BillTheHiker
Senior Member
I have found that my solar panel will charge the camper battery (1 year old Exide AGM) up to 14.4 volts, according to my multimeter. If I run the refrigerator at night the battery will drop to a low 12 number, typically 12.1 - 12-3 volts. On my last day of camping it was cloudy and raining on the way home and after a three hour drive the battery was at 12.58 volts. I put the camper in the garage and plugged in my new "smart" battery charger, which is a 4 stage charger. The next moring the charger showed 100% charge and 12.9 volts. The multimeter also showed 12.9 volts. I let the charger run in trickle mode a couple days and still showed 12.9 volts.
I took the camper to a shop that specializes in auto-electric. With the refrigerator running and the truck engine running and the solar panel unplugged they measured 6 amps going to the camper battery. they said the wire from the alternator to the camper is 16 gauge and said replacing it with a heavier gage would charge the battery faster, but likely would not take it past 12.9 volts. they also said the alternator and smart charger have a voltage regulator that prevents them from charging more than what they think the battery needs.
So why does my Morningstar controller allow the battery to be charged more than the alternator or charger?
Does all this sound reasonable to you folks?
I took the camper to a shop that specializes in auto-electric. With the refrigerator running and the truck engine running and the solar panel unplugged they measured 6 amps going to the camper battery. they said the wire from the alternator to the camper is 16 gauge and said replacing it with a heavier gage would charge the battery faster, but likely would not take it past 12.9 volts. they also said the alternator and smart charger have a voltage regulator that prevents them from charging more than what they think the battery needs.
So why does my Morningstar controller allow the battery to be charged more than the alternator or charger?
Does all this sound reasonable to you folks?