Help needed reading a schematic

[guidera48]

I am doing a dry run on my Wind Turbine installation before it comes down and gets painted and have a question regarding the electrical hookup. I need help deciding how to interpret this schematic for my wind turbine.
I shows terminal 1 & 2 to the turbine wires. Input 3 & 4 hooked to the batery in order to power the controler (red LED,s light up when 3&4 are hooked up).
My question is regarding terminal 7 & 8. I assume this is the output. It shows going to an inverter also labeled "to Load". I dont have an inverter therefore should I connect it to the battery in order to charge it.?? And if so, it looks funny to me to supply power to the controler from the battery and to wire 7 & 8 back to the same battery.
I have 1&2 and 3&4 hooked up now. This weekend, I could hear a selenoid in the controler unit cliking when the turbine showed the Charge LED on and the turbine comming to a halt, only to re start again. Obviously, it was generating power and cutting itself off by stopping the blades from turning. I have it secured now so it wont turn and self destroy.
Any light on the subject is appreciated.
Jose

 

[Ed Schenck]

Jose, what is the make and model? Maybe I can find better instructions on the Internet. But I would say the wires to the Inverter are optional. Since you do not have one just ignore 7 & 8. Even on my boat where I have a big inverter I would not wire a wind generator to it.

 

[Rstanton]

Jose With out knowing what type of controller the schematic is refering too, it would be only guessing at what the differance between terminal 3&4 VS.7&8. are. My guess is that the inverter can handel voltage spikes and the battery can not...So the wind controller may be wired so that the 3&4 terminal may have a regulating safety that can protect the Battery when charging. If you don't have an inverter (to run AC powered items on your boat) Then I would NOT connect terminal 7&8. to the battery...I hope this helps

 

[Don12364]

The way I read it is that, as you do not have an inverter simply ignore the connections to 7 & 8.
One presumes your house supply is taken directly from the battery via the boat's battery master switch. Thus the wind controller bypasses the master switch so the batteries charge whilst you are away and with the master switch OFF.
Also I feel you should fit a fuse or circuit breaker between your battery + and connection point 3 to prevent a fire in the case of a short circuit in the controller or turbine.

 

[Ed Schenck]

I cannot find an online schematic showing an inverter in the circuit. But the $100.(cheapest) controllers require a dummy load be added. This is in case of an overload from the turbine. The $200. inverters have the shunt built-in( http://www.windbluepower.com/Charge_Controller_p/int-cont.htm ). I have to think the fusing is also built in. I do not find a fuse in the installation diagrams. But I also do not see the fuse specifically mentioned in the specs.

 

[guidera48]

Thanks for your imput. The unit is sold in the USA by Gudcraft, a chinese importer. The unit is manufactured by Microwind and is a MW400.
I will hook up a volt meter to 7&8 and see if there is any output when the charge l.e.d. comes on. I did forget to mention that there is a fuse on the controller already. I am still thinking that 3&4 are power to energize the controller and 7&8 are output.

Jose

 

[Ed Schenck]

Jose, why do you think that 3&4 are input to the controller? No way. You have two outputs, one for the batteries and an optional one if you have an inverter. I see controllers that have two outputs in case you have two separate battery banks. Then you can charge them both. The input to the controller is the wind generator. Does the controller have a manufacturer's name that is different from Microwind? I found this but cannot make out the writing on the controller( http://www.amazon.com/Gudcraft-WG400-Generator-12V-Controller/dp/B004P8B0PW?tag=istum-20 ).

 

[guidera48]

Thanks for looking into it Ed. I found the original website.

It is www.Gudcraftonline.com

They also list a larger controler. This one is well labeled and shows 1&2 to turbine, 3&4 to battery, 5&6 to solar and 7&8 to load ( I guess load is what ever you are trying to power, example: battery bank, ect). I also include the complete manual. It may be hard to read on a jpg format. Paragraph 2 has a simpler diagram and shows 7&8 to load. I will get brave a stick a meter on those terminals and see what comes out
Cheers

 

[Mathurin]

I would really suggest that you take a controller with a dump resistor... We got surprised by some sustained winds of over 45 knots for 2 days and without the dump resistor, our battery bank would have been fried. Eletric brake is a big plus. We did not bother to wire it because we were short on time, but once it starts blowing, you can forget about feathering the generator using the little rope in the back, way to dangerous. Btw, a dual output controller is a waste of money, just wire your main battery bank to the windgen, for the little they charge, you want those amps in your main bank.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Still think you are worrying needlessly. Here is a simplified version of your installation if you ignore the solar part: http://www.gudcraftonline.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=400W24V . Your wind controller, like the solar controller in the diagram, just happens to have an additional output. You can use it any way you like. In your original picture they use the inverter as an example. With the wind generator running you will get a different reading on 7&8 compared to 3&4 with a voltmeter. They ask you to wire 3&4 first so that there will be a load when the generator first runs. And that should measure about 13.4 to 13.7 volts, a normal charging voltage(assuming it is spinning). Posts 7&8 will not have a load unless you do as Mathurins suggest and add a dummy. Seems like your instructions should mention how to do that. Wish your manual was legible but it is not. Could you post it here as a PDF?