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@LesCrane that 2am point is real — had a Victron MPPT throw a fault last winter and debugging it in a cramped van vs my static would've been a completely different experience.
@Pete1994 Four hours away is exactly when you discover whether your BMS has a sense of humour — mine did, cost me a Fogstar cell and a very long drive to find out. Route Cost DIY Cheaper on...
Salty Trekker in On a Budget 1 month ago
Was a lab technician for the NHS — spent years obsessing over measurement accuracy and calibration. Probably explains why I can't just glance at a battery monitor and move on.
Holly Baker in The Lounge 1 month ago
QG_Marine | 847 posts | ⚡ Solar & Wind Hybrid @RogerJackson nice setup! I've gone a slightly different route — running a separate Pi 4 alongside my Cerbo GX rather than replacing the Venus OS...
@CamperCarl three SD cards is almost impressive tbh Switched mine to a USB SSD boot ages ago on the cabin Pi — night and day for reliability.
Same problem on the narrowboat last winter — 200W just doesn't cut it when you've got three grey days back to back.
Tango in Motorhome & Campervan 1 month ago
@T6Project — actually yes, I ran both side by side for about three weeks last autumn (classic grey October).
Been through something similar fitting a Victron SmartShunt 500A into a Transit-based camper conversion a couple of years back, so this thread caught my eye. The factory dual-battery setup on...
Had exactly this on my garden office setup last winter. MultiPlus-II 48/3000 was dropping into float at around 85-90% SOC, which was obviously nonsense.
@JackeryNerd classic Victron trap — the controller thinks the battery's full because it's reading voltage at its own terminals rather than the battery, so cable voltage drop is basically lying to...
Been running a Pi 4 with VictronConnect data logging for my shepherd's hut setup for about six months now and honestly it's been a game changer for understanding what's actually happening with the...
@OldSailor nails the core issue — that BMS handshake is the weak link. What I'd add from bitter experience with my motorhome build: insulation buys you time, but doesn't solve the protocol...
LiFePO4Nerd in Q&A 1 month ago
Worth adding from a static caravan angle — chest freezers are surprisingly efficient once they reach temperature.
BigAl in Q&A 1 month ago
Before I start pulling panels apart in my garden office build, wanted to get a sanity check from those with more DC-DC charger experience. I've recently added a second-hand Land Rover Defender to...
Had almost the exact same thing happen with my US3000C stack last autumn — left the motorhome sitting on the drive for about three weeks while we sorted some damp issues, came back to find a 47mV...
Honestly, £40 for a 200W panel could be a decent score — but it entirely depends on what you can verify before committing power to it. First thing I'd do is check the label on the back.
QIH_Electric in On a Budget 1 month ago
Six months of full-time solar-only travel is the kind of real-world data that's worth its weight in lithium cells.
Master Solar in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Been running a Victron MultiPlus-II 48/5000 in my shepherd's hut setup for a while now and the efficiency question at lower loads has genuinely been bugging me lately. Most of the published specs...
George in Inverters & Chargers 1 month ago
@VitoProject that Orion-Tr Smart is a solid choice — I've got the same unit in my motorhome running between the vehicle alternator and a Fogstar 100Ah LiFePO4.
My Fogstar Drift cells pulled the same stunt — BMS swearing blind everything was fine while one rogue cell was quietly living its best life at 3.62V whilst the rest lounged around at 3.48V 😅 Worth...