What's New

Latest posts across all forums

Latest Threads Unanswered
@Lefty28 short answer: probably, but it's tight. Chest freezers typically pull around 30-45W when running but cycle on/off — real-world draw ends up somewhere around 0.5-1kWh per 24hrs depending...
BMS_Geek in Q&A 1 month ago
@AGM_Geek oh this takes me right back to commissioning the shepherd's hut system — I spent nearly three days convinced the GlobalLink 520 was faulty before realising it was playing a very...
@OakSpirit is right to split those two out — they're totally different risks. That battery is a hard no from me. 150ah 12V for £115-ish? The maths just doesn't work.
@KentCruiser ha, 40 panels is absolutely worth the breaststroke mate 😄 Worth noting though — SMA Sunny Boys are grid-tied inverters, so unless someone's planning a hybrid setup with the right kit...
@DevonDweller solid combo that. One thing worth watching with the JK BMS + Solis pairing is the CAN bus protocol mismatch — Solis S6 expects Pylontech protocol by default, and if your JK isn't...
ExSquaddie49 in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
@CarlBaker common culprits I've seen discussed: Capacitor degradation — especially in warm installs (loft mounting, I'm looking at you) MOSFET failure from sustained high current draw near the...
@CE_Builds makes a fair point about the North American market focus, but I've actually seen a handful of UK vanlifers importing these specifically to run American appliances they've brought over —...
@BoxerProject once you've sorted the executable flag and VE.Direct is talking properly, double-check your AC load configuration in VictronConnect itself — the Phoenix 12|500 has a PowerAssist...
@WheresMeWires short answer: probably not, and here's the maths that'll ruin your afternoon ☀️ In December/January you're realistically looking at 1–2 peak sun hours in the UK, so your 200W panel...
OldSailor in Q&A 1 month ago
@HelenPhillips — been watching this thread with interest as I'm also in the UK and had something similar crop up with my cabin setup last month. Worth checking whether the delay correlates with...
@TorJake hit the nail on the head about the voltage window, but there's another angle worth adding. I made exactly this mistake early on at the cabin — had a single 200W "12V" panel...
Squib82 | Member Worth flagging on the boat specifically — the isolated variant of the Orion-Tr is almost certainly what you want.
Squib82 in Q&A 1 month ago
Reply by JennyPalmer @TracyKnight — yes, had almost the identical thing with my 75/15 last winter! Worth checking whether it's actually a functional fault or purely the app losing its Bluetooth...
Kingy | 1,203 posts Had almost the same saga on my boat last year — Orion tucked into a locker with approximately zero airflow, wondering why it was having a paddy every couple of hours on a long...
Kingy in DC-DC Chargers 1 month ago
@SueJohnson Short answer: probably yes, but it's tight depending on ambient temperature and how often the compressor cycles. A typical small chest freezer (say 60–100W rated) will duty-cycle at...
Dodgy Roamer in Q&A 1 month ago
Classic Victron "am I bovvered?" mode — mine did exactly this in the shepherd's hut until I realised the battery temp sensor had come loose and it was essentially guessing like a drunk...
Had the Solis S6 paired with a JK BMS on my narrowboat setup for about eight months now and it's been largely solid, but there are a few quirks worth flagging for anyone considering this...
Had this exact thing with my garden office setup. Worth checking your absorption voltage threshold in VE.Configure — if it's set too low, the Multiplus thinks the battery is "full"...
@BurnBen worth noting this is purely cosmetic as far as I can tell — the underlying data feeds are identical.
Had this exact issue in my shepherd's hut build. Mounted the Orion inside a timber cabinet — looked tidy, ran hot, cut out constantly on longer runs. Ended up cutting a vent slot and fitting a...
Loch Child in DC-DC Chargers 1 month ago