Electronic – Why isn’t the solar panel charging the battery

battery-chargingsolar cell

I have a solar panel, a battery and a charge controller. I didn't pay for any of it so I thought I would just wire them up and see how it goes.

The battery won't charge. The charge controller has a battery level indicator and it has stayed at middle for over a week. The solar panel doesn't have a high wattage so I wasn't expecting it to charge quickly but I think It would have charged by now. Could somebody tell me if there is anything wrong with the setup?

I believe I need 2x 12V solar panels to give 24V to actually start charging the battery. Is this correct?

All of the parts are definitely working. I also would like to know how long it would take to charge the battery fully with no load. I have worn Google out searching for how to do that but I need it to be put simply and into context. If someone could briefly demonstrate, that would be great. Anyway, the info on the different parts:

Solar Panel

  • 12V
  • 5W

Battery

  • 12V
  • 4.5AH

Charge Controller

  • 12/24V (auto)
  • 5A

Thanks!

Best Answer

You do need more than 12 volts to charge a 12 battery. Also how do you know that your solar panel is producing even 12 volts? Just because that is it's rating doesn't mean it always produces that value. Do you have enough sunlight? Have you measured the output of the panel? Can you provide more information on the charge controller? If you did provide 24 volts to the charge controller, how much voltage will it apply to the battery which is important because 24 volts is probably too much. Your panel is rated at 12 volts and 5 watts. Thus, assuming it is getting sufficient sunlight, its maximum current is 0.42 amperes. At that level, charging a 4.5 AH battery, would take a minimum of almost 11 hours.

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