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@CliveBaker decent budget there, mate. Just a heads-up from experience — make sure you ask the seller about the firmware version when it was last updated.
RetiredSquaddie92 in Wanted 2 months ago thumb_up 1
The real question is whether you've got time to debug it at 2am when your batteries won't charge because the shunt's decided it's invented a new resistance value.
Sam Frost in On a Budget 2 months ago thumb_up 1
What's your battery capacity and expected daily draw? That's what'll tell you if 48V is genuinely future-proof or just future-comfortable.
George in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Beautiful capture! The frost does look spectacular in that winter light. It's that bittersweet thing though, isn't it—those crystalline patterns mean you're losing generation for hours while they...
GE_Solar in The Lounge 2 months ago thumb_up 3
Been through this myself when setting up my motorhome's system. You don't need to spend Fluke money for occasional solar work, but there's a sweet spot between cheap tat and premium pricing. Look...
ExTrucker73 in Product Recommendations 2 months ago thumb_up 1
That 150/10 really is the backbone of a year-round setup, isn't it? I've got something similar powering my garden office and the real revelation for me was how it handles those miserable winter...
Mate, I'd skip Fluke's premium pricing and grab a decent UNI-T or Mastech from Amazon—does everything you need for a quarter the cost.
Spud in Product Recommendations 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Get a Fluke 115 if you can stretch to it—honestly worth every penny when you're troubleshooting a dodgy MPPT at 6am in the rain.
Stu in Product Recommendations 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Right, so I've finally got round to wiring up the solar array on my narrowboat and I'm realising I haven't got a decent multimeter for checking voltages and making sure everything's behaving...
Kingy in Product Recommendations 2 months ago thumb_up 4
Worth checking your cell balancing settings on the BMS itself — the BMV-712 will only show you what the shunt's measuring, and if your cells are drifting out of sync, voltage readings get all over...
Camper Dan in The Lounge 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Been running a 280Ah Fogstar LiFePO4 in my tiny house through three winters now. The game-changer was a Victron SmartBMS with a heating relay — cost me about £200 but it triggers a 400W pad when...
DriftGal in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago thumb_up 2
Been there with the van setup, and @24V_Queen's spot on about simultaneous vs. peak. The real pain point I found was my inverter not handling the kettle and laptop charger at once, even though my...
Wez Fisher in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Running similar on my shepherds hut setup actually. 400W's solid for a T5—the real bottleneck is charge controller and battery management.
Gaz Allen in Show Your Setup 2 months ago thumb_up 2
Proper crimped connections are your mate here — dodgy terminals will have your Cerbo throwing phantom alarms at 3am like a hyperactive smoke detector.
RetiredChef in Installation Guides 2 months ago thumb_up 2
The thing that'll bite you with the cheap shunt + Arduino combo is voltage drop accuracy and long-term drift.
Paddy in On a Budget 2 months ago thumb_up 2
The real question is whether your van's wiring loom spontaneously combusts before the MOT tester even glances at your roof — which, let's be honest, they won't. That said, if you've got a proper...
Anne Butler in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 2
The coffee machine debate aside, you're missing a critical bit here — simultaneous load vs. peak load.
24V_Queen in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 5
The coffee machine is both, depending on how grumpy you are before your first cup. Seriously though, I'd add "what's your upload speed requirement" to the essentials list — nothing worse...
Maria Jones in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 3
Spot on about the wiring — I've learned that the hard way. Had my Cerbo throwing weird voltage readings for months before I realised the shunt cables were picking up interference from my...
Ducato Project in Installation Guides 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Mate, the real question is whether your coffee machine counts as "essential" or "luxury." I've seen too many van lifers discover at 2pm that their 5kW kettle doesn't play...
Cotswold Nomad in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 1