Tristar regulator and battery monitors

We have just installed 7 x170w 34v solar panels and we need a regulator. Would the Tristar TS 60 be too big?  Also we have two other regulators for other panels - is there a monitor into which we can feed all the solar info to give us one lot of information on charging, battery status in % or amp hrs?
Sally

Hi Sally,
I'm slightly confused - 34V is an unusual voltage for a battery-powered system! Big panels such as those are usually used for grid-connected systems, where you produce 240V AC (domestic electricity). In those cases you wouldn't use a regulator such as the Tristar; instead you would use an inverter.
If you have a battery system, it would usually work at 12 or 24V DC. If it's a 12V system, your panels are really producing too high a voltage. But, if what you have quoted is the maximum voltage (usually given as 'Vmax'), they are about right for a 24V system. You have a total power of 1190 W (7 x 170), which at 24V is still a bit under 60 Amps. So yes, if you are running a 24V system, the Tristar 60 would be perfect.
You can get battery monitors to give you the state of charge of your batteries. For 12V systems the NASA BM-1 is very good (http://www.nasamarine.com/). I think Steca make a similar instrument for 24V systems - if that is of interest I can get you more details. At the moment we don't stock them, but we may be able to get one in.