Testing a new MPPT Solar Charge Controller and why we have to use MPPT's for our solar panel kits.

At Lightharvest Solar we get tons of manufacturers wanting us to buy their new products. This one visually looked great so we brought in a couple 30 Amp and a 60 Amp MPPT to test. It has a nice touch screen and it works but that's about all we really like about this one, it did NOT pass our "would I be happy if I bought it test". Bummer, I had high hopes.
I'm super picky about every little detail with equipment and almost always find nits to pick.
The video says it all. Overall I would call it mid pack in a crowded market of 30 A MPPT's. At least it works.

Things I like:
The company was great to work with and got it to me fast. One of the best in terms of customer service, my contact there went above and beyond.
Nice box arrived in good shape with nice packaging.
It has robust, easy to use terminals accessed from the back and hidden nicely (a big deal and common problem).
One of the nicest looking on the market.
Touch controls are neat.
Tough aluminum frame with big integrated heatsink.
Great fit and finish.
Nice screen coloring

Things I don't like:
Hard to mount and even harder to mount straight.
NO BLUETOOTH! Gotta have it.
Busy screen with tons of irrelevant content. The data I do want to see is tiny.
The screen times out fast and totally turns off, then you get lots of bright blue blinking lights all the time that make no sense.
Screen is super difficult to see in bright light and off angles.
Hard to program for Lithium batteries, I gave up.
Hard to program custom charging profile, I gave up.
It was cycling on and off at first which led to initial frustration, seen it go on and off intermittently with lower voltage panels since then.
Difficult instructions with the essentials missing and lots of incoherent irrelevant, complicated information. If it's not SUPER easy and to the point, I move on. My customers don't want it.

I feel super bad but this one is going to have a tough go without major work. A new screen and some changes in the software would go a long way. Lose the blinking lights (nobody wants blinking lights at night) and put a screen with the voltage big and easy to read, also show amps in, mandatory. Everything else is fluff and needs to go. It's like a huge box at the grocery store and a tiny bit of product when you open it. It looks good at first but then it just annoys you.

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LightHarvest Solar is retail store and vehicle install shop in Portland Oregon and we've been running it off grid for 7 years. We've beat up most everything and if it's not on our website, it's because we don't like it.
Take a look at the products we think are the best out there.

www.lightharvestsolar.com

Thanks for watching.

Видео Testing a new MPPT Solar Charge Controller and why we have to use MPPT's for our solar panel kits. канала LightHarvest Solar