Wrong manual for Zamp Solar Charger

[jcurtisis]

The Owner’s Manual Supplement for my 2018 Navion 24D had WRONG information on the Zamp Solar controller. I discovered this when I replaced my Lead-Acid batteries with Lithium batteries (Battle Borne 10012; 100 Amp Hour 12 volt). The manual said the Zamp controller supported 4 battery types: Gel, AGM, WET (lead-acid) and calcium. Upon making the change, I tried to change the battery type by holding down the “Battery Type” button for 3 seconds and than selecting the type I needed (the Battle Borne help desk said I should use “AGM”). Unfortunately when I held the button down to change the type, the controller didn’t show any battery types at all- it just had a voltage showing; and each time I pressed the same button to select a battery type it just cycled through 6 different voltage numbers (consistently). This made it look like there were 6 choices (vice 4), but the types weren’t being displayed.
I called Winnebago Customer service ((800) 537-1885) - only had to wait about 2 min (!!) - I explained the issue and was told to call Zamp (541-728-0924). For some reason the phone demons were napping and I got a knowledgeable person in about 2 more min (!!!). He said that the Zamp ZS-30A underwent a software change around the time I bought my rig- the older ones with 4 battery options were updated to six (to accommodate the new lithium batteries which were becoming more popular) and added LiFePO4 and LTO options. Apparently I had the newer version hardware but the older version manual (wonderful....as in “not”).
He also told me I had to do a “hard reboot” as the system didn’t re-set property upon changing batteries. He sent me a document with the steps (involved unscrewing the controller, disconnecting the power leads fro both battery and solar, waiting 5 min, and then re-connecting them). It worked like a champ!
I’ve attached the instructions and photos of the procedure. Not hard at all- just a bit nerve wracking as I’m just not used to working with live wires (I know, I know, it is DC power and not AC...just a bit paranoid about shorting out something with my screwdriver). I made liberal use of electrical tape to ensure no shorting occurred.