Parallel Amps Question
If I have three solar panels in parallel producing 20amps in total down a wire, and then I divide that wire with a Y into two sets of wires, each going to a solar controller's array side, and each con...
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Thanks for the good info. So I tried it out and it does divide. I used my coarse reading non-vital ammeter that goes to 50a to check it out instead of risking my 10a limit accurate one, and I got approx. 1/2 each but hard to say exactly with that margin of error. Anyway, it split by some amounts, which is what I wanted.
Good point about risk if one path fails. My usual max amps is around 20a- sometimes I get more but not a lot more. One of the two 20a PWM controllers should be ok. If not, it cost $39. The rest of the wiring and fusing is over-gauge to requirements so no problem there.
I took my portable mounted 130w Sharp panel down from the roof and added it to my contraption so now it holds two Sun 100w and one 130w which are all at the fixed tilt but the whole thing twirls by hand whenever I feel the need to twirl it.
I got the second 20a controller instead of buying a much more expensive 30a to do it all and that has worked well. In theory, with 20-21a and needing a 20% margin for more amps at times, one 20a controller was not enough. (It will hold the fort if the other path fails I think, as mentioned above)
I have the three panels in parallel at the contraption, to a single run of 25 ft #1 AWG copper clad aluminum booster cables, where at the trailer end of that close to the trailer I have the Y split with a shorter set of wires to each controller by the battery bank.
I didn't have enough wire to just run two whole paths out to the contraption, so we have the Y split instead.
The other way with one on the roof was working great, but got the urge to tinker. Can't be helped :(
Good point about risk if one path fails. My usual max amps is around 20a- sometimes I get more but not a lot more. One of the two 20a PWM controllers should be ok. If not, it cost $39. The rest of the wiring and fusing is over-gauge to requirements so no problem there.
I took my portable mounted 130w Sharp panel down from the roof and added it to my contraption so now it holds two Sun 100w and one 130w which are all at the fixed tilt but the whole thing twirls by hand whenever I feel the need to twirl it.
I got the second 20a controller instead of buying a much more expensive 30a to do it all and that has worked well. In theory, with 20-21a and needing a 20% margin for more amps at times, one 20a controller was not enough. (It will hold the fort if the other path fails I think, as mentioned above)
I have the three panels in parallel at the contraption, to a single run of 25 ft #1 AWG copper clad aluminum booster cables, where at the trailer end of that close to the trailer I have the Y split with a shorter set of wires to each controller by the battery bank.
I didn't have enough wire to just run two whole paths out to the contraption, so we have the Y split instead.
The other way with one on the roof was working great, but got the urge to tinker. Can't be helped :(
