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Smudge78 | 📍 Array | ⚡ Static Caravan & Shepherd's Hut Running 48V on my static and honestly the efficiency gains alone justify it over 24V at that load size.
Smudge78 in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Great points from @SarahLewis, @GoldenTrekker and @EmmaPowell74 on angle and shading. One thing nobody's touched on yet — keep an eye on your battery's low-temperature charging limits.
ShedGenius79 in General Chat 3 months ago thumb_up 5
@SolarJulie one thing worth factoring in specifically for narrowboat use is the weight saving — lithium will be considerably lighter than a pair of 110Ah AGMs, which actually improves your trim...
Daily Dream in Marine & Boat 3 months ago thumb_up 7
@CamperBaz I'd ditch the split-charge relay alongside a B2B — you're essentially fighting yourself. The B2B already handles the isolation and charge profile properly for lithium, so a relay just...
WD40Wizard11 in Motorhome & Campervan 3 months ago thumb_up 6
Really interesting thread this — I've been down a similar rabbit hole trying to sort charging for my narrowboat and a tiny house build simultaneously, so I've tested a fair few budget cells. One...
Copper Roamer in General Chat 3 months ago thumb_up 4
Been having a nightmare lately with my setup — 200W of panels (two 100W units in parallel) feeding into a cheap 30A PWM controller, charging a pair of 100Ah AGM batteries wired in parallel.
Keith Clark in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 5
GoldenBodger | 1,204 posts @Mike1997 Worth checking whether your two MPPTs have adjustable charge current limits — if you can dial each one back slightly from its maximum, you'll reduce the chance...
Golden Bodger in Q&A 3 months ago thumb_up 5
Just to add to what @SarahLewis and @GoldenTrekker are saying about panel angle — worth also thinking about shading in winter.
Emma Powell in General Chat 3 months ago thumb_up 7
Lost power on the narrowboat last February — three days of grim grey skies, Renogy 200W panel pulling virtually nothing, and my Fogstar 100Ah LiFePO4 down to 8% before I'd even boiled the kettle.
Carl Cole in Emergency & Backup Power 3 months ago thumb_up 6
Wardy16 | 📍 Yorkshire Dales | ⚡ 5.2kWp / 400Ah LiFePO4 @BorderNomad know exactly what you mean mate.
Wardy16 in Monitoring & System Design 3 months ago thumb_up 1
@PikeTom I'm running almost exactly this — 200W on the motorhome roof via a Victron SmartSolar 100/20, plus a static ground-mounted array feeding the workshop.
Chalky90 in General Chat 3 months ago
MoorHermit | 447 posts | 🏠 Tiny House & Emergency Backup @ExpertWanderer worth checking your absorption voltage setting.
Moor Hermit in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 7
@Liz1979 yes, absolutely normal — LiFePO4 cells lose usable capacity as temperature drops, typically around 2-3% per degree C below about 10°C.
Drift_Geek in Q&A 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Reply by TimHarris: @Kingy74 One thing nobody's mentioned yet — have a look at the PowerControl and PowerAssist settings in VEConfigure.
Tim Harris in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago thumb_up 3
Just spent a weekend on a mate's narrowboat and his electrical setup looked like it was designed by a caffeinated squirrel — three different battery types, a leisure battery from 2009, and a...
Hilux Build in Marine & Boat 3 months ago
@FrostyHiker the canal environment is a completely different beast and people underestimate it constantly. Main thing I'd flag — shading on a narrowboat is relentless.
DODGuy in Marine & Boat 3 months ago
@GemmaWood One thing nobody's mentioned yet — have you considered a dedicated solar array purely for the van, completely separate from your cabin system?
Cerbo_Fan in On a Budget 3 months ago thumb_up 2
Really interesting setup @SamKing — I've got a similar arrangement in my Sprinter, though I eventually pulled the relay out once I was confident the DC-DC was doing its job properly. The relay...
Crispy Skipper in Motorhome & Campervan 3 months ago thumb_up 1
ForestDweller | 312 posts | 🌲 Off-Grid Tinkerer Living aboard a boat with a 24v system here — the jump from 12v was absolutely worth it for me once I started running anything serious. One thing...
Forest Dweller in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago thumb_up 9
BoatMartin | Posts: 847 @BrianKnight86 Coming from a liveaboard background like @BurnSophie, I'd say ditch the split-charge relay entirely.
Boat Martin in Motorhome & Campervan 3 months ago thumb_up 3