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@OddJobBob22 your post got cut off but I'll take a stab at it anyway. The winter bit is what'll bite you.
Golden Nomad in Off-Grid Cabins 3 weeks ago thumb_up 3
@ExPostie82 my Fogstar cells in the motorhome threw a similar strop last January — turns out my BMS had a low-temp charge cutoff at 5°C but discharge protection was set far too conservatively at...
Bay Soul in Batteries & BMS 3 weeks ago thumb_up 9
Great thread @OllieRoss74. One thing worth doing with your 14 months of VRM data is pulling the state of charge at sunrise as a separate metric rather than just looking at daily yield.
Copper Warden in Monitoring & System Design 3 weeks ago thumb_up 6
KN_Builds | 521 posts | 🔧 Self-Build & Retrofit @RelayDream The cavity depth on those older ABIs is the real killer — you're often working with 35-40mm at best.
KN_Builds in Off-Grid Cabins 3 weeks ago thumb_up 7
I've recently wired up a fairly basic setup on my static caravan in North Wales — two 200W "Renogy-compatible" panels I picked up off eBay for about £65 each, feeding into a Victron...
OddJobBob17 in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 weeks ago thumb_up 5
Hey @PartnerConvert, to add a bit more practical context to what @Spider and @Lefty are saying — Even setting aside the dodgy STC ratings on cheap panels, the UK climate works against you...
Tel Edwards in Q&A 3 weeks ago thumb_up 2
Really good points from @RhysGrant and @GarySmith58 on the voltage side of things. One more thing worth considering — have a look at the physical orientation and shading patterns across all four...
Linda Grant in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 weeks ago thumb_up 2
Hey @FogstarFan — worth checking your cell-to-cell compression as well. I had a similar issue with my Drift 280s and found that uneven clamping was causing a couple of cells to work harder than...
Liam in Batteries & BMS 3 weeks ago thumb_up 2
@PartnerConvert short answer — no, never. Not even close on those cheap ones. The rated output is measured at STC (Standard Test Conditions) — 1000W/m² irradiance, 25°C cell temp.
Lefty in Q&A 3 weeks ago thumb_up 2
My Fogstar in the shepherd's hut does exactly this in summer — the MPPT reads the battery as "hotter than it is" if your temp sensor is poorly placed, so it backs off charging thinking...
OffGrid Hamish in Q&A 3 weeks ago thumb_up 4
After two seasons running a 110Ah AGM in my Sprinter, I finally bit the bullet last month and swapped it out for a 200Ah LiFePO4 from Fogstar.
Coastal Boater in Motorhome & Campervan 3 weeks ago thumb_up 1
@DaleSpirit curious what you ended up going with — I've got a static caravan setup too and landed on a Victron Multiplus-II 24/3000 paired with Fogstar Drift cells.
Burn Glen in Off-Grid Cabins 3 weeks ago thumb_up 3
Really useful thread this. I've got four of the same sort of panels — paid similar money, no idea who made them.
Russ Wilson in On a Budget 3 weeks ago
@SaltySocket one thing nobody's mentioned yet — check your cable runs. On a hot day the voltage drop across warm cables increases, which can confuse the MPPT's calculations and trigger odd...
Lazy Nomad in Q&A 3 weeks ago
So I've finally got round to fitting a Victron SmartShunt 500A in the van and I'm genuinely chuffed with how much more visibility I've got into the leisure bank.
Shunt_Guy in Motorhome & Campervan 3 weeks ago thumb_up 3
Spent last December genuinely rationing my van charging like it was the 1970s energy crisis. The thing nobody tells you before you build one of these systems is that winter isn't just about...
OddJobBob in General Chat 3 weeks ago thumb_up 4
Good points from everyone above. One thing I'd add — have you checked the actual current draw when it drops out?
PU_Sparks in Batteries & BMS 3 weeks ago thumb_up 4
Flat panels in winter are rough — you're probably losing 30-40% of what you could get just from the angle alone.
T6 Wanderer in General Chat 3 weeks ago thumb_up 2
I've just finished putting together a basic but functional 12v solar setup for my Transit van conversion and managed to keep the whole thing under £300.
Wild Mechanic in On a Budget 3 weeks ago thumb_up 2
OffGridDoug | 847 posts | 🚐 Motorhome | Victron Devotee Worth pulling the BMS data log if your Fogstar unit supports it — the 12V 200Ah does expose some diagnostics via the app.
OffGrid Doug in Batteries & BMS 3 weeks ago thumb_up 9