SunSaver 10L charge Controller

hemmjo

18 months ago I installed a MorningStar 10L-12v charge controller, with 2 - 30watt Solar Tech SPM030P-12 panels and a regular group 25 automotive battery(it is all that was available at the time) to run a ShurFlo water pump for the well at a mission I work with in the Dominican Republic. It has worked flawlessly for 18 months. About a week ago I installed 2 more of the same panels to increase the daily run time for our system. It ran well for 2 days, now the charge controller appears to have failed. Sometimes the charge indicator flashes green every 10-15 seconds, other times the charge light glows red, indicating a fatal error.

Does anyone have experience with this controller, I was thinking it could handle 120 watts of panel since it is rated at 10 amps. 12.5 maximum.

I am in the Dominican Republic right now and have limited access to information right now.

Thanks for your help,

John
http://villagemountainmission.org

ILFE

Re: SunSaver 10L charge Controller

Stupid question ahead, I know.

But, were the new panels wired in parallel, rather than series? I have that same controller, currently running a single 12v panel. It runs flawlessly, and has since the day I first connected it.

hemmjo

Re: SunSaver 10L charge Controller

ILFE wrote: »

Stupid question ahead, I know.

But, were the new panels wired in parallel, rather than series? I have that same controller, currently running a single 12v panel. It runs flawlessly, and has since the day I first connected it.

Yes, the new panels are wired parallel. The array output 19.8 V open circuit at noon yesterday when I was troubleshooting it. I just to see, I ran the pump directly from the array, the voltage only dropped to 16.7.

How many watts is your single panel?

Thanks,

John

ILFE

Re: SunSaver 10L charge Controller

hemmjo wrote: »

Yes, the new panels are wired parallel. The array output 19.8 V open circuit at noon yesterday when I was troubleshooting it. I just to see, I ran the pump directly from the array, the voltage only dropped to 16.7.

How many watts is your single panel?

135 Watts.
Open circuit 22.5v

Hmmmm.

Cariboocoot

Re: SunSaver 10L charge Controller

The SunSaver 10 should be able to take all those panels: 30 Watts @ 17-18 Vmp <2 Amps each so four in parallel should be 8-ish. Unless the wiring was incorrect at some point in the install this should not cause a problem with the controller.

It is entirely possible that the controller has failed for an unrelated reason. You should contact the retailer and/or Morningstar about getting a replacement (if it is under warranty). In the mean time you can bypass it and charge the battery manually providing you keep the Voltmeter on it and watch the Voltage: you'll have to act as the controller and turn it on/off to keep the V down.

Ks Solar

Re: SunSaver 10L charge Controller

I have the same controller. had it a few yrs. You may go back to original panels and wiring for a few days and see if it works normal. Also have you checked the water in the battery? If it is a standard battery it may be low. The red LED means low voltage disconnect. Either the battery is low/or the load/pump is drawing more amps for some reason.

hemmjo

Re: SunSaver 10L charge Controller

Thanks for the help guys. Back in the US now, so I thought I would update the thread for future reference.

The red error light was on the GREEN charge indicator light. Turns out the problem was related to spiders, dust and humidity. The controller is located in the "pump house" that is built over our well. No rain or water can get to it, but t is a perfect place for spiders, etc.

I removed the controller and gave it a good cleaning and all is back to normal. The new panels have boosted capacity so on a good day the pump can run most of the day and the battery will be fully charged by sundown.

Thanks again for your help,

John
http://villagemountainmission.org/