Solar trouble shooting on HQST controller

[2trout]

Hi All,


I always enjoy reading posts here, and I'm hoping someone can provide a bit of help.

I have a Hallmark truck camper with 100w Renogy flexible panel, and an HSQT PMW 30A Controller. I have contacted HSQT but as of yet i have not heard back from them.

On A recent overnight, when we turned on the lights in the evening it was apparent that out batteries were almost out of power.

The controller showed the batteries were at 0, and in full sun, the controller shows no power coming in.

This weekend I finally had a chance to do a bit of trouble shooting. Multimeter testing at the solar panel seems to show Volt and Amp output are within specs, same thing at the cable ends where they connect into the controller itself. But at the controller output, multimeter seems to show no output? Can that be correct, and if so, is the controller shot? Thanks for reading!


Trout

 

[PaulT]

Generic troubleshooting.

Check to be sure polarity is correct for solar power into controller and for battery cables into controller output.

Verify that battery chemistry is correct in controller configuration for your batteries.

Don't have controller "LOAD" connected to battery.

Disconnect solar from controller and hook up controller to battery first, then reconnect solar.

Controller should have either LED indicators or a display panel that tells your system status. Make sure they match the controller manual description.

Paul

 

[2trout]

Thanks PaulT

The above seems to check out. Also, No error codes show no error.

Trout

 

[Vic Harder]

try disconnecting the PV and battery connections from the controller, and let it sit for a minute before reconnecting. A reset like that might work. If not, I suspect the controller is toast.

 

[2trout]

Vic,

Ill give that a try.

Trout

 

[ckent323]

Does the controller have a built in fuse? I do not see one mentioned in the manual but it does say that is has overload protection:

"Charging and Discharging Overload Protection and Recovery Time
In the charging and discharging overload protection mechanism, the relation between overload current and protection time is as follows: An overload current 1.25 times of the rated current initiates a delay of 30s before starting protection; similarly, 1.5 times, 5s and 2 times, 1s. Overload recovery: automatic recovery after 1 minute. C


Short-circuit automatic recovery time: 1st time, 5 s; 2nd time, 10 s; 3rd time, 15 s; 4th time, 20 s; 5th time, 4 hours or automatic recovery the next day; or long press to make the load resume output"

"This PWM controller is equipped with dual MOS circuits to prevent reverse current. It protects against reverse polarity, battery overcharge, battery over-discharge, over-temperature, and short-circuiting. It also provides self-recovery protection for your PV system."


If no fuse and no output after reset time then maybe toast?


https://hqsolarpower.com/content/HQST-CTRL-PWM40N-Manual.pdf

 

[2trout]

Thanks!

Trout