Advice for my charging situation? Solar?
Hi folks - This is for my minivan. I have: - 24 hour usage around 1 kilowatt, on average. Half a kw on a lazy day (which usually = a cloudy or rainy day, for me). Max I have read on the kill...
Forum Discussion
Hi,
A 24 to 12 dc to dc will allow you to charge the 12 volt battery at the same time as the 24 volt series jars. It would also power the RV which may be based on 12 volts. This would automate the charging system instead of requiring human intervention.
The charging of one 12 volt battery followed by the other one may cause them to become out of balance which would require more frequent equalization. Equalization always causes the positive plate to shed some material leading to an early demise to the jar. Not equalizing will lead quite quickly to capacity loss. The greater this loss the more necessary equalization becomes.
With a properly sized and designed system, equalization may only be needed once a month. In a bad system it might be needed almost daily.
Balance is a whole bunch more important that most folks realize for longevity of a battery bank.
Another issue is the effect temperature change causes on charging voltage. It needs to be addressed by having a sensor on the negative post of the battery.
A 24 to 12 dc to dc will allow you to charge the 12 volt battery at the same time as the 24 volt series jars. It would also power the RV which may be based on 12 volts. This would automate the charging system instead of requiring human intervention.
The charging of one 12 volt battery followed by the other one may cause them to become out of balance which would require more frequent equalization. Equalization always causes the positive plate to shed some material leading to an early demise to the jar. Not equalizing will lead quite quickly to capacity loss. The greater this loss the more necessary equalization becomes.
With a properly sized and designed system, equalization may only be needed once a month. In a bad system it might be needed almost daily.
Balance is a whole bunch more important that most folks realize for longevity of a battery bank.
Another issue is the effect temperature change causes on charging voltage. It needs to be addressed by having a sensor on the negative post of the battery.
