Hey guys, just trying to extract maximum water heating from my kids using pwm diversion.
Would there be any issue with running the load outputs of both kids {from the same battery bank} into a dedicated positive and negative busbar to combine them together then feeding them into the dc element, provided the element has enough capacity?
Would the load current from one kid backfeed into the other kid and cause issues/damage?
Also, is there any issue with having an element capable of greater capacity than the kid can put out?
E.G. for a single kid @48v using a 2kw 48v element like mws sell.
Cheers,
Ben.
Hi Bennyspoon,
The KID is overcurrent protected but it would be a bad idea to overload it intentionally.
What could work is to have the KID drive a large enough relay and have that switch on and off the loads.
HTH,
Doug
I agree with Doug - better to use the output to control a relay that will turn on and off your loads
Larry
The real issue would be the timing of the FET that does load control, they would not switch at the same time and one would end up switching 2x the current, While the kid has current limit it wouldn't help as all it can do is open the fet and it will be loaded 2x its capability.
Righteo,
all good points indeed, thanks for the explanation chaps.
trying to only have relay's on the classic at this stage, will have to rethink my options.
Cheers,
Ben.
Benny,
If you can install two heating elements, each could get its power from a single Kid in PWM divert. This way you will be able to extract the maximum power from your panels and heat your water.
I have run several water heater elements off of Kids and find it very useful to get the extra heat from the system(s).
You can also look into using 110 or 230 volt elements to limit the current draw. V/R = I (Ohm's law)
I currently use a 110 volt heater element in my 24 volt system to send about 3.6 amps to the heater and add just under 100 watts as the batteries near float. When Rosie is ready, I'll convert to 48 volts and then I'll have a new max around 400 watts per heater which is well under its capability.