Continual Display Control Unit

Mick-UK
Mick-UK Registered Users Posts: 19 ✭
in General Solar Power Topics #1
If we ever locate a dealer or company who can supply and install a solar panel system to our RV I would like to suggest or request that whatever charge controller is installed has a continual display LEDs red,amber & green say to indicate an immediate indication as to the condition of the batteries.

At the moment the EMS system in our RV contains a panel which gives readouts not only for the content level of the water, grey & black tanks but also a rocker switch that gives a numerical readout in volts at to condition of the 'house' batteries as well as the 'chassis' batteries. Is type of information requires continual checking and would be of no use once the battery level passes beyond the low level.

I therefor ask if any member of this forum can suggest (if such an item exists) that I describe above?

Thank you.
Mick
· Share on Twitter

Comments

  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,613 admin
    #2
    Re: Continual Display Control Unit

    The lighted percent of charge panels in an RV are typically (from my understanding) just voltage monitoring units. And probably do not do a very good job of actually telling you the state of charge of the battery.

    The battery monitor type will do a good job of displaying your battery's State of Charge (plus lots of other information)... Some have LCD displays--but may not have the RED/YELLOW/GREEN lights you are looking for...

    Outback seems to have recently introduced their integrated battery monitor called the FlexNet DC.

    I don't know anything about it other than what I have read on the Outback website--But it appears to have the simple LED interface you are looking for.

    Integrating it with an Outback system (charge controller, inverters, Mate, FlexNet DC) would be a very nice, but not cheap, solar electric system... A bigger issue would be that the FlexMate/MX family of controllers generally are recommended for systems with (roughly) 400 watts or greater of solar panels... There are enough losses with the larger charge controller, that they are not a first choice for installing in applications with 200 watts or less of solar panels.

    And I do not know if the FlexNet DC would make sense on an, otherwise, non-Outback equipped application.

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
    · Share on Twitter
  • Mick-UK
    Mick-UK Registered Users Posts: 19 ✭
    #3
    Re: Continual Display Control Unit

    Bill,

    Thank you for your reply, as I said in my opening posting I had no idea if such an item existed but would like to have a solar system fitted that had some sort of monitoring equipment whereby we could at a glance see the state of the batteries when running on them.

    Mick
    · Share on Twitter
  • nigtomdaw
    nigtomdaw Solar Expert Posts: 705 ✭✭
    #4
    Re: Continual Display Control Unit

    The OB Flexnet DC Battery Monitoring system will only be suitable with a OB Mate as it uses the mate for its digital display..... which is a shame as it can monitior up to 3 devices I believe.

    Some of the older Xantrex Battery Monitors should fit your bill nicely Im thinking of the Link 20 which can monitor the RV starting battery and the Main Bank or 2 Main Banks see here... It used an LED digital readout

    http://www.xantrex.com/web/id/97/p/1/pt/7/product.asp

    Or the newer Linklite Here

    Or the Linkpro Here

    Both use a LCD diplay with simple grapics as well as a digital readout and can monitor two banks

    HTH Nigel
    · Share on Twitter
  • Mick-UK
    Mick-UK Registered Users Posts: 19 ✭
    #5
    Re: Continual Display Control Unit

    Nigel,

    Thank you,

    that Xantrex Linklite is exactly the device that BOTH me and the missus can see and understand how things in the battery compartment are doing.
    · Share on Twitter

Categories