BRAVO Waterproof 20 - 20 Amp Waterproof PWM Solar Charge Controller

Mechanically this is the same sealed controller as the BRAVO Waterproof 10 in the same IP65 case, with the current rating doubled to 20 amps. For most buyers that makes it the better of the two: it is only about six dollars more here and it lets you add a second panel later instead of replacing the controller. Pick the 10A version only if you are certain the system will never grow.

Why this controller

• 20 amps of solar input on a 12V battery, which in practice means two or three nominal 12V panels wired in parallel.
• IP65 housing with corrosion-resistant terminals and a conformal coating on the board. IP65 means dust-tight and protected against low-pressure water jets from any direction. It is not an immersion rating, so despite the product name, do not submerge it.
• Battery chemistry is selected with a DIP switch, covering flooded, AGM, GEL and LiFePO4. The 15.5V equalisation stage is a lead-acid feature; set the switch correctly so it does not run on a lithium bank.
• Temperature compensation of -24mV per degree C across -4F to 122F, with a port for an external battery temperature sensor. The sensor is an option and is not included.
• Status is shown by LEDs only. There is no screen, no Bluetooth and no app.
• Over-voltage, short-circuit, reverse-polarity and thermal protection, with charging shutting down at 149F.
• Rich Solar's title calls this the number one waterproof solar controller. No ranking body or publication is named anywhere on the page, so treat that as advertising rather than a finding.

Mounting and wiring

• Read this first: the controller uses a common POSITIVE grounding scheme, the opposite of the negative-chassis convention on most vehicles. Confirm how your system is bonded before you wire it.
• Panels must be wired in PARALLEL, not series. The array open-circuit ceiling is 25V DC with a normal window of 15 to 22V, exactly the same as on the 10A model, so the extra current capacity buys you more panels at 12V rather than a higher array voltage. Check Voc at your coldest expected temperature, because cold weather raises it and there is little headroom.
• 12V systems only. There is no 24V mode.
• This is PWM, not MPPT. PWM pulls the panel down to battery voltage rather than converting the excess, so the array will deliver noticeably less than its nameplate rating. The MPPT controllers elsewhere in this range harvest more from the same panels; this one trades that away for a sealed case and a low price.
• M5 terminals accepting up to 10 AWG stranded wire. At 20 amps that is close to the sensible limit for the cable size, so keep runs short and size conductors for the actual distance.
• Mounts vertically to a flat surface using the three supplied spacers and self-tapping screws. Standby draw at night is 5mA.
• A California Proposition 65 warning applies to this product.

Warranty

• Rich Solar's published warranty on charge controllers runs two years and is prorated: full coverage in the first year, 50 percent in the second.
• Claims are handled by Rich Solar directly. Register the product and keep your invoice.