Troubleshooting
Note that some of the troubleshooting items are not
s
Charger-5 specific problems. Some of these problems can happen
regardless of what charger you are using.
The sCharger-5 does not charge at full capacity through glass especially UV filtered glass. Glass blocks a large portion
of the sun’s rays, so charging through glass (such as on the dash of a car or energy efficiency windows) may not work
very well.
Keep the device to be charged cool (in the shade) if possible. Heat will shorten the life of your batteries and may cause
some devices to shut down or stop charging because of overheating..
Trouble
Possible Cause
Solution
Device starts charging then stops
USB Device is overheating
Move device to be charged to a
cooler place (in the shade)
Device won’t charge at all
Charging through glass.
Solar panel upside down.
Move the solar panels into direct
sunlight with solar cells facing up.
iPhone incompatibility message or
triangle warning
Panel has been shaded or
was connected while in
the shade then moved
into the sun.
While in full sunlight, plug the
iPhone into the
s
Charger-5 or just let
alone and
s
Charger-5 will commence
within 5 minutes or so and message
will go away.
iPhone will not charge at all from
AC charger or
s
Charger-5 charger
unknown
Sync with iTunes or upgrade
firmware.
iPhone battery completely dead
and will not reboot while solar
charging.
Happens when you do not
charge the phone.
It may take a while for the iPhone to
come back on when solar charging.
Eventually it should reboot and
come alive.
iPhone, iPad charge indicator
showing “plug” icon instead of
lightning bolt icon
iPhone, iPad is over
heating
Cool down then retry.
My tablet or phone does not show
charge indicator.
Cable converter may be
required. (Available on
Suntactics website)
Put the device in sleep or turn off
and you should get a charge. You
may also use a P1000 adaptor cable
if you want to use while charging.
Some model phones seem to
discharge.
Low light conditions and
solar charger continued
cycling causes phone
screen to come on.
The sCharger-5 must be in sunshine
to work properly. If you suspect
constant low light conditions, turn
your brightness down or turn
phone(some models)completely off
to help minimize discharge when
solar charger cycles. Or unplug solar
charger and try when sun is out.
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