I think most solar controllers are setup like the two I have used (Morningstar and Blue Sky), with the battery connection that powers the controller is also the output to the batteries for the solar charging. The panels connect separately to the controller. Marko's older shared ground unit may be the exception.
When I put in the original Morningstar a few years ago, I wired in the panels direct and put a pullable fues on the controller, so it could be turned off when not outside or plugged in, to save some parasitic draw. It seemed to work fine, but when I changed to the Blue Sky controller, the wiring directions were very specific in saying that you should not have an on/off switch in the battery lead, and if you wanted a switch on the solar to put it in the panel to controller wiring. Their explanation was that if you have output from the panels, with no battery connection, you can get a big voltage spike and fry you coach electronics.
I put a switch in the panel circuit when I put in the Blue Sky, but was undecided on which side of my battery cutoff/selector switch to connect the solar to. If I left it on the coach side, I would stand a chance of generating a spike if I had the panels on when I turned on the cutoff/selector switch. If I put it on the battery side, I would have continuous draw on the batteries from the solar controller. It was easiest just to leave it on the coach side and remember not to have the solar panels on without the battery switch on.
When I was doing my testing of the output of the third panel last week, I proved that I wasn't smart enough to remember the procedure while doing all the on/off load stuff trying to get to max output of the panels. The system had all the 12v stuff on as well as the inverter running the surround sound, to get enough load to test output, and I switched the selector switch through the off position going to connect both battery banks instead of the one I was on. Heard a small "snap" but everything 12v stayed on. The inverter had gone off and would not restart off the remote start, or the standby/on switch on the inverter. I finally got it to run by unplugging the output, cycling the GFCI outlet test, turning it on at the unit, back to standby, plug back in. It had apparently tripped out as a ground fault or overvoltage due to the spike I generated. Lesson learned. If I do the next upgrade to put the batteries in the genny spot, I will change things, someway. Probably just move the solar to the battery side of the disconnect.
What I don't know, and should probably call Blue Sky to find out, is if there is a battery in the coach circuit, panels connected to controller, and you plug the fuse back in, do you also get a big enough spike, or will the battery damp it enough? My guess is that it would damp it enough. If it does, you could put a switch to the controller only, so it was isolated by itself and couldn't power anything when off.
What is curious, is that I have not seen many solar setups that had on/off switches on the panels, so I would think all those systems would be at risk if someone removed the battery while sitting in the sun. I would think this would happen fairly often, but I haven't ever heard of anyone having a problem.
Do those of you that have solar setups have any on/off switches any place? Have you ever heard of the don't take out the battery with the solar on and in the sun potential issue?
When I put in the original Morningstar a few years ago, I wired in the panels direct and put a pullable fues on the controller, so it could be turned off when not outside or plugged in, to save some parasitic draw. It seemed to work fine, but when I changed to the Blue Sky controller, the wiring directions were very specific in saying that you should not have an on/off switch in the battery lead, and if you wanted a switch on the solar to put it in the panel to controller wiring. Their explanation was that if you have output from the panels, with no battery connection, you can get a big voltage spike and fry you coach electronics.
I put a switch in the panel circuit when I put in the Blue Sky, but was undecided on which side of my battery cutoff/selector switch to connect the solar to. If I left it on the coach side, I would stand a chance of generating a spike if I had the panels on when I turned on the cutoff/selector switch. If I put it on the battery side, I would have continuous draw on the batteries from the solar controller. It was easiest just to leave it on the coach side and remember not to have the solar panels on without the battery switch on.
When I was doing my testing of the output of the third panel last week, I proved that I wasn't smart enough to remember the procedure while doing all the on/off load stuff trying to get to max output of the panels. The system had all the 12v stuff on as well as the inverter running the surround sound, to get enough load to test output, and I switched the selector switch through the off position going to connect both battery banks instead of the one I was on. Heard a small "snap" but everything 12v stayed on. The inverter had gone off and would not restart off the remote start, or the standby/on switch on the inverter. I finally got it to run by unplugging the output, cycling the GFCI outlet test, turning it on at the unit, back to standby, plug back in. It had apparently tripped out as a ground fault or overvoltage due to the spike I generated. Lesson learned. If I do the next upgrade to put the batteries in the genny spot, I will change things, someway. Probably just move the solar to the battery side of the disconnect.
What I don't know, and should probably call Blue Sky to find out, is if there is a battery in the coach circuit, panels connected to controller, and you plug the fuse back in, do you also get a big enough spike, or will the battery damp it enough? My guess is that it would damp it enough. If it does, you could put a switch to the controller only, so it was isolated by itself and couldn't power anything when off.
What is curious, is that I have not seen many solar setups that had on/off switches on the panels, so I would think all those systems would be at risk if someone removed the battery while sitting in the sun. I would think this would happen fairly often, but I haven't ever heard of anyone having a problem.
Do those of you that have solar setups have any on/off switches any place? Have you ever heard of the don't take out the battery with the solar on and in the sun potential issue?