How Many Watts of Solar Can You Put on a 100 | 50 amp Victron MPPT Solar Charger
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- Опубліковано 17 чер 2023
- It's a common question, and we've continually put more and more at each controller. We started with 600w, figuring 600w solar / 12 volts = 50 amps? Well, 2 things changed that.
1) Batteries rarely charge at 12 volts, so we should really be figuring for 13 to 14 volts.
2) Solar panels become less efficient as they get hotter, so 600w of solar might only give us 400-500w of output.
If we recompute with more real world numbers we'd have (800w of solar) - 20% loss for efficiency = 640w / 13.5 volts = 47.4 amps. There is some head room there to go a tick higher... and we did with 960w into this controller.
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Great answers to the over paneling question, thank you
Thanks! I was concerned about going with 820 watts. This puts me at ease.
On my 100/50 with 2x2S setup of 545W PVs i maxed out close to 1500W, on 24v AGM batts. With 5v usb active cooling fan in it, otherwise it throttles down. ;)
Over half a year on this setup.
Another great video. Thanks. Another benefit of over panelling is you begin to get power from the sun earlier in the day and later in the day as opposed to fewer panels.
Thanks for the watch and comment! Absolutely, no disadvantages I can see to over paneling, maybe weight.
I had read in some victron info once that talked about over paneling victron charge controllers to 1.5 there watt rating. As long as the panels are under the voltage rating
I have a Victron 100/50 on a 12v system supplied by 1620 Watts of solar.....handles it fine and is great on dull/cloudy days....this point is missed by so many people, especially as panels are so cheap to buy these days.
what solar panels you using?
Dang.... that's impressive! What does your panel setup look like?
I am in the process of putting 4- 300 watt panels in series on my van for a total of just under 1200 watts and have installed a Victron 100/50 on my 12 volt system, I am happy to see your post saying it works well, thank you.
What about the VOC rating?
IV a epever 100/40. IV got 3 pairs of 260w= 1560w max
IV way over panelled it more for winter months.
It works fine.
Only thing IV done is mounted both my charger controllers on a 24"x24" aluminium plate with air gap to back of....this really does help keep them cooler.
Thank you for the video. Now I can comfortably put 850 on it.
Folks there are some very good charge controllers out there But I recently purchased a VICTRON CHARGE CONTROLLER 100-30 There are no words to explain this product but I can tell you in my words that the quality & the workmanship of this product is second to none. I am so taken back on how beautifully this equipment performs. The reviews of this product is right on and I highly recommend on a scale 1 to 10 9-1/2 seven STAR
Yes, Victron is pretty good. I would caution, though, that when buying Victron charge controllers it is best to buy newer model controllers that can handle 12/24/48V instead of the older model controllers that can only do 12/24V.
So, for example, the Victron 100/20 and the 150/35 models can do 12/24/48V.
Also, always get the Victron "SmartSolar" type and not the "BlueSolar" type. The Victron Smart Solar's have built-in bluetooth, no dongle needed. It is incredibly convenient and useful to access these devices with the Victron Connect smart phone app.
-Matt
Why?
I have 6 x 200W 24V panels run in parallel installed flat on my rv with this controller. Here in the pacific northwest, it works great. Allows me to max out the controller from 11-3 to bring my 3x100Ah batteries to 100%. thanks for sharing.
There's no such thing as a 24v solar panel lol it's just a sales gimmick or well there lieing
@lickalittle please do more research😂, higher wattage panels are actually rated with voltages more than 24v, hence 24v panels
That’s true, but it’s how they are sold.
it would be a good idea to also go thru the interpretation of the ratings of the control device
You are safe to overpanel as much as you like too, as long as the voltage is below the first number on the Victron.
The Victron will just cut the amps back to the second number and that is on the batteryside.
So wih the 100 50 just stay under volt and repeat in parallel as much as you want. Your 12 volt battery will take in only like 600 watt from your production.
The thing is, most setups with panels will only produce their peak production during one hour a day, the rest will be less.
You can solve that by rotating one 100 string of panels towards the east, one string to the west and if you have a third string, turn that to the south. That way you spread the production over the day allowing more Ah's to enter your battery over a day time.
Also, aim them vertically for wintertime, not for summertime.
Great points
Just don't overcurrent the input side. That value is listed on their spec sheet.
@ItsEverythingElse you can’t overcurrent it, only over voltage.
Same as any other ac or DC appliance, a battery might be capable of 200a of discharge, but the appliance will only draw what it needs. Same thing with an MPPT, it’s drawing from the panels. The panels are not pushing (at least not with amps) the voltage does the pushing.
What happens when your inverter only supports 1 string? Or do you hook it up to only pull power from the batteries, not directly from the panels?
@@alexgunner1882 Your inverter is hooked directly to your batteries. You can't run it directly off your panels.
thanks for that, I was thinking about plugging 2x 430W flexible panels into my 100/50 charger, so it looks like it will work.
Yup
You will only get 600w max with 12v battery or 1200w with 24v battery.
@hasanagera that would be true if batteries charged at 12 and 24v, but they don’t :-) They charge between 13.5/14v and 27/28v generally.
I’ve seen this first hand in this test as well as in our RV with a 24v system. Our all time high score was in the Tetons on a cold July morning, 2800+w in from 2x 100/50 chargers.
@@sotasolar you are correct. Charging voltage is the max voltage for batteries so it is more than 12v but people usually use 12v because it is less confusing 😂
Can never go too heavy on solar, other than what your budget allows. As time goes by you can get another charge controller and batteries and make a parallel system to power different stuff.
So can I join my Victron 75/15 with my Victron 100/50 and my 2 same brand and AH batteries together so I can have more panels or
@TheAnimeMiner yes, so long as the panel arrays are in spec , you can parallel charging sources all day long.
The Victron won't begin de-rating the current until it hits around 60C (140F). Victrons can run indefinitely at their current limit, 50A in this case. The max wattage is strictly a function of the output voltage x 50A.
12V battery bank x 50A = roughly 700W
24V battery bank x 50A = roughly 1280W
48V battery bank x 50A = roughly 2750W (not the 100|50 model which is only 12/14 though)
Generally speaking, this is why, in modern times, people constructing new systems should go straight to 48V battery banks. More power for less amps and far, far fewer wire losses.
100% right. Only caveat is in RVs if they want to use a 2x120 Multiplus , then 24v is max, as of this writing.
I had that exact question!! hi, so i'm thinking of getting the victron 100/50 also for my CIGS panels.. currently I have one 200w and two 100w panels to start, I want to eventually get it up to around 1200w - will I need another victron ? or will the single 100/50 be enough for 8 panels totalling 1200w ? also should i do series or parrallel? or both? thanks@@sotasolar
@DeFiDuke the the 100/50 mppt is more than enough. Assuming the panels have a VOC of 20V+, you can only connect 4 of them in series with a total VOC of around 80+ which is below the rated 100v.
You then parallel the remaining string but try to match the total voltage of each estring for optimal power output
@@brianolowo7 Another twist to keep in mind is that one Victron 100/50 is like $184. One 100/20 is $90. So you get 2 x 100/20's and that allows you to give each string its own MPPT. Or at the very least, to reduce the parallelism needed. That does wonders in variable-shading conditions.
Also, the Victron 100/50 only handles 12V and 24V battery voltages. The 100/20 actually handles 12/24/48. So if you decide to upgrade later on, having the 100/20's is one less thing that would need to be replaced.
Haha I liked for your thermometer 😂
Okay you seem to know what you’re talking about👍 I have 2x 200 amp 12 volt lithium batteries in my pop top caravan. I want to mount solar panels on the roof. Weight is important as I have push it up. would you use 4wd type or domestic. Should I run the panels in series or parallel, and what specs should take priority when buying the mppt. Thanks
It seems to me this is an example of why going for a higher voltage system is a good idea. That relatively affordable 50 amp Victron SCC wouldn't be clipping your panel output if you had a 24v battery... You'd be cruising along at around 30 amps: a nice, comfortably output for the SCC. With the setup shown, it is possible you'll wear out your SCC sooner running it at its 50 amp maximum for portions of the day.
Thanks for the video. What model was that Victron by the way?
100/50 smart solar
Pretty easy, battery voltage multiply with max. amps of charger. Uploaded a movie few days ago about this topic too..... Have fun experimenting.
When you’re talking about your 50 A, your reading battery amps. your controller is capable of handling 50 A of PV looks like you only have 9 amps of PV input. You can put 40 more amps in from PV if I’m not mistaken.
I believe you are mistaken. 50a of PV would mean a theoretical max of 50,000w
Hi i have 2 of those 100/50 24v sistem with 6 320w panels each 12 total over paneling in P.R. over 93f temp they get super hot ,like you said they don't throttle down ,but i my case was cheaper to get panel than buy a new charger controller, so i decided to over panelling they max out 2800w i have 12 x320 =3800w if they broke i buy bigger ones 🤷
Yup, over paneling is where it’s at.
Question. What about the VOC rating? Some say that is what counts.
They are right. Stay under 100v , these larger panels I believe where above 50 voc, however it was hot (this reduces voltage) and the system was under load and was just for testing.
Learning a lot with your videos.. much appreciated ! this might be a very basic question but I noticed you where only getting 8/9 amps from the panels but the Victron boost that up to 50 amps? to the batteries.... I bought a Victron 100/30 and with 720 watts 4X180 watt panels in series... I usually see 20 maybe 22 amps max out to my batt. ... so If I upgrade to a 100/50 like you have I would get closer to 50 amps ? I get about 8 amps coming in from my panels as well.
Glad you're finding it helpful! A quick rule of thumb we use is to take 80% of the rated watts and compute back from that. So in full sun, (720w*80%)=576w in real world ideal conditions. Then we take that 576w and divide by the working voltage, let's call it 13.5 - 576w/13.5v = 42.6 amps maximum you can expect. So it looks like yes, a larger controller might help. However with you only seeing 22 amps from the 30 amp, tells me you might have some partial shading issues or haze in the sky knocking things down. We have some older videos I'd suggest watching on testing a variety of solar panels in different configurations and partial shade conditions.
@@sotasolar When I see your calculations I realize that I did not mention that this is a 24 volt system. I guess when Victron rates the solar controller they use 12 volts to get the 100/30 they put on the cover.. makes cense now, so 576w/24.5v or so = 23.5 amps.... that that sound right.. I appreciate you feedback !!
Oh even better news then. The 100/30 is not based on 12v or 24v it just means it can take 100v from solar and output 30 amps. So 30 amps on a 12v system maybe capable of using 400w, on 24v it’s double the watts. One of the many advantages to a 24v or higher voltage system.
@@sotasolar Awesome, thanks so much..
I've looked at 2x 440w panels. Similar to yours @ 455w. My one's have a max. current output of approx. 15amps each x 2 = 30amps. Yet yr monitor shows 50 amps approx. for similar rated panels? I must be missing something here? Where does the xtra 20 amps come from? Cheers
I have this exact same charge controller and eight100 W Renorgy Solar panels I have plans to try to do four in series and another four series and then parallel everything together and bring it in that way do you think this would work for this charge controller it will be on 12 V system with lifepo 4 batteries
1200w would likely be close the max I’d want to throw at it. Go for it and report back! You’ll likely clip around 10:30-11 am until 2-3 pm but that’s fine. You can comfort yourself with a full battery :-)
@@sotasolar thanks 😊
my 100/50 goes into an over heat protection?? after about an hour of full output. It then starts outputting around let's say 30-100wats or there abouts alternating up and down, and i have not observe it recover from this unless output it switched off and on again. If I dial max amps down to 40 it doesn't seem to do this. I thought I has it solved when I set up a pc cooling fan to aid in cooling, but now observed it's doing it again.
there is not much advantage to my existing 100/30 charge controllers that have never de rated. Ambient temp is around 20c or less.
What temp is the unit when it shuts down? Might make sense to look into a 150/70 charger then, slightly larger case design.
The manual only gives nominal figures. For SmartSolar 100/50 its 700W and 1400W with 12V and 24V setup, respectively. I couldn't find a max value though. I prefer how Epever reports their maximum power as 1.5x the nominal power. They also state what happens when you operate above nominal - controller limits power to nominal value. I wish Victrons documentation was better. They have a good reputation, but ive found many problems in their documentation. For example not stating equipment compatibility clearly, not giving all dimensions on their drawings, and not stating absolute maximums (which is typical for all electrical equipment). I did expect higher from the industry leader.
So for 12V and 50A (600 W) you are saying 700W output, so the controller is performing 15% over specification, which is pretty darn good.
@@dondonaldson1684 I double checked the manual. Its says:
Nominal PV power, 12V (1a,b) for the MPPT 100/50 is 700W.
The footnote (1ab) says:
1a) The solar charger will limit input power if more PV power is connected.
1b) The PV voltage must exceed Vbat + 5V for the controller to start. Thereafter the minimum PV voltage is Vbat + 1V.
So yes, nominal is greater than the max current times the max voltage of the battery.
Maybe its because the battery voltage can be greater than 12V. When charging the voltage of a 12V lifepo4 battery could be as high as 14V. So 14Vx50A=700W.
@@dondonaldson1684 I dont think you want to operate above nominal because the system will become less efficient. Above 700W the controller will not be able to track the maximum power point anymore.
Excellent responses! You are correct. When charging to ~14 volts, the wattage calculation would yield 14V x 50A, or 700 watts. You could "over panel" to provide more Wh in a day because the Victron will limit to 50A.
Did you have the panels wired in series or parallel??
I believe that was series
Can you tell me what panels you were running in this video? I have some that look very similar, and make the same output. I’m assuming you’re running these two in series, If they are the same as my panels, it exceeds 50 V
Zshine 455 I believe. In summer u see load it was working around 88-90v , wasn’t a problem. In spring or winter it would have over volted yes.
@@sotasolar thanks! Mine indeed are the same panels, I will be installing 6 and decided on 6 100/30 controllers
With the controller you have, the 50Amps rating is the maximum output ................... NOT input. It is only capable of handling 100 VOLTS on the input side. I donot think you understand the basics of electricity. Watts = Volts X Amps. So naturally when the voltage rises so does the watts.
Nothing that he said in the video has anything to do with your comment. He has two panels, we don't know if they are in parallel or series, but even if they are in series, they would be 80V max
straight to the point... love it.. i sub
Hey dear I am facing power dropping issue in series connection. I have connected 340watt and 380watt solar panels in series to epever 40A mppt controller with 12v battery. It show power of one panel when I disconnect solar connector and reconnect, the mppt show both Panels. It’s hard to do this every morning. It was fine in winter but now summer starting and facing this issue. Using both panels form 2 months. after wire disconnect and reconnect the voltage jump from 33-36 to 75v. If something wrong with one solar panel then it should not work after replugging mc4 or solar wire in the mppt after that It work whole day but same issue next morning Both panels volts amps are little different. Tesla 34.51v maxpower 33.18v. Tesla amps 11.01amps maxpower 10.29amps.
Sounds like the charger has optimized for the low light conditions of morning (lower voltage) and has not yet hunted for the higher voltage of daytime. An MPPT charger should do this regularly, but I can't speak for EPEVER and how it works. If you wire in a PV disconnect (which you should have anyway) you can flip that easily instead of connecting / disconnecting.
@@sotasolar I connected both panels in parallel connection and today they worked normally let’s see what they do tomorrow. Mppt should work with both panels if connected in series. If panel has issue than both should not work. But epever said you have oversized your 40A mppt at 12v its support 520watt and mine 340+380. They told that exceeding power will damage the mppt. Only Victorn withstand to high or extra power than it’s rated power
i push 1600w through my 100/50 victron and has not missed a beat in 3 years do you think it's to much
Na, you’re good. How much clipping do you get? I bet this time of year , if in NA, you’re about perfect.
For a 48 v system what solar charger would you suggest…? I’m running both lead and lithium banks….
Depends how much solar you have, or plan to have.
The 100|50 supports a maximum of 2,900 watts on a 48V system. (58V X 50A). 58V is max battery voltage for a 48v battery.
As long as max panel voltage is 100V
For victron energy mppt (48v), the only 100v unit is the 100/20, otherwise NONE of the 100/x support 48v battery and you need a 150/x mppt or higher. Gary from SE MI
@@Gary-wh7cewhy wouldn’t it?
Hi There. So the 100/30 should be able to handle good 1.000W on 24v?!
Yeah
Thanks. Cheers from Brazil@@sotasolar
If i have four 200 watt panels snd a 460ah 250bms 12volt battery what solar controller eould you recommend?
100/50 Victron mppt , in this test we used 910w, 800w is good too.
I have a small system, just started getting into solar, but may expand it out later. Is there any harm in getting a larger charge controller system (aside from cost)?
I was thinking 250v and 50i as it's the cheapest high voltage charge controller
I have 3x160w, but was thinking the next upgrade might start using 400w panels
Romahome modified
Those 455 W solar panels wired in series will have an open circuit voltage above 100 if it’s cold outside and you will damage the charge controller. Why not just put those big panels in parallel and you won’t have to worry about it.
I have a leaven 400 W solar panels wired in parallel with a charge controller and it doesn’t seem to affect it at all it’s a good producer during cloudy weather.
I have five separate charge controllers parallel to my battery bank 11 kW of Solar 34 kWh of battery
Was just a test in the summer, I wasn’t concerned about the winter :-)
PLEASE HELP HERE. I BOUGHT 200AH X 2;100V/50A VICTRON CHARGE CONTROLLER AND 545W X 2 CANADIAN ; IS THIS CHARGE CONTROLLER NOT GOING TO BE OVERLOADED
YOU’ll BE FINE
Derating should happen above 40C (104F)
Were you running them in parallel or series ?
I think I ran those two panels in series. In summer it worked in winter it light over volt.
@@sotasolar I have the same controller, my issue is my rig came with a go power 190w when I bought my rig the dealer installed a 200W both 12 v in series for 22.53 V. Then I bought a 400w 12v panel and I’m hoping it’s not going over
right now i have 290 watts of solar. is it a bad idea to get a 50amp when i dont immediately plan on expanding panels
I believe there might be a tick of inefficiencies, but you more than make up for it with plenty of thermal headroom and room to expand overall.
@@sotasolar thanks. think i may just go for the 30amp
No more than- 100 volt input … series parallel..more power
I max mine out at 1450w at 27v puts out 50amps gets hot
They definitely do
I hope you can help me 😢. I just got a I 150/60 victron controller. “Running for a week just fine” on 16 - 12v/100w panels in parallel. I was told to cut down to eight panels :-(. I don’t want to lose the amps Will the controller throttle down the watts? Will what I have continue to work? Think You for your feedback.
Bro, put those panels in sets of 2 to 4 at least. 4s4p would be what I would do. Gets your volts up to 40-50, charger will work better, you’ll get more power.
The charger will limit amps naturally.
@@sotasolar Thank you so much. Will I get just as fast of a charge? Or do I need more panels and another controller “or larger controller” for more amps for more of a charge? I’m off grid so I need my two 260amp “lithium” batteries to get charged each day :-). I’m a new be
sorry 😢.
@scooter6334 reconfiguring your panels will give more charge overall. More power earl and later in the day. You’re almost over paneled by 100%. So a second charger or a single 250/100 would be fine. But if you want to run them all parallel or lower voltage in general, go with a 150/100 and save some money.
@@sotasolar Sorry for bugging you :-(. My goal is just to get the most charge in my two 250amp “lithium”batteries in a days time. In simple terms “please” what is my best option?
If in full sun I’d put as many in series together as you can. That would be 8s2p splitting your array in two . You’ll charge earlier and later. PV amps is not the same as Battery amps. I have a video on series vs parallel that would be worth watching. You’re biggest limitation is the charger. Your configuration will change things by 5-10% max.
What the minimum watts or amps
That’s an angle I hadn’t thought of.
Those handheld spot radiometer‘s are not reliable. They are way too broad in range of error. depending upon your phone type, you could get a reasonably good handheld adapter to your phone and actually see what you’re measuring. A lot of heat comes off of the back of that unit which is supposed to.
It’s on the list of items to get. I plan to IR image more systems.
It's my understanding that you don't max. out yr controller. This is so on cold mornings. It's better to use a conversion figure like 1.1 for voltage & 1.25 for current to figure out the correct controller size? Regardless, do your homework first & do consult with a qualified person if you are not 100% sure.
Ummm….the specs show 1050watt max input Solar. 😅
It says 100V 50 amps. That's 5000 watts. Minus internal losses and voltage drops.
I see where the math is there, only issue is you can connect these to a 100v battery bank. Highest I believe is 36v.
The goal of this test, is how much actual panels do you need to get that max 50 amps at 12v (common usage) . Intuition would say 12*50=600w, but as we saw, in the real world, it takes much more.
Now for the question of how much solar can you connect to this charger? That’s only limited by space and money. Could do 5000w and you’d be maxing it out from sun up to sun down rain or shine.
Not quite. It's important to remember that the '50' refers to the max current that the charger will supply the battery bank not the max panel current! So with this charger having the capabilities to charge both 12v or 24v batteries, the max current for a 12v battery bank would be 50 amps @ ~14.4v (assuming AGMs in absorption mode) = ~700 watts, and for a 24v bank 50 amps @ ~28.8v (assuming AGMs) = ~1400 watts. Overpaneling does not increase these values, only helps on cloudy days. These are spec'd out by Victron.
i don't know what you are trying to prove here this controller can take up to 1400 watts according to the manual. just don't go over 90v or the controller will luck up
What I was trying to say to prove is how much solar panels is required to max out the charger on amps. The 1400w is for a 24v system. Based on my experiment here I’d recommend 1800-2000w of solar panels to achieve 1400w into a battery at 24v.
"..so we can afford a better one, how about that?"
90 degrees Fahrenheit... Start using the international measurement system, the one used in all the world,. What about that?
If u can read the manual - u dont need to "test" something out.....
No lo vas a sobrecalentar al grado que buscas a 12 voltios solo estas usando el 50% de su capacidad 😂😂😂😂😂
and change the title of your video, it's confusing ... thank you....Dude :)
IT'S IN THE MANUAL!!!!. you can put all the power you want until the pvs exceed a short circuit current indicated in the manual. and if you do, the reverse polarity protection just doesn't work. you can put 1000w on a 30A mppt without any problems. do you read the manuals before talking nonsense?
You’re right it is in the manual. What we were trying to to show is how much actual solar panels does it take to max it out. Not in theory, but in practice. We found 800-900W.
@@sotasolar Yep, its in the manual but I think people just want to see one blow up and let the magic smoke out. I have two of these units and run them to the max too. However, I don't want to waste an extra panel on it to over PV it when I can buy an open box 100/50 for $100
@@Gary-wh7ce Where do you get the open box chargers?
so how many wats of solar panels can you run on 100/50 solar charge controller? Dude I hate these videos where you don't answer you own question .
Sorry I thought I had the conclusion in there. We had 2x 455w panels and they would max out the charger . I’d say between 800w and 900w is a good target.
Keep in mind, this is 800-900w to get 600w- 750w into the battery.
@@sotasolar okay but that is not the max wats it'll take, just because you used 900W
@tysesty the max watts of solar you can put on is infinite. In offgrid situations it’s common to go 2x or 3x what you’d need in the summer or ideal situations. The charger takes the amps / power made available by the panels to charge the battery until max amps are reached. The only limiting factor is PV voltage. Keep that below 100.
I guess the title is not as accurate as it could be. A better title might be (how many watts does it take to max out the 100/50”.
Okay so I can connect it to 200 Amp 30 volts DC welder and charge my 12 volts battery correct?
@@tysestyI have a feeling you're not expecting this answer, but yes. The charger will see it as a 30v solar panel and draw about 23 amps from the welder (700w / 30 amps). The only reason the welder pulls so much current welding is because current is unrestricted (relatively speaking).
Your numbers are all bs . If you talk about input and output ,you need to define your system . So 50 amps at what ? , your system runs at 12 v ,50 amps at 48v is 4x the energy. So at 48v your panels (your numbers) would be like 3600 w at 48v or 900at 12 …….