DCDC charger outputs

[reefer]

Ok mate, I'll try doing that tomorrow...A few blokes were saying at the AGM...that it could be a build up of debris on the other battery I was running that was causing it to be under-charged...The suggestion was to add salt to each bank of plates which would clear that matter and fully restore the battery...is that a viable thing or is that..'old mens talk'...

 

[7.62marksman]

the panel was putting out 19v in full sun with no regulator attached
the battery should have been ok i had it in the turtle for 6 months until i went to a bigger one
it was charged fully about 4 weeks before i took it to you
i started my ride on mower twice from it and tested some driving lights and jump started the little red (Celica)
it was not recharged after that
if it was in the middle of your yard in full sun it should have been recharged
the panel has to be facing the sun to get full effectiveness so was it in full sun or still under the tree where it was the other day
i should have left my charger with you to use sorry mate

 

[reefer]

Oh!..Ken.. :8 I was trying to glean some info without you knowing... So I could spruik all things electrical ..you know I am dyslexic with electrics!! ]..hehe...Nah! mate Iknow you would have checked it all out and you did tell me about the ride on..I just could not remember when I was posting exactly what you had said...Yeah, she's been out in full sun mate...I got Robyn to push it all out for me! ] ] ...nah!..it moves pretty well with new jockey wheel. So I expected to see things happening..but bugger me!..its on 9.1 now!..flickering back and forward 9.1..9.2...etc.That regulator with the multi-function button..could be having something to do with it..if it's not set at the right voltage output to the battery..you think?....Something is not right.
I hope you don't think that reflects on you mate!...that's the last thing I would want you to think! when you dropped that thing in there ..well it was crankin'- eh!....some little thing ..like that bloody ebay regulator is what it is..I'll bet...nothing to do with the battery itself ..I'll wager!

 

[7.62marksman]

no sorry mate dont get me wrong i could have killed that battery before i replaced it
because at that stage i didnt have my meters hooked up so had no idea what charge was in it at any time so i could have drained it to far as you know i have my fridge going 24/7 so it may well be toasted
as you know i have no trees in my yard so it sits in the direct sun all day when not in use
i am still waiting for the one to turn up that was promised months ago
i will give him a nudge (from a 1000m) this week
as i said it may well be toasted so dont panic

 

[reefer]

No worries at all Ken..Thanks for the call mate!...I feel better about it all now...I shoulda rang you first! :8 ...but I thought I might get to it myself without bothering you needlessly mate! ] :Y: '
Keep dodging those dog bones mate!..hehe. :Y: :Y: Cheers Ken!....Iam now, officially ..low and dark!. ] :Y: :Y:

 

[Occasional_panner]

If you can't hook it up to a smart charger, or even a trickle charger, the next best thing would be start your vehicle, and hook up jumper leads to the battery.
Red to red black to black, don't muck that bit up of you'll phuck the car too.
Don't rev the daylights out of it, just let it idle and monitor the aux voltage, (you don't want to pump too many amps too quickly)
It won't reflect it's true reading till you disconnect and let it rest for a while.
However, I suspect it's rooted.
Best of luck

 

[user 7268]

Due to battery low voltage ................. under 10 volts it may not be recognized. Have had a few occasions when I have had to connect two batteries together ( in parallel ) to get a kick start to get the voltage over 10volts and then no problem ............... charged without issue. Not saying this is the case but could be so as not 100% sure of what your using to charge ?
Personally if you feel battery is suspect I wouldn't hook it to the alternator for if it has an internal short you could find you then need a new alternator as well as a new battery If you do wish to do it this way make sure you use jumper leads with circuit protection in them
:Y:

Optima explain it well

Recovery Option #2: The DIY solution for charging a deeply discharged battery.

This is a recovery method for the do-it-yourselfer using the equipment you've got in the garage. With this option, you're going to trick your traditional charger into charging the deeply discharged AGM battery.

Here's what you need:
Battery charger (under 15 amps)
Jumper cables
A good battery, preferably above 12.2 volts. (It can be an AGM or flooded battery- it doesn't matter.)
The seemingly dead, deeply discharged AGM battery
A voltage meter
A watch or timer

Now, here's what you do:

Hook up the good battery and deeply discharged AGM battery in parallel positive to positive and negative to negative. Do not have the charger connected to the battery or turned on at this stage.

Now, hook up the good battery to the charger. Turn on the charger. The charger will "see" the voltage of the good battery (hooked up in parallel), and start providing a charge.

After the batteries have been hooked up for about an hour, check to see if the AGM battery is slightly warm or hot to the touch. Batteries naturally become warm during charging, but excessive heat may be an indication that there really is something wrong with the battery. Discontinue charging immediately if the battery is hot to the touch. Also discontinue the process if you hear the battery "gassing" a hissing sound coming from the safety valves. If it's hot or gassing, STOP CHARGING IMMEDIATELY!

With your voltage meter, check back often to see if the AGM battery has charged to 10.5 volts or above. This generally takes less than two hours with a 10-amp charger. If it has, disconnect the charger from the wall outlet and remove the good battery from the charger. Now, connect only the deeply discharged AGM battery to the charger. Turn on the charger and continue until the AGM battery reaches a full charge, or until the automatic charger completes the charge process. In most cases, the AGM battery will be recovered.

 

[condor22]

Here are Volts v % of charge left in chart form. The voltages should be seen as a guide only as battery age and ambient temp have the greatest effect.

A good battery, fully charged, running a 35lt fridge (even on all the time) should use about 7AH over 2 hours, so BAT V should still read 12.7.

I would be absolutely sure that your battery has already morphed into a "Boat Anchor"

Another good guide is; I pull about 30% from my van battery (fairly new) in winter time near freezing and constantly read 12.4 V (no load) each morning. If I apply a load of say 2 amps the V drops to 12.2. So, if under similar circumstances your no load V is much lower or indeed when under load, it is a very good indication that the battery is in need of replacement.

Similarly if after a days charging by whatever means you have, V drops significantly under load, this shows that the battery is not holding charge.

If the battery is buggered it also explains why your solar panel might be showing a problem. To properly test a panel, you need a good battery, it also needs to be somewhat discharged i.e. 25-30% as a regulated panel won't show an W output if the battery is already full. The other method is to have a full battery, but with a load of at least what the panel output is. Then measure V & A going in to the battery.

 

[reefer]

Thank you, fellas, for your input as to what may be wrong and the various ways in which I may rectify the problem.I will try to disseminate the wealth of material you have given me.And apply it where I can..it would help if I had a voltage meter! :8 So I will make that a priority!
At this stage I have discovered from 7.62 that the fridge is also mains powered, so to turn it on, then when it is fully cooled switch to 12v and observe the usage of power to keep it that way..at the same time I will hook up to the car battery..so as to allow me to utilise the functions available to check how much juice is actually set to deliver from the solar unit.If there is a problem in the setting there...I assume it would not matter what the condition was of the battery for it would never be getting what voltage it needed...I think!. maybe...in the end, it might well come down to a new battery.So thanks to you all for taking the time to explain things in laymen's terms for me,
I will never be an auto electrician.. but I'm learning a whole lot of stuff, so thank you all. :Y: :Y:

 

[condor22]

Reefer, I can give you a little better advice if I understand your set up a little better, so to refer to your original post.....

I would like to know if it is possible to connect my car battery to my electrical system while it is still hooked up to the solar panel,
in order to boost the van battery?..

Is your "Car battery" the start battery or an auxilliary?
What "Electrical System" are you refering to?

My regulator has functions to alter the input from the solar etc..but it will not provide those functions if the main battery is not at or
near to full charge.

What is the make/model of your regulator? or, is a DC-DC charger with solar input? and what does it charge? or is it fixed to the rear of the panel?

I am not at this stage aware of the capacity of the solar unit..it's about 750x 350 in size and I think it's about 110W.

Reefer, An 80W panel is about 1020 x 540, your measurements indicate to me a 30 to 40W panel.

What is the make and model of the fridge?
When on 12V what battery do you wish to run it from?

Condor

 

[reefer]

Mate...I'll do my best to explain things... My 'electrical system; refers to the lighting and fridge set up in my 'minivan'...THE DEMON. ...This includes a unit where the voltage meter, cigarette lighter, power socket and usb slots are housed..also is a regulator..made in china! with 'NO' brand name..but rated as suitable for 12-24 volt systems...20amp to 30 amp. which has,built-in 4stage charging management,short circuit,open circ,reverse polarity, overload protection, and dual 'mosfet' protection..What!...? :/and low heat production. It has a 5 function button..Where I guess you can raise or lower the input of solar charge,which I understand, discharge reconnect, discharge stop..which I don't understand and the battery type...which is no problem and work mode...which is kind of 'iffy'...I suppose that refers to what item is using power or something :/ trouble is...it states clearly in the manual to ensure battery is at 12volts otherwise none of the functions will work...which is a bugger...I have since talked to 7.62 and he suggested I connect to my car battery so as I can then set the parameters in terms of input from the solar unit. :Y: but today saw me not able to put the time in to do that...bloody pension audit thingo which had me filling out my life history to some non-caring beaurocrat!
ON THE UNIT THERE ARE THREE CONNECTIONS FOR..BATTERY, SOLAR ...AND..ONE ON THE END, UNDER THE LIGHT BULB ICON ...FOR WHAT THE MANUAL REFERS TO AS 'CONSUMER TO THE REGULATOR'...that connection remains unconnected as I don't understand what 'consumer' is ..exactly. I think it means those things that are 'consuming' power!..but how would I go about complying with that?..I hope all the above helps you to assist me, as I can envisage a scenario where I won't be able to cry out for help from 7.62...and I owe it to him and myself to be able to understand what is going on ..electrically, and be able to troubleshoot my way out of problems.
below is a pic of the manual. thanks so much for following up with your post.condor22..below is the manual

 

[7.62marksman]

Lmao you lost me not long after you said
mate i will do my best to explain things :lol: :lol: then it turned to double dutch to me :8 :8
I will talk to peter tomorrow see if he can come up on monday and have a look apart from that mate i have no idea
Mine has a built in regulator so i never had to do this sort of stuff
But i hope someone on here has their finger on the button and can work it out
Saw peter today he is going to see about the battery in the next few days

 

[reefer]

hehe...you think you're confused!...You should see it from my perspective!...hehe I was content to leave things as they are and go for the battery connect from the car and then see what the hell the regulator would allow me to do in terms of solar charge to the van battery,,,then I saw condor22's post asking for more info...I did that without having a clue of what I was talking about...I should go into to politics...hehe! ] ] 8)..Oh! if he can come up with a battery...I'd be stoked! :Y: :Y: 8) Something is holding us back in terms of charge from the solar...we know the big battery can hold power...but the solar is just not kicking in...Ibet its that 'other' connection on the regulator...as if the regulator won't distribute the power from the solar panel, until it knows what 'consumer' to distribute to..or something of that nature..but what?...is beyond me!..I'd of thought that it would just go straight to the battery...Imean that's what it's supposed to do is it not...no matter what bloody'consumer' is consuming the bloody consumable flam'in power for christ's sake.
HEHE!.... Yer gotta laugh mate!...but sometimes it's wise to have a bloody good cry! 8.( 8.( 8.( ...there that feels better :Y:

 

[7.62marksman]

Yes sir mr pm sir

 

[reefer]

hehe..your bloody too funny mate

 

[condor22]

Reefer Thanks for the info, however if you can take a bigger picture (pixel wise) of the manual so I can at least read it. This would help me to help you Or if available a hyperlink to an online version.

So we are on the same page, is your "Minivan" the vehicle type all in one, or just a small caravan?

 

[7.62marksman]

Its a converted trailer so only runs 12v

 

[reefer]

ok condor22..Ihad to downsize it..so I'll try and tweak it up a bit

!hope this works!

 

[reefer]

nah...I'll have to re-scan it and git back ter you tamora!

 

[7.62marksman]

Lol it looks like my eye sight after a night out lol need to do it a bit clearer i think mate