Zamp Solar ZS-30A User manual

1
Solar Controller / Battery Charger
ZS-30A / ZS-40A
Input: DC12V Solar panel (Max. 25V)
Output: DC 12V 30A (ZS-30A)
DC 12V 40A (ZS-40A)
User’s Manual

2
●Advanced MCU control pulse width modulated (PWM) technology, high efficiency
operation.
●Target for LiFePO4, LTO (Lithium Titanium Oxide), Gel, AGM, Conventional
lead-acid (WET) and Calcium Batteries.
●Built in regulator to prevent your battery from being overcharged. Overcharging
occurs when the charge voltage is unregulated. This can result in premature battery
failure.
●Come with regulator to prevent your battery from being under charged, in the solar
energy field, battery undercharge always occurs, especially on some Conventional
lead –acid or Calcium batteries; The unit provides an automatic Equalization feature
for deeply drained Conventional lead acid battery or Calcium battery, as well as
provides a cycling automatic Equalizing feature every 28 days.
●Can be connected to the battery permanently to keep the battery fully charged by
using a process called “floating”. This means the controller will stop charging when
the battery is full and will automatically start charging the battery as required. This
process will also reduce water loss and help prevent the battery from ‘drying out’.
●Protects your battery from discharge at night. Under low light or no light conditions
the solar panel voltage could be less than the battery voltage. The unit contains a
special circuit which prevents current flowing back from the battery and into the
solar panel.
●Colored LED’s to easily indicate the operational status and battery conditions.
●Digital LCD to directly display battery voltage, charging current, charging capacity
(Amp hour), battery types and faulty codes.
●Provides plug-in remote digital display meter (Optional).
●Provides external battery temperature sensor (Optional).
●Multi charging protections against reverse polarity, short circuit, over temperature,
over voltage, etc.
●Surface Mount or Flush Panel Mount options.
●Conformal-coating circuit boards and plated terminals apply to hostile environments.
For use with 12Volt Solar Panel Only
Suitable for Solar panels up to 510 Watts / ZS-30A; 680Watt / ZS-40A
FEATURE

3
●This charger is designed for indoor use only and should never be exposed
to rain.
●Do not disassemble the controller. Take to a qualified person if the unit
requires repairing.
●Lead acid, LiFePO4, LTO batteries can be dangerous. Ensure no sparks or
flames are present when working near batteries.
●Eye protection should always be used. Never short circuit the battery
●Given sufficient light solar panels always generate energy even when they
are disconnected.
●Accidental ‘shorting’ of the terminals or wiring can result in sparks causing
personal injury or a fire hazard. We recommend that you cover up the
panel(s) with some sort of soft cloth so you can block all incoming light
during the installation. This will ensure that no damage is caused to the
Solar Panel or Battery if the wires are accidentally short circuited.
●Always install a battery fuse on each circuit including the solar controller
●Do not reverse connect the wires to the solar panel or battery
WARNING – IMPORTANT PLEASE READ
MOUNTING THE DEVICE
The Solar Controller has two mounting options.
1. Surface mount:
The quickest and easiest way to mount the unit is to use the two plastic
spacers and self tapping screws supplied and mount the unit to a flat surface,
2. Flush (panel) mount:
Before deciding to use this mounting method, please ensure there is sufficient
depth behind the controller or in the cavity. (Refer to Diagram below)
Using the dimensions shown in the following diagram, mark a 105mm x
130mm rectangle where you wish to mount the controller and cut-out the panel
opening then use the two self- tapping screws supplied to secure the unit.

4
To protect the Battery and the Solar Panel, we strongly recommend that you place a
40A inline fuse for ZS-30A (60A fuse for ZS-40A) on the positive wire on both the
“Solar” and “Battery” Circuits. (As close to the Battery /Panel as possible)
The Solar Controller has 4 terminals which are clearly marked ‘Solar’ and ‘Battery’.
There is a (12V) and earth (GND) terminal for each circuit.
Refer to the wiring diagram below.
Battery Connection
Solar Array Connection
Length of
Wire
5ft 10ft
10ft 15ft 20ft
Size (AWG)
10 8
10 8 8
1. Using the Terminals supplied, crimp the terminals on your Solar Array wires and
connect to the Solar Panel like shown.
2. Using the Terminals supplied, crimp the terminals on your Battery wires and
connect to the Battery like shown.
When the connections are completed, the Solar Controller will start working
automatically.
Please check your battery manufacturer’s specifications to select correct battery type.
The unit provides 6 battery types for selections: LiFePO4, LTO, Gel, AGM, WET
(conventional lead acid), and Calcium.
Correct Wire Size:
Please refer to the wire size chart
below to determine the minimum
size wire needed for each
connection. This will also ensure
you get the best performance out
of your solar regulator.
WIRING CONNECTIONS
OPERATION - LCD DISPLAY

5
.
Press BATTERY TYPE button and hold for 3 seconds to go into your battery type
selection mode, the battery type you select will be shown on the LCD meter, the
default setting is AGM Battery; the controller will automatically memorize your battery
type setting.
Caution: Incorrect battery type setting may damage your battery.
When the controller powers on, the unit will run self-qualify mode and automatically
show below items on LCD before going into charging process
Self-test starts, digital meter segments test
Software version test
Rated voltage and current test
External battery temperature sensor test (if connected)
Indicates the solar panel connected.
After going into charging process, the LCD displays the charging statues as below:
Press VOLT / AMP button in sequence, the LCD will display in turn with
Battery Voltage, Charging Current, Charged capacity (Amp-hour) and Battery
Temperature (if external temperature sensor connected)
Display in the day time-
Display during the night-
The VOLT / AMP button can be changed at any time during charging process.
You also can visually monitor your battery charging condition for each battery; there is
a LCD bar to show the percentage of charge, you can easily see the battery is charged
to 25%, 50%, 75% or 100%.
The LCD also can be treated as an independent voltage meter or thermometer.
A voltage less than 11.5V Volts indicates that the battery is discharged and needs
re-charging.
The unit has a 5-stage charging algorithm.
Soft Charge (Level 1) –Bulk Charge (Level 2)-Absorption charge (Level 3) –
Equalizing Charge* (Level 4) - Float Mode (Level 5)
CHARGING STAGES

6
Soft Charge- When batteries suffer an over-discharge, the controller will softly ramp
the battery voltage up to 10V.
Bulk Charge-Maximum current charging until batteries rise to Absorption level
Absorption Charge-Constant voltage charging and battery is over 85%.
Equalization Charge*-Only for WET battery or Calcium battery type, when the battery
is deeply drained below 10V, it will automatically run this stage to bring
the internal cells as an equal state and fully complement the loss of
capacity. (LiFePO4, LTO, Gel and AGM battery do not run Equalization
charge)
Float Charge-Battery is fully charged and maintained at a safe level.
A fully charged Lead acid battery (GEL, AGM, WET battery) has a
voltage of more than 13.6 Volts; A fully charged LiFePO4 or LTO battery
has a voltage level of 13.4V.
The 6 LED’s indicate the
charging status and the
battery condition
Red
Blue
Green
Green
Yellow
Red
Solar Power Present-No
battery connected
ON
OFF
OFF
OFF
OFF
Flash
Soft charging
ON
Flash
OFF
OFF
OFF
ON
Bulk charging
ON
ON
OFF
Subject to battery voltage
Absorption charging
ON
ON
OFF
ON
OFF
OFF
Equalization charging
ON
ON
OFF
ON
OFF
OFF
Float charging
ON
OFF
ON
ON
OFF
OFF
Solar panel weak
Flash
OFF
OFF
Subject to battery voltage
At night, no charge
OFF
OFF
OFF
Subject to battery voltage
Battery Voltage below 11.5V
(+/-0.2V)
ON
ON
OFF
OFF
OFF
ON
Battery Voltage between
11.5V - 12.5V(+/-0.2V)
ON
ON
OFF
OFF
ON
OFF
Battery Voltage above 12.5V
(+/-0.2V)
ON
ON
OFF
ON
OFF
OFF
.
OPERATION - L.E.D. INDICATION
ABNORMAL OPERATION MODE

7
Solar panel abnormal
mode
LCD display
LED indication
LCD backlight
Solar panel weak
Flash
ON
Solar panel reverse
connection
Flash
Flash
Solar panel over voltage
(> 26.5V)
Flash
Flash
Battery abnormal mode
LCD display
LED indication
LCD backlight
Battery disconnected or
less than 3.0V
Flash
Flash
Flash
Flash
Battery reverse
connection
Flash
Flash
Battery over voltage
than > 17.5V
Flash
Flash
Battery temperature over
65C
Flash
Flash
Flash
Flash
The solar controller
abnormal mode
LCD display
LED indication
LCD backlight
The controller over
temperature protection
Flash
.
The controller provides two optional devices (excludes in the packaging box).
Optional external Battery temperature sensor:
As an option, the unit provides a port to connect the external battery temperature sensor;
if the external battery temperature sensor is connected, the unit will optimize the charging
performance subjected to the battery temperature detected and also provide the battery
over temperature protection, in some cases, if battery over temperature occurs, the
controller will automatically stop charging.
Optional external Remote display meter:
As an option, the unit also provides a port to connect the external Remote display meter
for some special location needed. The display content on the Remote meter is same as
the display on the controller.
OPTIONAL EXTERNAL DEVICE

8
1
Electrical Parameters
1-1
Rated solar panel amps ZS-30A /ZS-40A
30 / 40
Max.
AMP
1-2
Normal input Solar cell array voltage
15-22
VDC
1-3
Max. solar cell array voltage (output has no load)
25
Max.
VDC
1-4
The controller lowest operating voltage (solar or battery side)
8V
Min
VDC
1-5
Maximum voltage drop-Solar panel to battery
0.25
Max.
VDC
2
Charging characteristics
2-1
Minimum battery start charging voltage
3
Min
VDC
2-2
Soft start charging voltage
3-10
+/-0.2
VDC
2-3
Soft start charging current ZS-30A / ZS-40A
Up to 15 / 20
AMP
2-4
Bulk charge voltage
10-14.0
+/-0.2
VDC
2-5
Absorption charging voltage at 25℃
--LTO type battery
14.0
+/-0.2
VDC
--Gel type battery
14.1
+/-0.2
VDC
--LiFePO4 battery
14.4
+/-0.2
VDC
--AGM type battery (default setting)
14.4
+/-0.2
VDC
--WET type battery
14.7
+/-0.2
VDC
--Calcium type battery
14.9
+/-0.2
VDC
2-6
Absorption transits to Equalizing or Float condition:
--Charging current drops to ZS-30A / ZS-40A
1.0
+/0.1
AMP
-- or Absorption charging timer timed out
4
Hour
2-7
Equalization charging active
--Only for WET or Calcium battery
--Battery voltage discharged to less than
10
+/-0.2
VDC
--Automatic equalizing charging periodical
28
Day
2-8
Equalization charging voltage at 25℃
15.5
+/-0.2
VDC
2-9
Equalization charging timer timed out
2
Hour
2-10
Float charging voltage at 25℃
-- For LTO and LiFePO4 battery
13.4
+/-0.2
VDC
-- For Gel, AGM, WET, Calcium battery
13.6
+/-0.2
VDC
2-11
Voltage control accuracy
+/- 1%
2-12
Battery temperature compensation coefficient
-24
mV/℃
2-13
Temperature compensation range
-20 ~ +50
℃
3
Protection
3-1
Against reverse polarity or short circuit
3-2
No reverse current from battery to solar at night
3-3
Over temperature protection during charging
65
℃
3-4
Transient over voltage protection with TVS or varistor
4
Electrical parts
4-1
Input output terminal
M5 terminals
4-2
Remote port
RJ-11 (6 pins)
5
Physical Parameters
5-1
Controller material
Plastic, Standard ABS
5-2
Power terminal maximum stranded wire size
#6 AWG stranded-16 mm2
5-3
Power terminal torque
Up to 17 in-lb (0.2n-m)
5-4
Mounting
Vertical wall mounting
5-5
IP grade
IP22,
5-6
Net weight
Approx. 0.3kg / 0.66lb
6
Environmental characteristics
6-1
Operating temperature
-25 ~ 50℃/ -13~122 ℉
6-2
Storage temperature
-40 ~ 85℃/ -40~185 ℉
6-3
Operating Humidity range
100% no condensation
SPECIFICATIONS