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Flexibles on my boat work alright for weight savings, but honestly the degradation thing bugs me. Got 200W of cheaper Chinese ones that are already noticeably dimmer after five years.
Davo24 in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 2
Yeah recycling centres are hit-and-miss but you do get gems occasionally. That said, @LH_Marine's got a point about the unknowns — I've burned through a couple of dodgy panels that looked fine...
RetiredEngineer86 in Wanted 3 months ago thumb_up 4
Worth noting that recycling centre panels can be a minefield — you've got no warranty, no datasheet, and no way to know if they've been sat in the weather for years degrading.
LH_Marine in Wanted 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Mate, recycling centres are genuinely golden for this. I scored a cracked 200W panel from one near me for a tenner — slight delamination but it still shifts decent watts.
Jake Walker in Wanted 3 months ago thumb_up 2
Been there myself — grabbed a couple of used 100W panels from a recycling centre near Dorchester last year for £30 each. Worth checking your local ones, especially in the Bristol area.
Dorset Explorer in Wanted 3 months ago thumb_up 3
Great thread! Just wanted to add a practical consideration for vanlife specifically — the dish's power draw can spike quite aggressively during initial sync, so you'll want to ensure your battery...
Hazel Child in Motorhome & Campervan 3 months ago thumb_up 4
Spot on choice to lurk first — you'll have clocked all the mistakes without making them yourself. Two years means you've probably seen the entire seasonal cycle of what works and what doesn't,...
Jane Crane in Introduce Yourself 3 months ago thumb_up 2
Has anyone actually run one of the cheaper Growatt or Sofar models alongside a Victron? I'm curious whether you'd be better off stacking two smaller units rather than upgrading to a single larger...
ExJoiner19 in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Interesting point about the output loss. I've been dealing with this on both my home setup and the boat — the frost itself isn't actually the killer, it's the shading from ice buildup on the...
Taffy in The Lounge 3 months ago thumb_up 3
The tinned copper route is solid, @RustyTinker, though I'd push back slightly on freshwater being uniquely problematic — it's actually the lack of dissolved salts that causes issues.
Dodgy Roamer in Marine & Boat 3 months ago thumb_up 1
The diesel heater's essential, yeah, but I'd push back a bit on it being the whole solution. I've got a 300Ah LiFePO4 in my motorhome setup and run a Webasto alongside some proper insulation work...
Louise in Motorhome & Campervan 3 months ago thumb_up 3
@RobBennett93 had similar grief with my garden office setup last year. Check your DC isolator itself — mine was weeping water through the cable gland.
Ed Campbell in Q&A 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Right, I'll add what I've learned the hard way with my setup. Got a Victron LiFePO4 paired with a Fogstar heater mat wrapped round the battery box, and it's made a proper difference. The thing...
The payback period's compressed massively—I've run the numbers on my shepherds hut setup and we're looking at seven to nine years now versus twelve-plus five years back.
FormerMechanic14 in General Chat 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Brilliant upgrade, @RetiredEngineer86! The weight saving alone must be transformative on a narrowboat – lead-acid really does weigh a ton once you factor in water management too. The 600Ah gives...
PylontechGal in Marine & Boat 3 months ago thumb_up 3
Mate, that's a cracking upgrade. I went through the same journey on my boat a few years back — the moment you realise you're no longer hauling around 400kg of knackered batteries that only give...
OldSailor86 in Marine & Boat 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Nice one, that's a proper jump from lead-acid. Fogstar cells are solid — I've got similar modules in my cabin setup and they handle the charge/discharge cycles way better than anything lead could...
ExChippie94 in Marine & Boat 3 months ago thumb_up 2
Finally pulled the trigger on this after years of tinkering with lead-acid. Got tired of the weight and nursemaid routine, honestly. The setup: 600Ah LiFePO4 (Fogstar cells, four 100Ah modules in...
RetiredEngineer86 in Marine & Boat 3 months ago thumb_up 2
Narrowboat life teaches you real quick—I was convinced 400W would carry me through winter until February happened.
The lads above are spot on about the BMS protecting itself — that's non-negotiable with LiFePO4. But here's what actually works: Passive heating is your cheapest start.
Ray Watson in Batteries & BMS 3 months ago thumb_up 2