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@BurnBen worth asking — what alternator are you running? Older vehicles with a smart/variable voltage alternator can cause real headaches with cheaper B2Bs that don't handle the voltage...
OldSparky in DC-DC Chargers 3 months ago thumb_up 4
@TH_OffGrid had almost identical grief with a no-name PWM unit on my static caravan last winter. Ditched it sharpish. The core problem beyond what @BorderVanLifer mentioned — cheap PWM controllers...
Bay Tim in Q&A 3 months ago thumb_up 8
LindaPrice87 | 203 posts Running a mixed array on my boat — two 200W Renogy panels paired with a leftover 160W — through a Victron SmartSolar 75/15 for going on 18 months now.
Linda Price in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 6
@Neil1962 the fix for this is a dedicated battery monitor — I've got a Victron SmartShunt sitting between my battery bank and everything else in my garden office setup, and it transformed how...
Hamish Mitchell in General Chat 3 months ago thumb_up 6
SophieFisher | 847 posts | 🚤 Narrowboat Worth noting that parallel AGM banks compound the problem considerably — internal resistance differences between the two batteries mean voltage readings...
Sophie Fisher in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 7
SteveGreen74 | 312 posts | Regular Member Great thread @CamperClive! I've got a similar setup on my narrowboat — Victron MPPT 100/50 with a Cerbo GX, but before I splashed out on the Cerbo I ran...
Steve Green in Monitoring & System Design 3 months ago thumb_up 9
@AlanJones63 and @Macca64 — same situation with my shepherd's hut. Cerbo GX, 400W panels, two Fogstar Drift 100Ah batteries.
Ewan Chapman in Monitoring & System Design 3 months ago thumb_up 4
@JackeryGeek I went through exactly this philosophical crisis when I was setting up my shepherd's hut system.
JubileeClipHero in Monitoring & System Design 3 months ago thumb_up 5
VivaroSolar | 312 posts @NeilSmith worth also checking your cell internal resistance readings in the JK app — cold temps cause IR to spike noticeably in LiFePO4, and if one cell is already...
Vivaro Solar in Batteries & BMS 3 months ago thumb_up 1
The SmartSolar only has a single battery output terminal, so no, it can't natively charge two isolated banks simultaneously.
Breezy Hermit in Q&A 3 months ago thumb_up 9
AGM_Pro | 134 posts @PanelPaula Worth checking what your BMS cut-off voltage was set to over winter.
AGM_Pro in Batteries & BMS 3 months ago thumb_up 2
WildMechanic | 447 posts | Verified Member @RustyCaptain Solid setup for a cabin that size. One thing I'd flag from personal experience — get your flue height and positioning sorted before you...
Wild Mechanic in Off-Grid Cabins 3 months ago thumb_up 9
HollyGraham83 | 312 posts | Regular Member @IvyWalker I had almost identical symptoms with my Drift cells last winter in my static in Northumberland.
Holly Graham in Batteries & BMS 3 months ago thumb_up 3
EdHamilton | Posts: 847 One thing nobody's mentioned yet — check your temperature compensation settings in the VictronConnect app.
Ed Hamilton in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 3
Pulled the van out of the garage yesterday morning after it sat overnight in -4°C and the Victron SmartSolar 100/30 was throwing a weird absorption voltage — looked like it was pushing nearly...
Lee in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 4
VanLiam | Posts: 847 @BoxerAdventure good shout on going hybrid rather than a pure generator setup. For a static with modest loads like that, I'd look at the Victron MultiPlus-II 24/3000 as a...
Van Liam in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago thumb_up 3
@VanHolly not directly applicable since I'm land-based (garden office and EV charging setup), but I run a similar dual-source situation — solar MPPT plus a secondary DC input — and managing charge...
Lazy Warden in Marine & Boat 3 months ago thumb_up 9
SuffolkDweller | Posts: 312 @MountainBarry agree with what the others have said about the transport regs and top-balancing.
Suffolk Dweller in Batteries & BMS 3 months ago thumb_up 1
So I've been down a proper rabbit hole this week trying to spec the battery bank for my shepherd's hut build.
Vivaro Nomad in Batteries & BMS 3 months ago thumb_up 5
DerekYoung76 | 847 posts @Rodney similar setup here, though I've got a slightly larger array at 600W which genuinely made a difference through December and January.
Derek Young in Off-Grid Cabins 3 months ago thumb_up 4