Quote:
Originally Posted by jcurtisis
Not sure what PWM and MPPT are- need to do some reading it seems.
|
I'm sure many with more knowledge will do a better job in answering this... But let me try anyway.
In general, PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) limits the voltage from the solar panels to battery voltage (~12.6v} and then then turns the chargesr on and off as needed. During Bulk charging it could be on 100$ of the time. As the batteries get closer to full charge the PWM charger simply spends more and more time off. When your batteries are fully charged your solar charger may be all the way off.
The MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) work at a higher voltage. And, it is able to convert higher voltages into more amps delivered, plus the chargers are "smart" with actual Bulk, Absorption and Float profiles.
MPPT controllers are usually discribed as 25% to 30% more efficient at charging.
Most 100W panels put out 18 to 20 volts. With a PWM controller it operates at battery voltage. So, with 12v batteries you get 12v from your panels. With MPPT the full 18v to 20v is used by the smart charger in the controller.
The PWM costs less, sometimes 1/2 of the cost of a MPPT. Also, most PWM controllers are limited to smaller amperage and 30-amp controllers are common. This generally limits PWM controlled systems to 400w or less.
For 100w to 200w systems a PWM is a fine, inexpensive choice for a charge controller. As you get closer to or over 400w the MPPT may be a more efficient choice. They really give higher benefit if you run some of your solar panels in series rather than parallel. In series your voltages are higher and the MPPT controller can turn that into high charging amps. The PWM can only operate at close to battery bank voltages.
I have 300w of solar. the PWM charge controller was no doubt fine on my system. But I plan on adding more panels and I decided to make the switch to MPPT now.
As I said. I "feel" like I'm getting more amps from my panels - but it could be mostly related to the better reporting I see from Victron's BlueTooth app.