Renogy DC-DC Charger UPDATE 2 Test

[BFL13]

Update--fixed the problem below--you can skip to 4:06 pm post.
Update 2- 28 Feb.

My 20 amper is on, it has the green light and no red light. But it is cycling up and down for amps constantly, making a click when it cycles. The green light sort of flickers and then goes steady and brighter then back again as it cycles. The amps range up and down about 20a as seen on the Trimetric but it cycles back on before amps drop to zero and goes off before amps hit 20 so hard to tell what the max amps is using the Trimetric.

Dip 1,2,3 up and 4,5 down for FLA 14.7v

What is it supposed to do? Thanks.

[BFL13]

pianotuna wrote:
BFL13,

You added a switch. Which wire did you switch??? lol!

I didn't switch any wires (ha ha), but I added a switch to the one that goes in D+ , the ignition terminal. No big deal for me to turn the unit on and off manually in the camper

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/B13jMRZjsnS.pdf

[pianotuna]

BFL13,

You added a switch. Which wire did you switch??? lol!

[BFL13]

Probably not needed, but to clarify, I thought PT was talking about voltage sensing so battery voltage would trigger the charger settings instead of the voltage at the charger.

[pianotuna]

BFL13 wrote:
IMO sense wire is one of those feed-back things. Anyway, see the manual and all will be revealed! 🙂 Yours in the Ford MH will be different from how I did it.

Mine will be different than almost all other motorhomes, because I went for twin charging paths. One is OEM modified with a 50 amp-circuit breaker (I kept blowing fuses), and the other is direct from the chassis battery, with a 50 amp circuit breaker. I also added manual switching to each isolation solenoid and upgraded the amperage so that burned contacts are not an issue.

When I had flooded batteries I did "see" as much as 70 amps of charge. When I moved to telecom jars I see little or no charging--in fact the power flow is to the chassis. I.E. almost no alternator charging at all. I did try to correct this by replacing the Chassis battery with an AGM, to no avail.

[pianotuna]

bdosborn wrote:


I think you meant to say to use a DC rated switch with appropriate arc suppression, not arc fault detection?
Bruce

yes.

[bdosborn]

BFL13 wrote:
It is a 15a, 120v light switch on a "12v" DC 16 AWG wire pulling ? amps to just power the unit.

I used the trailer running lights as my sense wire. That way I could turn on/off the DC-DC converter in the daytime from the tow vehicle with out adding a switch.

Bruce

[bdosborn]

pianotuna wrote:

bdosborn wrote:
Got a link?

This would do. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Calterm-Illuminated-12-Volt-DC-20-Amp-Rocker-Switch-Red-40310/303616507

I think you meant to say to use a DC rated switch with appropriate arc suppression, not arc fault detection?
Bruce

[BFL13]

pianotuna wrote:
BFL13,

Ignition wire = sense wire. Is that where you placed the switch?

IMO sense wire is one of those feed-back things. Anyway, see the manual and all will be revealed! 🙂 Yours in the Ford MH will be different from how I did it.

[pianotuna]

BFL13,

Ignition wire = sense wire. Is that where you placed the switch?

[BFL13]

pianotuna wrote:
BFL13,

You mean it is on the voltage sense line? Not the one to the battery bank?

I don't have a sense line AFAIK.

The output pos and neg go to the house battery bank. The "ignition wire" is just to provide 12v to the unit to power it. It is meant to go on the run circuit of the engine side with the ignition turning it on and off.

I have it on the house side to get 12v since it is not a MH and the unit is in the camper. It is actually on the house battery pos post and the unit's terminal for that wire (see the manual linked earlier). I think I could move it to the unit's pos output terminal inches away and it would work--

[pianotuna]

bdosborn wrote:
Got a link?

This would do. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Calterm-Illuminated-12-Volt-DC-20-Amp-Rocker-Switch-Red-40310/303616507

[pianotuna]

BFL13,

You mean it is on the voltage sense line? Not the one to the battery bank?

[BFL13]

It is a 15a, 120v light switch on a "12v" DC 16 AWG wire pulling ? amps to just power the unit.

[bdosborn]

pianotuna wrote:
BFL13,

I hope the switch is DC rated with arc fault protection.

Got a link?