ZAMP overcharging batteries/ triggering propane alarm? How to check?

[Vic]

I've got the camper out in the drive on a somewhat sunny/ slightly overcast day and heard the tell-tale beeping of the propane alarm. Noticed a faint rotten eggs smell and sure enough the batteries were bubbling (which I understand is a normal part of charging, although the smell was unusual). Its only on solar and before I pulled the fuse on the ZAMP controller it was putting out a happy 13.9 amps, which I didn't think was an overcharge. Battery showing 12.6 volts.

Or maybe my propane monitor is just over sensitive?

Vented the camper, cleaned off the propane monitor with a little air and put the fuse back in to see what happens.

Any thoughts appreciated.

 

[rando]

If you have flooded lead acid batteries, they really need to be vented outside the camper - which would prevent the smell and your gas alarm going off. I also think your ZAMP charge may be over charging your batteries - a small amount of gassing is ok, but it sounds like your battery was being boiled. If it is a flooded battery and the resting voltage is 12.6V, that would be very close to 100% charged - I wouldn't think your charge controller would be providing 13.9amps to a fully charged battery!

 

[Vic]

A little more info as I work on this:

- yes - its actually 2 golf cart flooded 6v's and they are vented outside at the front of the camper, but there is a bit of a breeze today and I'm wondering if that may have pushed some fumes into the camper

- to be fair I haven't found for sure if 13.9 was what the solar panels were putting out, or if that's what the ZAMP was pushing through. Its cloudy now and and only showing 3-4 amps, but I can hear the boiling clearly.

- The batteries, while only 2 years old, have had a pretty hard life. For the first year of the camper (and my first year with solar) the old adhesive panels were dying and I think they spent a lot of time never getting fully charged. Changed those panels out last year and all was well, but due to a crazy travel schedule this winter and a lack of TLC, the batteries got pretty close to dead in the garage. I brought them back with my big charger but am wondering if one actually has a bad cell.

I think its more likely the batteries than the ZAMP so I'll probably swap them out and see what happens.

 

[Longbeard87]

Not sure if this is helpful at all but I had mine on the charger the other evening and got the red flashing light on the propane sensor. No audible alarm though, I need to look into that and how it is supposed to operate. Once I unhooked the charger and blew some air around it stopped. Any idea if the sensor always makes the audible alarm or does it just blink at lower levels?

 

[PaulT]

--snip--
- yes - its actually 2 golf cart flooded 6v's and they are vented outside at the front of the camper, but there is a bit of a breeze today and I'm wondering if that may have pushed some fumes into the camper

- to be fair I haven't found for sure if 13.9 was what the solar panels were putting out, or if that's what the ZAMP was pushing through. Its cloudy now and and only showing 3-4 amps, but I can hear the boiling clearly.
--snip--

If the Zamp shows 13.9 amps, that is what the Zamp is putting into the load, be it charging or accessories.
However, the Zamp may be configured for AGM battery profile. Check its configuration and change to match your flooded cell batteries,

Paul

 

[Vic]

Down to my friendly Costco and 2 new Interstate 6v's are resting comfortably. Got them in too late in the day to evaluate them thoroughly but will see what tomorrow brings.

If the Zamp shows 13.9 amps, that is what the Zamp is putting into the load, be it charging or accessories.
However, the Zamp may be configured for AGM battery profile. Check its configuration and change to match your flooded cell batteries,

Paul

ZAMP was set up for the wet batteries

What would be a max that a ZAMP should put out for a maintenance charge on healthy batteries? In the past I've watched it change as cloud cover comes and goes, etc, but don't recall seeing a peak output.

Looks like the unit is good to 30.







30 AMP 5-STAGE DELUXE DIGITAL PWM
30 Amps is large enough for up to 510 Watts of 12 volt solar charging power. Each controller has PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) and 5 stages of charging for best battery health and longevity. Two mounting options, flush or surface, provide options and flexibility. Each Zamp Solar 30A solar charge controller supports, and is programmable for 4 typical types of deep cycle batteries (WET, GET, AGM and Calcium) as well as lithium batteries (LTO and LifeP04).





ZS-30A CONTROLLER SPECS:

• Watts: 500
• Amps: 30
• Remote: ZS-RT1 Optional
• Lithium Compatibility: Yes

 

[allanb]

Maybe be the monitor is bad?
I have a " Safty alert" brand in my north star and it started alarming at six months old. Couldn't clear it, no propane smell or leak. Sent it in, new one back, ( not the same size as the old one so had to install a. Spacer/ cover to take up the extra room) and after three months it's doing the same thing. I just unwired it and will have to call them again.

 

[PaulT]

After the Zamp indicates your batteries are fully charged and in good sunlight, voltage on Zamp voltage display should show 13.4 to 13.6 volts which is float voltage. Switching to amps will likely show below 1 amp.

Turn on the Fantastic fan and the Zamp will show about 1 1/2 amps more. Switching to medium and high will show increasing amps on the Zamp. This will show that the Zamp amps display indicates total load on the Zamp, not just the charging current to the batteries.

It may take several days to reach full charge on your batteries and go to float. When that happens, small loads like the CO & propane alarms will still add to the float current to the batteries. My Hawk came with the 15 amp charger and I'm not familiar with the 30 amp controller but it should be similar.

Paul

 

[Vic Harder]

+1 to what Paul said. If the voltage is that high, you should be getting close to fully charged, and the current should be at 1 amp or less. In my camper over the last few weeks I have seen the batteries at 95% in the morning, and fully charged within a few hours. When fully charged, the MPPT controller puts out minimal current to the batteries.

 

[JaSAn]

I've got the camper out in the drive on a somewhat sunny/ slightly overcast day and heard the tell-tale beeping of the propane alarm. Noticed a faint rotten eggs smell and sure enough the batteries were bubbling (which I understand is a normal part of charging, although the smell was unusual). Its only on solar and before I pulled the fuse on the ZAMP controller it was putting out a happy 13.9 amps, which I didn't think was an overcharge. Battery showing 12.6 volts.

I was having a similar problem when I set up my system: every once in a while charging would set off my CO detector. Turns out my charging profile was a little too hot. I was boiling my batteries and having to add water every two weeks. Morningstar (I have a TS-45 controller) recommended lowering my absorption voltage by 0.2 volts, which solved the problem (kept the float at 13.6V).

13.9 amps is a lot for two 6 volt batteries in series at 12.6 volts (~90% full). No wonder you were smelling rotten eggs. I wouldn't be surprised if the battery cases were pretty hot and you were way low on water.

My advice is to call Interstate and get their recommended absorption and float voltages (tell them you have 6 volt batteries in series) and either find the profile that fits their recommendations or if Zamp allows build a custom profile. Also, if you have FLA batteries I would check water level every couple of weeks until you get charging figured out. I started out at every 2 weeks, then every month, and now I only check every 6 to 8 weeks.

jim

 

[smlobx]

Vic-
I also had my CO monitor going off earlier this spring. Like you I have the Everest with the battery compartment open to the front and not into the cabin of the camper. It was going off with the top up and rear door open so I suspected something was up.
Long story short I replaced the CO detector and everything is fine now. In talking to other people it seems these things eventually go bad.

I also keep my 6v. Batteries charged with this smart charger as reccomended by Matt:

https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-G3500-UltraSafe-Battery-Charger/dp/B004LWTHP2?th=1

 

[Vic]

Just an epilogue to this - put the new batteries in and all seems well. Today I noticed the ZAMP said 'ful' - first time I've ever seen that - and was down to about 1.2 amp charging the batteries off the solar. And that was with the fridge going. Not a peep out of the CO detector either. When I pulled the old batteries there was about a 1/2 volt difference between the two and I suspect there was a bad cell.

Will be testing it out thoroughly at the end of the month for a few week trip so fingers crossed, but I think the problem is solved. Thanks all.

 

[Vic Harder]

1.2 Amps with the fridge going? That sounds much better. Without the fridge their should just be a trickle, if anything, going from the solar panels to the battery.

 

[JimBow]

I have the same problem with my Four Wheel Fleet, which is only 2 months old. The propane alarm would go off every afternoon
with the propane tank valves closed. I did not know it could have something to do with the batteries. I have the 160 watt solar panel
with Zamp controller and dual Excide batteries. On a sunny day the Zamp controller shows 14.4 volts.

I tried to get some help from the dealer in Tigard, OR where I bought the camper. Nothing! No response from them after spending 23 thousand dollars! I had to disconnect the CO/propane sensor because it was going off every day. Actually, the guy in Tigard said to disconnect it, but that doesn't fix the underlying problem. I have no idea if the sensor is bad, or gas from the batteries are setting it off, or what.

I was on an extended trip in the camper and overall I'm happy with it. But the failure of the dealer to address a potential safety problem is inexcusable. I've been in the mountains of Wyoming where I've ran the furnace all night without a CO/propane sensor. I cannot live with that alarm going off constantly. Not sure what to do now. Oh, I moved out of Oregon, so going back to Tigard is not an option. Hopefully, I'll never set foot in that miserable city again! LOL.

 

[Vic]

Just an epilogue to this - I've been in Yellowstone and Grand Teton for the past 2 1/2 weeks and everything worked as it should with the new batteries - I think it was a combination of a bad cell in one of the old batteries and the camper all closed up (and the battery door is at the front of the truck bed, so no air flow) giving me the problems.

That said, I'm not crazy about any venting into the camper so a project for this summer is to add ventilation to the front of the camper and some weather stripping around the battery box where it connects to the inside - hoping to improve outside ventilation and eliminate inside ventilation.

Thanks again all for the responses.