Swift Motorhome Owners Service Manual page 86

2. Solar panel connection point -with EC400
series control panel and related power
supply unit, and with roof mounted solar
panel connection point. On some models,
in addition to the connections detailed
above which take a regulators output to the
power supply unit, an additional harness
and external connection box has been
fitted. The intention of this link harness
is to provide an electrical route between
the inside of the motorhome body, and a
solar panel installation on the roof of the
motorhome.
The external connection box will be located
towards the front of the motorhome roof,
and within this connection box is a two way
weatherproof connector, to which a solar panel
or panels can be connected directly. Then,
within a high level furniture locker, relatively
close to the external connection box, two
connectors will be found and this is where
a regulator should be installed / connected.
The first connector is the other end of the link
harness from the roof mounted connection
box, and this should be connected to the input
connections of a solar panel regulator. The
second connector should be connected to the
output from the regulator, and this connection
takes the output from the regulator to the
power supply unit.
A Brown and Blue pair of wires will feature
in the link from the roof providing the input,
with a Red and Black pair of wires taking the
regulator output to the power supply unit.
Factory fitted Solar Energy System
Depending on specification, your motorhome
may be fitted with a solar panel of up to 100w,
and if a solar panel is fitted then a suitable
solar regulator will also be installed. This solar
panel and regulator may provide additional
12v power whenever sunlight is available
to the panel, and this will be directed to the
EC400 power supply unit. Conditions allowing,
and depending on the settings chosen in the
EC400 power supply unit, the system can
keep the leisure battery and vehicle battery
'topped up' during storage, and will provide
a daily boost to the leisure battery when
camping without a mains 230V supply.
Regulator operation
The regulator operates automatically, turning
on and off as required to charge and operate.
When the solar panel is exposed to a source is
exposed to a source of sunlight the regulator
tarts to operate. When the voltage from the
panel reaches a usable level, the Panel Output
LED will flash indicating that the battery is
being charged (see battery charging above).
If insufficient power is being generated by
the solar panel the regulator will turn off. The
regulator checks the solar panel output every
30 seconds and turns on/off as required. On
overcast days when the solar panel output is
minimal the regulator can still deliver a small
charge, and in this mode the LED's are not
illuminated to conserve power.
Control Panel
When the solar panel is operating the leisure
battery voltage display on the control panel will
increase, however this does depend on the
amount of load placed on the system and the
amount of power being generated by the solar
panel at that time.
Battery charging
If a leisure battery is fitted and requires
charging the Charge Status LED will illuminate.
Depending on the state of charge of the
battery this LED will illuminate red for bulk
charge (14.4V output) or green for float charge
(13.6V output). It may take a few hours to
several days to charge the battery depending
on its state of charge. When the battery is fully
charged the regulator will turn off to prevent
overcharging of the battery. If the mains
charger is turned on to charge the leisure
battery this can also cause the solar panel
regulator is to tun off.
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