Bifacial panels catch light from both sides. In theory, they can increase solar output efficiency. Have you used one? Share your experience. Would you consider one for your roof or portable setup?
All that's plugged in is a PC and monitor, and tonight I played a particularly demanding game so I guess the PC was pulling max wattage from it's power supply unity (PSU).
After only a few minutes I heard beeping I didn't recognize as I'd never heard it before, then a minute later my PC and monitor shut down.
I worked out that the beeping had been coming from the 3000W inverter which is plugged into mains electricity, and the total load was definitely under 1000W.
The only reason I got the inverter was so I could have it as back-up power (I also have a battery but it wasn't connected) source like a big UPS and it seems it can't handle my PC under heavy load.
I thought it might have been some weird one off thing, so rebooted and tried to run the game again, and this time the beeping started much faster, even though I'd played the same game, set up the same way on the same equipment last night without problems.
Anyone have any ideas why all of a sudden the inverter would start beeping and cutting out when the PC puts maybe 600W draw maximum on it?
Like I said, I played that game for maybe an hour just fine yesterday, tried today and first time the inverter cut out after about 5mins, second time the beeping started after less than a minute and I just quit the game.
What could possibly be the cause there, and is there anything I can do about it?
Right now it's running fine, but it's not under a gaming load and when I tried a different game it was also fine but that wasn't stressing my PC nearly as much.
Is it possible there's a fault or could there be something else going on?
Any help or advice on this greatly appreciated, thanks.
We keep seeing people start a DIY solar build and then just… stop. So genuinely asking those who tried or finished a build: what was that one thing that almost made you walk away? A missing part? Incompatible components? Or just being too scared to flip the switch after you connected everything?
And here is a random thought do you think a solar kit that comes with every single part no hunting no guesswork just snap together like Legos would actually help with these problems?
This is long, but going to leave it that way incase anyone ever wants a proper RENOGY customer service story TLDR: Renogy customer service appears to lack even basic product knowledge, don't want to learn, and won't help you learn either.
New member to the community, came here with one simple tech question after the most mystifying and possibly appalling customer service I've had in years (Renogy phone support) and hoping you may be able to assist.
My question on the phone was rather simple - with this setup, would I need to purchase multiple Bluetooth modules, ie one for each component if I wanted access to them on the app (Battery levels, inverter draw etc). In retrospect, I probably just wanted verbal assurance I was going to be getting exactly what I need and had planned out given the amount I was spending - build confidence in the purchase decision and all that.
The reality was the polar opposite.
The scripting, the impersonal approach and the lack of knowledge!
After explaining my question and then being placed on a hold (3-4 minutes), he came back and started selling me on the virtues of the kit. I did interrupt him early on as we were clearly on a script, to explain I was already familiar, and very enthusiastic to use the Renogy products. I was already sold and onboard, just needed that question answered as it was an extra module on top of the kit (and confirming what I needed for shore power). He had forgotten the question.
I explained again... Do I need multiple Bluetooth modules? I was then informed no I don't, I just need the shunt.
That was contradictory to my knowledge - at least in the sense I thought the Bluetooth module added functionality - otherwise why do they sell it? Even pointing out that they have a frequently bought bundle with the shunt and the Bluetooth module! He alternated flipping back and forth and saying I could use x, and giving different information. After asking multiple times clarifying questions "So, does that mean that the shunt does have built in Bluetooth? I don't need any Bluetooth?". I was very happy to be wrong, but as a customer what he was saying didn't make any sense.
He relented, said I didn't need help with it and I knew the system. I explained that whilst i believed I was correct, we still didn't have an answer to the original question and I love to know before I spent 4k. I rely on this caravan system extensively and need it to be reliable, so this is an important purchase decision for me. I want to be confident in the product - and the customer service wasn't reflecting confidence in the company.
Refused to ask anyone else, refused to transfer me to anyone else, refused to even try and speak to a supervisor or manager.
Flummoxed, mystified, frustrated, disappointed... All of the above! I've been in customer service for years, so always go in with honey and not vinegar but that was disgusting. I explained the above calmly, but this agent clearly had no knowledge of the products, nor ANY desire to help the customer. I'm not talking, didn't go above and beyond, just simply didn't even meet the minimum.
As someone who truly wants to go with Renogy, is this how bad the customer service is‽
Am I making a mistake with this company? That experience was the anti-thesis of what I like to buy in to
If anyone from Renogy reads this, PLEASE listen to the audio recording. I beg you.
And more importantly....do I need multiple Bluetooth modules if I want to know current state of charge for each battery, inverter draw etc? 🤣
Background context: the electrical system has been set up (professionally) since December (5 months) and was left turned on most of the time to keep the fridge running and batteries being used. There is 460w single solar panel and two 200ah batteries, and living in Ireland where it is cloudy and raining most of the time, as well as driving the van only once or twice a month while converting it, it still remained fully charged and at one point even began getting over-voltage beeping at 14.4 before changing settings on the shunt app. The resting voltage usually stayed around 13.8 for that entire time.
About 4 days into bringing the van into mainland Europe which included driving over 15hrs and being in almost constant sunlight, during the evening we realize the fridge had an error code which led us to realizing that the voltage was showing to be around 11.8 volts despite our app stating the battery was at 96% charge. On this day in particular our electric hob was used for about 20 mins in th morning and 20 mins in the evening, and besides the fridge constantly running (12v hookup) the only other things that were plugged in was our starlink and laptops charging for a couple of hours (using 2000w inverter charger). With the amount of solar and driving we were doing, our system should be lasting for days especially if it is getting some level of recharge from the solar to make up for what we are using.
We adjusted the settings in our app after researching and realizing that it may not have been synced up properly and probably wasn’t really 100% charged when it said it was, drove for a few hours and watched to make sure that the dcdc and solar was also bringing in appropriate levels of wattage so that the battery did rise back up to what we thought was 100%, although we notice that the voltage wouldnt rise above 13.3 at any point despite voltage being higher when the van wasn’t being used in Ireland. The voltage would fluctuate on our usb outlets when things would be plugged in (ie phone charging) and could go down to 12.8 or 12.9 while charging…it seems like 13.1 would be the average of where it would float most of the time over the next couple of days since we noticed the first issue and recharged. We used our portable gas hob for breakfast and dinner for a day or two as well so to not be drawing more energy than just the fridge and starlink for work.
Yesterday we were parked up for the entire day with no driving, but it was fully sunny with no clouds for around 12 hours and showed that the solar panel was bringing in almost full wattage of what it’s capable of, and the batteries were apparently fully charged from the day before when we drove for a few hours and had full sun as well. Again we used our hob for 15-20 mins in the morning and in the evening and charge laptops for a couple of hours, had the fridge running and our starlink. During the day and the couple of days before our max voltage readings were at 13.5 and 13.6…When going to bed we realized the usb outlets were showing 12.1V and the mppt/dcdc charger controller had a red light on the battery which indicates low voltage. Turned the batteries off for about 30 minutes in the morning as we didn’t want the food in fridge to go bad overnight and since this morning the voltage rose to 12.4 and has been floating there as it’s a bit overcast so far and receiving less solar. We are stumped as the what the issue could be and are meant to be living in the van full time for the next 6 months which will include mostly off grid and campsites only once a week. Not feeling the most optimistic that this is happening just a week into our trip and looking for any sort of help that can fix these issues 😢
Set up:
Solar: single panel 460w
Batteries: two lifepo4 200ah batteries in parallel
DCC50S 12V 50A DC-DC On-Board Battery Charger with MPPT(New Version)
2000W 12V Pure Sine Wave Inverter Charger
Edit: adding two more photos of some more details, the app is showing that we are generating far more power than we are using but the voltage will still not rise above 13.3 and the voltage is starting to drop down to the 12’s now as it’s getting closer to sunset, although it’s still fully sunny out and not sunset for another 2+ hours. We also didn’t use the hob at all today so it has just been our fridge and the laptops charged a couple of times 😩
Here's a sample RV Solar setup. Take a look at the wiring and share your thoughts below. How would you wire it differently or tweak somethings?🤔
You plug in your new lithium battery, but nothing happens. No lights, no response. The voltage reads near zero. Don't panic yet.
This usually means the battery is unable to be activated with a charge/discharge current greater than 1A, or it wakes up at a resting voltage below 10V. The cause is severe overdischarge due to self-discharge or parasitic loads.
Here is how to fix it.
First, try a charger or charge controller that has a lithium battery activation or force charging feature. Many modern MPPT controllers can do this.
If that doesn't work, disconnect the battery from the charging source, then reduce the charge voltage by 0.2V to 0.4V for 6 hours. After that, attempt to fully charge again with the correct voltage setting. If the problem persists with a lithium iron phosphate compatible charging source and correct voltage setting, repeat the steps.
Once the battery accepts current and voltage climbs above 10V, it will recover and operate normally.
Have you run into a "dead" battery that turned out to be fine? Share your experience below. 👇
Hey,
As shown in the picture.... I have a battery cell imbalance that I just cannot sort....
Does anyone have any suggestions...?
So I finished stage 1 of my install yesterday (battery in, DC-DC converter wired, One installed) and I’ve been seeing what I can only describe as ‘Jank’ from the app. It’s seemingly forgotten the core twice now (although the core is logged in and connected to WiFi as it’s on the drive) and the One webpage (which presumably offers longer term monitoring) says I need a subscription, but there’s no option in the app to initiate that. Has anyone got this working reliably? Remote monitoring of the battery level through this was one of the reasons I chose Renogy.
Hi Folks. My first experience with solar and I absolutely love it. I'm electrically competent, but experiencing a little frustration and need some expert guidance.
I have a 24V system on a Renogy 2000w inverter, Renogy Rover 40Amp charge controller, lots of battery and 800 panel w in. I am running a refrigerator and freezer that run at 120 w on average together. While the inverter should be able to handle power-up compressor spikes, I get errors on the charge controller of too much current through its "load" side.
If I put the inverter only on the battery, I get no lights anywhere. Inverter and charge controller shut down if I have them both connected, but the load directly to the battery.
Not sure why. Is this not advisable?
Is there any affordable solution out there that monitors current draw on independent devices and gates the power up on the other to when the first falls below a threshold? It seems like this should be a thing as spikes are temporary. I'd like to add a low draw air conditioner too.
Google Gemini says it should work. The match checks out, and wire gauges are all sufficient.
This is important because I have lots of battery and solar panel, but can't connect to devices without the bottlenecks. Do I just need a massive solar charge controller? Thank you. Kevin
Hello! I recently inherited a 320w Renogy panel and One Core monitoring unit, and I'm trying to figure out what else I need to get to set it up. For context, I'm trying to attach this to a small insulated out building (<150 sqft), and we would like to have enough power for lights, a chigo style in wall heat/cooling unit, and 1-2 power outlets. I'm assuming I'll need some type of power inverter, some type of battery, and wiring.
TIA