dmastroluca Report post Posted November 5, 2015 Well, after 3 months of owning this thing I just figured out that the after market Siemens Solar setup is not charging the house batteries. I thought it was working because the Siemens regulator panel looks like it is working. It shows battery condition and current charging status, but the brand new house batteries are not being charged by the system. In full sun it says it was charging @ 4 amps.Dumb question#1 Does the voltage from the panels go through the regulator and then right to the house batteries? Dumb question #2 Does the inverter have to be on all the time for the solar to charge the house batteries?The house batteries charge fine on shore or genet power. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolfe10 Report post Posted November 5, 2015 Dan, Sadly, there is no "here is how they are all wired. If OE, I would contact your coach maker for a wiring diagram of the solar circuit. Monaco may or may not have support documentation going back that far. The other thing you can do is to trace the wires as they come down off the roof. If aftermarket, often the refrigerator roof vent is used to drop the wires down. The solar could be tied in anywhere in the house 12 VDC system. Yes, best at batteries (with fuse at batteries). But have even seen it tied into the 12 VDC wire to the absorption refrigerator PC board. The other approach is to check the batteries for incoming charge with generator off, shore power off. Turn off/on salesman switch, inverter panel, etc and just see what raises voltage at the battery. The inverter panel on kind of bothers me, as inverters use power in standby mode. If that is how it is wired, I would sure change it! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dmastroluca Report post Posted November 5, 2015 But have even seen it tied into the 12 VDC wire to the absorption refrigerator PC board. That sounds scary! I don't think the previous owners installer went that route. There is a Siemens 20 amp solar regulator panel in the bedroom, below the sink, above the battery compartment. I will try and use my Fox/Hound tracer on the wires going from that regulator and see where they end up. Hopefully in the battery compartment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dmastroluca Report post Posted November 9, 2015 UPDATE: The problem was the 14 year old solar regulator between the array and the batteries. It was totally lying to the previous owner, my RV inspector, and me. It said it was charging 13 volts @ 4 amps, when in reality it was outputting 2 volts to the house batteries. I replaced the regulator with a Go Power! GP-PWM-30 30 Amp Solar Regulator. It popped right in the same hole as the Siemens regulator, and it even has the capability to charge my chassis batteries after it charges/conditions my house batteries. All I have to do is run another cable from the regulator to my chassis battery bank. Not bad for $124. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
