TriStar Manual

19TriStar MPPT Operator’s Manual
Switches 4, 5, & 6: Battery Charging Settings
It is important to select the battery type that matches the system battery to ensure proper charg-
ingandlongbatterylife.Refertothespecicationsprovidedbythebatterymanufacturerand
chooseasettingthatbesttstherecommendedchargingprole.
Settings
Switches
4 - 5 - 6
Battery
Type
Absorp.
Stage
(Volts)
Float
Stage
(Volts)
Equalize
Stage
(Volts)
Equalize
Interval
(Days)
off-off-off 1 - Gel 14.00 13.70
off-off-on 2 - Sealed* 14.15 13.70 14.40 28
off-on-off 3 - Sealed* 14.30 13.70 14.60 28
off-on-on 4 - AGM/Flooded 14.40 13.70 15.10 28
on-off-off 5 - Flooded 14.60 13.50 15.30 28
on-off-on 6 - Flooded 14.70 13.50 15.40 28
on-on-off 7 - L-16 15.40 13.40 16.00 14
on-on-on 8 - Custom Custom Custom Custom Custom
* “Sealed” battery type includes gel and AGM batteries
All settings are for 12 Volt nominal systems. Multiply the charge voltage settings by 2 for 24 Volt
systems or by 4 for 48 Volt systems. A description of each setting is provided below. See sec-
tion 4.3 for full details on battery charging and a description of each of the settings in the battery
charging table.
Battery Type-Themostcommonbatterytypeassociatedwiththespeciedchargingsettings.
Absorption Stage - This stage limits input current so that the Absorption voltage is maintained.
As the battery becomes more charged, the charging current continues to taper down until the
battery is fully charged.
Float Stage - When the battery is fully charged, the charging voltage will be reduced to the Float
voltage setting.
Equalize Stage - During an equalization cycle, the charging voltage will be held constant at the
speciedvoltagesetting.
Equalize Interval - The number of days between equalization charges when the controller is con-
guredforautomaticequalizations(settingsswitch7).
Switch 7: Battery Equalization
Choose between manual and automatic battery equalization charging. In the manual equaliza-
tion setting, an equalization will only occur when manually started with the push-button or when
requested from the equalize menu on the TriStar meter. Automatic equalization will occur accord-
ingtothebatteryprogramspeciedbysettingsswitches4,5,&6inthepreviousstep.