hi,
i just purchased an outback fx2524t inverter along with a mate remote display. i was planning on purchasing a kid but the solar supplier recommended the outback mppt controller citing better comunications and easier diagnostics. is this true? i have heard good things about the kid but am i better off to spend the extra $ and get the outback?
thanks in advance,
bernie
Midnite controllers are better in many ways - but depending on how much power you are going to be making you may want to consider the Classic controller which is more comparable capacity wise
with the Outback controllers.
What you get with the Midnite Kid or Classic is the ability to see true system amps - exactly what is going in and out of the battery. This is when you use the Whizbang along with a shunt.
With the Classic though it costs more you have much more capacity to make your system larger by adding more panels but you also can monitor online with Mymidnite , or on computer or mobile phone using Local Status App.
The Kid has no remote monitoring or history but does tell you everything you would want to know via the display.
Really all depends on what your system is .
Not a fair comparison. The Outbacks and the Midnite Classics are not in the same league (power handling) as the Kid. If you only need a 30 amp controller, get a Kid. If you need more than 30 amps... two Kids or one Classic.
--vtMaps
i have 500 watts on the roof (sharp panels)...... i was running a prosine 2000 but it crapped out and i have a morningstar prostar 30m......i am changing to a 24 volt system and figured i would upgrade to a mppt.
sounds like i should stay with my original choice......the kid
thank you for you inputs........
If you do 24 volt system you will have 20 amps or less output to the batteries so the Kid should work fine. If your old system was 12v you will need to put your panels in series to up the voltage so the mppt will work. I believe there is a string calculator on Midnite site somewhere so you can figure out the best and correct panel configuration.
look down towards the bottom of this page http://www.midnitesolar.com/
To answer the bit about communications, id say this depends.
There is little to gain from communication between the controller and the inverter with a couple of exceptions. If you want to track true charging amps, in the outback world you do this with teh Flexnet DC. This is kind of equivalent to WBJr, with updsides and downs. Flexnet can maybe do more, like monitering multiple shunts. But the price, by the time you add up the mate, flexnet, and hub which you now need becasue you exceed 2 devices, the cost is really starting to crank up. Classic or kid plus shunt is quite a bit cheaper, and then you get a better controller with it.
Whether theres anything to be gained by sharing charge state info, (if you use the inverters charger), that depends, on how you use them. In general getting the setpoints pretty close is a good enough solution, yes, one will tend to dominate through absorb, but then most people, if they are on to it, only bulk with a genset.
So my 2c, go midnite. But then this is a midnite forum. Ask the same question on the outback forum see what they say!
thanks everyone,
i ordered the kid
Quote from: bisland9 on September 11, 2014, 08:10:38 AM
thanks everyone,
i ordered the kid
I haven't kept track of what exactly comes with the Kid but if your batteries are in a cool or cold place you will also want the remote temperature sensor. And if you want to know exactly what your system is doing you will want to make sure you get a Whizbang Jr and the shunt that it needs to read from.