Components of Battery Charging Systems (BSC)

Basic set up [insert image here]

Charger controller:

The charge controller prevents damage to the batteries. If the batteries are near to full charge, the charging current needs to be reduced to prevent damage. The charge controller will divert some power from the generator away from the battery and into a dump load. Different types of battery require different settings in the charge controller.

Inverter:

Inverters are used to convert the low voltage DC from the battery (usually 12V) into mains type 230/240V AC. Higher output-quality inverters are better for most purposes, but these can add substantially to the cost of the system. Lower cost inverters have lower output, and/or lower protection against abuse. Inverters generally make sense for small networks of households with a central generator, since the additional costs can be shared, and the cable runs are long enough to require the higher voltage supply.

Since DC is the only type of electricity directly usable from batteries, the supply must be reconverted into standard AC trough an inverter. Most common electrical appliances are designed for AC; therefore DC appliances can be limited in terms of availability.

Load control:

Battery types:

It is likely that car or lorry batteries will be used either because they are already used or because they are cheap. Vehicle batteries should be guarded against over-charge and over-discharge. However, deep cycle batteries are more cost-effective in the long run.

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