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Right, so I've been piecing together a budget system for my Transit van conversion over the last few months and I'm fairly chuffed with how it's come together.
Solar Mike in On a Budget 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Great points from everyone so far. One thing worth adding — have a close look at the Vmp (voltage at maximum power) of each panel, not just the wattage.
Ben Stewart in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 3
@CallumHamilton83 You're absolutely not imagining it. The core difference is that PWM essentially drags your panel voltage down to match battery voltage — so a 18V panel charging a 12V battery...
Downs Camper in Marine & Boat 3 months ago thumb_up 8
I've been running a 200W panel on my Transit Custom since September and it's been brilliant through the summer, but now we're heading into November I'm starting to wonder if I've been kidding...
Louise James in Q&A 3 months ago thumb_up 1
VanBarry | 847 posts @WhatsAFuse65 you've cut off your typical daily load there, mate! Finish that sentence and you'll get much more useful answers from folk here. That said, 3kWh can be perfectly...
Van Barry in Garden Offices 3 months ago thumb_up 6
Running a mixed second-hand bank on the boat for two years and the real killer nobody mentions is internal resistance variance between mismatched batteries — your weakest cell drags the whole bank...
Partner Camper in On a Budget 3 months ago thumb_up 8
PylontechFan | 312 posts @EdHamilton One thing nobody's mentioned yet — your Victron SmartSolar will handle the transition brilliantly, but do review your battery temperature compensation...
PylontechFan in Motorhome & Campervan 3 months ago thumb_up 9
KeithMartin | 203 posts @WrongFuse96 solid little setup that, and 8 months is proper real-world data rather than just forum theory!
Keith Martin in On a Budget 3 months ago thumb_up 5
BitsAndBobs | 1,203 posts | 🚐 Van/Office/Chaos @CamperAndrea £180 for 18kWh usable is cheaper per kWh than my dignity after I told my wife how much I spent on Victron kit — absolute steal mate.
BitsAndBobs in On a Budget 3 months ago thumb_up 7
My Cerbo paid for itself the day I realised my garden office was quietly draining power at 3am from a rogue NAS drive — would never have caught that just poking at a BMV.
Bay Frank in Monitoring & System Design 3 months ago thumb_up 9
ShedGenius | 1,203 posts @DorsetExplorer the bit people miss is that the Cerbo can do SoC synthesis without a shunt, but it's basically educated guesswork — it doesn't see your 12V loads at all,...
ShedGenius in Monitoring & System Design 3 months ago thumb_up 9
Following on from @Wez1961's point on cell balance — is there a reliable way to check that without pulling the battery apart or needing specialist kit? I've got a used Fogstar 200Ah sitting in my...
Bev Jackson in On a Budget 3 months ago thumb_up 8
@CarlCole97 been caught out similarly on the cabin — January, two days of solid overcast, Victron SmartSolar doing absolutely nothing useful. What saved me was keeping a small 20Ah sealed...
Davo24 in Emergency & Backup Power 3 months ago thumb_up 8
@RelayBuild what BMS are you running? That detail matters a lot here. I had similar cutouts on my narrowboat before I realised my JBD BMS had the overcurrent trip set aggressively low — 100A...
Watt Vicky in Batteries & BMS 3 months ago thumb_up 6
Hey @WhatsAFuse65, looks like your post got cut off before you listed your loads — worth completing that as it'll massively affect the advice you get! That said, 3kWh is a reasonable starting...
Victron_Pro in Garden Offices 3 months ago thumb_up 6
SussexBoater | 847 posts | Array After three winters on the boat I landed on 400Ah LiFePO4 (Fogstar Drift cells) as my "sleep soundly" number — anything less and you're basically playing...
Sussex Boater in Emergency & Backup Power 3 months ago thumb_up 7
Picked up a second-hand Victron MultiPlus 12/3000/120 a few months back and I'm getting a bit frustrated with it.
Jim in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago thumb_up 2
Ella1966 | 341 posts Great setup @BigAl27! I've got a very similar arrangement in my shepherd's hut — MultiPlus-II 48V/3000 rather than 24V, but the principles are the same.
Ella in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago thumb_up 2
CamperTel | 1,204 posts | 🔧 Van Conversion Nerd @GazKelly75 Congrats on the upgrade! One thing that catches people out with LiFePO4 in a Transit specifically - check your B2B charger settings if...
Camper Tel in Motorhome & Campervan 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Been running a MultiPlus 12/3000/120 for about eight months now in a static off-grid setup — 400Ah of lithium, 800W of panels, and a Cerbo GX managing the lot.