Wooie Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Hi folks, i`ve just bought a solar panel and regulator, it`s only a 60W panel and a 5amp controller ( so i`m not looking to power a city and then sell the excess to the national grid..lol. ) The charging system in my motorhome is a CBE setup i.e. CB516 charger, DS-520EX distribution unit and a PC200EX control panel. The control panel shows an icon for a solar panel but i cannot see the same symbol on the distribution unit. My question is :- can i connect the regulator to +B2 and -B2 on the distribution unit or does it have to be connected directly to the battery. Also once connected will it look after itself so that when we connect to EHU the system will cut off once the regulator senses the mains current ? Many thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 ....this is a question that I am sure has come up before; I have a similar system, and a portable solar panel (which is currently connected directly across the batteries - and only used when not on hook-up). There is more information and wiring diagrams for the system (or at least, similar) on the Marcle Leisure site, and you may find the following useful: http://www.marcleleisure.co.uk/store/pdf/PC100_PC200_DS300_ENcircuits.pdf ....this certainly details a solar panel connection, but the actual wording is very misleading. Reading the instructions I MIGHT (note the emphasis) interpret that the solar panel should be connected to -B2 and terminal 1 of block 15 (for this particular example) - but it is far from clear. You may be able to use the document to interpret your particular installation. If you are successful, I'd be interested in an update. (BTW, my understanding is that the regulator is likely to sense the voltage from the charger, when on mains, and consider the battery to be full, and thus cut out). HTH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wooie Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 I see what you mean Robin, it`s as clear as mud. The distribution board it shows is not like mine, the 300 series only has half of the connections and fuses than my 520 has. I`m a little surprised that you are the only one to come back with any info. I`ve had a response from CBE in Italy ( the translation from italian to english could be better ) but i`m pretty sure that you can connect to the 2 points as i said in my post. The main reason for trying to connect this way is to keep it neater and use the van wiring as much as possible. Thanks again Robin for the link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian81 Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 On a DS300 unit the solar panel is connected into the multiway plugs inside the box -not the battery terminals. However when we bought our MH the installer wired the panel via the controller straight to the battery on the grounds that if the control panel is turned off the solar panel can still charge the battery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 I'm also pretty sure you can connect to the B2+ and B2- terminals, but I would suspect that then, any indication of solar charging you have in the panel will not register. (I can see no point in having a dedicated terminal for a solar panel if the direct B2+/B2- connection is functionally the same). I would have thought such a connection as you propose would, however, bypass any panel switch issues as highlighted by Ian (should they exist). My temptation would still be to wire direct across the battery terminals with some substantial wiring - but as you say, depending on your entry point for your solar wiring, it may be easier to try to use some of the existing circuitry. I'm not sure what year your 'van is, but the wiring diagrams and handbooks on the Explorer Group website for Castaways (2003?) aren't really any more help - they imply that there may be similar spare fused input terminal(s) for a solar panel input, but are less than forthcoming on which to use. Good Luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 A simple connection to the battery will work. If the voltage rises above the solar panel regulator setting (maybe 14v or so) the current will not flow so it (the solar panel) just sits and waits for the voltage to fall. The on board charger will work in the same way, cutting off or down as the voltage rises. The solar regulator will have diode protection so no reverse current will flow and the on board charger unit will have similar protection. Put a fuse and switch in circuit so you can isolate the solar panel if you need to. As mentioned previously heavy cable will reduce the voltage drop and more of the charge will reach the battery. H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wooie Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 Yes it is a Castaway and was built in mid 2006 and registered in 2007 so it`s virtually the last one made. The CBE instruction manual does say on page 8 under the functions heading that " Leisure Battery (B2) Recharging © by solar panel: through a solar regulator " but that`s all it says. I don`t know if you have any experience of Castaways but if mine is anything to go by the wiring and the finish that isn`t on show is an absolute disgrace. None of the coloured wires seem to match any diagrams i can find and it`s as if they have just used whatever was available. I`m not that bothered about seeing the Amps etc. on the panel as long as it is charging the battery and i can still see the voltage as i can now. I`ll let you know how i go on when i fit the panel, all being well it should be this week i have everything ready and waiting to fit. Thanks again Robin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian81 Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 Robinhood - 2012-04-10 9:46 AM I would have thought such a connection as you propose would, however, bypass any panel switch issues as highlighted by Ian (should they exist). With this (our) system there is a separate external relay and operating the control panel on/ off switch cuts power to the box. As far as I know the units do not incorporate a regulator so it is vital that the wiring from the panel includes one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 ian81 - 2012-04-10 10:33 AM As far as I know the units do not incorporate a regulator so it is vital that the wiring from the panel includes one. .....indeed, and Graham proposes to use one. To be safe (as flagged above), he should, also put an appropriately rated inline fuse in the positive feed from the regulator. Edit: after further viewing, most of the (historical) wiring diagrams for Compass and equivalent models on the Elddis website look somewhat less than useful. :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinklystarfish Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 I too would have been tempted to wire to the distribution unit to keep things as integrated and neat as possible; until I read that the out of sight wiring is less than exemplary anyway. This kind of short-cutting is lamentable, found across the industry, and is one of the reasons I chose to self-build. I don't think the battle is worth the effort and would go for the 'direct to battery' option. Good luck if you do go through the distribution unit though, and it's a good opportunity for a bit of a tidy up. A few cable ties and clips make a world of difference to aesthetics and can help in reliability too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wooie Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 I have spent what probably amounts to days if not weeks in the 5 years i`ve had the van tidying up as much as i can find, with the amount of cable ties and clips i`ve used you`d think i has shares in the company. The charging system on the van works fine both whilst driving and while on hook-up so i came to the conclusion that the wiring in the charging system, distribution board and through to the battery must be ok and that is why i thought of connecting through the distribution board. The point of access through the roof i have chosen then has a very simple route down to the distribution box and thus keeping the cable run as short as possible. Thank you for the input and all comments are gratefully received. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinklystarfish Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 In which case the B2+ and B2- terminals are probably worth a go. I might be tempted to connect an actual battery to those terminals first and take a few voltage readings here and there, and also to see how the control panel behaved. It just might give an indication of what's going on before committing to the solar panel wiring. Again, good luck and do let us know how it all went. For what it's worth you did well getting anything from cbe, it's not an easy company to get anything meaningful from, even if their kit is in the main pretty good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Techno100 Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 My DS 520 manual says to connect to the same terminal as the battery charger .i.e. terminal 30 http://techno.smugmug.com/Other/Camera-Awesome-Photos/i-mz39fQX/0/XL/CA_01111316501930-XL.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 I've wired my solar panel direct to the batteries via the regulator on two different vans and as the regulator shuts of charge when the battery is full and does not allow current to flow in the reverse direction it has never given any trouble however the batteries are charged. If you get a split charge relay - see link - unless your regulator has dual outputs - you can also charge the engine battery as well which saves that going flat when left for more than two weeks. http://stores.ebay.co.uk/renewable-power-solutions-RPSSOLAR/Split-charge-relays-/_i.html?_fsub=2894777013 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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