Hello all. I have assembled a wind generation system with the following components, but in a year of experimentation, have never been able to get the system to produce enough energy to charge the battery: 600W Wind Generator Turbine Motor PMA Alternator (DC) Xantrex 35 charge controller 2 x 300W dump loads Blocking Diode 1 AC DELCO M31MF 12v battery I have attached some photos for your reference to see if any setting or wiring looks strange or wrong. I have tested the wires coming straight from the motor and they register volts. I have tested the battery as to whether it will charge with a regular battery charger and the lamp changes from red to black. This battery was new one year ago when I first used it for the system. Any help would be hugely appreciated, as I bought two other systems identically for friends and none of us has had any luck getting started. Kev
Hi Kev, Welcome to the forum. Hopefully some of us can help? There is a lot more information you would have to provide. How far is your turbine from your rectifier? What kind of location is the turbine set in? What size wire is ran from the turbine to the rectifier? Your wires over all look very small. Just looking at the wires going to your dump load coils you should have a #8 wire. Are you sure the PMA is working correctly? How did you test it? Is your CC set for diversion mode? Have you eliminated the CC and just used an amp meter and volt meter between the battery and the turbine? Things like this will help us help you.
Thanks Leamy Electric, I appreciate that there is definitely more information that I need to provide to you to get a clear answer and thank you so much for suggesting some points for clarification. 1. The turbine in my case is about 4 meters above the adjacent roof (I realize that this is not much). 2. As the PMA is a DC motor, I had read that no rectifier was required between the turbine and the CC. 3. The cable length between the turbine and CC is approx. 6 meters. 4. The cable width is equivalent of #14 / 2mm (is this too thin?) 5. The PMA has been tested without the CC in good winds and it seems to be in working order. 6. CC jumpers are set for Charge Control, with the dials set for top and left respectively. If there is anything glaringly wrong above please let me know. Additionally, is there is any other information that I can provide, please let me know. Thanks so much
Thank for responding. From what i can tell: Your CC should be on diversion mode not charging mode. Please see your directions on how to do that on consult with the manufacture of it. Your wires are way to small. They should be number 8 or 6 fine stranded meaning, 40 amp or 60 amp wire gauge. No, you do not need a rectifier if your PMA is a straight DC output. Please keep us posted
Thanks Leamy Electric again, You mentioned that the CC should be on diversion mode rather than charging mode. However, directions in the user manual confuse the terminology (at least for me) by stating: Charge Control Mode PV Charge Controller - controls charging in PV installations. Diversion Controller – used in PV, wind, or hydro installations to divert any excess energy to a diversion load and in the case of a wind or hydro generator, helps to prevent over-spin damage. Load Control Mode • Load Controller - prevents damage to the battery from over-discharge during periods of poor charging or excessive loads. The C-Series can be configured to function as three different controllers: PV Charge Controller (Charge Control mode) Diversion Controller (Charge Control mode) Load Controller (Load Control mode) So, diversion mode should be in Charge Control mode or Load Control? Kevin
Billi, Thanks so much for the advice. Have since moved the dump loads to an alternative (non-flammable) surface. Kevin
For the best resluts all's you have to do is call the manufacture. I personally do not own own of these CC. Again, i am sure tech support will help you through the issue if you just not sure. I hope this helps
