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Review on ๐Ÿ“ถ Enhanced Communication for Renogy Charge Controllers: Introducing the Bluetooth Module RJ12, Compatible with Rover/Wanderer/Adventurer, BT-1 RS232 by Mark Turner

Revainrating 3 out of 5

Feeling a bit cheated and salty

Just my personal experience with the 3 charge controllers I bought from them: started with one of those little cheap Renogy PWM starter controllers. After a while I got frustrated because I didn't know how much power I was generating, what voltage I was at, or where my batteries were. I've seen some additions for bluetooth functionality (BT1) with a better controller so I upgraded to the cheapest model with an ethernet port (Wanderer) and also bought a bluetooth module and thermometer. That's how it worked fine. Never had connection problems like some. Showed me how much current my panels were producing, all my voltages, everything I wanted to know. Aside from this cheaper controller not having load terminals, there was no way to control the loads. In addition, the battery capacity monitor was completely useless except for the current voltage, some 12.5v nights showed 100% charge, some 12.6v nights showed 45% charge. Understand yourself. So I decided to spend $140 on an MPPT (Rover) controller to also be able to control the loads via the app. Well that's wasted. The load shows wild fluctuations in watts and amps. I apply a known constant load of 100W and one second it's 2W, the next 5W, then 130W, then 280W, then 500W and the load turns off because it's "overstressed". became. In all that time, the load never drew more or less than 100 watts. All connections are sealed, the wires are solid copper and large gauge. When not overloaded and off it constantly jumps from hundreds of watts and 17-22 amps to 1-15 watts with almost no amps. Meanwhile, solar energy is also beginning to fluctuate sharply โ€“ with a jump of a few hundred watts per second in direct sunlight, output should be stable. This causes the voltage and current I produce to fluctuate, and I think that "95% efficiency" or something is actually closer to 50-60% because my loads are running all the time. A complete waste of spending over $200 early. for three devices that don't do what I bought them for and what they're advertised to do. I would ask for my money back but unfortunately can't go a week without power while I send them back and wait for something else - at least they still manage to replace my battery. Save your money, choose literally any other brand that offers bluetooth or even better ethernet monitoring. I have constant problems with these models and Bluetooth and a quick web search confirms that many people are having the exact same problems. Literally use something else, it's guaranteed to be more reliable. I really wish I still had that $200 in my pocket to spend on a decent all-in-one mppt, instead it's hanging on my Switch wall like a bad taste in my mouth because of the features, for that I bought are absolutely useless.

Pros
  • High marks for support and durability from testers
Cons
  • Not bad