Need the solar/power pros to weigh in

[DaveInDenver]

I dont think he's running the orion, looks like he's trying to use this DC PSU as the buck to give his battery a 14.4v charge through his trailer wiring.. your DC/DC is just this PSU right @TantoTrailers you dont have a smart regulator on it?

I think its too low a voltage to run through the solar charger, you usually want a 24v+ for that..

A dumb 14.4v charger on a trailer is not all that bad, he can give it a full charge while driving and it dont seem like its a primary charge source.. wont be big charge, but if he cant fit a fixed solar panel to charge while driving its a pretty clever way to fill the gap.

If there's no Orion in the system then that is correct, the PS would have to be set high enough to charge or if there's a simple battery charger at or above it's absorption stage voltage.

 

[TantoTrailers]

I dont think he's running the orion, looks like he's trying to use this DC PSU as the buck to give his battery a 14.4v charge through his trailer wiring.. your DC/DC is just this PSU right @TantoTrailers you dont have a smart regulator on it?

I think its too low a voltage to run through the solar charger, you usually want a 24v+ for that..

A dumb 14.4v charger on a trailer is not all that bad, he can give it a full charge while driving and it dont seem like its a primary charge source.. wont be big charge, but if he cant fit a fixed solar panel to charge while driving its a pretty clever way to fill the gap.

Thats correct dumb charger nothing smart about that one. Im not looking for massive charhing just a bit of help while I drive from the garage to wherever before I can deploy solar or hook up at camp if thats an option.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Thats correct dumb charger nothing smart about that one. Im not looking for massive charhing just a bit of help while I drive from the garage to wherever before I can deploy solar or hook up at camp if thats an option.

What charger is it?

 

[dreadlocks]

yeah out the box its proab set for 12.00v, so its not gonna charge squat until you up the voltage manually.. I'd set it to whatever your shore charger is set for its Constant Voltage output in absorb, or if battery specs list a CCV voltage then use that.. unregulated like that I wouldent set it too high of a charge voltage.

Disconnect the load off the DC PSU, hookup multimeter.. turn pot until its at target voltage, then hook it back up.

 

[shade]

For those of us trying to keep score, I think this is a current list.

Battery monitor:

BMV-712 Smart - Victron Energy

Communicate wirelessly between products and simplify system installation and enhance performance using the BMV-712 Smart. Find a dealer now.

www.victronenergy.com

Shore power:

Blue Smart IP67 Charger Waterproof - Victron Energy

The Blue Smart IP67 Waterproof Charger is the new professional battery charger with built-in bluetooth. Find a Victron Energy dealer near you.

www.victronenergy.com

DC-DC converter/power supply:
https://www.meanwell-web.com/en-gb/dc-dc-enclosed-converter-input-9-5-18vdc-output-sd--100a--12
https://www.meanwell-web.com/content/files/pdfs/productPdfs/MW/SD-100/SD-100-spec.pdf

Battery:

Duracell AGM Deep Cycle Marine and RV Battery , Group Size 31 - Sam's Club

Buy Duracell AGM Deep Cycle Marine and RV Battery , Group Size 31 : Marine Batteries at SamsClub.com

www.samsclub.com

 

[shade]

What charger is it?

lol

 

[shade]

yeah out the box its proab set for 12.00v, so its not gonna charge squat until you up the voltage manually.. I'd set it to whatever your shore charger is set for its Constant Voltage output in absorb, or if battery specs list a CCV voltage then use that.. unregulated like that I wouldent set it too high of a charge voltage.

Disconnect the load off the DC PSU, hookup multimeter.. turn pot until its at target voltage, then hook it back up.

Looks like the IP67 would be putting out 14.4V in absorb. Tune the Mean Well to that voltage, and I'll bet it'll charge.

https://www.victronenergy.com/upload/documents/Datasheet-Blue-Smart-IP67-Charger-120VAC-EN.pdf

https://www.victronenergy.com/upload/documents/Manual-Blue-Power-and-Blue-Smart-IP67-Charger-EN-NL-FR-DE-IT-PT-ES-SE.pdf

 

[luthj]

Given the current limits of the PSU, it may drop out/cycle if you turn it up to 14.4V with the battery lower than 85% SOC. It depends on how its designed. You will need to do a bit of testing with the DC-DC at its max current. If it just hits the ~7A max and stays there, you are fine. If it goes higher, drops out, and cycles back after it cools a bit, you may want to choose something like 14V or so to reduce the current at lower SOC. Just depends on behavior/needs.

 

[dreadlocks]

Given the current limits of the PSU, it may drop out/cycle if you turn it up to 14.4V with the battery lower than 85% SOC. It depends on how its designed. You will need to do a bit of testing with the DC-DC at its max current. If it just hits the ~7A max and stays there, you are fine. If it goes higher, drops out, and cycles back after it cools a bit, you may want to choose something like 14V or so to reduce the current at lower SOC. Just depends on behavior/needs.

Overload Protection type : Hiccup mode, recovers automatically after fault condition is removed

thats not good, will he overload his trailer plug with this thing?..

 

[luthj]

He shouldn't, the unit will supposedly turn off in an overcurrent situation. The question is how long it takes. If it cycles on/off a few times a minute, it will still do an okay job charging.

 

[shade]

I really don't like using trailer brake wiring for other purposes if it's also being called on to power electric brakes. Combining that with an additional 7-8A of load for charging a trailer battery doesn't seem worth saving a few dollars in wire. Braking is a critical function, and anything that could overload the circuit would likely do so when power for the electric brakes is at high demand.

Maybe this won't be an issue with the OP's setup, though.

 

[TantoTrailers]

I dont have trailer brakes on my rig and I am actually using the aux cable not the brake cable of the 7 pin connector so Im not sure I would be affecting it if I had them. Lots to test and tweak tomorrow with this little gizmo, seems the most complicated piece so far haha!

 

[dreadlocks]

the 7 pin trailer plug has a dedicated battery charge circuit thats separate from brakes.. however most emergency break-away setups do depend on the house battery for stopping the rig and his dc converter may be preventing that if its wired for a single feed to the house battery and now the its going to DC PSU.

 

[shade]

the 7 pin trailer plug has a dedicated battery charge circuit thats separate from brakes.. however most emergency break-away setups do depend on the house battery for stopping the rig and his dc converter may be preventing that if its wired for a single feed to the house battery and now the its going to DC PSU.

Is there a DOT mandated minimum output standard for that circuit? If so, I'll bet it's pretty low.

 

[shade]

Ha ha!!
If anything, RV business might have guidelines.
But with anything technical standards to do with the RV business means dont walk, run the other way.

I'm familiar with the rigorous standards employed by the trailer & RV industries.



I figured if there was a minimum standard and it was remotely reliable, it'd be for the tow vehicle.