Upgrade factory solar controller

[DKGA]

I have a 2018 25 ft Flying Cloud FB.
Would like advise and photos from anyone, that has upgraded to a Victron MPPT 100/30 charge controller

[lsbrodsky]

This is pretty simple. I have a 25FB Serenity, 2012. Once you locate your Atkinson controller in the front, the wires are color coded and the instructions for the Victron are pretty clear. Just find a place to attach it and transfer the wires.

Larry

[waninae39]

yes i have .
we have many victron parts.

check posts in the electrical area
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f37/

[Nelsonsrus]

This post is timely in that I've just received my Victron 100/30 and am a bit confused as to installing it. The confusion comes from the fact that the Atkinson has 3 wires going into it. Battery positive and negative and the PV positive. Along with the communication wire to the wall display unit.

The Victron appears to "want" the positive and negative for both the battery and PV. Is it enough to just clip the Atkinson wires and just install the three in the appropriate locations?

I also have the Victron BMV-712 which I think can be installed later as that seems to be even more complicated.

I wish to get the controller installed as the Atkinson does not seem to be charging the batteries from the two factory installed solar panels. We boondocked a couple of days and the batteries dropped to 85% the following morning but never charged during the day that I could tell. They continued to drop to 60% over the second night. We had full sun both days.

I'm not an electrical guy but handy enough to do most things. Any help would be greatly appreciated before I just start cutting wires and installing things .

We're heading to a two-day boondock and I'd like to ensure we can get some battery charging during the day before I spend time re-evaluating our entire solar setup on our Classic.

[GMFL]

Originally Posted by DKGA

I have a 2018 25 ft Flying Cloud FB.
Would like advise and photos from anyone, that has upgraded to a Victron MPPT 100/30 charge controller

Here’s my pics

[AirMiles]

Originally Posted by Nelsonsrus

This post is timely in that I've just received my Victron 100/30 and am a bit confused as to installing it. The confusion comes from the fact that the Atkinson has 3 wires going into it. Battery positive and negative and the PV positive. Along with the communication wire to the wall display unit.

The Victron appears to "want" the positive and negative for both the battery and PV. Is it enough to just clip the Atkinson wires and just install the three in the appropriate locations?

I also have the Victron BMV-712 which I think can be installed later as that seems to be even more complicated.

I wish to get the controller installed as the Atkinson does not seem to be charging the batteries from the two factory installed solar panels. We boondocked a couple of days and the batteries dropped to 85% the following morning but never charged during the day that I could tell. They continued to drop to 60% over the second night. We had full sun both days.

I'm not an electrical guy but handy enough to do most things. Any help would be greatly appreciated before I just start cutting wires and installing things .

We're heading to a two-day boondock and I'd like to ensure we can get some battery charging during the day before I spend time re-evaluating our entire solar setup on our Classic.

Yes, the Victron 100/30 uses the yellow (+) and green (-) solar prewire from the Airstream. Based on these pictures, http://www.airforums.com/forums/f240...pt-166498.html , you need to find your green solar prewire and attach it to the Victron 100/30 in addition to the wires that are now connected to the Atkinson controller.

If it were mine, I would also increase the gauge on the output wires between the Victron 100/30 controller and the busbars and add a 40A circuit breaker on the positive output to the positive busbar. Here's a link to how I installed my Victron 100/30 with 6 Gauge wire between the solar controller and busbars and a 40A circuit breaker. http://www.airforums.com/forums/f448...ml#post2167314

[Nelsonsrus]

Originally Posted by AirMiles

Yes, the Victron 100/30 uses the yellow (+) and green (-) solar prewire from the Airstream. Based on these pictures, http://www.airforums.com/forums/f240...pt-166498.html , you need to find your green solar prewire and attach it to the Victron 100/30 in addition to the wires that are now connected to the Atkinson controller.

If it were mine, I would also increase the gauge on the output wires between the Victron 100/30 controller and the busbars and add a 40A circuit breaker on the positive output to the positive busbar. Here's a link to how I installed my Victron 100/30 with 6 Gauge wire between the solar controller and busbars and a 40A circuit breaker. http://www.airforums.com/forums/f448...ml#post2167314

AirMiles, thanks for the info. I have read through a lot of posts and did run across yours.

Not being a solar guru, this is all new to me and I don't want to "fry" something. I hope to make the additions you have but hoping I can simply put the controller in for now without causing any problems. There are two greens wires in the wiring mess up front under the sofa area (thank you Airstream). One is the same gauge (10) as the yellow wire going into the current controller and it connects to what I think is a bus bar. There is another green wire of a smaller gauge (14) which is a challenge to tell where it is going. So is it safe to say that the heavier gauge green wire in the area would be from the solar? I would just disconnect it and insert it into the Victron?

Stupid question maybe, but does the Victron really need to be mounted vertically as mentioned in the manual that comes with it? And finally, should I then add a grounding wire from the controller back to the bus bar?

If my questions generate a response along the lines of "You should enlist a professional" that's fine. But I sure would like to get the controller installed just to keep the batteries charged for a couple boon docking events we have coming up.

We will eventually end up in Mesa for a month and a half and I'll be in a better position to make the upgrades you suggest and possibly add one more panel since it would connect right into the current solar hookup on the roof.

Again, thank you for any help you can provide for this novice.

[AirMiles]

Originally Posted by Nelsonsrus

AirMiles, thanks for the info. I have read through a lot of posts and did run across yours.

Not being a solar guru, this is all new to me and I don't want to "fry" something. I hope to make the additions you have but hoping I can simply put the controller in for now without causing any problems. There are two greens wires in the wiring mess up front under the sofa area (thank you Airstream). One is the same gauge (10) as the yellow wire going into the current controller and it connects to what I think is a bus bar. There is another green wire of a smaller gauge (14) which is a challenge to tell where it is going. So is it safe to say that the heavier gauge green wire in the area would be from the solar? I would just disconnect it and insert it into the Victron?

Stupid question maybe, but does the Victron really need to be mounted vertically as mentioned in the manual that comes with it? And finally, should I then add a grounding wire from the controller back to the bus bar?

If my questions generate a response along the lines of "You should enlist a professional" that's fine. But I sure would like to get the controller installed just to keep the batteries charged for a couple boon docking events we have coming up.

We will eventually end up in Mesa for a month and a half and I'll be in a better position to make the upgrades you suggest and possibly add one more panel since it would connect right into the current solar hookup on the roof.

Again, thank you for any help you can provide for this novice.

No questions are stupid and we're here to help. Yes, the green 10 gauge wire is the one you are looking for. It should be coming from the same location as the yellow 10G wire. Yes, disconnect it from wherever it is grounded and connect it directly to the Victron controller.

Victron controller mounting: I would try to mount it vertically so the heat will rise and cool the controller, but I've seen installations by AmSolar (the RV solar experts) that do not mount it vertically.

Grounding wire back to the busbar? I did not ground my negative solar prewire back to the negative busbar. The solar controller is grounded to the negative busbar with the 6G black wire in my pictures. Here are the wiring diagrams supplied by AmSolar: https://drive.google.com/drive/folde...2E?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/drive/folde...C1YbLzdNrrT32E

[Nelsonsrus]

I guess what I meant by grounding is the screw on the left side of the Victron. It looks like you have a green wire coming off that. I'm assuming that ground goes to the bus bar? I can't see in the photos what that connects to.

Once I know that I'm confident I can get things hooked up and see if I can get the solar back to charging the batteries and then down the road complete the other upgrades/additions.

[AirMiles]

If the links I added from AmSolar work, you can see that their wiring diagrams do not use the grounding stud on the side of the Victron controller like GMFL's picture: https://drive.google.com/drive/folde...C1YbLzdNrrT32E

[Nelsonsrus]

Yes, those links work although I can't seem to get them large enough to read some things, but I'll play around with that.

I guess I was questioning where/what the green wire that seems to be coming off your Victron goes to.

If use of that grounding stud on the side of the Victron isn't necessary, I'll press on.

Thank you so much for answering my questions. I'm sure I'll have more as time goes on.

Another question that popped into my head. When hooking things up I plan to disconnect shore power, disconnect the negative leads off the battery, and unplug the solar panels on the roof. I read where they say to cover the panels. Shouldn't unplugging them accomplish the same thing?

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Ok, there is a green and a yellow from the solar. You need to track them back far enough to be *sure* you have the right pair. That pair goes to the *input* to the MPPT.

You need a wire from the + output of the MPPT to one of the thermal breakers attached to the DC bus bar. If all the breakers are taken up, you need to add a fuse inline.

You need a wire from the - output of the MPPT to the DC return bus bar. You also need a wire from the chassis ground on the MPPT to the same ground / return bus bar.

Next, there are two versions of the MPPT. One has a built in Bluetooth, you connect your phone to complete the setup. The other one does not have Bluetooth. It needs some sort of external dongle to finish the setup.

You might consider putting a breaker in the + lead from the solar. You can then use it to take power off of the MPPT. That can be handy when doing work on stuff.

Bob

[AirMiles]

GMFL has that ground on the side of his Victron controller. Maybe he will chime in on where he connected that wire. I believe you will be fine by just unplugging the solar panels on the roof without covering them. But make sure you connect the Victron controller to the busbars and reconnect the batteries first before reconnecting the solar panels on the roof. The Victron controller needs to get 12V from the batteries first to set the battery voltage before it gets voltage from the solar panels.

[AirMiles]

Thanks Uncle_Bob. I agree that grounding the Victron solar controller would go to the negative busbar. But again, AmSolar's wiring diagrams do not show that ground connection and I've never seen an AmSolar installation with a ground connection like GMFL's. Here is an AmSolar installation on a 2011 Airstream with no ground wire: https://amsolar.com/solar-panels-for...ternational-28 . I've looked at most of the AmSolar installation pictures multiple times and cannot recall ever seeing a chassis ground from the Victron solar controller. I'm sure adding that wire will not hurt anything and probably will make it better. But I do not have that on my installation following AmSolar's wiring diagrams and past installations.

Here's another AmSolar installation with obviously no chassis ground on the Victron controller: https://amsolar.com/solar-panels-for...reekside-fq-20

Here is a better link to all of AmSolar's installation pictures: https://amsolar.com/solar-panels-for-rv

[GMFL]

Originally Posted by AirMiles

GMFL has that ground on the side of his Victron controller. Maybe he will chime in on where he connected that wire

I attached “ground” wire to the grounding lug on the inverter. It’s just grounded to the frame on the trailer. Since my 100/30 is mounted to the skin it’s really not needed, but I prefer Overkill....

[Nelsonsrus]

Thank you to all who provided comments and direction. I think I have enough to get me going and will attempt things tomorrow. I'll let everyone know how it went and if any other questions come up as I proceed.

[AirMiles]

Here is what the Victron Instruction Manual says about grounding:

3.2 Grounding
● Battery grounding: the charger can be installed in a positive or
negative grounded system.
Note: apply a single ground connection (preferably close to the
battery) to prevent malfunctioning of the system.
● Chassis grounding: A separate earth path for the chassis
ground is permitted because it is isolated from the positive and
negative terminal.
● The USA National Electrical Code (NEC) requires the use of an
external ground fault protection device (GFPD). These MPPT
chargers do not have internal ground fault protection. The system
electrical negative
should be bonded through a GFPD to earth ground at one (and
only one) location.
● The charger must not be connected with grounded PV arrays
(one ground connection only)

Link:
https://www.victronenergy.com/upload...R-DE-ES-SE.pdf

I'm not an electrician or an electrical engineer, but it seems to me that grounding the Victron solar controller to the Airstream frame could create an unwanted multiple ground situation. I will continue to follow AmSolar's wiring diagrams and example installations.

[billrector]

The only thing you must wire correctly the first time is the battery to controller. Do not connect (-) to (+) even once or you will fry that expensive controller. Ask me how I know! (and I’m an engineer!)

Victron was good enough to replace it!

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by AirMiles

Here is what the Victron Instruction Manual says about grounding:

3.2 Grounding
● Battery grounding: the charger can be installed in a positive or
negative grounded system.
Note: apply a single ground connection (preferably close to the
battery) to prevent malfunctioning of the system.
● Chassis grounding: A separate earth path for the chassis
ground is permitted because it is isolated from the positive and
negative terminal.
● The USA National Electrical Code (NEC) requires the use of an
external ground fault protection device (GFPD). These MPPT
chargers do not have internal ground fault protection. The system
electrical negative
should be bonded through a GFPD to earth ground at one (and
only one) location.
● The charger must not be connected with grounded PV arrays
(one ground connection only)

Link:
https://www.victronenergy.com/upload...R-DE-ES-SE.pdf

I'm not an electrician or an electrical engineer, but it seems to me that grounding the Victron solar controller to the Airstream frame could create an unwanted multiple ground situation. I will continue to follow AmSolar's wiring diagrams and example installations.

Hi

The key phrase is "....chassis grounding is permitted....". In other words they do not hook the outer shell of the unit to anything internally. Since it's floating relative to all the other connections, no multiple ground issue is created by the connection to the ground lug.

Bob

[FishByFly]

I need to reset the pin to my Victron SmartSolar MPPT 100/20. I see on the app where to reset. I understand that the PUK code is on the packaging. Which number is that code?