SC-2030 Solar Charge Controller User`s Manual
Contents
1. or liquid electrolyte These determine the charging only when the TM 2030 is not connected otherwise they are ignored In this case there is an absorb stage set to 14 6 or 29 2 volts for 12 or 24V liquid electrolyte systems or 14 3 or 28 6 for AGM systems which runs for two hours followed by a float stage of 13 2 or 26 4 volts 4 1 3 Temperature Compensation The optional temperature sensor is recommended especially when using AGM or Gel batteries unless the batteries are kept at a fairly constant ambient temperature 4 1 4 Review wiring diagram on page 3 4 1 5 Can more than one charge controller be used If the TM 2030 and SC 2030 are connected together other charge controllers may be added for additional charging current while still retaining most of the benefits gained by using this paired system They must be connected so the TM 2030 sees this current when they are charging Also though all chargers go to the same battery set the solar panels should be segregated into groups with each group being controlled by only one charger 4 1 5 Locating TM 2030 monitor and SC 2030 charger The TM 2030 is usually placed somewhere with access in the living area to allow easy viewing and control of the SC 2030 Four small wires usually 22 or 24 gauge connect the TM 2030 to the batteries and required shunt In addition a four wire telephone cable will need to be installed that sends control information from TM 2030 to SC 2030 These wires can2. or amperes depends on two factors how hard the charger is pushing voltage and how much the battery is resisting When batteries are at a lower state of charge they do not push back very hard and the battery will easily absorb all the charge amperes that the charger can supply This is called the bulk stage of charging and the voltage from the charger during charging will be below 14 volts or so This is when most of the charge can go into the battery and is the simplest part of the charging process usually the batteries will be able to absorb all the energy the charger is capable of delivering When the batteries reach about 85 full the job of the charger gets more difficult The batteries begin to resist more and absorb amps at a lower rate meaning that it takes a longer time to do the rest of the charging One might say why bother then to go beyond 85 full Wouldn t this make the job easy on the charger Just always operate the batteries from 55 85 charged Well yes it would but the reason this is not a satisfactory strategy for a lead acid batteries is that if you don t fully charge them regularly it makes it harder in the future to charge them as much It is remarkable how often even authoritative sources on lead acid battery charging repeat the phrase that lead acid batteries do not have memory Lead acid batteries DO have a memory if you do not fully charge them they will remember that and if this is repeated often th
3. Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual 2 Technical Specifications Regulation tye ass lev anti ceh tinwiins sherntals Goo tir PWM Solar panel open circuit voltage 55V maximum Solar panel nominal voltage 6 064 12V 24V matched to the battery voltage Nominal Battery voltages cc5 cadens tneteraaans 12V 24V Required operational current 4 While sun shining 25mA Solar dark 1mA max Maximum Battery voltage ce8 35V Battery ype eiea A a e NER RR AGM Gel or flooded lead acid Solar panel peak current c0ceeeeees Up to 32A higher currents reduce output MINIMUM in out power efficiency at 30A 97 5 12V systems 98 5 24 V systems MINIMUM in out power efficiency at 15A 99 Battery capacity sci sedi eed veetaeyetnuriede sd 10 to 10 000 amp hours Terminal block wire gauges i isnicnines cccdiones Up to 6 AWG Charging profilesieiay caicceinuini ven aneatancenvine Three stages and optional fourth stage Ambient temperatures chistes eneddshieutedas 0 F to 140 F 18 C to 60 C DimensionS c cece ees ceeeseeeseeeueeeees in 3 width X 4 1 4 length X 2 3 4 depth cm 7 6 width X 10 8 length X 7 depth 3 General Solar Charging system suggestions and considerations Balancing batteries with solar If you intend to charge your batteries mainly or only by solar panels it s recommended by many battery companies to prop
4. For 24V systems double all lengths for 3 loss All wiring must meet applicable electrical code requirements with respect to maximum current versus gauge With less than 3 power loss this is normally not a problem 4 1 7 Install TM 2030 monitor if not already installed according to Installer s instructions for TM 2030 4 2 Verifying that TM 2030 reads volts and amps correctly Proper charging depends critically on accuracy of TM 2030 voltage and current amps readings Check volts For accurate battery voltage measurement the TriMetric s voltage measurement wire called B1 in TriMetric wiring diagram must be connected directly or close to the battery s positive terminal Check amps on the Amps TriMetric display Under zero current conditions when all loads and charging sources are off the TriMetric s ampere indicator must show 0 0A or 0 1A at most when using the standard 500A 50mV shunt When using the less common 100A 100mV shunt the zero current value should be between minus 0 02 0 04A which represents the current drawn by the TriMetric The discharge current should be measured reasonably For instance a 12V 12W light bulb connected to a 12V battery should display approximately 1A This assumes no charging is going on since the amps display shows charge minus discharge The formula for Amps Watts System Volts 12V or 24V Verify that ALL charging sources should be shown as positive amps on the TriMetric T
5. Standalone operation without the TM 2030 With the TM 2030 not connected there are only two charging selections available by two jumpers you set on the SC 2030 circuit board They allow choice for AGM or liquid electrolyte and 12 or 24V system These are intended to be for backup charging if for any reason the TM 2030 is not connected When the TM 2030 is connected these values are ignored The chart below shows the voltages used depending on how the jumpers have been set It begins charging at maximum solar current until it reaches the limiting absorb voltage shown After that it charges for an absorb time of two hours Then it regulates at the float voltage shown 11 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual Table 3 Shows absorb volts and float volts for jumper settings TM 2030 not connected SC 2030 System Absorb voltage temperature Battery type jumper Voltage compensated to 25 C if sensor is Float voltage setting jumper setting connected 6 4 Charging profiles showing all programmable values for SC 2030 when TM 2030 is connected Two profiles are shown the first on page 14 figure 2 is more typical of most good solar chargers However the SC 2030 has an additional unusual option of setting a percentage of overcharge value from 100 to 120 The second profile page 15 figure 3 shows the addition of a higher voltage finishing absorb current limited charging to encourage the batteries to get safel
6. BATTERY REMINDERS O gt gt gt OC Overcurrent O Connected O O VOLTS AMPS FULL B2C Hold SELECT 3 seconds to view System volts 12V down 24V up Battery Type AGM down FLOOD up TM 2030 FH AMP HOURS FROM FULL SL DAYS SINCE CHARGED SE DAYS SINCE EQUALIZED RESET to 0 Amp hours RESET to 0 days RESET to 0 days lt 4 _ p Jo S AP aws o Pr was lt _ 0 o r FZ REPLACED NE FROM LAST DISCHARGE NCIA ROER O Operating and programming neimuetons at ngineering com in BATTERY SOLAR ce y temperature Communication phone cable with 4 wg 4 sense and power sensor RJ14 connector at each end See wires between connection connector detail lower right of this page TriMetric TM 2030 and battery shunt 1 A fast blow fuse temperature sensor Sig yellow 2 green red 61 black RJ14 connectors on o each end of 4 wire L Mil il phone cable shunt lt lt 12 or 24V battery a Up to 100 ft or more system phone cable communication cable from TM 2030 to Charge Controller showing how they must have crossed connections Wiring for TriMetric TM2030 and charge controller not showing circuit breakers to battery or solar panels Figure 1 3 of 16
7. a little solar energy is coming in the green LED will be usually off but will occasionally blink on to indicate the following Flashing once the charger is in the first charging state first stage or bulk charging Flashing twice the set voltage has been reached but the charger has not switched to floating mode yet Flashing three times indicates floating mode The amber LED indicates a normal charging state when it is ON When flashing every half second it is in over current protection and charger is limiting current to a safe value for charging 4 5 3 Last step Programming the SC 2030 for your battery system when TM 2030 is connected Easy way Most people will choose the easy way to enter this data This method automatically enters 8 charging parameters to control the charging and also provides proper monitoring in most cases This requires the following two steps which are outlined in more detail below the table STEP 1 Find the charging profile number from the table below depending on the type of batteries and system voltage you have 12 or 24 Enter this profile number number into program P22 in the TM 2030 Our web site will eventually have an expanded table if your batteries are not listed here If yours is not on the chart and you have liquid electrolyte batteries with caps on top for watering you could start with Generic profile 1 or 2 depending on your system voltage If you have AGM batteries start with p
8. allows voltage to continue to rise to up to P15 volts This is terminated when either preset amp hour overcharge P20 is reached or maximum absorb time P14 is reached discharged during daily periods of solar absence 4 Float which holds charging to a lower float voltage P16 until the voltage declines below 12 4V for 12V systems 24 8V for 24V systems or full goes below 98 followed by available solar charge resource This stage may rarely occur in systems that are daily charged with only a solar resource and then Finish Absorb Float Absorb q gt gt Max finish volts P15 Bulk s lt 10 35 volts lt l P14 Max over voltage time LY P1 Bulk Volts lt allowed 0 1 10 0 hours gt 10 35Volts A gt A Time counting P14 starts here when P21 is not off D Starts here when P21 is off amp Time counting temporarily stops whenever batt Volts is less lt 4 gt than P1 Resets to 0 when charged P16 Float Volts 10 35 volts L lt P20 percentage overcharge amp hr gt O 1 20 of previous day s amp hour discharge 12 l lt P21 Finish Amps valu D P21 of value in P3 nt ai gt Charged setpoint amps _ gt P2 of value in P3 O Total battery system capacity P3 10 10 000 amp hours 4 state charging profile for liquid electrolyte batter
9. be at least 100 feet long 30 meters The SC 2030 will usually be located in the wire path from panels to batteries to minimize wire length from panels to batteries Unless the SC 2030 will be used without the TM 2030 it is not required that the SC 2030 be located right near the batteries TABLE 1 Required minimum copper wire size for 3 loss One way total length from solar panels to SC 2030 plus SC 2030 to batteries Length for 12V systems For 24V systems double all distances Maximum Maximum amps from panel from Maximum amps from panels 5Amps 5Amps 10Amps 10Amps 15Amps 15Amps 20 Amps 20 Amps 25 Amps 25 Amps BO Amps BO Amps nee pee a a eo e ZO p 2 e o pe e p e p e e ee ops fe C Fe PP PPP ep po pp PP PR FP This wire gauge exceeds the terminal block s maximum wire size and requires adapting Not recommended 4 1 6 Determine wire size required from solar panels to charger and batteries from Table 1 above Wire size from solar panels to SC 2030 and from SC 2030 to batteries must be much larger for 5 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual low voltage systems compared to 120V house wiring to minimize power loss The required size depends on 1 total maximum amps to be delivered by the panels 2 the system volts 12 or 24 and 3 the wire length The recommended maximum lengths assume a 3 maximum power loss using copper wire in a 12V system Doubling lengths will increase loss to 6
10. capability if desired to return a specified number of amp hours to the batteries compared to the most recent discharge before going into float Also it is best suited for AGM or Gel type lead acid batteries Liquid electrolyte batteries can usually benefit from four state solar charging Figure3 To select three stage charge control set program P21 finish amp value in to OFF Then for charging set these program values P1 Bulk volts P14 max absorb time P16 float volts and optionally P20 overcharge amp hours To properly monitor percent full also set these program values P2 charged setpoint amps amps P2 times P3 P3 battery system capacity 1 Bulk charges battery at maximum rate until the batteries reach absorb voltage P1 2 Absorb charges at constant voltage P1 for either a fixed set time P14 or when overcharge amp hours P20 is reached whichever occurs first 3 Float which holds charging to a lower float voltage P16 until the voltage declines below 12 4V for 12V systems or 24 8V for 24V systems or Full goes below 98 followed by available solar charge resource This stage may not occur every day in systems that are charged with only a solar resource and then discharged during daily periods of solar absence y y Absorb Bulk gt Float P1 Bulk Volts 10 S5Volts P14 Max over voltage time be allowed 0 1 10 0 hours a 0 per entage over
11. safe from electrical shock amperages can be very high and can create powerful arcs if accidentally shorted or when connections are made or unmade a Connect two solar panel wires to the controller Be sure to observe correct polarity b Connect the wire from battery s negative terminal to the controller c Connect the shunt s most positive terminal i e the terminal not connected to the battery s negative to the controller 4 4 8 Connect communication connector at TM 2030 end if not already connected 4 4 9 Verify all wiring and polarities plus and minus not reversed Then close the switches or circuit breakers 4 5 Verifying SC 2030 operation and programming charging parameters 4 5 1 If the SC 2030 is connected to a TM 2030 You must do this when there is at least a little sun shining on the solar panels more than 0 5 amp of current Check the green light on the SC 2030 Solar Charge Controller If the two units are communicating it should be on most of the time but possibly occasionally blink off If the green LED is off or mostly off except for occasional blinks on check the communication cable again check that the TriMetric is powered and operating properly and also verify that the phone cable contacts are crossed as shown in the lower right hand corner of Figure 1 Also there must be at least a small amount of solar current coming from the solar panels 4 5 2 If the SC 2030 is operating without the TriMetric If at least
12. that have 36 cells per panel Or with 24V systems you should use 12 volt or 24 volt solar panels with 36 or 72 cells per panel Many solar panels manufactured recently are mainly intended for on grid application that have 60 80 or other number of cells that have voltages that don t well match 12V or 24V battery systems These panels are not suitable for high efficiency battery charging with a PWM controller such as this one For good efficiency they will require a more sophisticated controller with MPPT Maximum power point tracking capability The SC 2030 is a PWM Pulse width modulated type that is simpler and less costly than a MPPT Maximum Power Point Tracking type charger It can be as efficient provided it is used with panels properly matched to the batteries as described With this charger you may be able to get more solar performance at the same cost by purchasing another solar panel instead of a more expensive MMPT solar charger The high performance mentioned above requires the TM 2030 Battery Monitor to be connected to it although it will do minimal job of regulation if temporarily not connected 2 of 15 Solar panels 12 volt or 24 volt types 36 or 72 cells per panel TM 2030 RV Bogart Engineering O O SC 2030 Solar Charger CHARGING O when flashing meets CHARGED criteria DOWN IZh TIME TO CHARGE Ih TIME TO EQUALIZE h l Z BATT VOLTS LOW
13. the value in P1 and that the charging amps be less than P2 The L4 level requires that in addition either the required absorb time or percent overcharge be achieved such that the float state has been reached This establishes a better but more difficult level to reach Refer to the TM 2030 User s Instructions section 6 2 for details 5 6 Using History Data to diagnose system problems The TM 2030 TriMetric makes history data available when the user level P7 has been set to L2 L3 or L4 in programming code P7 History is recorded daily for the past five days or the last five charge cycles depending on the parameter This data can be used to diagnose some system problems Please refer to the TM 2030 User s Instructions section 6 3 for instructions on interpreting this data 6 Technical information for interested and advanced users 6 1 Charging lead acid batteries basic information Charging a battery is very different than loading a tank with gasoline First when filling a tank it is very clear when the tank is full and trying to overfill simply results in gasoline being spilled without any damage to the tank Second using up the gasoline until the tank is completely empty may be inconvenient but again that does not damage the tank even if the tank remains empty for a long time Thirdly filling the tank slowly or fast whether the weather is hot or cold or whether one is starting from a nearly empty or near
14. Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User s Manual SC 2030 Solar Charge Controller User s Manual Preliminary 12 24 V systems 30Amps max Document revised May 1 2014 1 Description of the SC 2030 Solar Charger cas cisaaieevshodenciaycets ccdseatanaddest aacuys quate ease easeeeeeecu ees pede 1 2 Technical SPEC MAC ATOMS ienien tates ca ten cep n a a agtante tans aa E A a E a a 4 3 General Solar Charging system suggestions and Considerations ssessesssessessessrssressessssrossessresresseesee 4 4 Installation of the SC 2030 Explained in five Sections cecceecceesceesseceteceeeeeeeeeeseecaeceeeeeeeeeaeeesseeeaeens 4 4 1 Planning tiie IS ta aL OTN es Site eM Lote cat Ailes a ace ote E eaten Saute cad ay AR E a E 4 4 2 Verifying that TM 2030 reads volts and amps correctly susis 0 casedieasseccavesasdacediecdicastccevstustenepiceveead 6 4 3 Jools anid Wardware fequired x iiri iiia ir a RR E ss AEA E EE EE EAA 6 4 4 Installing the SC 2030 connecting solar panels batteries and Temperature Sensor cceeeeees 6 4 5 Verifying SC 2030 operation and programming charging parameters ccccesceeeceeeeeteeeeeeeeeees 7 5 Useful Information for everyday users sssssesessseeseeseesseeseseesstesresrtessesstsstosseestsstesseestesresseesresessessesees 9 5 1 The best place to find information about the SC 2030 and TM 2030 system eceeceseeeteereeeeeeeees 9 5 2 A useful display item for seeing if your batterie
15. M 2030 when charging All loads on the batteries should show as negative values when they are operating This is a check to make sure that the shunt is connected properly as shown in figure 1 of the TM 2030 INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS 4 3 Tools and hardware required Drill with bits of suitable sizes for entry of telephone cable and or Temperature sensor into SC 2030 plastic enclosure Medium Phillips screwdriver for the terminal blocks Small Phillips screwdriver for the enclosure Wire cutters wire strippers and a lug crimper for the battery wire the solar panel wire etc Hardware Required SC 2030 charge controller e TM 2030 TriMetric battery monitor with sensing and power wires assuming the TM 2030 will be connected Mounting hardware for the above if required Wire of suitable size and length as determined in section 4 1 6 to go from panels to SC 2030 and from SC 2030 to batteries Four conductor telephone wire up to 100 ft long sufficient to go from SC 2030 to TM 2030 The wiring must be crossed reversed between the two connectors as shown in the lower right hand corner of Figure 1 on page 5 Temperature sensor optional but recommended unless batteries will remain at same temperature 4 4 Installing the SC 2030 connecting solar panels batteries and Temperature sensor Plan to mount the SC 2030 in a well ventilated and shaded area to prevent overheating and protected from direct rainfall The heat sink can
16. ate the power from a set of solar panels to provide proper charging to your batteries not over or under charging them The SC 2030 Solar Charger is a precision high efficiency PWM pulse width modulated Solar Array Battery Charge Controller The objective of this design is to maximize the life of your batteries by allowing the flexibility to adjust solar charging closely according to the way your battery manufacturer has specified High performance depends on being connected to a TM 2030 TriMetric Battery System Monitor With this combination you get both high performance monitoring and charging of your battery system For 12 or 24V battery systems AGM Gel or Liquid Electrolyte batteries Up to 30 amps maximum solar current It will reduce output sufficient to protect charger if the solar output is greater Four 135 watt solar panels for 12V systems eight at 24V can be accommodated It s also possible to simultaneously use other chargers of the same batteries with additional solar panels Optional Temperature compensation For this order the TS 2 Bogart Engineering temperature sensor Recommended for use with 12V or 24V solar panels see below on page 2 Where this controller is not recommended Revised April 2014 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual Eight adjustable parameters to allow charging closely according to the way the battery manufacturer specifies Technical details are shown on graphs on pages 14 and 15 el
17. charge amp hr A ee i gt o 1 20 of previous day s amp hour discharge P16 Float Volts 10 35 volts Time counting P14 runs during absorb stage Time counting temporarily stops whenever battery Volts is less than P1 Hours 3 state cha rging profile Total battery system capacity P3 AGM or Gel batteries 10 10 000 amp hours Figure 2 14 of 15 Four stage charge control Figure 3 This method has four stages having an additional final higher voltage finish absorb stage also with optional capability to deliver a measured additional amp hour overcharge compared with the most recent discharge amount It is suited to do a more thorough charging of liquid electrolyte lead acid batteries This can better maintain their capacity To select four stage charge control program P21 must NOT be OFF Then for charging set these program values P1 Bulk volts P2 Absorb end amps value P3 Battery system capacity amp hours P14 Max absorb time P15 Max finish charge volts P16 Float volts P21 Max finish charge amps and optionally P20 Amp hours overcharge When these values are properly set the TriMetric will also correctly measure Full 1 Bulk charges battery at maximum rate until the batteries reach absorb voltage P1 2 Absorb charges at constant voltage P1 until charging amps decline to P2 of capacity P3 3 Finish Absorb which limits current to P21 of capacity P3 amps but
18. charging your batteries again this will read 0 o anticipate the next day s recharge 5 3 A useful display item to see if you have extra solar power in the afternoon When charging with solar often in the afternoon the batteries will begin to accept less solar energy and as a result this energy may be wasted although it could be used for some extra loads such as a dishwasher or vacuum With the TM 2030 connected there is a secondary display item that is not shown on the front panel called UPr Unused power which displays this If most of the solar power is now surplus because the batteries are getting well charged YES will show on the display If a lesser amount the display will indicate the approximate number of watts that are being wasted Refer to the Quick Reference Guide section 2 1 Also listed there is information about observing solar amps SOL and battery temperature C 5 4 For information about the meaning of the LED lights on the SC 2030 charger Refer to section 4 of the Quick Reference Guide referred to above Section 6 in this SC 2030 User s Manual describes in detail the meaning of the various charging modes referred to there 5 5 There are two different standards you can select to define a full charge The highest more stringent standard is selected by using TM 2030 program P7 to choose L4 instead of L1 L2 or L3 which use a lower standard which requires only that the battery voltage exceed
19. corde AGM 12V 9 143V 0 5 220AH 4h 14 3 7 Concorde AGM 24V 28 6V 0 5 220AH 4h 28 6 7 Deka monobloc 12V 14 2V 2 220AH i 5 20 Deka monobloc 24V 28 4V 2 220AH 0 20 Interstate 12V wet cell 14 5V 220AH 4 15 Interstate 24V wet cell 29 0V 220AH 15 GNB Absolyte 12V VRLA 15 14 3V 220AH 8h 5 7 2 y GNB Absolyte 24V VRLA 16 28 6V 220AH 8h 0 7 2 y Warranty and customer service Profile number and battery type r h h h h ES Limited warranty The SC 2030 Solar Charge Controller is warranted for four years against any manufacturing defect Any controller not meeting the specification or rated performance shall be replaced or repaired at Bogart Engineering s discretion provided it has not been subjected to abuse or misapplication In many cases if we know or believe a problem is due to a manufacturing defect we will extend this to 5 years or more For warranty service please contact us or your dealer before shipping your SC 2030 How to obtain customer service Please contact your dealer or contact Bogart Engineering Inc at 19020 Two Bar Road Boulder Creek CA 95006 831 338 0616 Contact us or the dealer before returning any item www bogartengineering com 13 of 15 Volts Amps Three stage charge control Figure 2 This is closer to how most good conventional controllers charge lead acid batteries except that this controller also has the
20. eater than P1 and the TM 2030 is in Levels 1 3 the batter ies are signaled as charged In Level 4 the standard is much higher batteries must go into float mode before they are signaled as charged P3 Total battery system capacity in amp hours 10 10 000 amp hours P14 Limit timer for charging before going into Float described in the profile graphs 0 0 25 0 hours P15 Finish charge high voltage limit allowed only after the amps drop below the P21 current limit 10 0 65 0 P16 Float voltage 10 0 65 0 P20 Percent of overcharge before going into float 0 20 P21 Finish charge Amps limit expressed as a percentage of P3 below which amps must be to rise to P15 voltage P22 The charge profile entry program simultaneously programs all of above eight values based on system voltage and the battery type selection 12 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual Table 4 Showing programmed values for each P22 charging profile number Profile P14 P15 P16 P20 P21 i i float Over ini h Vv charge number with total system volts not battery volts P22 Generic wet cell 12V 14 4V 220AH 4 Generic wet cell 24V 220AH Trojan wet cell 12V 14 4V Trojan wet cell 24V 28 8V f Crown wet cell 12V 14 5V 220AH 5 10 3 5 Crown wet cell 24V 6 29 0V 220AH l 0 10 3 5 US Battery 12V 14 8V 220AH 4h 15 0 15 3 5 US Battery 24V 8 29 6V 220AH 4h 31 0 15 3 5 Con
21. eir capacity will gradually walk down as is correctly described in charging information from the Concorde battery company This presents a challenge to solar charging because the solar day starts to end as the batteries become more resistant This can result in a battery that is not fully charged when the day ends It is frequently observed that batteries being charged only by solar tend to lose capacity to hold energy described as batteries becoming sulfated This conveys the fact that the lead sulfate which is the byproduct of discharging gets more difficult to convert back to fully charged lead and sulfuric acid if it sits around too long before recharging To continue the charging story once the batteries become more resistant to charging when the charger rises to 14 4 volts at 77 degrees F or 25 degrees C liquid electrolyte batteries will begin to gas which means that although part of the energy is still doing some slower charging part of the charger energy is breaking down the electrolyte in the battery into oxygen and hydrogen gases and in addition a higher amount of the energy begins to go into heating the battery instead of the desirable conversion of the chemical charging Although the gassing does waste some energy this turns out to be desirable in liquid electrolyte batteries because the gas bubbles stir up the electrolyte which otherwise can stratify because without the stirring the heavier acid can sink to the bottom
22. eries 2 Charge until the value of amps into the batteries stops decreasing for a specified period of time and stays at this constant value for perhaps a couple of hours 3 Charge until the charger has replaced a specified percentage of charge amp hours than was last removed from the batteries during its last discharge cycle These options are unusual with most solar chargers but the first or third is possible with the SC 2030 solar charger when used with the TM 2030 monitor The TM 2030 measures the previous amount of discharge typically the night before then when recharging requires returning 105 115 or even more of that amount adjustable by the user The problem for many chargers is that they do not measure or know the exact value of amperes or amp hours going into the batteries They may measure the amps from the charger going into the battery loads together but they don t know what percentage of this is going into the battery compared to the loads so these methods of observing battery amps are not available By returning a constant additional percentage excess charge that is returned depends on the amount that was previously removed This has the effect that the absorb time is not always the same but is adjusted to the previous day s usage to avoid overcharge or undercharge however as said previously the more common problem with solar charging is under charging not over charging An additional method the SC 2030 uses to get i
23. erly balance the battery storage capacity with adequate solar Too much battery for solar energy provided can result in undercharging that can reduce battery performance and life Peak solar panel currents of from 1 10 to 1 4 of the battery C 20 ampere hour value are often recommended For example solar panels that deliver up to 24 Amps could be optimally paired with a battery of 100 to 240 amp hour capacity system Otherwise you might want to provide an additional source such as generator or grid tied charger to insure that your batteries frequently get a full charge Solar as excellent adjunct to generator charging A generator can put a lot of energy into the batteries in a relatively short time when they are not too close to being fully charged As they become more fully charged batteries gradually accept energy at a lower rate So charging them to full requires more hours than is usually desirable to run a generator Solar panels are well suited to do the last 20 of charging which would otherwise require long generator times running inefficiently at a low charging rate This will enhance your battery life and reduce generator wear You can use other chargers along with this one If other chargers are also used with your system they can be compatible with this system It is important that the charging current from these shows on the TM 2030 amps display see section 4 2 below then the system will properly account for the charging of these oth
24. ers If you have another solar controller it should have a separate set of panels from which it is charging you should not attempt to have the same set of panels go to two different controllers 4 Installation of the SC 2030 Explained in five sections 4 1 Planning the installation 4 2 Verifying that TM 2030 reads volts and amps correctly 4 3 Tools required 4 4 Installing SC 2030 and connecting solar panels Batteries Temperature sensor 4 5 Verifying operation and installing correct charging profiles 4 1 Planning the installation Installation must be performed by a person knowledgeable of proper electrical wiring best practices safety and applicable electrical codes If you do not meet these 4 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual qualifications please ask someone qualified to perform supervise or inspect the installation 4 1 1 Normal configuration Paired with a TM 2030 For best performance the SC 2030 should be paired with a TM 2030 TriMetric monitor The charge controller and the monitor are connected together using a low cost telephone wire which can be over 100 ft long 4 1 2 Minimal configuration Standalone Without the TM 2030 the SC 2030 Solar Charge Controller can perform only basic charge regulation There are two jumper selected parameters located on the SC 2030 that are then used to regulate the charging The system voltage can be set to 12 or 24V The battery type can be designated AGM
25. f the TriMetric TM 2030 is disconnected from the SC 2030 it will do a much less flexible but minimal level of charge regulation without receiving information from the TM 2030 See p 12 Table 3 In addition it has two advantages not usually offered in solar controllers to better preserve the capacity of your battery system 1 Amp hour counting Many battery companies recommend that when batteries are recharged they should be overcharged so that 104 to 115 percent of the charge that was previously removed should be replaced before going into float Most controllers don t measure this When connected with the TriMetric this controller measures the amp hours used and allows you to specify the correct amount of amp hour overcharge when recharging 2 Finish current charging After the batteries are mostly charged this controller has an optional fourth stage that is beneficial for liquid electrolyte lead acid batteries and this is also sometimes recommended for some AGM types This stage allows the voltage to go unusually high while it regulates the current to a specified level to safely get more charge into the batteries This helps to maintain the capacity of the batteries which often begins to degrade with solar charged batteries because they don t get sufficiently charged Where this controller is NOT recommended For 12V systems for best efficiency this PWM type charger requires what are often called 12 volt solar panels
26. get hot during charging therefore the charge controller must be installed beyond the reach of animals and young children The black heat sink fins should be vertical not horizontal which means the printing of SOLAR or BATTERY will be right side up or upside down not sideways 4 4 1 Run wires size determined as described section 4 1 6 from solar panels to location for SC 2030 and from batteries to SC 2030 location with enough extra length to easily connect to large green terminal blocks Carefully mark on the ends of the wire which are positive and which are negative both to batteries and to solar panels 4 4 2 If communication phone cable has RJ11 connectors attached at both ends check that connectors are crossed as shown in figure 1 Run phone cable from TM 2030 to SC 2030 location with sufficient length If you have a RJ11 crimp tool and correct RJ11 connector to avoid drilling a larger hole you could pass wire through a small drilled hole through TM 2030 enclosure then use crimp tool to install connector carefully observing polarity Fig 1 Don t yet connect the communication cable to the TM 2030 unless connectors at each end are attached and you don t intend to put them on or change them later 6 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual 4 4 3 Remove front panel and circuit board from SC 2030 enclosure by removing 4 screws and put it aside Drill one or more holes in the SC 2030 enclosure to allow the communication cable a
27. he sun is high enough the solar panel can take over the charging at a lower current for the following six to nine hours Alternatively a surplus of solar panels can accomplish something similar but that means the peak solar power in the afternoon when batteries are accepting less current may not be used To overcome this plan to use heavier loads such as laundry dish washing or well pumping during the mid afternoon when batteries accept less solar energy 6 2 Specifically how solar chargers including the SC 2030 charge batteries The following charging description applies when the SC 2030 Solar charger is connected with the TM 2030 If for some reason the TM 2030 is not connected it uses a basic charging procedure to be described in section 6 4 This discussion refers to 12V systems for 24V systems multiply voltages by two To charge batteries a charger supplies electrical energy to the battery with a certain voltage Volts is a measure of how hard the charger is attempting to push the energy electrons into the battery The battery always tends to resist the tendency to push the electrons in the voltage of the charger must be high enough to overcome the resisting force of the battery This is a little like pushing water into a pipe which is under pressure enough force must be provided to push it in or it will not go The current or amperes is a measure of how much charge energy is actually flowing in The actual flow amps
28. ies Figure 3 15 of 15 Hours
29. ly full tank does not affect the eventual amount of gasoline in the tank Finally a fuel tank s capacity does not vary over time 9 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual None of these analogies apply to batteries Lead acid batteries can accept higher charge currents when they are nearly empty but must be charged more slowly when they are nearly full because then they will not readily accept the charge Batteries need to be frequently fully charged If a battery is allowed to operate consistently at a low charge level its capacity to hold charge decreases over time This means that a battery needs to be fully charged every now and then for the proper maintenance of its capacity In solar applications this sometimes cannot be achieved in the course of a single day depending on sunshine and energy usage Sometimes a generator is used instead of sunlight to charge the battery at a high current for one or two hours each day This can easily shorten the life of lead acid batteries which cannot get fully charged in two hours even with a very powerful generator If only charged with very high currents over a short time a battery s charge capacity will decline over time A hybrid generator solar system would be preferable with a strategy of using the generator to provide a fast charge early in the morning when the battery is at its lowest charge level and stop when the battery can no longer accept high charging currents By the time t
30. matically overwrites all values After a profile is installed any of the eight parameters may be individually modified See the profile graphs on pages 14 15 to understand the function of each of these eight parameters Detailed description for entering charge profile step 1 above After getting profile number from table do this a Press SELECT and hold it down until P1 appears in display Release b Press SELECT repeatedly to get to P7 operational level c Press SELECT and RESET together momentarily to get 3 lights to flash d Use RESET to change until L3 shows e Press SELECT repeatedly to get to program P22 f Press SELECT and RESET together momentarily to get 3 lights to flash g Use RESET to enter profile number from table above into display h Press SELECT once to get out of program mode but remaining in P22 with profile number showing I Hold RESET down watch as number go 5 4 3 2 1 0 Nothing gets entered until you reach 0 Then do step 2 above Enter P3 program mode and enter the amp hour capacity of your system This completes the entry of necessary data for charging and monitoring 8 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual 5 Useful Information for everyday users 5 1 The best place to find information about the SC 2030 and TM 2030 system is the Quick Reference Guide to TM 2030 and SC 2030 included with the SC 2030 It has brief descriptions of all functions and also has references
31. n sufficient charge is that it has an optional finish charge stage to try to increase the intake of current into the battery by boosting the voltage when the current has declined to a safe enough value This is explicitly recommended by some battery companies for liquid electrolyte batteries not sealed AGM or gel types If the SC 2030 is programmed to do this after the charging current decreases to a safe value while in absorption state the SC 2030 then increases voltage while regulating current to attempt to put more charge at the end when the battery is becoming extra resistant so as to attain the overcharge amount that was specified by the overcharge amount The overcharge percentage maximum voltage and maximum permitted current are all values that can be programmed into the TM 2030 The effect of temperature on charging The ideal temperature for a lead acid battery is often considered to be about 25 degrees C 77 degrees F When batteries are cold the charging process is slower so they take longer to charge The gassing voltage of the battery increases with lower temperature and therefore the recommended absorption voltage should rise as temperature goes below the usual reference temperature of 25 degrees C 77 degrees F If the battery temperature varies much the charger should have the capability to adjust its voltage to temperature especially for sealed AGM or gel types 6 3 Description and graph of exact SC 2030 charging profiles
32. nd the temperature sensor wire if used to pass through in a location suitable to the positioning of the controller wires and the rest of the system The temperature sense connector requires a 5 16 diameter hole to pass through For the communication cable as described in 4 4 2 you could pass the wire through the hole and attach the connector similarly to 4 4 2 if you have the appropriate connector and crimping tool Reminder be sure the connectors are attached crossed as shown figure 1 4 4 4 Mount the enclosure on vertical surface so the heat sink fins go up and down Use two screws on flanges or you may drill your own holes internally and use those 4 4 5 Connect the temperature sensor connector if used and the communication cable to the two connectors on the back of the SC 2030 inside the box Place the circuit board back onto the enclosure board and secure with four screws 4 4 6 Place the temperature sensor if used near the batteries The hole in the sensor could be connected to a battery terminal but this is not necessary for it to measure temperature For safety turn off power from batteries and solar panels before doing next step 4 4 7 Connect the wires from batteries and the solar panel wires to the controller For the following steps refer to wiring diagram Figure 1 on page 3 For safety turn all switches and circuit breakers off while making the connections While voltages in a 12V or 24V solar system are generally considered
33. rofile 7 or 8 See Concorde on chart Detailed instructions for entering this is just below the table 7 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual Table 2 Find P22 profile number for your battery type and system voltage Models System System Enter profile number in Manufacturer 5 Voltage capacity P22 Generic wet cell 12 220 1 batteries 24 220 2 Concorde Lifeline AGM 12 220 g Sun Xtender AGM 24 220 10 Crown 12 220 5 All wet cell 24 220 6 Deka Monobloc 12 220 11 example 8C11 24 220 12 12 220 15 GNB Excide Absolyte AGM 24 220 16 Interstate All wet cell 12 220 13 Example GC2 types 24 220 14 Trojan All liquid 6V types 12 220 3 example T 105 24 220 4 US Battery All liquid 6V types 12 220 7 example T 105 24 220 8 STEP 2 Determine the system capacity in amp hours To determine the system capacity you need to know the capacity of each battery in amp hours then multiply by the number of series strings in your system The 20 hour value specified for capacity would be appropriate The default value automatically entered by step 1 is for 220 amp hours If your system capacity is not between 200 240 amp hours change that value by entering the correct value into program P3 in the TM 2030 Always do this after step 1 or this data will get overwritten Harder way is for experts that know exactly how they want to charge Entering a profile number auto
34. s are being properly charged ececeeeeeseeeeeeeeeee 9 5 3 A useful display item to see if you have extra solar power in the afternOON ccccccesseeeteeeeeeeeeee 9 5 4 For information about the meaning of the LED lights on the SC 2030 charger cceessceeseeeeeeees 9 5 5 There are two different standards you can select to define a full charge cece eeceesseeeteeeteeeees 9 5 6 Using History Data to diagnose system problems ccceccceesseeeseceeeeeeeeeeseecsaeceseeeeeeeeseeesseecsaeeneenaes 9 6 Technical information for interested and advanced users eseeseeseeeseeseceeceseceeeseeeeeeecesecaeceeeaeeeneenaee 9 6 1 Charging lead acid batteries basic information cceccceecceesceesceeeseceeceeceeeseecaeceeeeeeeenseecnseeneenees 9 6 2 Specifically how solar chargers including the SC 2030 charge batteries ceseeeeseeeteeneeeteeerees 10 6 3 Description and graph of exact SC 2030 charging profiles ccceccceesseceteceeeceeeeeeseecseeceteeeeeeenseees 11 6 4 Charging profiles showing all programmable values for SC 2030 when TM 2030 is connected 12 Warranty anid COStOMmer SefvViCE ensins ei i a EAEE RE E AER E ARREO E E 13 PHC warnanya pnan a a a R a pis hand tease tats 13 How to obtain c stomert SERVICES sssniec ieoi iini a a Saas ree E E EO E E 13 1 Description of the SC 2030 Solar Charger What a solar charge controller does The purpose of a solar charge controller is to regul
35. to this SC 2030 User Manual and the TM 2030 User s and TM 2030 Installation manuals for greater detail These manuals will be occasionally updated and posted on our web site as we receive questions from customers that we think haven t been adequately covered in those documents We always welcome comments for improvements 5 2 A useful display item for seeing if your batteries are being properly charged If you partially drain your batteries on a daily basis we suggest understanding the new display function on the TM 2030 called Replaced Percentage from Last Discharge This is listed as a secondary display shown near the bottom of the TM 2030 front panel identified as rPC This will be of lesser importance if your batteries are charged most of the time and only occasionally discharged Many battery companies recommend that when recharging your batteries that you completely replace the amount of charge most recently discharged by your batteries plus add an additional percentage For wet cell lead acid batteries it is often recommended that 106 115 be replaced For AGM type sealed batteries 104 108 is often suggested At the end of a day of solar charging the rPC replaced percentage display will tell you how much you have replaced This level of charge may not happen every day however if less than the ideal is achieved for a day or two it would be good to go even higher on subsequent days if possible Soon after you start dis
36. while weaker acid goes to the top causing unequal 10 of 15 Bogart Engineering SC 2030 User Manual charging at the top and bottom In AGM batteries the design is different so gassing typically doesn t occur which makes them a little more efficient Good solar chargers will then go into what is often called absorb stage where the charger holds the voltage just above the gassing point voltage ideally temperature compensated The batteries then absorb gradually less and less energy as they further charge Most manufactured solar chargers maintain the absorb voltage for a set amount of time perhaps one to four hours before they go into the float voltage of about 13 2 volts Often the better chargers allow you to set the exact absorption voltage the holding time and the exact float voltage The float voltage is a maintenance voltage which is intended to be the ideal voltage to keep a battery at minimum wear for the longest time once it s fully charged Although just maintaining the absorb voltage for a fixed time is not a bad way to decide when to go into float many battery companies suggest that it is better to monitor the amount of current amperes going into the battery during this time and then go into float based on this There are three variations on this method 1 Charge above the gassing voltage until the amperes drop to a sufficiently low value say an ampere value that is 1 or 0 5 of the amp hour capacity of the batt
37. y more fully charged as the batteries become more resistant to charging specifically intended for lead acid liquid electrolyte wet cell types The profiles show the program values that you use with the TM 2030 to adjust the charging these are identified by the P1 P2 etc values that identify the TM 2030 program numbers Important note about settings for P2 P20 and P21 These are all percent settings that refer to the percentage of the value programmed into P3 For example for P2 the amps set point equals the value in P2 in percent times the P3 value Similarly P20 and P21 are also referenced as a percent of the P3 setting The P22 battery install profile setting automatically writes all of the 8 values shown below as shown in Table 4 below If it is used P22 should be entered first After that any other values may be changed individually if desired If you find a profile set that has most of the values you want first enter that profile then change the ones that you want to be different Presently there are 16 profiles available It is likely that more will be added in the future in later revisions of the TM 2030 P1 Absorb volts When charging begins the maximum solar current is sent to the batteries until this volt age is reached Then the charger limits voltage to this value 10 0 65 0 P2 Charged setpoint Amps value expressed as a percentage of P3 from 0 0 10 0 When the amps drops to this value with voltage equal or just gr
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