Atem Power 12V 20A DC to DC Battery Charger with MPPT Solar
2 reviews
Looks good but has a serious design flaw – This unit looks well made and comes complete with quality pre-terminated cable stubs, making installation easy. As a DCDC charger running from a vehicle, it does what it says on the box. I am charging a Lithium battery so required a suitable charge profile. The voltage and current profile and end of cycle charge cut-off seem to work fine. So far… Read more
so good. But it is the MPPT solar input that is the disappointment. This unit does not commence charging a battery until the solar panel is producing in excess of about 35W of power. Then the MPPT charger seems to work fine. Below this, the unit refuses to charge a battery and just constantly restarts and fails to charge. So a normal vehicle roof mounted solar panel of 110 to 160W in overcast weather has insufficient output to get this unit to start charging, even though 3+ amps of charge (enough to run a fridge) is available from the panel. My Renogy and CTek MPPT solar controllers do not behave in this way. I was forced to buy an additional, better designed, solar charger to charge my batteries rather than rely on the Atem MPPT solar input. Unless this shortcoming can be overcome, I can not recommend this unit which is unfortunate as in other respects, it should be a winner.
Good Product When it Works – I bought this charger from an eBay seller last April and the charger has worked well for 9 months. However, it has now developed a fault where I can no longer select the battery type. The seller won't respond and there are no company details to be able to contact them. This item is cheaper than normal but, I would advise against buying this to… Read more
save money, spend a bit more and buy from a reputable seller and manufacturer. Note that companies such as Jaycar are rebranding this exact device but you should have some comeback from them. I'm stuck with a useless box and a loss of $170 so, be warned.
I want to update you on this review, the seller has now contacted me and is offering a replacement,… Read more
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Poor DC DC charger design as well. It does not produce the rated 20A output reliably. Update on… Read more