If it is a flooded cell, and you had a hydrometer, the shorted battery will
show higher specific gravity of the electrolyte too due to over charging
while all the others will show a much lower state of charge.
-----Original Message-----
From: Chuck McCown
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2018 7:54 PM
To: AnimalFarm Microwave Users Group
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Fun with a solar site
You can avoid this in the future if you have a fuse on each battery.
(This only works with parallel arrays, not series arrays).
When a cell shorts, that battery will have much higher current until all the
other batts discharge into it down to the new voltage. Just make the fuse
higher by a little bit than the max charging current.
-----Original Message-----
From: Matt Hoppes
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2018 7:46 PM
To: AnimalFarm Microwave Users Group
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Fun with a solar site
OK that’s what I was wondering. thanks Chuck, a wealth of information as
always.
On Jun 29, 2018, at 21:38, Chuck McCown <ch...@wbmfg.com> wrote:
Disconnect one terminal of the battery and measure the voltage. The
battery with the shorted cell will have a lower voltage.
Or, during charging, just put your hand on the batts. The shorted cell
bat will run warmer.
-----Original Message----- From: Matt Hoppes
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2018 7:30 PM
To: AnimalFarm Microwave Users Group
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Fun with a solar site
He’s very reasonable way other than trial and error to determine which
battery has the shorted cell in it?
On Jun 29, 2018, at 21:21, Chuck McCown <ch...@wbmfg.com> wrote:
Any time you have cells or batts in parallel and one of the cells shorts,
the whole system drops 2 volts. (if lead acid chemistry).
-----Original Message----- From: Matt Hoppes
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2018 6:45 PM
To: AnimalFarm Microwave Users Group
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Fun with a solar site
Robert, that was my first thought as well but why would connecting
additional batteries suddenly drop the overall voltage? Do you think that
is just the cells can’t put out enough to charge everything so the
overall output voltage goes down?
On Jun 29, 2018, at 20:38, Robert <i...@avantwireless.com> wrote:
hosed cell(s)
On 6/29/18 5:12 PM, Matt Hoppes wrote:
I’m currently about halfway through troubleshooting a solar site and
had to quit for the day.
I have a site with five 100 amp hour batteries. It is a 12 V site and I
have three of the batteries on to wire leads going to the charge
controller and two of the batteries on a wire lead going to the charge
controller.
I have been seeing something weird for the past three months where
during the day on a sunny day we never hit and plateau at about 12.5
12.7 V like we used to.
Instead it will get up to about 12.2 or 12.3 and then do this weird saw
tooth pattern. Today when I was at the site I disconnected the
secondary battery group of three batteries and things went up to 12.5 V
and plateaued.
When I reconnected the three batteries it went down to 12.2 and started
doing the weird saw tooth pattern.
What do those of you who have worked with solar before think? Might
this indicate a bad cell or battery? Or some kind of an issue with not
enough voltage or amps being pushed into the battery strings? Or
something else?
I should also mention that normally this site is able to maintain
itself, but in its current state it maintains a very steady decay until
the batteries are finally drained and I’ve had to boost it once with a
charger.
--
AF mailing list
AF@af.afmug.com
http://af.afmug.com/mailman/listinfo/af_af.afmug.com
--
AF mailing list
AF@af.afmug.com
http://af.afmug.com/mailman/listinfo/af_af.afmug.com
--
AF mailing list
AF@af.afmug.com
http://af.afmug.com/mailman/listinfo/af_af.afmug.com
--
AF mailing list
AF@af.afmug.com
http://af.afmug.com/mailman/listinfo/af_af.afmug.com
--
AF mailing list
AF@af.afmug.com
http://af.afmug.com/mailman/listinfo/af_af.afmug.com
--
AF mailing list
AF@af.afmug.com
http://af.afmug.com/mailman/listinfo/af_af.afmug.com
--
AF mailing list
AF@af.afmug.com
http://af.afmug.com/mailman/listinfo/af_af.afmug.com
