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idiggplants
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# Posted: 16 Feb 2017 15:03 - Edited by: idiggplants
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first post here! we currently have a cabin that is off grid... we have a series 31 battery being powered by a renogy pwm controller, and 2x 100w renogy panels.
we are adding a second system at our shed that will have a single 100w panel and use the discarded battery from the cabin when it is at the end of its life. 100w and a trash battery will be more than enough for our use. a few led lights and occasional radio use.
we plan on moving the pwm controller that is currently at the cabin to the pavilion and replacing it with a 40a mppt controller. for now we will probably stick to 200w of panels, but would possibly double that down the road.
long story short... i wanted to hear about people's experience with epsolar/renogy/hqst/EPEVER/SolarEpic mppt controllers... basically any of the cheap amazon controllers... its going to be hard for me to justify spending much more, but i wanted to make sure they werent complete junk. reviews seem good, and from what little i can find online, people on different forums seem to like them.
anyways, thanks for the input!
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groingo
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# Posted: 17 Feb 2017 11:10 - Edited by: groingo
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EP, Tracer all the same but sometimes one will have features the other doesn' t so if you get one get it from someone like Amazon that has a good return policy just in case.
Just search charge controllers here and you should find a wealth of information to help you make your decision as you grow your system and figure on making some mistakes along the way cause that's half the fun making your own discoveries!
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idiggplants
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# Posted: 17 Feb 2017 15:47 - Edited by: idiggplants
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thanks. i have an email in to epsolar to find out the difference between their A series and BN series mppt controllers. not a lot of info out there.
ill definitely be buying from amazon. only way i can be sure these companies hold up their end of the warranty deal.
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creeky
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# Posted: 17 Feb 2017 18:45
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Morningstar has the Prostar 3rd gen mppt 30 amp. it has a lot of nice features. and its programmable. and MS is proven over decades. So if its reliable you're looking for.
don't bother with the A series from epsolar. but the BN series looks pretty good. no experience with it. but it looks like a morningstar ts series knock off.
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Clipper
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2017 12:48
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I am currently using the tracer 4215BN 40A model on 520 watts of PV. Been using it for 2 years and have no complaints. It is a China made knock off but sure delivers. The reviews are generally very good. The cost difference for me was about a $600.00 saving, thought I would try it out to help off set the total cost of the system and to get up and running on my first solar go.
You can't go wrong with Morningstar, outback or Midnite though, top rated product if you have room in the budget.
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creeky
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2017 19:01
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Hey Clipper, is that BN programmable?
I've liked the look of these, but have always wondered. Do they upgrade the firmware? Are the charge variables programmable?
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Clipper
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2017 19:54
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Hey Creeky, yes it is fully programmable with an MT50 remote unit. The remote unit is a must have. Apparently you can upgrade the Firmware (I haven't) there is a good (bit of Chinglish) manual that comes with the remote and main unit. I am impressed with it so far, nothing fancy but it is a workhorse.
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creeky
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# Posted: 20 Feb 2017 00:34
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idiggplants
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# Posted: 20 Feb 2017 08:56
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thanks guys. its good to hear actual experience outside of amazon reviews for these.
i was trying to get the A series cause i liked that it had a display screen on it and could save money by not getting the mt50. but if the BN series is that much better, i should go with it.
thanks for the info everyone.
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creeky
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# Posted: 20 Feb 2017 22:32
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those things are so cheap. the BNs additional programability will probably make it money well spent in the long run. esp if you decide to change battery chemistries. 
but. you know. .02 and all that.
I can't believe there's a 48v / 150v version that's programmable and is less than 300.
Or a BN for 150. sheesh. Dem bones, dem cheap bones.
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idiggplants
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# Posted: 21 Feb 2017 08:31
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its really hard to tell what "additional programmability" the BN series has. i assumed that with the screen on the A series, it had similar programmability that the BN did.
cheap is relative. we had this cabin setup where we would haul in a battery every time we visited, and it cost us $100 for a new battery every 7ish years. so this setup is purely for the convenience of not having to haul batteries. so $200 might not be "expensive", but it is still hard to justify.
the other thing is... for $200, i could get 2 more 100w panels to run through the pwm controller. so maybe that is the better option? of course then i also need more wires and fuses, and another couple pole mounts.
decisions decisions....
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