Does it matter which side of a shunt I connect solar panels?
Posted: Thu Jun 27, 2024 4:37 pm
I've recently added a Junktek bluetooth battery monitor/shunt to the battery in our caravan to keep an eye on the state of the battery. The negative lead now comes from the battery to the shunt and then on to the rest of the power system. As I've just turned a couple of old 80w pv panels into a folding setup to charge a power bank in my wife's summer house, I've realised this would be a handy thing to take when we use the caravan if we want to spend time off-grid or on sites that don't offer electrical hookups.
I can easily add a pair of Anderson power poles wired to the caravan battery via a victron 75/15 charge controller I had in the spares box. That way I can just open the panel on the side of the caravan and plug in the cable from the panels. Usually you'd just wire the controller straight to the battery but as the shunt is inside the caravan, it's easier to just connect it there rather than running extra wires into the battery bay.
What I'm not sure about is whether it makes any difference what side of the shunt it should be wired to so that the shunt/monitor sees the charge going in to the battery. I think it shouldn't make any difference but figured I'd ask here to get a more educated answer.
Also, I'm assuming it's correct to add a fuse into the positive connection between battery and cable. I'm running 30A cable and shouldn't get more than 13A (160w/12v) so 20A fuse. The victron controller has a 20A fuse.
I can easily add a pair of Anderson power poles wired to the caravan battery via a victron 75/15 charge controller I had in the spares box. That way I can just open the panel on the side of the caravan and plug in the cable from the panels. Usually you'd just wire the controller straight to the battery but as the shunt is inside the caravan, it's easier to just connect it there rather than running extra wires into the battery bay.
What I'm not sure about is whether it makes any difference what side of the shunt it should be wired to so that the shunt/monitor sees the charge going in to the battery. I think it shouldn't make any difference but figured I'd ask here to get a more educated answer.
Also, I'm assuming it's correct to add a fuse into the positive connection between battery and cable. I'm running 30A cable and shouldn't get more than 13A (160w/12v) so 20A fuse. The victron controller has a 20A fuse.