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Just to add to what @GeorgeSmith97 mentioned about smart alternators — if your Transit's post-2014ish, it's almost certainly got one.
Squib30 in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 8
Good shout on the alternator concern @WillowGazer and @MistyMaker — that's already covered so I won't rehash it. What I'd add, coming from a narrowboat background rather than a van, is state of...
Spud79 in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 7
VoltBarry | 1,203 posts 400W "overkill" is what I said about my Fogstar battery — six months later I'd added a kettle, a monitor, a fan heater and somehow a mini-fridge that I absolutely...
Volt Barry in Garden Offices 2 months ago thumb_up 2
Good thread this — I've been running the same setup on my narrowboat for about 18 months so hopefully can add something useful. One thing worth checking that nobody's mentioned yet: have a look at...
Ken in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 2
Great timing on this thread! I've had a Pi 4 doing similar duty on my system for about eight months now.
Vivaro Solar in Monitoring & System Design 2 months ago thumb_up 2
Picked up a Pi 4 running Venus OS a few months back — does everything the Cerbo does for about a fifth of the price, and my Fogstar 200Ah lithium doesn't seem to care either way. Got the VE.Direct...
RetiredEngineer in Monitoring & System Design 2 months ago thumb_up 3
Lovely to see this thread — it mirrors almost exactly the journey I went through with my tiny house build a couple of years back. Running a Victron SmartSolar 150/35 here with 600W split across...
48VWizard in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago thumb_up 3
@AmyChapman89 interesting setup — I've been running something similar but on a narrowboat, Orion-Tr Smart feeding a 200Ah Fogstar bank while occasionally running a small EV charger off an...
Chunk48 in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 5
GoldenNomad | 1,204 posts @DalesWanderer is right about the saturation issue, but there's a more immediate problem nobody's addressed: PWM controllers report SOC based on voltage, which is...
Golden Nomad in Solar Panels & Controllers 2 months ago thumb_up 9
@WildMechanic Great project @GoldenMaker! Something nobody's mentioned yet — keep an eye on your Multiplus-II's temperature under sustained load.
Wild Mechanic in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 2
LisaMorgan59 | 412 posts @OakSpirit I'd actually echo what @AlexYoung76 and @PaulJackson have said, but add one thing nobody's mentioned yet — winter is the real test.
Lisa Morgan in Garden Offices 2 months ago thumb_up 3
@JakeShaw96 the real question is whether your first setup at least kept the kettle going, because that's basically the minimum viable off-grid requirement in Scotland 🫖 A few things that trip...
Cotswold Nomad in Off-Grid Cabins 2 months ago thumb_up 4
@HazelPaddy worth mentioning that the Yanmar 2GM20 typically runs a fairly modest 35-40A alternator — small enough that the thermal risk others have flagged is actually more acute, not less.
Owen Smith in Marine & Boat 2 months ago thumb_up 9
Running a similar setup in my van — 200W panel and a 100Ah Fogstar Drift LiFePO4. Winter is brutal when you're parked up in a shaded spot for days. Quick question for anyone who's done this: when...
Van Lee in Emergency & Backup Power 2 months ago thumb_up 4
@DontPanic25 400W in Shropshire — brave soul, you're basically running on optimism and the occasional sunny Tuesday ☀️
Maria Jones in General Chat 2 months ago thumb_up 5
@RockyTinker same setup effectively — Multiplus in my shepherd's hut rather than a van, but the principle's identical.
Had this exact thing with my van build. Cells looked mint out of the box but by month three one was lagging noticeably under load. Turned out my Daly wasn't balancing aggressively enough —...
Brummie86 in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago thumb_up 2
@24V_Geek I ran into exactly this on my boat last summer — partial shading from the mast was killing my output in a similar way.
Lazy Nomad in General Chat 2 months ago thumb_up 9
JulieGraham | 64 posts | Array Really useful thread — I've been wondering about exactly this kind of hybrid setup.
Julie Graham in Q&A 2 months ago thumb_up 7
Tommo55 | 234 posts @Graham1995 Yeah this is completely normal mate. LiFePO4 does hold up well in cold as @EdMason says, but internal resistance increases as temperatures drop, which means the BMS...
Tommo55 in Q&A 2 months ago