manner that allows the modules to produce all the power they are capable of. MPPT is not a mechanical tracking system that “physically moves” the modules to make them point more directly at the sun. MPPT is a fully electronic system that varies the electrical operating point of the modules so that the modules are able to deliver maximum available power. Additional power harvested from the modules is then made available as increased battery charge current. MPPT can be used in conjunction with a mechanical tracking system, but the two systems are completely different"
So I don't believe MPPT adds anything extra at the ends of the day or during winter except to say that at those times the more you can get from your panels the better.
Edit by the way I don't agree with all bluesky energy say on their web site for example their comparisons with a 'standard' controller - when they use 12V as the comparison no battery controller is going to bring the panel down as low as that apart from when the battery is very flat.
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I cant offer any additional info but its good to see that someone thinks it actually makes a difference using one.
We have x2 80watt BP panels through a steca 20amp mppt controller and 1 120w through a cheap sunsaver controller. The steca controller doesnt give you any figures for what its producing, it just tells you whether its charging and the state of the battery, ie low charge, charging, fully charged etc.
I really liked the claims of roughly an extra 30% in certain conditions ie winter, this is the reason why i decided to try one and why i started the thread.
I thought that there would be loads of people post with specific info on if they were any good or not.
Paul.
Hi Paul,
Like you I thought there would have been lots of replies to this thread, given that potentially there is up to 30% overall gain during winter, a time when we all agree that Solar is at best disappointing. Some US systems are claiming up to 40% improvement during low temperatures and around Dawn/Dusk and around 10 to 15% in summer. There are claims of improvement during cloudy and shady days of between 10 and 25%
Having looked at this by accident and delving into it more deeply I now see that there are several Chinese MPPT controllers up for sale (not all on eBay either) at a fraction of the cost of the market leaders.
Morningstar Sunsaver MPPT 15amp (sold by most Solar shops) - around £217
Sun Solar 15 amp MPPT (Bradford based - around £62
Blue Solar 15amp MPPT (eBay from China) £30
I can see the reluctance to spend £200+ for a gain of a few amps but anyone with 120W or more panels could really see benefit in winter for an outlay of between £30 and £60
Come on you technically savvy guys - give us the benefits of your technical knowledge. Are these wild claims or are they feasible? Being solid state, are the Chinese offerings ok or are they made of Heineken beer cans?
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