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Monitoring Battery Temperatures


Col_T

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We have recently had 300w of solar panels installed, with a Tracer 3215BN solar charge controller and MT50 remote meter.

 

I can get a battery temperature monitoring probe as an optional extra for the 3215BN which raises a couple of questions:-

  1. Is it worth getting the temperature probe?
  2. Whereabouts on the battery pack would it be located if I did get one?

 

Without the probe the 3215 assumes the batteries are at 25C and bases it's charging on that. If I understand correctly, the 3215 will try to increase the amps delivered to charge the batteries, if there is enough sun-light to support this, so possibly not hugely relevant during a typical British winter?

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2 hours ago, Col_T said:

We have recently had 300w of solar panels installed, with a Tracer 3215BN solar charge controller and MT50 remote meter.

 

I can get a battery temperature monitoring probe as an optional extra for the 3215BN which raises a couple of questions:-

  1. Is it worth getting the temperature probe?
  2. Whereabouts on the battery pack would it be located if I did get one?

 

Without the probe the 3215 assumes the batteries are at 25C and bases it's charging on that. If I understand correctly, the 3215 will try to increase the amps delivered to charge the batteries, if there is enough sun-light to support this, so possibly not hugely relevant during a typical British winter?

Know in the temperature is about adjusting the charge voltage, not the current. Optimum charge voltage increases with reducing battery temperature. Of course as you say, with weak solar input this won’t make much difference during much of the charging because there won’t be enough solar power to achieve the optimum voltage.

 

Where it does become significant is once the batteries approach or reach fully charged. Without knowledge of temperature the finishing voltage and float voltage may be too low or too high.

 

As to the location, the aim is to measure the plate/electrolyte temperature. There seem to be two types, one bolts on to the battery negative terminal (has good thermal conductivity with the plates and electrolyte) and the other is stuck onto the battery casing below the level of the electrolyte.

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12 hours ago, nicknorman said:

As to the location, the aim is to measure the plate/electrolyte temperature. There seem to be two types, one bolts on to the battery negative terminal (has good thermal conductivity with the plates and electrolyte) and the other is stuck onto the battery casing below the level of the electrolyte.

I’ve not bothered to fit the temp probe to my Tracer MPPT, for the reasons stated, though I did wonder about it in the high temps this summer when the charge voltage should be lower on warm batteries. I do have a probe on the Mastervolt combi – it’s a plate type, wedged between two batteries.

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