Tektrum 30A 12V/24V Solar Panel Charge Controller - 30% Power Boost

This is a $20 standard solar panel charge controller that is being sold as an expensive MPPT ( maximum power point tracking) controller.

An MPPT controller needs 2 additional components beyond what is in a standard charge controller to make it function. It needs a microcomputer to scan and calculate the maximum power point voltage and it needs a high-frequency switching voltage down converting power supply to convert the power at this voltage (about 17 V) down to the voltage that the batteries need (12-13.7 V). Voltage down converting power supplies need a large toroid inductor (transformer) to temporarily store the energy difference so that extra current can be supplied to the batteries at the lower voltage. You can see by looking through the vent holes that this unit does not contain that inductor ( transformer).

The manual although a poor English translation from Chinese states that the MPPT functions only during constant voltage charge (reduced current charge to prevent battery damage) and not during maximum charge. This is insane as the only need for MPPT is during times when the batteries need the maximum current from the solar collectors. In fact it is only under maximum current that MPPT can even function.

When I tested my 8A 17V (MPP) solar collector connected directly to 220AHr batteries with a 50A load on them my amp meter showed 8.4A when battery voltage was 12.4V. When I inserted this supposedly MPPT controller the amp meter varied wildly from 2A to 8A averaging only 6A. During the occasional 1 second time that the amp meter showed 8A, the solar panel voltage had been pulled down to just 12.6V. This shows that the controller had simply electrically connected the panels to the battery which is exactly what the manual said it would do when not on MPPT.

The manual shows that this Chinese manufacturer makes these in 15, 20, and 30 amp sizes and 2 Amazon vendors (Tektrum and Instapark) put their own label on it. Three other reviewers of various sizes of this unit have also concluded that this is a fraud and not MPPT. There were 3 more reviews of these but none tested them for MPPT.

I have requested a refund and filed an A-to-z Guarantee claim. After 2 weeks of hassle I still do not have a refund.

I wish I could say that this was an actual MPPT Controller, but it's not. I had to learn that the hard way. When we tested it, the results were identical to the gentleman's in the first review posted here. It was a rip off. Even an inexpensive PWM Controller out performs this unit. Sorry, but I cannot recommend it for anything but a "Door Stop".

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I'm not sure how to rate something like this, to me either it works or it doesn't.

For me, it works. I have no way to check if it is tracking the maximum power point or not, but it accepts input from the solar panels, charges the battery, and provides output from the output terminals.

I have had it for about 6 months now, and it has continued working fine.

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