Boulder 100bc not sending a charge.

Fraziermiller
Fraziermiller Member Posts: 1 ✭✭

I’ve got a relatively new Boulder 100 that I keep connected to my yeti 1500 regularly. It has been sending ample signal for about six months now. All of a sudden it’s not sending any charge to the battery. The input light will surge to 10 or 15 and then go back to zero for a while. It doesn’t work on either of the input ports on the yeti 1500 so I’m pretty sure it’s not the battery. All the cords seem in fine shape. I cleaned the solar panels as well as they had some dust and pollen on them. Still not charging. Any advice?

Comments

  • Hunter_GZ
    Hunter_GZ Administrator Posts: 44 admin

    @Fraziermiller what is the battery level on your Yeti 1500X? If your battery is at 100% or close to 100% it will prevent input. Is the Yeti 1500X charging from any other sources like a wall outlet? Do you have extension cables in between the panel and the Yeti 1500X if so we would recommend trying to connect the panel directly into the Yeti to confirm there are no connection issues with the extensions.

  • mudfoot1
    mudfoot1 Member Posts: 1 ✭✭
    edited June 2022

    @Fraziermiller did you find a solution to this problem? With my new Yeti 1000X and Nomad 100, in regular daylight I see the input light surging and input watts usually at zero and blinking to 10 or 15 for moments once every few minutes. I've tested down to 85% battery and I'll test down lower to see if I start to see more input watts accepted.

  • jg164
    jg164 Administrator, Moderator Posts: 275 admin

    @mudfoot1, @Fraziermiller,

    The blue charge indication LED will light up and remain solid on ( not flashing ) when either the Yeti's battery pack is full or the input power is not quite strong enough to use for a charge.

    The blue LED will flash on/off at about 1 second intervals when a usable charge is detected AND the Yeti can take in more charge capacity.

    The Yeti's charge MPPT charge controller regularly sweeps to re-evaluate the input source. When you see the input power momentarily show numbers or climb above input ratings and then settle, this is what is doing that.

    In my testing I have found that If any solar panel is too hot or even slightly shaded from objects casting a shadow like a tree, tall grass, smokey/hazy/foggy/cloudy skies the voltage from the solar will drop and may not be good enough to charge with.

    I like to dust my solar panels off with a rag, point them right at the sun and use more solar power than is needed to make up for losses like clouds/haze etc.