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Golfer Guy · 09-19-2019, 12:42 PM

I'm wondering how many amps those of you with solar arrays are pulling in. Just curious.

I just looked at my ME-ARC and the PT meter shows 81 amps at noon full sun in Arizona.

2000 watts solar panels

**Spdracr39** · 09-19-2019, 01:09 PM

Depending on the type, age, and efficiency of the panels that is close but maybe a little low. Have you cleaned the dust off lately ?

NealC · 09-19-2019, 01:23 PM

I get 100A from my 10 panel 1800W setup. 100A is max allowed by the Victron MPPT 150/100 tr I use. I'm probably capable of more from the panels but the Victron caps me at 100A.

jcussen · 09-19-2019, 01:35 PM

Have seen 85 amps out of my 1455 watts through my Victron solar controllers, but only 80 into batteries because of parasitic loads.

SteveUpp · 09-19-2019, 04:00 PM

I have 1620W of solar and a Victron 250/100 MPPT controller. I have seen short periods of time where the controller has peaked at 100A.

I, like NealC, could probably do a little better if I had used two controllers and split up the panels differently, but I think those sunny days where I can hit 100A are likely to fully charge the batteries anyways. On the less than sunny days I wouldn't peak at 100A anyways so I'm not really throwing away too much energy as it is.

Golfer Guy · 09-19-2019, 04:20 PM

Thanks guys. I guess I need to get up there and do some cleaning. I am using the Magnum Power Track 100 (PT 100) controller.

I was thinking I was not getting all that I should from that many solar panels.

NealC · 09-19-2019, 04:27 PM

There are some solar experts around here such as C.Martin and 757Driver, I'm NOT one, I'm a puppet of C.Martin and mirrored his install and added more panels from a situation I had which ended up being a wiring issue. Worked out in the end. I think there are a lot of actors such as if your controller is MPPT or the other type (can't remember), how your panels are installed, i.e. series pairs, voltage they are outputting, etc. I defer to the experts. Also probably depends on your panels, their efficiency/ratings, etc. A lot of factors. That's as deep as I go.

twinboat · 09-19-2019, 04:59 PM

Its not amps, its Amp Hours that matter.

Your only going to get the high amp input for 5 to 6 hours a day. Before and after it will taper off.

If you use 40 amps of that input, your only sending 40 amps to the batteries.

You need enough AHs to recharge your battery bank for the 16 hours of little, to no, solar input.

ericllucas · 09-19-2019, 06:10 PM

I just got 800w of solar panels installed on my Country Star in Nappanee IN by Solar Energy Systems, Inc. Boy did they do a good job. I'm the annoying type who thought he could do it himself (a degree from Purdue, you know, does that to a guy), but I know my limitations. Anyway, they spent a lot of time showing me things and answering my questions. I looked at the quality of their craftmanship and being a former electrician, I'm rather much on the picky side. I liked what I saw. Oh, I digress.

I'm watching the remote display thing they installed above the stairs. I've seen 35 amps at times. I wish it had a Bluetooth connection I could use to connect it to my phone, so I could download amp and wattage curves.

My novice opinion from the cheap seats is that you should be getting more juice from your panels. Clean them off, drop the jacks on the side of your rig opposite the sun and tilt the rig into the sun to get a better angle on the panels

Best Wishes

texskeet · 09-19-2019, 07:18 PM

What mounting system did youall use with the high sides on both sides?

Searching_Ut · 09-19-2019, 08:11 PM

It can be difficult to say what you should get, as there are a lot of variables. To begin with, the STC rating of most panels is something you’ll rarely see in real life. PTC ratings if you can find them are generally more realistic, but tend to be approx 10 percent lower. Time of year, time of day, weather, air pollution, location, cleanliness of panels, temperature, etc. really affect your solar harvest. If you really want to get into the weeds NREL.GOV has some tools to help figure out averages. It can be really interesting to see how much anticipated power harvest varies by location, panel orientation, time of year etc. they also factor in weather averages.

As far as comparing numbers, you want to look at output from those during the same approximate time, and geographic location.

NealC · 09-20-2019, 06:35 AM

I had a wiring issue early on so one panel pair was not playing. You may want to voltage check each panel or pairing to make sure all panels are in fact contributing. I tested at the combiner box.

Golfer Guy · 09-20-2019, 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by texskeet

What mounting system did youall use with the high sides on both sides?

I have a raised rail system that puts the panels just as high as the Girard awning facades. They are a inch or so lower than the AC covers. Keeps any shading off the panels.

757driver · 09-20-2019, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Golfer Guy

I'm wondering how many amps those of you with solar arrays are pulling in. Just curious.

I just looked at my ME-ARC and the PT meter shows 81 amps at noon full sun in Arizona.

2000 watts solar panels

Many variables at play such as temperature of the panels (which for AZ this time of year is still hot), wiring size and length of run to the controller, series/parallel runs, dirty panels but for your unobstructed non tilted panels I think you should still be seeing more than you are. If you can, check the output of each panel for any variance. Check your mc4 connections from the panels to the wire runs for heat and or deformation.

How are your 2000W of panels run, series, parallel, or series parallel? What size and length of wire do you have going to your controller?