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I picked up a no-name 40A MPPT off AliExpress back in March for about £18 delivered — yes, eighteen quid — mostly just to see if it would survive more than a week.
MPPT_Fan in On a Budget 2 months ago thumb_up 2
DeclanJohnson | 412 posts | South Wales @Scouse The main thing to watch with that 175W addition is the Voc mismatch when wiring in series — your string voltage will be uneven across panels and the...
Declan Johnson in Solar Panels & Controllers 2 months ago thumb_up 6
I've been living aboard my 57ft narrowboat for about two years now and recently added a Rutland 914i wind turbine to sit alongside my existing 400W of solar panels (2x 200W Victron).
Camper Rachel in Marine & Boat 2 months ago thumb_up 2
ExpertCamper | 1,203 posts @ShaunDixon I'm actually running something similar in my off-grid cabin setup — 48V bank for the heavy lifting (inverter, induction hob) and a Victron Orion-Tr 48/12-30...
Expert Camper in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 3
@LDVWanderer similar setup on my boat — though I've since bumped to 560W across four panels laid flat on the roof.
Spud79 in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago thumb_up 3
Del72 | 1,204 posts | ⭐ Trusted Member @Ben1989 A 6kg bottle won't last five minutes up there in January, mate!
Del72 in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago thumb_up 3
@CliveBaker one thing neither reply has touched on yet — with a static install you're likely running longer cable runs than a typical van setup.
River Runner in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 4
@MoorKev has already nailed the flat-curve issue, so I won't rehash that. What actually fixed it in my static caravan setup was adding a small trickle heater pad under the battery bank — just...
WD40Wizard in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago thumb_up 7
Compo27 | 312 posts @KentCruiser Worth checking what your ambient temperature actually is inside the van first — if it's a warm day and the van's been sitting in sun, 28°C on the cells might just...
Compo27 in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago thumb_up 2
DodgySpanner | 2,341 posts | 🔧 DIY Solar Evangelist @VoltWendy One thing worth flagging that I haven't seen mentioned yet - Wales gets absolutely battered with overcast days rather than outright...
Dodgy Spanner in Q&A 2 months ago thumb_up 6
DebbieEvans | 847 posts @BayLisa honestly the 12v vs 24v question paralysed me for months when I did our widebeam!
Debbie Evans in Q&A 2 months ago thumb_up 8
Great thread — I've been running this exact combination for about eight months now and the piece that made everything click for me was enabling the engine detect function via VictronConnect and...
Meadow Carl in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 6
Gibbo | Posts: 847 @SolarJason Sounds very familiar! The jump to lithium is one of those decisions where you kick yourself for not doing it sooner.
Gibbo in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago thumb_up 6
@FenlandVanLifer the bit everyone glosses over is cell matching — shove mismatched internal resistances into a pack and your BMS will be crying before you've even left the driveway. Grabbed a...
FETFan in On a Budget 2 months ago thumb_up 5
Great shout @CamperEwan! For that load you're honestly not looking at massive investment. I'd suggest a single 200W panel would cover you comfortably most of the year, paired with a decent 100Ah...
Shaun in On a Budget 2 months ago thumb_up 8
FinnTaylor78 | 134 posts @FormerMariner1 worth flagging that on my narrowboat I made the same mistake of undersizing because I calculated average loads rather than peak loads.
Finn Taylor in Garden Offices 2 months ago
Bit of a tangent but worth knowing — the MultiPlus-II also reads battery voltage at the unit itself, not at the bank.
Pike Walker in Inverters & Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 9
Good question to be asking before you buy anything — most folk get it backwards and buy the charger first. The bit nobody mentions upfront: your source battery capacity is the real bottleneck...
Mountain Barry in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 9
Gill1990 replied: @FellGraham Yep, seen this a fair few times! Worth knowing the quickest fix is just making sure your Cerbo has an active internet connection via WiFi or ethernet — it'll pull the...
Gill in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 1
AGM_Pro | Posts: 847 @BayJason makes a good point about storage — worth flagging that if you've got a Victron BMS or even just a basic battery monitor, setting a low-SOC alert before you park it...
AGM_Pro in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 4