Catalog Pg. 18

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Battery Monitoring Systems

About the only real maintenance necessary on a photovoltaic system is to the battery bank. And probably the easiest way to keep track of your battery bank's health is by monitoring its voltage. Paying close attention to your battery bank voltage, especially for the first few months you own it, will go a long way to increasing its life expectancy and keeping your system working properly.

We offer several types of monitoring systems, from a simple voltmeter to a much more elaborate battery monitoring system. Many of the charge controllers come with monitoring LED's. While these are somewhat useful, they can be confusing at times. We strongly recommend getting, and using (!), some sort of voltage monitoring equipment on you system.

We include a Battery Care Sheet with almost everything we sell. We now include a Battery Book with any battery bank or system purchased from us. Either of these will instruct you on how to use a voltmeter to monitor your system, and what the various volt-meter readings mean.

One last note: even though you may have a system voltmeter or monitor, a hand held digital voltmeter (DVM) really comes in handy to measure individual batteries within the bank. This type of voltage measurement is a quick way to check the status of each battery and hence insure the entire bank is working correctly.

Tri-Metric Battery Monitor

369-006 Model 2020 $169 TriMetric Monitor

The Tri-Metric is a high quality digital meter which monitors three major battery functions:

l Volts

l Amps

l Amp-Hours

6 other parameters:

l How many days since the batteries were fully

charged

l How many amp-hrs from full charge

l Days since equalized

l Total charge removed since batteries were fully

charged

l Minimum Battery Volts

l Maximum Battery Volts

and 3 battery reminders:

l Time to charge full

l Time to equalize

l Battery volts low

It works on both 12 and 24 volt systems. Pushing a button on the front panel selects which function will be seen on its LED display. The display draws only .02 amps and can be switched off if desired. Other LEDS indicate a fully charged battery or one that is being charged. Voltage readings are accurate to 0.1 volt between 8 and 35 VDC.

The Tri-Metric meter requires either a 100 amp or 500 amp shunt. The Tri-Metric meter is accurate to 3% using either shunt, but the 100mA shunt gives an extra digit of resolution on current readings below 100 amps. Most inverters, however, require more than 100 amps, so most everyone will need the 500 amp shunt.

Total amp-hours can be measured from +999 to -999 within 3%. A net discharge causes the meter to add amp-hours to its total while a net charge causes amp-hours to be subtracted. When the adjustable "charge criterion" is met the amp-hour meter resets itself to zero. This criterion is set by the user depending on battery bank and charging system type. The Model 2000 is designed to mount in a dual-ganged electrical box or the surface-mount wire-mold box.

Remote Shunts

368-002	100 Amp, 100 m, Shunt	$23
368-003	500 Amp, 50 mV Shunt	$28

One of these shunts will be needed with the Tri-Metric Monitor. A shunt is a highly calibrated, very low resistance resistor, which is placed in series (in line) with the wire carrying the current to be measured. Usually a shunt is placed in the negative line near the battery, such that all the current going into and out of the battery must go through it. Instructions for shunt installation are included with the Tri-Metric

Wire Mold Box

369-007 Wire-Mold Box for 2020 $9.50

The Wire-Mold box is a plastic, surface mount, wiring box for mounting various electrical devices, such as a switch or electrical outlet. The Tri-Metric Monitor is constructed on a flat face-plate which mounts nicely to this box.

Shunt Cable

369-008 Meter-to-Shunt Cable $25.00

22 ga., 50 feet long

One end of this cable is prepared for fastening to the shunt. The other end is attached to the terminal strip in the Tri-Metric meter.

48 Volt Adapter/Lightning Protector TM-48VA (DSCN1358)

369-048 TM-48VA $25.00

The TM-48VA will adapt the TriMetric TM-2020 meter for 48 volt operation. It will also provide lightning protection at any operating voltage from 12 to 48V. With the protector installed, the TM-2020 warranty is extended to cover lightning damage. This adapter is designed to mount next to the TriMetric terminal block to which the wires to the battery are connected. Installation instructions are included.

Note: Battery Monitoring Systems are continued on the next web page.

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