alliemac9 wrote:
I really have no idea how much power the panels were putting out in various situations. I have the TriStar PWM 60A controller and a TriMetric.
I've built my system the other way around - with a controller that included display providing more information than I will ever need. So buying Trimetric doesn't look unnecessary so far. Still, me thinks ;) ... that if you multiply the Amps "In" on Trimetric by 13V, you will get the power (=watts) that panels are putting out. It is possible that owning a Trimetric would've led me to a fantastic discovery that would've proved grade school science course totally wrong, but last time I checked, Watts=Amps*Volts.
Strictly speaking, this would NOT be the "power the panels were putting out", but the "power that panels are getting to the battery after all the losses in wires and in controller", but this is usually what users want to know. And, mostly, not the power but AH for the day.
alliemac9 wrote:
My question is whether I would understand more if I bought the TriStar remote meter?
You would get a little more data. But I don't think these data would make a difference.
alliemac9 wrote:
I guess it doesn't really matter how much available juice there is coming from the roof if it is enough to keep things full, but this trip was pretty light on the electric usage and I anticipate more usage on future trips.
Yes, it doesn't matter, if batteries are full. As to more usage in future, Trimetric provides a better information about usage than that single-line display.
alliemac9 wrote:
Does the remote meter provide any info on the power generated by the panels separate from the power being fed into the batteries?
Mostly, a time-picture. You will see what charging stage was reached when, in case if you missed the info provided by blinking LED indicators on controller. And you will see peak power (=watts) that solar array supplied to controller at the moment when conditions were the best - not sure how valuable is this info. And few other less significant numbers. At least, this what TS MPPT 60 would provide on display. Not many people are using TS PWM 60 with display - when solar array is so big that you need 60A controller, it's usually better to go MPPT and 24V panels.
Sorry for long post.
