Charger - Mean Well HLG Led driver

[Deere John]

Been chasing for the perfect charger for some time now. Got the next thing to try. A Led driver unit with adjustable voltage and current. As I use 42V battery and currently has a 2A cheap china charger I went for this 185W model that can charge with maximum 42V and 4.4A. Mean Well HLG-185H-42A (where the last A means adjustable CC/CV).
https://www.meanwell-web.com/en-gb/ac-dc-single-output-led-driver-mix-mode-cv-cc-hlg--185h--42a



It is alot bigger and heavier than my current model, but it is twice as powerful (actually about 100W more powerful). So that justifies that. It feels sturdy and well done. It weighs 1.1kg.



Actually I maxed out the voltage and it goes to 47.3V, have not (yet) tried the minimum level.




It uses the same CC/CV (Constant Current/Voltage) as chargers do. Like a following charge curve:


In this example it charges to 4.2V with a current of 900mA. When empty battery, it starts at 0min in CC mode at 900mA. Just got a random graph from internet, it has nothing to do with this, except that it is a typical charge curve for Li-Ion cells.

As time increases and voltage begins to reach set point 4.2V like it does here after 120min, the unit goes in to CV mode and holds 4.2V while the current ramps down (and the cells balance).

I think the only difference to a "real" charger (or in my case, the one from Aliexpress, see photo) is that I have no indication light, charge on/full. But I have ordered a power meter display to connect between unit and battery so I can monitor everything.

Have only tried it once now with a half empty battery and storage charge to 38V (about 66%). And it seems to ramp down current fine, it took some time after 0.2A or so, I guess that could be a good break point. To disconnect and call it done.


Usage is:

1. Adjust CC dial to something in the middle (feels better than to start maxed out or something)
2. Have battery disconnected, connect charger to mains.
3. Adjust CV (with a use of voltage meter on output). To what target voltage you want, if you want 91%, set it to 41V (that would be my most common setting I think).
4. Connect battery. If you have an empty battery it should start out with CC mode and you can measure the current and adjust CC dial to desired charge current.

(on another "charger" I had it said don't adjust CV dial when charging, could be something to think of here too maybe, just in case).

Just wait and it should follow the same principle as described above with the curve. When reaching a current of 0.2A, like I wrote, it could be a good point to stop.


Yes! That was it! Now I just need to bike and use it some more. When the power meter arrives I will do something fancy and get back

 

[Nealh]

I have the HLG 100H 42A model and it charges nice and quite quickly at 2.25a or so about the max for this model. Certainly a step up from the cheapy chargers and they barely feel warm when charging due to the mass heat sink of the casing.
If you only charge to 4.1v then no balancing is likely to take place as it is too low for the bms, though good cells should behave themselves if not discharged to deeply < 3.4v.
Every now and then you might want to give the battery a proper balance charge.

 

[Deere John]

I have the HLG 100H 42A model and it charges nice and quite quickly at 2.25a or so about the max for this model. Certainly a step up from the cheapy chargers and they barely feel warm when charging due to the mass heat sink of the casing.
If you only charge to 4.1v then no balancing is likely to take place as it is too low for the bms, though good cells should behave themselves if not discharged to deeply < 3.4v.
Every now and then you might want to give the battery a proper balance charge.

nice to see another HLG-user! How do you monitor charge (current)?

About the balancing, I'm no expert at BMS'es but I think it occurs by itself when just connecting the cells to something. Like when you pour water in a ice cube tray, when it reaches the top it starts to even out so every cube will get filled:

Unless the BMS disconnects charge supply but it shouldn't do that because it still want to charge until full. I guess it cuts at 4.2V/cell though. Or, I hope it does!

Or how did you mean the BMS would affect balancing?

 

[Deleted member 4366]

These are pretty good and work as CC/CV chargers. They come in 3A, 5A and 11A versions. The price goes up with the current. You can find them a bit cheaper on Aliexpress.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Precision-Compact-DC-60V-3A-Adjustable-Digital-Switching-Power-Supply-110-220V/141389291960?epid=680554117&hash=item20eb7561b8:g:wWIAAOSwd4tT~V3p

 

[danielrlee]

These are pretty good and work as CC/CV chargers. They come in 3A, 5A and 11A versions. The price goes up with the current. You can find them a bit cheaper on Aliexpress.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Precision-Compact-DC-60V-3A-Adjustable-Digital-Switching-Power-Supply-110-220V/141389291960?epid=680554117&hash=item20eb7561b8:g:wWIAAOSwd4tT~V3p

I've heard lots of good things about the Gophert bench supplies, but as a portable charger, they're not as suitable as Meanwell HLG power supplies.

The HLG series are fully potted for protection against moisture and shock/vibration. I know of a few people who have each had them permanently mounted on their bike for over 10,000 miles without any issue. I doubt there's much else on the planet as reliable as a Meanwell HLG power supply.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

I've heard lots of good things about the Gophert bench supplies, but as a portable charger, they're not as suitable as Meanwell HLG power supplies.

The HLG series are fully potted for protection against moisture and shock/vibration. I know of a few people who have each had them permanently mounted on their bike for over 10,000 miles without any issue. I doubt there's much else on the planet as reliable as a Meanwell HLG power supply.

The Meanwell can't do 12v, 24v, 36v, 44v, 48v and 52v batteries though (with one charger). That's the advantage of the Gophert: One charger for everything. You can even use it for charging single cells if you want, and you can charge at any current up to the maximum.

If I wanted a charger on my bike (can't think why anybody would want that though), I'd use the Meanwell, but as a tool for charging any battery, the Gophert takes some beating. I wouldn't want to be without mine.

 

[Deere John]

Putting a monitoring display between PSU and battery makes it really good! Will find some box to put in and hide the wires so it looks a little better though

 

[Deere John]

Long time no see....

I finally, after 1.5 years. Have got myself a box to put the display in. Also an upgrade with XT60 connector to be able to connect whatever charge lead I like. Have two different connectors on battery right now.

 

[Nealh]

Deere John, have you got a link for that voltage meter/display ?
Looks good and is simple 2 dc out and dc in lines.
I have a similar one on my swizzbee mounted in a small project box but the wiring is more fiddly and utilise 6 wires for both voltage/amperage and all the other readings.

 

[RossG]

Looks like this one Neal..

DC 0-120V 0-50A Digital Voltmeter Ammeter Volt Amp Ah Power Capacity Percent Watt Meter Voltage Current Gauge: Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

Shop DC 0-120V 0-50A Digital Voltmeter Ammeter Volt Amp Ah Power Capacity Percent Watt Meter Voltage Current Gauge. Free delivery on eligible orders of £20 or more.

www.amazon.co.uk

Edit> Does have multiple wiring though I see, it depends on how you want to configure it to work.

 

[Deere John]

Can't find it but it is the model with built in current shunt for making connection easier.

 

[Nealh]

Looks like this one Neal..

DC 0-120V 0-50A Digital Voltmeter Ammeter Volt Amp Ah Power Capacity Percent Watt Meter Voltage Current Gauge: Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

Shop DC 0-120V 0-50A Digital Voltmeter Ammeter Volt Amp Ah Power Capacity Percent Watt Meter Voltage Current Gauge. Free delivery on eligible orders of £20 or more.

www.amazon.co.uk

Edit> Does have multiple wiring though I see, it depends on how you want to configure it to work.

No....
They are the one's I don't want, I use a similar one on the Swizzbee which is ideal but not for the use as DJ has done.
I have used the Blue 100a ones but prefer the simple screw connection and place the unit in a small project box.

 

[RossG]

Right....if you're looking for a device that will display a current reading then of course it will have to have a shunt in-line somewhere to handle the amps. In the case of DJ's unit it's built-in, I have a similar meter that I use for testing that I built into a box. That device has a huge shunt so it can handle very high current, but I'm also building a charger using a modified Sans type built into a larger box complete with a miniature cooling fan and a large finned heat sink. That will have a digital display that gives a % of charge and voltage readout alternating, it's attached in parallel with the voltage output and has just two thin wires.

 

[Deere John]

Deere John, have you got a link for that voltage meter/display ?

Here I found it:

DC 120V 30A Voltage Current Capacity Power Meter State of Charge No Need Power | eBay

Power Module. Digital Clock. Doesn't require POWER. Current accuracy: ± 2% + 5byte. P anel cut-out: 76.5mm x 3 9.2mm. Working consumption: 25mA / 10mA (turn off LED). Resolution: 0.01V / 0. Key Features.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[RossG]

Here's another type..

9in1 DC Combo Meter 200V 0-300A Battery Monitor Voltage Current Power Capacity | eBay

1x 300A Shunt. SOC: Dump energy is display via the battery symbol, totally 10 grids, every grid present 10% energy. Monitor your battery faster and more comprehensively! The LCD HD display screen, combined with the backlight function, makes it easy to read the displayed data, giving you an...

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[Nealh]

Thank you Deere John, I just couldn't find that model on ebay or Aliexp.