On a Budget

Tips, tricks and finds for off-grid on a budget.

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Is Fogstar Drift LiFePO4 actually worth it over cheaper no-name cells for a budget van build?

by Partner Adventure · 2 months ago

345

2 months ago

by Derek

Anyone else running a cheap Chinese MPPT off a small roof? What's your actual experience?

by Foggy95 · 2 months ago

304

2 months ago

by QG_Marine

Anyone else running a cheap Chinese MPPT off a single 100W panel on a leisure battery — what settings are you using?

by Turbo19 · 3 months ago

202

2 months ago

by Borders Explorer

Anyone else running a split-charge relay instead of a B2B charger to save money — worth it long term?

by Crafty Welder · 3 months ago

346

2 months ago

by T5 Build

Anyone else gone the Fogstar Drift route instead of Victron for a budget van build?

by WhatsAFuse · 2 months ago

414

2 months ago

by T6 Life

Anyone else running 100Ah LiFePO4 on a tight budget — what BMS are you actually using?

by Battery Doug · 3 months ago

198

2 months ago

by ExTrucker73

Anyone else running a cheap 100W panel + leisure battery setup and actually getting decent results?

by Tom · 3 months ago

345

2 months ago

by Trevor

Has anyone built a basic 12v solar setup for under £200? What did you actually get?

by Kate Mason · 3 months ago

202

2 months ago

by Mike Cross

Anyone else running a used EV battery for off-grid storage? Sharing my costs and setup so far

by DontPanic8 · 3 months ago

467

2 months ago

by Ian

Anyone else running a cheap PWM controller with decent results, or am I wasting my time?

by Dale Ben · 3 months ago

474

2 months ago

by TID_Electric

Fogstar Drift vs. second-hand Victron LiFePO4 — which would you actually choose on a tight budget?

by Wayne James · 3 months ago

544

2 months ago

by Russ Mitchell

Anyone else using cheap Chinese PWM controllers long-term? Sharing my results after 18 months

by T5 Life · 3 months ago

321

2 months ago

by Partner Convert

Anyone else running a cheap Chinese MPPT off a single 100W panel? Sharing my results after 3 months

by Foggy · 3 months ago

293

2 months ago

by Ella

Anyone actually saving money with a hybrid inverter vs separate bits?

by EcoFlow_Gal · 3 months ago

276

2 months ago

by Renogy_Nerd

Anyone else gone down the cheap Chinese MPPT rabbit hole? Here's what I found after 6 months

by Ella Dixon · 3 months ago

156

3 months ago

by Bay Lisa

Anyone else running a cheap Chinese MPPT off a single 100W panel? Curious what you're actually getting

by Dan Phillips · 3 months ago

474

3 months ago

by ThingamyBob

Is Fogstar Draft actually worth it over a proper LiFePO4 for a budget narrowboat build?

by VictronMaster · 3 months ago

169

3 months ago

by MPPT_Wizard

Anyone else running a small 12v system entirely on secondhand kit? Share your setups and costs

by DontPanic8 · 3 months ago

467

3 months ago

by Dorset Boater

Is Fogstar Drift actually worth the premium over a cheap 100Ah LiFePO4 off AliExpress?

by Joe Turner · 3 months ago

181

3 months ago

by Lazy Nomad

Anyone else running a hybrid grid-tie/off-grid setup on the cheap using second-hand Victron kit?

by Ozzy · 3 months ago

359

3 months ago

by Wayne Knight

Spent £340 building a decent van solar setup — here's what actually worked

by Ewan Murray · 3 months ago

473

3 months ago

by CurrentAffairs96

Anyone actually saved money going second-hand on lithium? What's the risk?

by Paul Murray · 3 months ago

544

3 months ago

by Brian

Anyone else running a used leisure battery from Facebook Marketplace? Share your wins and horror stories

by Dan Murray · 3 months ago

573

3 months ago

by Master Project

Anyone else running a cheap Chinese MPPT off a single 100W panel — what settings are you using?

by Tim Harris · 3 months ago

241

3 months ago

by Wonky Rigger

Anyone managed a decent solar setup for under £300 all-in?

by Ian Henderson · 3 months ago

444

3 months ago

by Heath Gazer

On a Budget

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