CS6P-200 Canadian Solar PV / Xantrex C40 project
 

Here's the label that matches the specs I've seen..

https://solarconduit.com/shop/media/...200-labelw.jpg

I've got two of these panels in the mail.. :)

I had been planing on using them to charge batteries with a
Xantrex C40 3-Stage PWM Charge Controller, 40 Amp, 12, 24, or 48 Volt.
http://www.solarcellsales.com/techin...controller.pdf

I wanted to charge a 48v battery pack. But, after looking at the C40 specs,
I'm thinking that my PV Voltage @ Peak Power is very close to being too low.?.

28.9v times 2 = 57.8 volts. This is just inside the C40 48v Bulk charge range.
Will it work?

If it fails to charge a 48v pack, the fallback plan is to rewire the pack to 24v,
and use the same Series PV configuration. (57.8 volts)
Since, if the C40 fails at 48, it would likely fail at 24 with half the PV voltage..

Or, am I wrong? Will running a 48v system with 57.8v be just dandy?
The nearly matched voltages will make it almost like MPPT??


~~~
Idea #2

If I were just using four old junk car batteries, maybe I could just wire them directly (using diode) to the series panels.?.
And then wire in a Dump-Load to keep the battery pack from over-charging.

The Dump-load could be set at the Max power voltage of the panels. 57.8V.
Allowing 14.45 volts (a somewhat high?) Float on each battery.


Idea #2 Operation theory:
In the morning, the batteries start charging up.
When their voltage reaches >57.8v, the Dump-Load circuit kicks in
and connects the pack (& PV) to a load.

The load would be matched (8.35 ohms), so it could consume 400w at 57.8v.
So, it would handle everything from the panel (while the sun was out),
and keep the battery pack from absorbing any more power.



Comments please..

Thanks,
Rich

Update:
Thanksgiving Day, at 6:30 AM, the panels were at the local UPS depot!

Dump Load circuit
 

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1...olar/dump1.jpg

I could set this to turn on when the battery pack was hitting it's max SOC.
It would be connected to a relay, that connected the battery to a load.

When the voltage dropped off, the load would drop off..

Did a 4 second video yesterday. Don't hit play, you'll go blind! :eek:
YouTube - movie4.mpg


And took some pictures this evening.



http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1...Solar/400w.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1...ar/400text.jpg


Recycling reduced my footprints to the hardware store.. :D
The deck is really heavy. No way the wind is going to flip this.. Have to be a CAT-9..
The mount feels really solid. I'm going to Blue Lok-tight the hardware,
when it's not too cold out.

I've got to figure out a way to Tom Sawyer my wife into slapping some left-over deck paint on that old platform,
before the snow comes.. :)

Wow.. that's fast... NICE setup..
Here's what I've done so far.. I originally designed to support 3 panel in Landscape ...but decided to go to a 1kw system. I converted it to a Portrait mode.

Wow, you are quite the carpenter. I did some wood work too.
Added some nails to that back board (and a long lag bolt),
and I had to saw that big beautiful Redwood 2x4 in half.. :(

I decided to use my last 4 aluminum 'L' brackets to hinge the south end,
http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1.../Lbrackets.jpg
but didn't think through the northern support leg. It needs to be adjustable in length.

So, when I need to adjust it, I'll need wrench for the 3/8" hardware, and a drill,
so I can make a new adjustment point. :p

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1...ngleAdjust.jpg


Or, maybe I should go buy a piece of perforated uni-strut at Lowes.
I've got 4 of them on my tracker mount. It's good strong steel.
All those holes might give me pretty good seasonal (weekly?) angle adjustments.

That back-jack is 65" long.. In the summer, I'm gonna need to dig a hole
back there.. If I really want to get down.. :D

I just cut a bunch of 2x4 and screw them together.. it seems quite solid. let's see if i mount 5 panels and how it will hold up.
You did a better job than mine... so much more cleaner. can't wait to hook everything up.

Yeah!!!
 

Yeah, but you had to those 2x4s at the proper angles and the right lengths..
I'm not real good at that sort of building. Took me extra long to build my deck..

Anyways, I took a short movie this morning..

YouTube - DSCN0988.MOV

I've got to rig up the meter and get my butt outdoors for some testing.. :D

Panel power testing.
 

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1...fpowertest.jpg
http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1...testmeters.jpg

First, I checked the power on the 500w tracking array, to get a feel for the sun.
84.8 volts open, 68.2v loaded @ 6.8A (464 watts), slightly under the 490w I saw earlier.

I disconnected the load cable from the tracker and moved it over to the new fixed array.
The 1KW 10 ohm load measured 10.5 Ohms. The line has about 0.5 ohms of loss.
This resistance is too high to get a good full power test on single panels, but a half power test is better than none.

Left Panel:
No Load = 34.88V
Loaded = 32.51V
Loaded = 3,17A
Loaded = 103W
Shorted = 7.34A

Right Panel:
No Load = 34.47V
Loaded = 31.96V
Loaded = 3.13A
Loaded = 100W
Shorted = 7.58A

The last test was the 2-panel series test. Which turned out to be a full power test.

Open voltage = 69 to 70 volts
Under load = 57.2V
Amps with meter = 6.94A
Amps with clamp = 7.3A
The average wattage ? 397 to 417 watts.?.
The sun light was changing slightly and the numbers were drifting around, so this last test wasn't very accurate,
but I'm happy to see the results are in the ballpark of the spec.

https://solarconduit.com/shop/media/...200-labelw.jpg

it is very hard to get close to the specs. My sharp panels are not where near the rated wattage. I am lucky to get 90% on a sunny cold day.
I picked up the 2 panels today.. I was talking to the lady and looks like someone in the company may get a bunch of the panels to install in his house. I am sure he will get a bigger discount.
I am waiting for the enphase inverter to come in...I bought a few off ebay, but without the hanging bracket. I think the bracket has a tendency to break off. I will just use some l bracket to mount them.

It sure looks like 200 watts is what we are going to be getting.. When it's cool anyways.
So, I hope you got the 200w Enphase units!! ;)

IIRC, 200w panels are good for the 190w Enphase GTIs, since 190w is the AC watts output..
From all I've been able to learn, Enphase gear is the best way to go..

FYI, while I was measuring the left panel, I put my hand and a bit of my forearm out in front of the panel,
the power went from 100w to 50w in an instant..

That type of reaction to such a small blockage tells me that a GTI on each panel is a real good idea..