mppt or pwm An opinion from Victron
Hi all, Victron, which makes high quality equipment, has charge controllers. At the end of an overview they give their description of the differences between PWM and MPPT. They do not support it wi...
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It is hard to pinpoint. I get high amps if the battery starts out really low or is sagged with a load. Then it will stay at peak until close to when it switches to absorb. I have also seen peak by applying a lower load slowly. I also saw over 16a on the 230w when I ran the 12v coffee maker test. The voltage stayed at 13.4v where I lowered it to get into bulk and the amps slowly rose to peak.
So as long as something kicks the controller into high gear, I see peak and can run close to peak in float if I carefully add loads up to the system max. The first time I ran the window shaker the float was set and stayed at 14.4v while the unit ran.
One of the 245w systems is gone and will be mounted on a van. That sold for enough to replace the panels. The other is spoken for but I'll believe it when I see the money. The 220w system will be a good solid 12a for anyone that needs the smaller footprint.
The more I look at high dollar controllers, the more I want to stay with the Eco-w's. I was set on the TS-MPPT-60 but it will be clipping if I mount three panels as it's limited to 45a in 12v. The TS-MPPT-45 couldn't even handle a pair of my 230w or the 245w's without clipping. I know it's not a issue for most with flat mounted panels but I would see 10a clipped all mid day. For the money that sucks. Three new Eco-w's would be $300 or less on auction, never see clipping and be more flexible, just with fewer features. Because of this indecision I will probably go with 250w polys that may need to be run off of the Eco-w's instead of 280-300w polys that would have to have a different controller. The $20 difference in price between the panels is nothing compared to buying the bigger controller.
So as long as something kicks the controller into high gear, I see peak and can run close to peak in float if I carefully add loads up to the system max. The first time I ran the window shaker the float was set and stayed at 14.4v while the unit ran.
One of the 245w systems is gone and will be mounted on a van. That sold for enough to replace the panels. The other is spoken for but I'll believe it when I see the money. The 220w system will be a good solid 12a for anyone that needs the smaller footprint.
The more I look at high dollar controllers, the more I want to stay with the Eco-w's. I was set on the TS-MPPT-60 but it will be clipping if I mount three panels as it's limited to 45a in 12v. The TS-MPPT-45 couldn't even handle a pair of my 230w or the 245w's without clipping. I know it's not a issue for most with flat mounted panels but I would see 10a clipped all mid day. For the money that sucks. Three new Eco-w's would be $300 or less on auction, never see clipping and be more flexible, just with fewer features. Because of this indecision I will probably go with 250w polys that may need to be run off of the Eco-w's instead of 280-300w polys that would have to have a different controller. The $20 difference in price between the panels is nothing compared to buying the bigger controller.
