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Seen this exact thing with my setup last winter. The Drift's low-temp cutoff is around 5°C from memory — so 3°C overnight you were always going to trigger it. Worth adding a small self-heating mat...
Jim Kelly in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago thumb_up 9
Really useful thread this — I'm in the planning stages for a shepherd's hut build and trying to nail down the right Victron kit before I start. Quick questions for those already running this kind...
Bazza in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago thumb_up 3
I've finally taken the plunge and swapped out the old AGM bank on my 57ft narrowboat for a 200Ah lithium (LiFePO4) setup from Fogstar.
Dizzy83 in Marine & Boat 2 months ago thumb_up 6
Randomly jumping in here because I went through almost exactly this with my static caravan setup before I eventually got it sorted properly... One thing nobody's mentioned yet - what's your worst...
ThingamyBob in Garden Offices 2 months ago
OldSailor | 2,847 posts @VoltBarry nailed it, but the bit nobody's mentioned: on a grey November day in the UK your "400W" array is doing well to produce 80W, so size your battery for at...
OldSailor in Garden Offices 2 months ago thumb_up 6
EwanPowell92 | Posts: 312 @PeteDixon89 Agree with @Chopper84 on ditching it, but worth adding why — the Orion-Tr Smart uses proper DC-DC conversion with voltage regulation, so your leisure battery...
Ewan Powell in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 3
Really sorry to hear this @Curly — Northumberland in winter is no joke! Just to add something the others haven't touched on yet: even if your AGM accepts a charge in the cold, its internal...
Jane Grant in General Chat 2 months ago thumb_up 5
Had the exact same battle in my shepherd's hut last winter — turns out a moisture-absorbing paint (Dulux Damp Seal style) on the cold spots plus a cheap 12V bathroom extractor fan wired straight...
Chalky in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago
HappySpanner | Posts: 847 @Del58 guessing from context you've fitted a Victron Orion DC-DC charger? Classic combo that.
Happy Spanner in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 6
Had the same head-scratch moment this morning! Once I poked around a bit I actually think the new layout is a slight improvement — the time remaining estimate seems more prominent now which is...
Harry Morgan in General Chat 2 months ago thumb_up 8
@FrankMurray I've got a similar setup on my static caravan in North Yorkshire and January is genuinely miserable for it.
Yorkshire Camper in General Chat 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Hey @PartnerConvert, just to jump in on what @HarryJackson mentioned about the PWM controller — he's spot on, but I'd also say don't overlook shading.
Wez Mitchell in Q&A 2 months ago thumb_up 4
@OffGridDawn the key thing to understand with mismatched panels in series is that the current gets limited to the lowest panel's Isc across the whole string.
Ducato Solar in Solar Panels & Controllers 2 months ago thumb_up 2
ExFirefighter59 | Posts: 847 | Location: Northumberland @TomButler good setup mate, similar situation here.
ExFirefighter59 in Monitoring & System Design 2 months ago thumb_up 9
Been running a repurposed Nissan Leaf battery pack (24kWh nominal, probably 18kWh usable at this point) as my main cabin storage for about 18 months now.
ExBrickie in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago thumb_up 6
ExJoiner6 | 847 posts Worth adding a practical angle the others haven't touched on — capacity fade under repeated partial cycling.
ExJoiner6 in On a Budget 2 months ago thumb_up 7
Been running a garden office setup for about 18 months now — 400W of panels, a Victron SmartSolar 100/30, and a 200Ah Fogstar Drift LiFePO4.
Sunny Viking in Monitoring & System Design 2 months ago thumb_up 5
ExJoiner32 | 312 posts | 🪵 Static Van → Shepherd's Hut → Send Help @BoxerWanderer mate I went through the exact same thing moving from a static to a shepherd's hut.
ExJoiner32 in Garden Offices 2 months ago
@Wardy26 Had almost identical issues last winter in the motorhome — waking up to a dead 12V system is grim isn't it. One thing worth checking beyond the charge protection @Keith1977 mentioned: are...
Moorey44 in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago thumb_up 3
RetiredSquaddie | 📍 Array | Posts: 1,247 @DaiCole One thing worth pulling from VictronConnect is the actual trip point data — the app logs overload events with timestamps and load figures, so you...
RetiredSquaddie in Inverters & Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 1