SamplexPower SCC-1208L User manual

8 Amp Solar
Charge
Controller
SCC-1208L
Please read this
manual BEFORE
operating your
solar charge
controller
Owner's
Manual

2 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC.
OWNER'S MANUAL SCC-1208L | Index
SECTION 1
Safety Instructions ................................................................ 3
SECTION 2
Features of the SCC-1208L ...................................................7
SECTION 3
Installation & Operation .........................................................9
SECTION 3-1
Supplementary Information ................................................ 11
SECTION 4
Specications ......................................................................14
SECTION 5
Warranty ..........................................................................15
DETAILED PRODUCT INFORMATION
For a complete user manual including specications,
application notes, installation instructions, trouble
shooting and more, please visit the web page for this
product on www.samlexamerica.com. Product page can
be found using the “Search by Model” eld.

2 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC. SAMLEX AMERICA INC. | 3
SECTION 1 | Safety Instructions
Please read these instructions before
installing or operating the Charge
Controller to prevent personal injury
or damage to the Charge Controller.
GENERAL
Installation and wiring compliance
• Installationandwiringmustcomply
with the local and National Electrical
Codes and must be done by a certied
electrician.
Preventing electrical shock
• TheNegativesystemconductorshould
be properly grounded. Grounding
should comply with local codes.
• Disconnectallinputandoutputside
connections before working on any
circuits associated with the Charge
Controller.
Installation environment
• Thecontrollerissplashproofandcan
bemountedoutdoorsinavertical
position.Donotexposetoambient
temperature > 60° C.
Preventing re and explosion hazards
• WorkingwiththeChargeController
mayproducearcsorsparks.Thus,the
Charge Controller should not be used
in areas where there are inammable
materials or gases requiring ignition
protectedequipment.Theseareasmay
include spaces containing gasoline
poweredmachinery,fueltanks,
battery compartments.
Precautions when working with batteries
• Batteriescontainverycorrosivediluted
Sulphuric Acid as electrolyte. Precau-
tionsshouldbetakentoprevent
contactwithskin,eyesorclothing.
• BatteriesgenerateHydrogenand
Oxygenduringchargingresultingin
evolutionofexplosivegasmixture.
Careshouldbetakentoventilatethe
battery area and follow the battery
manufacturer’s recommendations.
• Neversmokeorallowasparkorame
near the batteries.
• Usecautiontoreducetheriskofdrop-
pingametaltoolonthebattery.It
could spark or short circuit the battery
or other electrical parts and could
causeanexplosion.
• Removemetalitemslikerings,brace-
lets and watches when working with
batteries.Thebatteriescanproduce
a short circuit current high enough to
weld a ring or the like to metal and
thuscauseasevereburn.
• Ifyouneedtoremoveabattery,
alwaysremovethegroundterminal
from the battery rst. Make sure that
all the accessories are off so that you
do not cause a spark.
CHARGE CONTROLLER RELATED
• Itistobeensuredthattheinput
voltagefedtotheChargeController
doesnotexceed26VDCtoprevent
permanent damage to the Charge
Controller.

4 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC.
SECTION 1 | Safety Instructions
 EnsurethatthemaximumOpenCir-
cuitVoltageVocofthe12Vnominal
Solar Panel / the Solar Array
islessthan26V.
• Donotexceedthemaximumcurrent
ratingof8A.ThecontinuousShort
Circuit Current of the solar panel /
array should be less than 8 A.
• Donotexceedabatteryvoltageof
12V(nominal).Donotuseabattery
lessthan12V.
• Chargeonly12Vlead-acidbatteries
• DONOTshortcircuitthePVarrayor
load while connected to the controller.
Thiswilldamagethecontroller.
• Neverallowthesolarpanel/arrayto
be connected to the controller with
thebatterydisconnected.Theinternal
protectionsareactivatedonlywhen
the12Vbatteryisconnected.
• Useonlycopperwirewithminimum
75°Cinsulationrating.Thesizeofthe
wiring should be chosen depending
upon the distance of the controller
from the panel / array and the battery
tolimitthevoltagedropto<2%
for 10 A.
• TheNegativesystemconductorshould
be properly grounded. Grounding
should comply with local codes.

4 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC. SAMLEX AMERICA INC. | 5
SECTION 2 | Features of the SCC-1208L
SCC-1208LisaSeriesTypeofPWM(Pulse
WidthModulation)ChargeController.
Itisbasedonanadvanceddesignusing
a microcontroller for digital accuracy and
fullyautomaticoperation.Itcanbeused
for12Vsystemsforsolarcharging.The
PWMbatterycharginghasbeenoptimized
for longer battery life.
Features
• Advancedmicrocontrollerbased,
high performance design for digital
accuracy and fully automatic and
intelligent operation
• Designedfor12Vnominalsolar
panelsand12Vbatterysystem
• 8Acontinuouschargingcapacity–
enablesuseofupto130W,
12VSolarPanelswithOpenCircuit
Voltageofupto26V
• SeriesModePWM(PulseWidthModu-
lation)chargingdesignforlowloss,
higher efciency charging and longer
battery life. See Section 3-1 for details
• 3Stagesofchargingfor100%return
ofcapacityandlongbatterylife–Bulk,
Absorption and Float Stages
• Cansafelycharge2typesofLeadAcid
batteries–Flooded/WetCell(Absorp-
tionVoltage14.8V)orSealedAGM
(AbsorptionVoltage14.5V)
• Verylowselfconsumptionof<9mA
• MOSFETbasedreversecurrentblocking
for night-time battery discharge pre-
vention.Thisallowsmuchlowerlosses
ascomparedtoDiodebasedblocking
• Totallysealedandsplashproofdesign
withIngressProtectionRatingofIP65.
Can be installed in outdoor locations
• Wideoperatingtemperaturerangeof
-40°Cto+60°C
• Automaticallyturnsontheloads(like
lights)whendarkandturnsoffatday
time.Idealforstreetlights/automatic
night lighting
• Lowvoltagedisconnectprotectsthe
battery against deep discharge when
the load is connected to the Load
Terminals.
• Protectedagainstoverload,overtem-
perature,under/overvoltageonthe
batterysideandreversepolarity(see
Specications)
• EMCcompliancetoFCCStandardPart
15(B)forClassBDevicesandEuropean
Standard EN61000
• Industryleadingwarrantyof5years.
PWM Battery Charging Algorithm
used in SCC-1208L
Please read Section 3-1 for supplementary
information.
Fig.2.1(page6)representsthe3stagesof
chargingusedinSCC-1208L.Thecharging
is carried out in 3 stages:
Stage1–ConstantCurrentBulk
Charging Stage
Inthisstage,theMOSFETSwitchisin
“on”conditioncontinuouslytillthenext
AbsorptionStagevoltageisreached.As
theMOSFETswitchisin“on”condition
continuously,theSolarPanelisconnected
to the battery continuously and it

6 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC.
SECTION 2 | Features of the SCC-1208L
deliversaconstantcurrentequaltothe
ShortCircuitCurrentIscoftheSolarPanel.
Thevoltageseenattheoutputofthecon-
trollerwillbetheactualbatteryvoltage
which will keep on rising till it approaches
theAbsorption/GassingVoltageof
14.8V+/-0.2VforFloodedBatteryand
14.5V+/-0.2VforSealedAGMbattery
(at25°C).TheAbsorption/GassingVolt-
ageisthevoltageatwhichtheelectrolyte
in the battery begins to break down into
HydrogenandOxygengases.Onreaching
theAbsorptionVoltage,thecontrollerwill
transitiontotheAbsorptionStage.The
bulkstagerestoresabout80%ofthe
battery’s capacity.
NOTES:
As the Bulk Charge Stage is a constant
currentstage,thecontrollerdoesnot
controlthevoltageandthevoltageseen
at the output terminals of the controller
willbetheactualbatteryvoltage(thiswill
rise slowly towards the Absorption / Gas-
singVoltageundertheinuenceofthe
constantchargingcurrent).Also,thecon-
troller does not control the current and
the Bulk Charging Current will be equal
totheShortCircuitCurrentIscoftheSolar
Panel. Constant current is ensured by the
constant current characteristic of the Solar
Panelintheregionofupto15V.
!CAUTION
As already pointed out above, when in
the Bulk Charge Stage, the controller is
not able to control the value of the charg-
ing current. The Bulk Charging Current
will be equal to the Short Circuit Current
Isc of the Solar Panel. Hence, it should
be ensured that the AH capacity of the
battery (at 20 Hr Discharge Rate) is more
than at least 10 times the Short Circuit
Current Isc of the Solar Panel. For exam-
ple, if a 130 W Solar Panel with Short
Circuit Current Isc of around 8 A is being
used, the AH capacity of the battery
should be > 80 AH.
Stage2–AbsorptionStage
DuringtheAbsorptionStage,thecontrol-
ler changes from a constant current to
constantvoltagecharging.Thecharging
voltageisheldconstantneartheGassing
Fig. 2.1 Solar Charging Stages

6 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC. SAMLEX AMERICA INC. | 7
SECTION 2 | Features of the SCC-1208L
Voltagetoensurethatthebatteryisfur-
ther charged to the full capacity without
overcharging.TheAbsorptionStage
restoresthebalance20%ofthecapacity.
Astheoutputvoltageofthecontroller
isheldconstant,thebatteryabsorbsthe
charge slowly and the current reduces
gradually till all of the soft Lead Sulfate
(PbSO4)crystalshavebeenconvertedto
LeadDioxide(PbO2)onthePositivePlates
andSpongeLead(Pb)ontheNegative
Plates.
InSCC-1208L,theAbsorptionStage
isaconstantvoltagestageof
14.8V+/-0.2VforFloodedBatteryand
14.5V+/-0.2VforSealedAGMbattery
(at25°C).Theconstantcurrentfrom
the Solar Panel is not fed to the battery
continuouslybutinpulsesofvarying
pulsewidthatfrequencyof30Hz.This
technique allows the current to be ef-
fectively“tapered”asthebatterygets
chargedandtheresultisequivalentto
constantvoltagecharging.Forabattery
entering the Absorption Stage at around
80%chargedstate,the“OnTime”pulses
wouldbeverylongandalmostcontinu-
ous. As the charge state approaches the
end of Absorption and beginning of the
FloatStage,itmayjust“tick”andsend
veryshortpulsestothebattery.
WhenthebatteryreachestheAbsorption
Voltage,thePWMbeginstoholdthevolt-
ageconstant.Thisistoavoidover-heating
andover-gassingthebattery.Thecurrent
willtaperofftosafelevelsasthebattery
becomes more fully charged.
This stage will remain active for around 1
Hour and then the controller will transi-
tion to the Float Stage.
Stage3–FloatStage
Whenabatterybecomesfullycharged,
dropping down to the Float Stage will
provideaverylowrateofmaintenance
charging while reducing the heating and
gassingofafullychargedbattery.When
thebatteryisfullyrecharged,therecan
be no more chemical reactions and all the
charging current is turned into heat and
gassing.ThepurposeoftheFloatStage
is to protect the battery from long-term
overcharge.FromtheAbsorptionStage,
chargingvoltageisdroppedtotheFloat
Stagevoltageof13.8V±0.2.Duringthis
stage,PWMpulsesareofveryshortdura-
tionatfrequencyof30Hz.
In the case the battery voltage drops
below 12.5 VDC, a new cycle of Bulk,
Absorption and Float will start.
Night Light Function
ThisunithasafacilitywhereDCloads
thatareconnectedtotheLoadTerminals
will automatically be switched on at night
(SolarPanelvoltage≤3Vforatleast
10min)andswitchedoffduringdaytime
(solarPanelvoltage≥4Vforatleast
10min.)Thistypeofloadgenerally
consistsofnightlighting.Thecontinuous
loadcapacityis8Amaximum(10Afor
5min).Incasetheloadishigherthan
12A,theloadwillbeswitchedoffand
will reset automatically once the load
current is reduced. It will reset automati-
cally 2 times* and after that, a manual
reset will be required that will involve
disconnecting the Solar Panel and the
battery connections (*Note: time interval
between the 1st auto-reset and the 2nd
auto-reset is around 1 minute).

8 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC.
SECTION 2 | Features of the SCC-1208L
Battery Low Voltage Disconnect
AnotherfacilityisprovidedwheretheloadconnectedtotheLoadTerminalswillbe
disconnectedtopreventdeepdischargeofthebattery.Deepdischargeofthebatteryis
more likely when the load is being powered during night time through the Night Light
Function.Ifthebatteryvoltagedropstolessthan11.5Vcontinuouslyfor5mintheload
willbeswitchedoffattheendof5min.Theloadwillbeautomaticallyre-connectedif
thebatteryvoltagerisesto12.4Vfor5min.Ifthebatteryvoltagedropsto9V,theload
willbedisconnectedimmediately(therewillbenotimedelay).
SECTION 3 | Installation & Operation
!CAUTION
1. The unit has internal protection circuits that are activated only when a
battery is connected to the unit. Hence, please ensure the following to
protect the unit against damage:
• Alwaysconnectthebatteryrstandthenthesolarpanel/array
• Donotdisconnectthebatterywhenthesolarpanel/arrayis
connected.Ifthebatteryisrequiredtoberemovedforservicing/
replacement,removethesolarpanel/arrayrstandthen
the battery
2. A battery is an unlimited source of current and can drive thousands
of Amperes of current into a short circuit across its terminals. If there
is a short circuit along the path of the battery connecting wires from
the battery to the controller, the section of wires from the battery to
thepointofshortcircuitwillmeltandburnandmaycauseinjury/re.
Hence, always install a current limiting type of fuse e.g. Class T fuse or
equivalent as close to the battery Positive terminal as possible
3. Doubly check the polarity of the connections with the help of a multi-
meter. Ensure that Positive is connected to Positive and Negative to
Negative. Avoid connecting in reverse polarity. The unit has internal,
self resetting protection against reverse polarity on the battery side

8 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC. SAMLEX AMERICA INC. | 9
Accessories provided
for Installation
6piecesofTwist-onWireNutconnectors
havebeenprovidedforconnectionof
input and output wiring.
First,inserttwowirestogetherintocon-
nectorcap,andthenturnthecapuntilthe
two wires twisted tightly. Follow sequence
1to4showninthepicturesgivenbelow.
Layout of Input and
Output Connections
Thelayoutofthevariousinput/output
wires is shown in Fig. 3.1 below:
Fig 3.1 Legend:
1. Yellow wire PV +
Connects to the Positive terminal of
the Solar Panel
2. Black wire PV -
Connects to the Negative terminal of the
Solar Panel
3. Red wire Bat +
Connects to the Positive terminal of the battery
through a 10 A fuse
4. Black wire Bat -
Connects to the Negative terminal of the battery
5. White wire Load +
Connects to the Positive terminal of the load
(DC lamp) for Night Light Function
6. Black wire Load -
Connects to the Negative terminal of the load
(DC lamp) for Night Light Function
7. Blue wire Wet type battery
Is not connected if the battery is sealed type
(AGM). Is connected to the Bat – (4) if the battery
is Flooded / Wet Cell type
8. External fuse, 32 V, 10 A
SECTION 3 | Installation & Operation
Figure 3.1:
Layout & Installation Diagram
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8
Earth Ground
PVPanel DCLamp
Lead Acid Battery
PV+ PV- Bat+ Bat- Load+ Load-
WetType
Battery

10 | SAMLEX AMERICA INC.
Installation Sequence
NOTE:
The controller uses internal MOSFET based
reverse current blocking for night-time
battery discharge prevention. This allows
much lower losses as compared to Diode
based blocking. Hence, it is not necessary
to provide external Blocking Diode.
Pleaseinstallthebattery,solarpaneland
the loads in the following sequence:
1. Connect the Black wire marked “Bat
Neg”(4)totheNegativeterminalof
the battery
2. ConnecttheNegativeterminalofthe
battery to Earth Ground for protection
against lightning
3. TheBluewire(7)isconnectedas
follows depending upon the type of
battery used:
• Forwetcell/oodedbattery:
Connect this wire to the Black
wiremarked“BatNeg”(4).This
willsettheAbsorptionvoltageto
14.8VDC+/-0.2VDC
• Forsealedbattery(AGM):This
wireisNOTconnected.Insulate
this wire with insulation tape .
ThiswillsetheAbsorption
Voltageto14.5VDC±0.2VDC
4. ConnecttheRedwiremarked“Bat+”
(3)thePositiveterminalofthebattery
througha32V,10Afuse(8).Thefuse
should be installed as close as possible
tothebatteryPositiveterminal.The
fuseisrequiredtopreventburning/
melting of the battery wires if there is
a short circuit anywhere in the portion
of wire between the battery and the
controller. Please note that current
limitingtypeoffusee.g.ClassTfuse
orequivalentisusedandisinstalledas
closetothebatteryPositiveterminalas
possible
5. Connect the Black wire marked
“Load-”(6)totheNegativeterminalof
theDCload(DCLamp)andtheWhite
wiremarked“Load+”(5)tothePositive
terminaloftheDCload(DClamp).
 ThisconnectionisusedforNightLight
Function–Thelightwillautomatically
turnonatnight(SolarPanelvoltage
≤3Vforatleast10min)andturnoff
duringdaytime(solarPanelvoltage≥4
Vforatleast10min).Theloadshouldbe
on before the solar panel is connected
to subsequently check if the controller
has been connected correctly and is
working(SeeStep7)
6. ConnecttheNegativewireoftheSolar
paneltotheBlackwiremarked“PV-”
(2)andthePositivewireoftheSolar
PaneltotheYellowwiremarked“PV+”
(1)
7. Ifthesolarpanelisconnectedduring
thedaytime,itsoutputvoltagewillbe
highandtheDCLoad(DClamp)willbe
switched off because the Night Light
Function is designed to switch off the
loadifthevoltageofSolarPanelis
higherthan4Vfor10min.(theDCload
waskeptswitchedoninStep5)
8. Ifnightlightfunctionisnotdesired,
ignoreStep5andconnectDCload
directly to the battery
SECTION 3 | Installation & Operation