It will NOT charge at 140 Amps, The Smartpass will let the alternator charge whatever it can when it's more than 20 Amps, but when it's less than 20 amps, the D250S will keep the charge level at 20 amps. The usual charge rate for an empty (lead acid) battery will not exceed 35A due to internal resistance in the battery. The charge rate will decline after about half an hour to about 20 amps where the D250S takes over. It will not add up the alternator and the solar panel, but it will choose the source that can deliver most, without interfering with another.
I have a motorhome charging with the Ctek 250s dual charger . Ok so my question is about the fridge which is a 2way , the schaudt electrobloc power system has a compressor fridge 20amp fuse slot that apparently when fused it changes from dc battery power and is powered by from the alternator when I turn the engine on . I’m wondering how this is possible or if it’s even happening could use some help please
Hi Brandon, do you know if the CTEK 250SE will put any charge at all into a bank of 3 120 ah LIFPO4 batteries? I currently have the 250 SE in my camper trailer and it is doing a great job on the 3 AGM's but they are 6 years old and starting to show their age. Any info would be great mate.
Hello.I have one question and please help me to understand it .I bought CTEK D250SE for my camper. And now I have to choose battery for my system.when I read recomedations of manifactures they said that below 100 ah you need D250SE with SMARTPASS. Cant i have only D250SE for 110 ah battery system?
If you're building a solar generator for camping only and will not be using the starter battery to power this, but only a house battery, how do you hook this up/
Hi Cameron, if you are not using a starter battery you will only need the D250SA. To use it as just a solar regulator, connect the battery to the positive and negative to the right side of the unit. Hook the solar panel up with the positive lead to the top left solar input and the negative to the same negative you used for the battery. Be aware that these units are suited for 24v solar panel input only. Larger panels will damage the unit. Cheers
Thanks for the info great video. Could you please assist with a question. I have a 2009 Hilux. This has a temp compensating alternator. I am hooking up an auxiliary 100ah Lithium Battery in the rear canopy. Do I still connect the red wire from the CTEK250SE to an ignition switch and the black wire to a positive supply as stated in the book. If so would it be connected to the + of my main battery. Thank you in advance.
Hi Mitchell, wire gauge from starter battery to the Smartpass120 is 0000 and rated at 300amp. This allows big current to travel back to the starter motor to start the car if the main battery fails. Cheers
Yes the D250SA does have a green light to show when it is charging. If it is not powered on, charging from a solar panel or alternator then the green light will be out. It is the bottom light of the two lights to the left of staus led's.
Hello, I was wondering if it would be ok to plug a 12v dc power supply into the solar input in order to take advantage of a campsite that has AC power. Or can I just plug a 12v power supply into the battery side and keep the 12v flowing from that end.
A 12v power supply into the solar input of the unit won't work. This input is for 20+ volts from a solar panel. A power supply connected to the battery will be of little help as their outputs a small and they can also damage a battery as their supply doesn't decrease as the battery approaches capacity. If you mean a 12v charger, yes, hook it straight to the battery and it will help. How much depends on the size of the charger and the amount of current you are drawing from the battery.
All Around Oz D250sa has the inbuilt mppt controller. So it does not need full 20+ volts from the solar input. It will maximise any feasable available volts and enhance it out of the panels. Ctek doesn't specify anywhere what the minimum "raw" panel volts are , before the unit will begin sucking volts out of it. For example the redarc bcdc1225 uses minimum.9v out of the panel. In saying that , it's true you don't want a ordinary DC supply hooked up to solar in or direct batteries . It's asking for trouble. Use the ctek m300 in combo with your d250sa and smartpass for best results when you have AC available.
You can connect a Ctek mains charger to the battery, in parallell with the D250S. I have done that for several years and Ctek recommends to do so. The Ctek MXS 10 CIC can deliver 13,5 Volt supply which is an alternative when you have the battery fully charged, don't want to charge the batteries more but want to use some current. This of course requires that you have access to the grid.
The Smartpass120 is rated to 120 amps. Yes, new car alternators do not generally supply 120amps, so the Smartpass120 has a safe tolerance most of the time. I have used a 135amp alternator to supply car stereos many years ago.
Yes, no problem. Just ensure the output from the panels is only 24v, as the CTek is only rated for no more than this. The system will maintain an 800ah battery bank, so your 230ah will work fine. Cheers
No it will not worry it. The electronics in the C-Tek will reduce the charge rate as the battery's capacity increases. It will run higher while the battery is at a low capacity and reduce the charge rate as the battery is charged to a trickle/maintenance charge when the battery is at capacity. Hope that makes sense.
It will NOT charge at 140 Amps, The Smartpass will let the alternator charge whatever it can when it's more than 20 Amps, but when it's less than 20 amps, the D250S will keep the charge level at 20 amps. The usual charge rate for an empty (lead acid) battery will not exceed 35A due to internal resistance in the battery. The charge rate will decline after about half an hour to about 20 amps where the D250S takes over.
It will not add up the alternator and the solar panel, but it will choose the source that can deliver most, without interfering with another.
I have a motorhome charging with the Ctek 250s dual charger . Ok so my question is about the fridge which is a 2way , the schaudt electrobloc power system has a compressor fridge 20amp fuse slot that apparently when fused it changes from dc battery power and is powered by from the alternator when I turn the engine on . I’m wondering how this is possible or if it’s even happening could use some help please
Hi Brandon, do you know if the CTEK 250SE will put any charge at all into a bank of 3 120 ah LIFPO4 batteries? I currently have the 250 SE in my camper trailer and it is doing a great job on the 3 AGM's but they are 6 years old and starting to show their age. Any info would be great mate.
What size cable did you use for the smartpass 120 and fuses?
Hello.I have one question and please help me to understand it .I bought CTEK D250SE for my camper. And now I have to choose battery for my system.when I read recomedations of manifactures they said that below 100 ah you need D250SE with SMARTPASS. Cant i have only D250SE for 110 ah battery system?
Hi, the D250SE specifications state that the unit will charge a battery bank from 40 to 300ah so your 110ah battery will be fine. Cheers
If you're building a solar generator for camping only and will not be using the starter battery to power this, but only a house battery, how do you hook this up/
Hi Cameron, if you are not using a starter battery you will only need the D250SA. To use it as just a solar regulator, connect the battery to the positive and negative to the right side of the unit. Hook the solar panel up with the positive lead to the top left solar input and the negative to the same negative you used for the battery. Be aware that these units are suited for 24v solar panel input only. Larger panels will damage the unit. Cheers
Thanks for the info great video. Could you please assist with a question. I have a 2009 Hilux. This has a temp compensating alternator. I am hooking up an auxiliary 100ah Lithium Battery in the rear canopy. Do I still connect the red wire from the CTEK250SE to an ignition switch and the black wire to a positive supply as stated in the book. If so would it be connected to the + of my main battery. Thank you in advance.
Hey Dazza, yes, hook up both wires as per instructions and the positive supply to the main battery. Cheers
Had it for over a year
Is this charger cteck D250se enough for 100Ah battery or i need to buy smartpass 120A ?
The d250se will work fine with a 100ah battery. Cheers.
I have both these in my hilux ute but the solar is not charging anymore out of warranty so have super expensive paper weight very disappointed
Can I ask what guage wire you are using for the smartpass 120? I can't quite make out what you describe it as in the video.
Thanks
Hi Mitchell, wire gauge from starter battery to the Smartpass120 is 0000 and rated at 300amp. This allows big current to travel back to the starter motor to start the car if the main battery fails. Cheers
Does your CTEK D250SA have a green LED for when it's being powered? How do you know when it's on!?
Yes the D250SA does have a green light to show when it is charging. If it is not powered on, charging from a solar panel or alternator then the green light will be out. It is the bottom light of the two lights to the left of staus led's.
can you explain more about charging car battery from sol cells or if you can draw the circuit. thanx
You can hook up your solar panels directly to your battery as long as the solar panels have a regulator to reduce the voltage back to 12v. Cheers
Hello, I was wondering if it would be ok to plug a 12v dc power supply into the solar input in order to take advantage of a campsite that has AC power. Or can I just plug a 12v power supply into the battery side and keep the 12v flowing from that end.
A 12v power supply into the solar input of the unit won't work. This input is for 20+ volts from a solar panel. A power supply connected to the battery will be of little help as their outputs a small and they can also damage a battery as their supply doesn't decrease as the battery approaches capacity. If you mean a 12v charger, yes, hook it straight to the battery and it will help. How much depends on the size of the charger and the amount of current you are drawing from the battery.
All Around Oz
D250sa has the inbuilt mppt controller. So it does not need full 20+ volts from the solar input. It will maximise any feasable available volts and enhance it out of the panels. Ctek doesn't specify anywhere what the minimum "raw" panel volts are , before the unit will begin sucking volts out of it. For example the redarc bcdc1225 uses minimum.9v out of the panel.
In saying that , it's true you don't want a ordinary DC supply hooked up to solar in or direct batteries . It's asking for trouble.
Use the ctek m300 in combo with your d250sa and smartpass for best results when you have AC available.
You can connect a Ctek mains charger to the battery, in parallell with the D250S. I have done that for several years and Ctek recommends to do so. The Ctek MXS 10 CIC can deliver 13,5 Volt supply which is an alternative when you have the battery fully charged, don't want to charge the batteries more but want to use some current. This of course requires that you have access to the grid.
140 amps from alternator and solar combined so what alternator can deliver 120 amps continuous
The Smartpass120 is rated to 120 amps. Yes, new car alternators do not generally supply 120amps, so the Smartpass120 has a safe tolerance most of the time. I have used a 135amp alternator to supply car stereos many years ago.
@@Allaroundoz yes seems like people will believe it will give 140 amps but as an auto sparky it is total bs
Great review, Just bought the two ctek units and was wondering will my 400w solar panels run though it ok? I'm also running a 230ah agm battery.
Yes, no problem. Just ensure the output from the panels is only 24v, as the CTek is only rated for no more than this. The system will maintain an 800ah battery bank, so your 230ah will work fine. Cheers
@@Allaroundoz cheers mate ;)
@@Allaroundoz oh whats the best way to limit the voltage?
How much watt in solar can it run with this set up
The D250SA will handle up to 300w of solar input at 23v.
Cheers
All Around Oz oh ok if I wanted to run 600 watt would I hve to get a mppt and join that to the dc dc
@@sean21911able yes, but run the second mppt straight to the batteries..Rum 2 x 300w charging circuits.
Will that much amps hurt if I only run a single 120 agm
No it will not worry it. The electronics in the C-Tek will reduce the charge rate as the battery's capacity increases. It will run higher while the battery is at a low capacity and reduce the charge rate as the battery is charged to a trickle/maintenance charge when the battery is at capacity. Hope that makes sense.