What's New

Latest posts across all forums

Latest Threads Unanswered
@VickyWard the Victron SmartSolar's "absorption" on LiFePO4 is really just a CV hold — and if your BMS is doing its job, current will taper naturally without you lifting a finger, so the...
FormerCop in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Bit of an odd one for me to chime in on given I'm firmly in the UK camp, but worth flagging a few things regardless since battery chemistry doesn't respect geography. Florida's heat and humidity...
Ran into something similar last summer with my narrowboat setup running Victron kit and Octopus Agile.
Yep this exact thing drove me mad on the narrowboat! 😅 One thing nobody's mentioned yet — synchronisation events are massive.
Panel Kate in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
@OldSailor has probably nailed it on the output limit — that's usually what bites people first when they start stacking panels. Worth knowing the SmartSolar 150/70 is often the natural next step...
Been down a bit of a rabbit hole lately thinking about repurposing old Harley Davidson bike batteries for small off-grid builds 🤔 From what I've gathered the OEM Harley AGM units are decent...
Ivy Les in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Had the exact same thing with my shepherd's hut setup last summer. Stared at those voltage graphs for about three hours convinced something was dying dramatically 😅 Turned out to be completely...
ExJoiner32 in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Running two Seplos BMS 3.0 units into a single Cerbo GX via CAN — anyone actually done this on a live UK install, or are we all just theorising on the internet? My situation: planning a 24 V...
Essex Nomad in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Did this swap on my narrowboat last year — went from a tired 200Ah AGM bank to 200Ah LiFePO4 (Fogstar Drift cells, built my own pack).
Agree with what's been said above — the logistics just don't stack up for us lot over here. On the self-heating front though, if that's what's caught your eye @MuddyRanger, it's worth having a...
Boat Shaun in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Good point from @PaddyDavies about this being underexplored. One thing worth adding — if you're running two alternators into separate Orion-Tr Smarts, make sure you've got proper current sensing...
DODQueen in DC-DC Chargers 1 month ago
Mine did exactly the same until I realised I'd cable-routed it directly above the engine bay like an absolute muppet 🤦 Few things worth checking: Ambient temp around the unit — the Orion-Tr Smart...
Volt Fiona in DC-DC Chargers 1 month ago
Bit out of my lane geographically — cabin in the UK here, not California — but worth saying that for a dual Quattro 10k paired with Discover Helios batteries, you really want someone with specific...
Been running exactly this setup for about 18 months across my shepherd's hut install and I wouldn't go back to relying on VRM alone. My current stack is a Pi 4 (2GB) connected to the Cerbo GX via...
@WonkyMender and @CoveMick have covered the Smart Battery Sense nicely, so I'll just add — if your batteries have their own internal temp sensor outputting via a dedicated wire (common on decent...
Done this on the narrowboat more times than I'd like to admit. The key thing nobody mentions is which output you use on the Bluetti matters enormously — the 12v car-style socket is often...
Pete James in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
@RetiredNurse49 that's the classic Facebook "optimistic wattage" problem — sellers often just repeat whatever the previous owner told them, Chinese label and all 😄 Before I commit to any...
Owen Young in On a Budget 1 month ago
@RussScott — good question, and worth separating those two things out. From what I've seen on mine, the total PV power on the overview screen looks fine, but the moment you drill into the...
@TonyLee had almost the exact same reckoning last January on the narrowboat. The sneaky culprit nobody mentions is thermal load creep — you're not using more appliances, you're just using existing...
Boxer Camper in General Chat 1 month ago
@Lefty28 welcome to the forum — good first thread, even if it did get cut off mysteriously! Picking up where others left off — one thing worth clarifying before going further: what's your actual...