Little confused, 12v vs. 24v solar
I've got an existing 12v solar array with 1x 130 Watt and 2x 80 Watt for a total of 290 watts @ 12v, fed to a 30 amp MPPT controller (Rogue MPT-3024). I bought what I thought was going to be a 200 wat...
Forum Discussion
brulaz wrote:MrWizard wrote:
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its about matching panel voltage when parallel
series panels must be identical "AMPS" so identical panels are used
parallel panels need matching "voltage for the MPPT parallel circuit input to work correctly
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Been wondering about this. Some questions:
1) I know you want to match parallel panel voltage for best MPPT controller operation, but does it matter as much or at all for PWM?
2) For panels in series, you match amps otherwise the panel with the lowest amps (highest resistance?) limits the total current output? Or ...?
3) And that limitation for panels in series (2 above) is independent of whether you have a MPPT or PWM controller?
#1 12 volt panels are in the 17 to 18 volt range wont affect much.
#2 you need to match volts. If you use different amps the larger amp panel will only produce what the lower amp panel does.
#3 I am unsure of what you are asking but mismatch is much less of a issue with PWM.
