Cheap solar charge controller 

Have used this exact command, rated for 30A , using two 100w panels and 2 Deepcycle RV 100ah batteries, for about a year. So far, its operated great. I build a off grid cabin, I use this 200w specifically for lights and my on demand water pump. I get roughly 5 days worth of clouds and rain to operate the lights and the water. Other devices are connected to a larger system, fridge, microwave , coffee maker, etc. I split systems. In case of something malfunctions , i will still have lights , phone charger, charge my laptop. keeping the load light, this little solar command is perfect if you need simple lights a phone charge. Ive even run my 32 smart tv off it through a power inverter. To a large system this is is great backup system. Guys out there looking to buy one, make sure you get the 30amp, even for a 100w panel, i suggest only 200w. I bought some new panels which are 100w, but im pulling 110w out of each of the two panels. The latest new panels can crank out the watts , unlike years past where they say a panel is 100w and even in direct sunlight you get 90w if that...

Late to this game but just started returning my big greenhouse to operation and needed to get the soar panels running the vent fan again. Bought the same charger controller. Yours is the best primer on the device hands down TY so much, brother.

I saw you can change the menu on the controller to change the battery type. Press menu to 601, then hold til screen blinks, then use 2 rt bottoms to change to cel flood or other lithium type battery. See other link video.

The wonderful thing about these is they're cheap so you can buy spares if they break But I've used mine for over 5 years now and I have not had a problem with it. I mean don't expect it to charge at 30 amps or anything but for like something in less than 10 amps works fine.

FYI. The load connection is powered by the battery. So you can run a device day or night & doesn't require a panel to be powered or even connected in order to work

What I've noticed about the one I purchased is it seems to function as more of a charge regulator than a charge controller. Mine will send the battery a 14.4 VDC charge all the time, no matter what settings I use and it will never switch to a float charge. My higher quality MPPT charge controller will switch to a float charge on the same battery. You get what you pay for.

I will be very interested in the overall performance of this controller. THANKS!!!

Been using mine on a small 100w panel system since 2015. Still working just fine. I use mppt on my 400 watt panel system

Put a disconnect switch on the panels just before the controller. Turn panels on or off when working with the battery wires.

I think I bought the same controller. SUNYIMA 20A Solar Charge Controller, Solar Panel Charger Controller 12V/24V, Multi-Function Adjustable LCD Display with Dual USB Port Timer Setting PWM Auto Parameter (20A). The listing on Amazon says it IS compatible with Lithium batteries. I installed this in my shed to power a light and to trickle charge my lawnmower. The I’m using a small LiPo4 battery as the main battery, and then a trickle charge controller on the switched output.

This was really helpful. Thanks

you did a good job on this video. thanks for making it.

it will supply load night and day, till the button is hit sir. 50 replys and ill put up a video of a pretty professional install, i did myself in a 25 foot camper

I have read some of the comments and people is always saying that their model support lithium batteries. Well, you really need to read carefully the small quick start guide coming with it. It seems that there are different models supporting different batteries. On mine it is written at the beginning: 3. The regulator is only suitable for lead acid batteries: OPEN, AGM, GEL. It is not suitable for nickel metal hybride, lithium ions or other batteries. In case you are wondering, my model is the SP666.

I want to charge 12V old car battery and use it for WIFI surveillance camera that uses 12V. Commercial manufactured solar or battery powered cameras can't do 24/7 they only wake up with PIR sensor. Camera uses up to 8W of energy, to run 24/7 it will be about 192Wh /24h. From 12V battery it would be about 192/12=16Hh, Old battery is rated at 45Ah, so I assume that it can hold a third of its rated power, and it will get some light during the day directly from solar panels, so from the battery it will have to run only for max 16 hours when there is no sun. So in the winter short cloudy days I might need some 100W to 200W so it reliably can top off while sun is available. There are plenty of cheap used panels available locally, panels in 100 to 200W range are almost for free. But most of them have higher rated working voltages, 40V or more, up to 100V. I wonder what will happen if I connect such panel (say 50V working voltage, and use only one 12V battery) to this little inverter that is rated for panels up to 25V when using 12V battery, or 50V with 24v battery. Will it fry controller, will it fry battery, or full potential of solar panel will not be used, and extra Voltage will go to waist, and I will get only half of what solar panel would be able to deliver?

Excellent. review.. learned a lot. . simple. and. quick .. all the others. were a little confusing ... thanks buddy

Good video just got one of these for Christmas. My alternator went out in one of my vehicles, so the battery was completely dead. It charged my car battery just fine so I was able to drive it to the shop. It’s cheap but does work. Thanks for the video. -And maybe it’s Time for a phone upgrade.😂🤣 JK thanks again.

Love your hard and honest approach to our daily power problems. Keep up the good work Graeme from Edinburgh Scotland . Your new fan. :)

I ordered one of this for my rv. I have a 7 watt solar, my plan is to keep my battery charged so I do not have keep it plugged in . Like all rv ther is a couple of detection devices in the rv that drain the battery I presume it will still work .

Can you tell us why you set the float voltage at 14.2 volts ? where did you get that number from ? Also I would like to point out that when that controller hits `14.2 volts it will NOT stop charging the battery, it will charge and hold the battery at that voltage, I would recommend a float voltage of between 13.6 and 13.8 volts, and it will then keep your battery at that voltage. Doing a bulk charge or a topping off charge once a week of 14.4 to 14.8 for 2-hours would help to desolve any built up sulfate on the plates. Thank you for the video.

On mine there is a Icon Labeled Lithium Battery and in the manuel it states that you can use it with one. It seems to be a bit diffrent then the model shown here even through it has the same layout.

I have same one here in Ukraine, a 30A version. Few strange things about it. 1. When arrow between pannel and battery icon is flashing the current in flowing from pannel to controller (I put multimeter in that line). But, when the arrow is constantly on, current is not flowing, and the dusplay on controller shows 14.4 v. 2. After a minute or so the arrow starts flashing and current is flowing. This lasts forva fe minutes and than step 1. begins again. Looks like controller does not have propper hysteresis set, or whatever, and it can not stop charging properly when the battery is full. Arrow should not be on at all. I use 200Ah lead acid battery.

The manual that comes with this was a mamphlet actually. But it never explained what the buttons do.

you can use them on lithium, just need to have a BMS on them

I don't think the sun has to be shinning on your panel for the load terminals to work. I think it will pull from the battery, no solar panel even needed.

Yeah ok but you need to understand that the load is running from the battery and so is the USB. At night the USB and the load will still run without the solar panel.

Why is my solar panel symbol not showing when it is connected and in sunlight?

Can you make a video of battery ratings and solar panels ratings with the rating of charge controller too

Thank you for the video. I plan to order the exact controller. Can you tell. Me what is the largest gauge wiring that would fit into the controller? Also, should I be using ferrules?

Maybe yours works, but mine did not. I tried the 30A and the 100A models. The voltage reading (on both) was .6A higher than the rest of my meters. Neither model actually charged my battery. I have 2 sets of 2 batteries wired in series for 24VDC and 5 sets of 2 100W Panels wired in series parallel. Neither model gives me an output for the load. Don't know if the panel voltage is too high or low, and the user's manual does not tell me anything useful.

I had one of those when I was starting out and had a 12 volt system. I only used it for about two months, and then I changed my system to 24 volts. I may try to use it for something else. I am installing some new #2 welding lead wire on my battery bank. I just now had rewired my Epever Tracer 40 amp controller...I added more solar panels, so I added another pair of wires coming in from outside. I will have to get two more panels to give me 1400 watts coming in. I think my controller can handle 1600 watts but I don't want to fry it this summer, with all the sunspots or whatever. The old cable was 1/0 but it had been wet so it did have some corrosion...I figured new wire was about due...but with a 2000 watts inverter, it won't have to be so big of wire, so I just got #2. With the the lugs I have, I can always double them later if I get a bigger inverter. Two pair will carry 390 amps. My little inverter only pulls about 80 usually. When I had 12 batteries, the system would act a certain way...now, with 18, soon to be 20...( The Twenty Mule Team Battery Pack )...it acts completely differently...once all these things are charged, nothing I can do will run them down for very long...they regenerate quickly now, like I didn't even use any power. Once I get my wiring into better shape, I think the system will work better than it has in the past. I didn't realize my cables were not in very good shape. SO I have forty feet of red and black cable, and some lugs and a propane torch...I have had a pair of jumper cables on two of my batteries , so that they would charge...they are hooked up but I have a bad solder joint somewhere or something...I'm going to try and find and repair/ replace before the sun comes up. I just added two 100 watts panels, so I want to see how they are going to do...here I was buying batteries every month or two, and the cables were bad...I should be able to weld off of them now, through a heavy choke coil and some big caps. So I have taken the secondary transformer coil out of a 1920's Greyhound welder...it looks like 40 feet of #8 wire, weighs about 12 pounds...the resistance is 0.1 ohm...it's a cloth coated wire, the ends are hand wrapped with friction tape. I still think it may be 5% gold in the copper, wire. It's 92 years old and still shiny like brand new...not even thinking about corroding yet. I've been around batteries and cars since I was five...I used to go play in the salvage across the street...my friend's grandad owned it. So I have seen every condition of copper, and it is a fact that it does oxidize...just like a penny...okay this old coil, the wire looks about like a year old penny...still shiny though...I've never seen copper that didn't tarnish somewhat...So I have to tinker with it and so that's how come I had to change the wire out. I want the whole team to be there when the welding experiment continues...but I can try it at least later maybe...I didn't want to lose a solder joint while trying it out. I will have to go to Farm and Ranch later for solder, I think. Is 22,250 watt hours enough to weld off of, or do I need to go to 25,000 watt hours, by getting two more final batteries? In two weeks I will answer that question, but for now...I don't know yet...lol. I also have a brand new 120 volt motor off a blender that is brand new...it has brushes, so I can run it off my battery bank, and it will use almost no amps...makes a nice fan...just the right speed...I made one already, and it blows a lot of air...can run off of #20 wires pretty long...they don't get hot...great summer time fan to blow on inverters and things...I'm going to make another one before spring. There's you an idea...try that. My old one has tape holding one of the brushes in because the holder is cracked, but it still works...I just want a better one, lol...the last one was a Craftsman leaf blower motor. It laid out in my uncle's yard for years until I picked it up...and I said, " I'm gonna make something out of this." Well, now it's pretty cool, turns out the motor had ball bearings, so it's quiet when running. It blows about the same amount of air as a box fan on high. I used a shield and blade from a Chinese desk fan that didn't work anymore. This would be a great project for anyone...basically the shield fits right on the motor easily. And the blade slips on and tighten...and that's about it except a switch , and the right polarity...the motors will usually favor one direction a little better than the other. And it will last years and years until you need brushes. I'll find another brush holder and fix mine better but it won't hurt a thing to have two fans this summer... remember to use 24 volts to run it. I have ran mine off of a 100 watt solar panel too...lol...it more or less runs at open voltage like 21.6 or whatever it is...I have left mine on for days in the summer...the last one was a four blade, but I'm going to make a 3 blade job this time. If you build one, be sure and be surprised at how much you are running it. Do a nice job, now. And you will have a keeper. It's like they used to say...even a blind pig finds an acorn every once in awhile. I just stumbled onto this, and thought I would share...it's a pretty easy build, and very worth it. I put a big pair of alligator clips on mine...and I'm building a 38 amp hour twin battery pack to make it mobile...I can't wait to see your reply to my comment, also...

Didn't know it required the big car battery. Why don't they have a controller for the other type of battery.?

Mine started switching my system from a 12 volt to a 24 volt system all on its own..... it will run at 12 for awhile than screen fades out for a minute or so and comes back on and identifies itself as a 24 volt system.. Allmost lasted me a year.

JUST got 2, 30a, they work, £10 each, but, looking at a few vids, people taking them to bits, the only difference between the 10a and the 30a, is the price, they are the same, just have a tick a different box,

I want to change the discharge stop voltage, and discharge re-connect voltage. I can get into the menu and settings and change the values, but it does not seem to retain the changed values when I go back into the menu to check..... I can't tell if my values remain set, or returned to defaults

Amazing.. to see such an old phone in 2022 😁

You did not explain the timer function. Somehow I could not get mine to work right... And by the way a LiFePo4 can be safely be charged by those PWM charger because their voltage levels are really compatible except that the later do not need equalizing and prefer not to be trickle charged. But that's why it is imperative that the LiFePo4 has a built in BMS, which most of the commercial packs have de facto. I prefer to attach my own BMS with bluetooth and active balancer to monitor the state of charge and balance of the cells. Preferably, I would chose one that match my deisire Ah and that come with 1, or better yet, 5A! active balancer. Both Heltec and Daly makes one for a reasonable price. Heltec is cheaper but Daly is bluetooth capable.

What is the maximum input voltage?

One thing I did not see demonstrated was use of BOTH USB ports at the same time. Was this tried?

I got that controller I keep having to unplug it and let it sit it won't let me adjust it seems it keeps heating up the batteries

You don't say how much power the controller keeps for itself? Mine uses 10 milliamps = 3 watts a day.

Hi .I loved the way of understanding how a simple solar system can work .but every household capacity is different. So how many batteries do I use equivalent to solar panels if I want solar charge my normal 210 litre fridge freezer

Hi shoestring. Where should i connect the inverter ? On the battery connections or load connections?

Does your one remember the settings when its unplugged and powered on later?

hi my solar charger controller looks after the sun gone is drain the battery and the battery is not connected with nothing

MIn 5:00 , but in the settings , there is 3 different Batterie types (b1 , b2 , b3 ) ... `?

Recently I wondered how much is the charge controller type or model going to affect the performance of your system? I have a cheap charge controller like this one. And it does work. But some people seem to have varying results on what voltage their batteries are charged too. That could be just the battery quality, but I wondered how much of that is being affected by a good or great charge controller versus something average? Are the results of a good or great charge controller going to look the same or very different than an average one controlling a system being charged? Thanks.

Can I use this for this Portable Power Station 100W Portable Generator 146Wh/39600mAh External Lithium Battery Pack with USB C or my Newpow power station and bypass the battery since they both have their own built in batterys

i don't have a battery but would like to connect this to a solar panel to charge usb devices. is that ok? does it matter what watt solar panel? thanks, and i appreciate the video!

The load, does that also draw from the battery or solar panels only? I wasn't sure

Can you just use the 12 V power supply without the batterie ?

4.14 (re device/lightbulb).. 'as long as the sun is on the solar panels it will run' - is this correct? What should happen.. to my guess.. is that the device (lightbulb) is run from the battery or the solar until the battery lowers to a certain voltage (maybe 11 (lightbulb)) and then the device will be switched off until the battery has regained some charge from the panel (maybe been lifted to 12v) ??

You said you had 'lead acid battery' as bulk of your power systems. I was curious to ask ... the lithium batteries haven't been around that long. Doesn't this mean lead acid may possibly last better if taken care of? There should be more years to have scienced out all the kinks on something that's been around longer? And I'm curious how long you think a lead acid battery bank would last for if taken care of right? Thanks.

Hi, I have purchased this to go Camping 2 twice a year. 250W Solar Panel Kit 12V Generator Camping Power Battery Charger Mono Regulator. Like this one in your video. The regulator has 2 USB ports for charging Mobile devices Phones and Pocket size Battery banks. As Am upgrading my Larger devices 12v Camp fridge. If I want to store the Solar Panels power into a Battery How do you know what AGM Deep cycle Battery to buy In Ah's Example 25Ah, 50Ah 100Ah, ?? Thanks

I have this same charge controller. It works fine with my battery. I have an mc4 adapter for the solar panel to the terminal wires for the controller. I've tried two different panels and it doesn't display the solar panel icon on the charge controller. Does the terminal register that the solar panel is connected straight away and light up with the icon or do I have to have direct sunlight for it to work? Please help ☺️TIA

I don't know if the various colors that these come in are all the same but the green ones I got that look exactly like this otherwise are absolute junk. They don't even pulse width modulate as advertised. When the battery reaches voltage, they just disconnect instead of throttling the current for a proper top off and then they won't resume charging until the battery voltage dips way down to mostly discharged (13.1 volts for a Lifepo4). Unacceptable.

What even funnier is that mine only operates when black is positive for the solar panel.

QUESTION??? Can you connect an inverter directly to the controller or must it go through a battery?

I am thinking of getting one of these. They sell them for 40 bucks inclusive solarpanel. But instead of connecting it to a battery, I want to connect it to two powerbanks, through the USB ports, charging them with a solarpanel. Should I be worried about anything or is it a solid Go Ahead? As your phone was charging but you were connected to the battery.

Hello.. I did buy this unit and id do not charge the battery at al. I hear about the cable must be G10 so what is wrong. I did change the cable to the battery to G10 and still not work. Must al the cables be thicker G10 cables ? I se that you do have a thicker cable that comes from the solar penal. How can i get a thinker cable to connect the solar penal to the controller ? Who can help me out of this so i can use it as soon as possible ?

solar build in every single mobile gadjet,optional normal manual charger

Your battery cables (the ones with the alligator clamps) are too thin for a 60A controller... just sayin. Thanks for the video!

I have a 12v 200ah leshure battery can i use this conrroelw

Mine was connected to a small solar panel (size of a sheet of paper) and a car battery. USB started smoking... brand new, junk.

My solar panel display disappears after the sun goes down but then doesn’t come back when the sun comes back up? Does anyway have an idea on why this may be happening?

how accurate is the voltage reading of the charge controller?

I have 36v panel and 12v battery. It will work?

Anyone know how to connect a controller to a 48v lithium to charge a 12v battery?

What king of phone is that man?

I am using one of these controllers to charge a Milwaukee M12 Lithium battery but I've already killed a couple of batteries. I use it to power a 4G hotspot from the USB port and a WiFi camera (1Amp) from the load terminals. I have it set to the correct mode for lithium batteries and it charges fine. My trouble is when we get an overcast day the batteries drop below the Discharge cutoff voltage but it does not cutoff the load and the batteries are discharged to destruction. I'm wondering if there is a minimum load current required for the controller to function correctly.

Excellent

How many solar panels can be connect to this charge controller

I just acquired one of these but without instructions as it came with another purchase. Mine however is suitable for lithium but I cannot see how to set it to different battery types. I have found a screen that scrolls from BT1 to BT6 which possibly are type settings. Can you verify which would be which please?

Thanks for the video. I was going to use 10w 12v solar pannel with 10A controller. In cold weather, lead acid battery drains so fast. Will it prevent ignition failure in cold winter for two months without other charging? It will be better than nothing but still wonder if it will work.

the wire I have that connects to the solar panel is just bare wire - probably 22 gauge - what is the connector type that is used to plug into the controller for the solar panel?

I hooked up the same charge controller to my RV. Do l want to move the load lines from my batteries to the controller or leave them hooked to the batteries.

How does the wire make the connection to the charge controller? I know you unscrew something and then a square opening appears. Then you put the wire into the square opening and tighten the screw. But is the connection made by the wire touching the plate that drops when you unscrew the screw or does it connect when the wire goes in the hole and touches something inside at the back?

if i add a bms board on the battery it won't overcharge right?

Thanks for the tips, if I have a gel battery can I use the 20a controller if I only have a 100w at the moment while I'm still trying to upgrade for a parallel of both battery and panels? Thanks

, can i charge my lead acid solar batt using a power converter with at least 12amps not a solar panel,?thanks👍

would you describe the type of wires I should buy. My solar panel has a connection piece that does not fit into my solar charge controller

Do you have a tutorial on how to wire an inverter onto this build?

Can I use this device to charge a gel battery that's use in a power wheelchair?

How can How can you tell if it is a 20 or 30

Would you know what the different battery settings are? I have a 10 and a 30 Amp model. Both show 3 different battery types b01, bo2 and b03. No explanation what these code refer to but I think b01 by default is lead/acid but just not sure.

Will the load operate a 12v device at nighttime, if the battery is charged? ty

Can you do a video like this for beginners?

Can we use a wall adapter as charger instead of PV array? I wanted to use this for a system that has 18V emergency lights as load and the battery will run them but when the grid comes back on the battery needs to be charged by the wall adapter. Is this suitable for that?

I have a question for you shoestring...is there a need for a inline fuse between the solar panel into the controller..?? Or at all..?? The reason I ask is I watched another video, and the guy put fuses going into the controller and out of the controller. I bought the exact model you have in this video. I am running 80-100 watt solar panel. I'm using 2 little 12V 9 ah batteries AGM. Any info would be great, because I don't understand why the guy put a fuse going into the controller..?? Thanks bud.

Mine blew up on day 2 load of crap its probably good for 100w any big panels dont bother

I’ve been running lithium on mine

Do you need to open the battery vents at any point? Or does it not vent at such a low trickle charge?

is it ok to have (2) 12v batteries connected together for the purpose of having more storage and use this charge controller

Is there any setting for the controller to charge 12 Volts 80maH Battery???

Hi just subbed how long did it take to charge battery just rigged up sysyem bit baterry showing full but discharges fast and showing number 601 on controller same one as you

Quick question: Does this device come on if only connected to solar panels (19.4 VDC)? I’m trying to troubleshoot the one that came with house I bought last year. Battery appears to be ruined (disconnected it). But device won’t display anything.

So do you leave the load on..

At 3.10 what size cables are you connecting to the device?

So , the thing im running from the battery (2x12v fans ) needs to be connected to the load terminals of the controller and not directly off the battery ?

I have a wet cell lead acid battery that requires maintenance. What voltage sulhouod I keep it at! I've read 12 7 but I try 12 9. It dies bit seen ti last very long in the inverter. Any advice?