No more expensive charge controllers

[Canine]

When I doubled my solar setup 3 years ago,I thought I would upgrade to better controllers for the new panels.The older cheaper controllers were working great but the new ones looked so sexy on ebay,I just had to have them.Well,now one of the sexy,expensive controllers has died after a little over 3 years and the cheaper ones are still going strong after almost 6 years.It's true that you usually get what you pay for,but there are exceptions.

 

[akrvbob]

Nearly all high end controllers come with 5 year warranties, you should be able to get it fixed for free. Even if you don't have the receipt I'd call them. You paid a lot for that warranty and their reputation and they want to keep both of them.
Bob

 

[Canine]

Yeah Bob,I don't know where the receipt for them would be.I guess I'll just consider it $40 down the drain.

 

[akrvbob]

It's a $40 controller?

I wouldn't bother for $40 either but if it was an expensive brand name I would call them because there is a very good chance they will do something to work it out. They may be able to walk you through fixing it.
Bob

 

[TMG51]

I'm confused. What is a $40 controller better than? :huh:  Seems on the inexpensive side.

 

[Matlock]

The older cheaper controllers were working great ................. <snip>

So..... what did you pay for one of these older controllers ?

(Holds onto leg as something is pulling on it)

 

[One Awesome Inch]

Pwm or mppt?

 

[Canine]

The controller I ordered to replace the expensive one is pwm.The brand is OEM.This is the same controller that I started out with 6 years ago and is still for sale.The price is $16.99 with free shipping.I guess I might be different than some,as I put my money in more panels instead of high dollar controllers.There's a note on the owners manual that the controller is "protected from thunder".I guess something was lost in translation.Ha.

 

[akrvbob]

I guess I think a little differently, not better, just different. I think $400 is an expensive controller and $40 is very cheap.

There is no doubt that 10 of those $40 controllers will far outlast one $400 controller.
Bob

 

[Willy]

I finally coughed up the dough for an MPPT regulator (Tracer) and it seems to be making somewhat of a difference with early morning and late afternoon charging. Still have my PWM.. just in case. Was wondering tho, if one can mix different types of panels in a series string. At the moment, I've got my 2 Unisolars hooked up in series and running in parallel with my 2 polycrystallines (which are also in series). This gives me a system voltage of about 40V. Having the whole works running in series would give me abt. 80V. ..Willy.

 

[SternWake]

Heat is a major contributor to electronics failure.


How well the device can dissipate the heat it generates is quite important.

Large finned heatsinks might not be sexy enough for the marketing department to sign off on, so they neuter the engineers designs not only for higher initial sales, but for planned obsolescence too. 

One can try and mount a charge controller where it will not bake on the hot sunny days, and mount it so that it can dissipate its heat without added restrictions.

My BlueSky2512i charge controller was purchased in June 2007, put into service in October that year, and has perhaps 12 days since then when it was not connected to a panel or battery.  It only passes about half of its maximum rating on june 21.

Charge controllers whose panels bring it up closer to the max rating, will not live as long.

And there are just some products which will fail even if babied.

 

[highdesertranger]

hahaha protected from thunder. what did they do sound proof it. highdesertranger

 

[ZoNiE]

$40 is expensive? $295 for my midnight Kid MPPT. But it has all the features of a Bogart Trimetric built in...

 

[Canine]

Zonie,how many amps will your Midnite Kid handle? I'll probably upgrade to mppt someday,if the prices drop a lot.We have an old family saying"You can tell a Dickerson,but you can't them much".