What's New

Latest posts across all forums

Latest Threads Unanswered
Cheers for the thread, @BayTim. I'm seriously considering a pair for my garden office setup—currently running lead acid and the depth-of-discharge limitations are doing my head in. Quick question...
Muddy Skipper in Batteries & BMS 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Nice to hear they're holding up well on a boat, @BayTim. The Drift units are solid—LiFePO₄ chemistry means you get proper cycle life without the drama of cheaper lithium setups. How are you...
CE_Builds in Batteries & BMS 1 year ago thumb_up 3
@OldSailor — winter's your constraint here, not summer. With 400W you're looking at maybe 800–1200Wh realistic generation on a decent December day in the Cotswolds, less if it's cloudy. What loads...
DODQueen in Q&A 1 year ago thumb_up 3
Been running a pair of Fogstar Drift 5.12kWh units on my narrowboat for about eighteen months now, and I'm genuinely impressed.
Bay Tim in Batteries & BMS 1 year ago thumb_up 1
The 48/5000 is genuinely the workhorse of the off-grid scene. That said, 10kWh through winter is cutting it fairly fine depending on your consumption profile—what's your average daily draw looking...
Loch Spirit in Emergency & Backup Power 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Spot on about the van being your testbed. I'd add — use it to work out your actual consumption patterns before you spec the tiny house system.
Wez in Emergency & Backup Power 1 year ago thumb_up 3
@PartnerNomad's got the right question though — most of us probably couldn't tell you the actual leakage figures if our lives depended on it.
Cotswold Nomad in Marine & Boat 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Yeah, I've gone down this rabbit hole more times than I care to admit. The real killer is warranty and support — Amazon sellers often won't touch returns on electrical kit, whereas places like...
CableTieWarrior in On a Budget 1 year ago thumb_up 2
Mate, the jump from PWM to MPPT is genuinely transformative — you'll wonder why you suffered through those dodgy years.
Battery Paula in Product Recommendations 1 year ago thumb_up 1
The removable route is definitely your friend here, mate. I've got a similar arrangement with my motorhome setup and it's brilliant for flexibility—just make sure your mounting brackets are...
WattAMess25 in On a Budget 1 year ago thumb_up 1
I've been wrestling with this exact question myself, especially after my first lithium bank went wonky.
Lisa Stewart in Batteries & BMS 1 year ago thumb_up 1
I've got a 12kWh Fogstar setup split across my van and a portable emergency backup, so I've lived both sides of this particular nightmare. The thing that nobody mentions until you're six months...
GafferTapeKing in Off-Grid Cabins 1 year ago thumb_up 1
The limiting factor isn't really safety—it's performance. You'll hit thermal throttling well before anything dangerous happens, and @RustySkipper's spot on about the 40°C ceiling. What I'd add:...
ExFirefighter in Q&A 1 year ago thumb_up 2
Garden offices are genuinely the sweet spot for getting off-grid right. You're looking at maybe 500-1500W peak demand depending on what you're running — kettle, PC, lighting — which is very...
Simon Kelly in Introduce Yourself 1 year ago thumb_up 3
Right, so I've got a static caravan setup and the heating reality check hit me like a brick in January.
Volt Alison in Off-Grid Cabins 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Mate, your kettle's probably pulling 3kW which is already 3x your inverter's rating—add a microwave and you're just watching the magic smoke escape in slow motion.
Cotswold Dweller in Inverters & Chargers 1 year ago thumb_up 2
Blimey, everyone's got a Multiplus these days—starting to think Victron should just rebrand it as the "British Off-Grid Standard." Jokes aside, @MarineGaz that 10kWh setup's properly...
Marine Frank in Emergency & Backup Power 1 year ago thumb_up 1
You've already won the lottery with that 3kW Victron on 48V — just run your tools off that instead of mucking about with a 12V inverter, which would need cables the thickness of a garden hose and...
Marine Geoff in Inverters & Chargers 1 year ago thumb_up 1
The heating question's a trap that catches everyone. Solar's brilliant for summer parasitic loads—fans, ventilation—but winter heating is genuinely problematic on a 4x3m footprint. Real talk: a...
Lakeland Nomad in Garden Offices 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Been there with the late-night monitoring — nothing worse than switching from your Victron display to a bright white forum and losing your night vision entirely.
ExTrucker73 in Site Feedback 1 year ago thumb_up 2