Solar System Installation Guide
1. Scope
This document provides guidelines for electrical contractors installing Taggle Systems revision 3 LPWA Solar receivers.
Figure 1 Typical solar-powered receiver installation.
2. Equipment Description
The Taggle Revision 3 LPWA receiver consumes approximately 2.1A (25W @ 12V) of continuous power. Note if the supplied voltage is 14.4V this increases to 30W (2.1 x 14.4)
Two x 250W solar panels or larger are recommended with 4 x 120Ah batteries
3. Recommended System Components
The recommended components for an MPPT-40 system are shown in the table below
Qty | Item | Part Number |
4 | 12V 120aH Battery |
|
| 300W Solar Panel |
|
1 | Prostar MPPT 40A (No Meter) | PS-MPPT-40 |
1 | Morningstar MSC PC Meterbus Adapter | REG-PCBUS |
1 | Morningstar RTSMS Remote Temperature Sensor | RTSMS |
4 | Clenergy ER-EC25 panel clamps |
|
2 | Clenergy mid clamps |
|
2 | ECO Rail |
|
3 | EZRack 30deg Floor Mount |
|
2 | MC4 Solar Connector Pair |
|
1 | 2 Pole 10A Breaker |
|
6 | M8 Cable Lug 6mm2 |
|
1 | 2 Pole 32A Breaker |
|
1 | 4Pole IP66 Circuit Breaker Enclosure |
|
2 | 2Pole 50A Breaker | SF4154 |
8 | Grounding Clip |
|
3 | Grounding Lug |
|
10 | Cable Clip |
|
As needed | OLFLEX TWIN 6MM cable (per metre) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 | 4-Way Lockable IP66 Circuit Breaker Enclosure | SF4158 |
2 | Clenergy Pole mount kit | ER-PM2-2400 |
| OR |
|
2 | ECO RAIL Single 3150mm | ER-R-ECO3150-EA |
2 | Ezrack Tilt Kit - Adjustable 15-30 Degrees | ER-TL15/30 |
1 | Battery Enclosure to fit 4 batteries |
|
4. Assembly
· Mount the solar controller inside the cable management box of the Taggle receiver using four M4 x 6mm stainless steel nuts and bolts (not supplied). When drilling the mounting holes ensure they are completely de-burred and sealed with galvanising paint or silicon to prevent rust.
· Remove the power cord (if fitted) and DIN mount Power supply.
· Replace the 240V miniature circuit breaker (MCB) with a 10A 2 pole DC MCB.
· Wire the power connection from the main receiver printed circuit board to one side of the MCB as shown in Figure 2 below. Wire the other of the MCB to the load terminals of the controller using hookup wire (0.5mm2 to 1mm2 ) routed through the power supply gland on the top right hand side of the cable management box.
· Run the RJ-11 meterbus cable from the controller through the power supply gland and connect to the controller. Place the Meterbus adapter inside the receiver and connect the input to the RJ-11 cable, with the output connected to a serial or USB port of the receiver using the cable supplied.
· Mount the 20A 2 pole DC MCB and the 50A 2 pole MCB in the weatherproof DIN mounting box. The 20A MCB is used for the solar panel and the 50A MCB are used for the batteries.
· Ensure the battery fuses are open and circuit breakers are in the off (i.e. down position).
· Run the connections from the controller to the MCB/fuses using 4mm2 solar cable run in 25mm flexible conduit, using the bottom right entry point to the receiver cable management box.
Install the two batteries into the battery box and wire the batteries in parallel using 4mm2 solar cable and the crimp lugs. Run the cabling from the batteries to the 50A MCB or fuses in 25mm flexible conduit.
NOTE: this is a 12V solar system – do not wire the batteries in series as this will damage the receiver.
· Drill a vent hole near the top of the battery box to allow any gas to escape in the event of a controller fault over-charging the batteries.
· Fit the RTSMS temperature probe to the negative terminal of one of the batteries and run the probe cable through the same conduit used for the battery cables and connect the probe to the external temperature input of the controller.
· Assemble the solar panel mounting frame and attach the panel using the 4 panel clamps provided. Ensure the solar panel is facing north in an unshaded location. The panel tilt should be set to the latitude of the installation location.
· Wire the panel to the 20A 2 pole MCB using 6mm2 solar cable and the MC-4 connectors provided, enclosing the cable in 25mm flexible conduit.
5. Commissioning
· Double check the polarity of the battery and solar panel connections.
· Close the battery 20A MCB/fuses to power up the solar controller.
· Turn the panel MCB on and check the status of the solar controller – see the solar controller user manual supplied for details.
· Check the battery voltage, it should be in the range 11.0 to 14.5V
· Double check the polarity and voltage on the supply side of the MCB in the receiver.
· Turn the receiver MCB on. The power LED on the main receiver circuit board should illuminate after about 4 seconds.
· The GPS LED just above the power LED should begin flashing within approximately 1 minute.
· The receiver will take between 2 to 5 minutes to completely boot up and establish a backhaul connection. Call the Taggle Network Operation centre on +61 2 8999 1919 to confirm that the receiver is online and working correctly.
· Use the reverse order to power down the receiver, i.e. turn the receiver MCB off, then the panel MCB, and then open the battery fuses/MCB to disconnect the batteries.
NOTE: Never operate the system with the panel on and batteries disconnected, as this may cause the controller to malfunction and apply the full panel voltage (up to 34V) to the receiver resulting in fatal damage to the system.
6. Installing Serial-Modbus connector.
· Connect Serial cable from serial port on Meterbus adapter to serial port on SBC
· Connect RJ11 cable from RJ-11 port on Meterbus adapter to modbus port on Solar controller.
· Route RJ11 cable through power gland to outside receiver *DO NOT DRILL ANY HOLES IN RECEIVER*
· Ensure dip switches are set correctly on Solar controller
6. Connecting Batteries
· Connect charge controllers and loads diagonally across a parallel string battery bank.
· Diagonal connection point installation applies to battery banks of any nominal voltage
7. Connecting Solar Panels
· If there is NO chance of any shading of panels wire the solar panels in series. This has shown to provide better performance in low light, e.g. early morning and late afternoon. Series wired panels give us approx. ½ Hr extra charge time during those times.
· If there is *ANY* Chance of partial shading Wire the solar panels in Parallel.
8. Commissioning
· Double check the polarity of the battery and solar panel connections.
· Close the battery 50A MCB/fuses to power up the solar controller.
· Turn the panel MCB on and check the status of the solar controller – see the solar controller user manual supplied for details.
· Check the battery voltage, it should be in the range 11.0 to 14.5V
· Double check the polarity and voltage on the supply side of the MCB in the receiver.
· Turn the receiver MCB on. The power LED on the main receiver circuit board should illuminate after about 4 seconds.
· The GPS LED just above the power LED should begin flashing within approximately 1 minute.
· The receiver will take between 2 to 5 minutes to completely boot up and establish a back-haul connection. Call the Taggle Network Operation centre on +61 2 8999 1919 to confirm that the receiver is online and working correctly.
· Use the reverse order to power down the receiver, i.e. turn the receiver MCB off, then the panel MCB, and then open the battery fuses/MCB to disconnect the batteries.
Never operate the system with the panel on and batteries disconnected, as this may cause the controller to malfunction and apply the full panel voltage (up to 34V) to the receiver resulting in fatal damage to the system.
7. Solar Wiring Diagram
10. Solar Controller Switch Settings
Switch 1: Load / Lighting
Mode Switch 1 Set for Normal
Normal OFF
Lighting ON
Switches 2, 3: System Voltage
Three (3) system voltage configurations are available as
shown in the table below:
System Voltage Switch 2 Switch 3 Set for 12V
Auto OFF OFF
12 OFF ON
24 ON OFF
Switch 7: Battery Equalization
Mode Switch 7 Set for Auto
Manual Equalization OFF
Auto Equalization ON
Switch 8: Meterbus / MODBUS Settings
Mode Switch 8 Set for MODBUS
Meterbus OFF
MODBUS ON
Switches 4, 5, 6: Battery Type Selection