seperate solar monitor

[stu3467]

Hi currently have a ctek 250 with solar attached and battery monitoring via a NASA BM1 which seems to work fine ,Is there a monitor I can fit on the solar side for me to see exactly what my panel is doing as the NASA unit is a bit vague.I can see the solar is working but not in any detail! I have searched but not found a suitable answer

 

[roadtripper]

With the all in one approach chargers you're pretty limited to what they themselves provide - and the CTEK has no app support.

Anything external on the battery side is only going to show you the overall picture, anything trying to monitor the solar input side is only going to see the varying voltage of the solar controller doing it's thing that wouldn't really tell you much.

Is there a particular concern you have over your system?

 

[stu3467]

With the all in one approach chargers you're pretty limited to what they themselves provide - and the CTEK has no app support.

Anything external on the battery side is only going to show you the overall picture, anything trying to monitor the solar input side is only going to see the varying voltage of the solar controller doing it's thing that wouldn't really tell you much.

Is there a particular concern you have over your system?

Not really just curious as to what it is producing as I fired my wallas up the other day which has quiet a significant initial drain on the battery ,after I switched it off I was expecting to see more input than it was as it was a really sunny day

 

[roadtripper]

The BM2 style monitors work using the voltage. It's a cheap simple way of getting an estimate but it's only really valid to map voltage to state of charge if the battery has been at rest from charge/discharge for a bit.

If you want more general visibility then something like the Victron SmartShunt will give a much more accurate view of the state of charge as it will track all current in and out of the battery the same as the van is doing on the starter battery. It's a great bit of kit but a much more significant spend than a BM2

Victron Energy SmartShunt 500A

Fully-featured battery monitor that connects by Bluetooth to your smartphone to display a range of parameters inc. Volts, Amps, %charge, Ah consumed & more.

www.12voltplanet.co.uk

 

[TallPaul_S]

Even then, a shunt won't tell you exactly what your solar is producing - you'll need a more complex separate MPPT controller and/or DC-DC with in built MPPT with an app for that.

A shunt is a good way to start - from what I can see that NASA bm1 is just a voltage meter.

 

[stu3467]

The BM2 style monitors work using the voltage. It's a cheap simple way of getting an estimate but it's only really valid to map voltage to state of charge if the battery has been at rest from charge/discharge for a bit.

If you want more general visibility then something like the Victron SmartShunt will give a much more accurate view of the state of charge as it will track all current in and out of the battery the same as the van is doing on the starter battery. It's a great bit of kit but a much more significant spend than a BM2

Victron Energy SmartShunt 500A

Fully-featured battery monitor that connects by Bluetooth to your smartphone to display a range of parameters inc. Volts, Amps, %charge, Ah consumed & more.

www.12voltplanet.co.uk

Yes I did see this forgot to mention my mains charger is also victron

 

[roadtripper]

The Victron MPPT controllers are well regarded and do logging like like the mains chargers - if you specifically want to monitor the solar they're a popular choice and less spendy than a shunt (though both are useful if you like keeping an eye on your system)

 

[stu3467]

Out of curiosity is the victron mppt smart controller better at getting the most out of a panel than just using the solar input on the CTEC

 

[TallPaul_S]

Is yours a D250SE? If so I think it's 20a max charge, what size is your battery?

You might gain some charging amps depending what size panel you have and what MPPT you went for. You'd also gain charging from both DC-DC and MPPT when driving, so 20a + 15a from the MPPT. You probably won't see much effeiency improvement going to a separate Victron over the CTEK, unless you have a big panel, like 250w or bigger.

 

[stu3467]

Is yours a D250SE? If so I think it's 20a max charge, what size is your battery?

You might gain some charging amps depending what size panel you have and what MPPT you went for. You'd also gain charging from both DC-DC and MPPT when driving, so 20a + 15a from the MPPT. You probably won't see much effeiency improvement going to a separate Victron over the CTEK, unless you have a big panel, like 250w or bigger.

Ok cheers dont think I will gain anything then

 

[Dellmassive]

Hi currently have a ctek 250 with solar attached and battery monitoring via a NASA BM1 which seems to work fine ,Is there a monitor I can fit on the solar side for me to see exactly what my panel is doing as the NASA unit is a bit vague.I can see the solar is working but not in any detail! I have searched but not found a suitable answer

I would just fit a separate victron 75/15 smart.

That will have all the monitoring data you would ever want.

Eg.
....

https://amzn.to/4byEpXz

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[stu3467]

I would just fit a separate victron 75/15 smart.

That will have all the monitoring data you would ever want.

Eg.
....

https://amzn.to/4byEpXz

.


View attachment 240901



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Thanks for that I will have a look