Iota DLS 90amp IQ4 Charger AC connection / 30amp Receptacle

Re: Iota DLS 90amp IQ4 Charger AC connection / 30amp Receptacle

I have forgotten the details (there is a post/thread here with some measured numbers)--But the Iota are probably around 80% efficient and 0.67 power factor... A 90 amp @ 14.5 volt charging on a 117 VAC generator would look like:

• 90 ADC * 14.5 VDC charging * 1/0.80 charger eff * 1/0.67 PF * 1/117 VAC = 20.81 amps @ full load and 117 VAC (My estimate of the numbers)

So--The numbers are about right. For NEC, you should only pull 80% of a circuit's power continuously. Or oversize the circuit by 1/0.8=1.25x the continuous current draw.

• 20.81 AAC * 1.25 NEC derating = 26 amp minimum rated branch circuit/fuse/breaker

We have a very good thread on how to pick the "ideal" charger and why efficiency and power factor matter:

Question about battery charger selection with EU2000 generator.

If you want the ugly details.

-Bill

PS: Using the above equation, an Efficient and PF Corrected charger would draw around:

• 90 amps * 14.5 VDC * 1/0.90 eff * 1/0.95 PF * 1/117 VAC = 13.0 AAC

Or, you could drop down to an Honda eu2000i (1,600 watt) genset if you could find the "exact" match

Re: Iota DLS 90amp IQ4 Charger AC connection / 30amp Receptacle

You can monitor the AC Current going through the Iota--And if you wish, once it gets below ~13 amps, you could fire up the Honda eu2000i and continue the charging... If you want to equalize the battery bank--The smaller Honda should do well (you only need around 20-40 amps DC of current to equalize the bank (a whole 'nother issue about adjusting the Iota for >15 volts to equalize.

From my simple point of view, I would only suggest the IQ4 module/option if the charger is plugged 24x7 into utility power. I am not sure if the IQ4 can run a "true" equalize voltage or not.

For your needs, you are going to shut down the charger once the battery is over ~90% SOC and you don't need any of the timer/float/rebulk options that would be automatic with a grid connected system (such as a UPS/Backup power setup).

-Bill

Re: Iota DLS 90amp IQ4 Charger AC connection / 30amp Receptacle

You can try and send Stevek a private message and ask. It has been a year and a half since he last logged on here.

Me, as an engineer, would tell you that 21.8 amps is over 20 amp socket rating and well over the rating for a 20 amp circuit. Must use the next larger rated outlet. And, you cannot use an outlet "keyed" for 15 or 20 amp output on a 30 amp branch circuit.

Normally, as a guy who has more than once done stuff not to code for playing around in the back yard, 21.8 amps on a 20 amp is not the end of the world.... However, for basic power in a home/cabin/emergency power/etc., you don't want to mess around with this stuff and go under rated. Particularly for battery chargers. Chargers are some of the "worst" loads because they operate at rated input power/current for hours on end--Something that most other loads will not (saws, pumps, refrigerators, etc. all cycle or typically run at well under max input current except for starting surge current).

You don't want to be debugging cooked outlets/plugs, false tripping of breakers, circuit that used to work fine for a few years, then fails (I have seen breakers and fuses that operate near ratings such as electric water heaters and central furnaces that simply fail after years of use and need replacement--or in the case of the time delay fuse, simply blew while everything else was just fine). I live in a major metro area--I can find multiple sources for replacement parts 7 days a week. For folks that live in the bush--driving hours/day or more to replace an undersized part is just not worth any savings.

The whole Power Factor thing is a real issue... From Stevek's generator thread, the estimated Iota Power Factor appears to be 0.65 ... or 1/0.65=1.54 times more current in your wiring/generator vs what the "Watt" rating would suggest.

Power = Voltage * Current * Power Factor

As Stevek found out, there is very little hard information out there. And some chargers have pretty good Power Factor near 100% of rated output, but the power factor falls off as the charger's output current falls off... I think Outback's inverter/chargers behave this way (Not power factor corrected, but at 100% of charger output, PF is better than 0.9???) so this prevents you from sharing generator output (vacuuming, running a washer, etc.) even though the battery bank is mostly charged and cutting back on power needs--The PF start to go "south" and still draws significant current from the genset during this time and not leaving much free generator capacity for other loads.

The name plates usually list the input voltage range and the maximum input current... But, from years of experience and comments from others here, the input ratings are almost next to useless for planning out solar power systems. They are usually not rated at "average power" but worst case input. So you see a 120 to 240 VAC input with 5 Amps maximum... And that 5 amps may be measured at 117 VAC or 100-109 VAC and would be 1/2 that on a 240 VAC circuit--But they don't state the conditions.

And then there is function--While the Iota's input ratings leave a lot to be desired for running off a genset--At least their output appears to be rock solid (if not very programmable/easily adjustable).

For Iota--Their main market appears to be for Grid Based applications. So, the customer only "pays" for kWH used--So bad PF just requires a bit more copper wire, a larger breaker, and away they go. And any generator runtime is just for a few hours to a few days to ride through a power failure at a data center/backup power usage. Not for usage by off-grid folks that have to supply power for 3 months during winter, and while the solar charge controller is in for repairs/replacement for a middle of nowhere installation.

A couple of people have used the Meanwell chargers--And they seem happy so far... Sorry, I don't have any further information.

-Bill