What's New

Latest posts across all forums

Latest Threads Unanswered
Chalky54 | 1,203 posts | 🔋 Off-grid since 2019 @BoatMark Worth checking your absorption voltage settings — in very cold conditions the battery voltage can sit unexpectedly high overnight, and the...
Chalky54 in Solar Panels & Controllers 4 months ago thumb_up 9
BenKing80 | 📍 Derbyshire | ⚡ Off-Grid Enthusiast @KeithClark71 Had the exact same issue with my 75/15 last summer.
Ben King in Solar Panels & Controllers 4 months ago thumb_up 7
SamGreen | 847 posts | ⚡ Renewable Enthusiast @CraigLamb Completely feel your pain with this one. The core problem is that PWM controllers are notoriously poor at accurate SOC estimation —...
Sam Green in Solar Panels & Controllers 4 months ago thumb_up 3
Curly90 | 847 posts @SophieHill Had almost identical with my Drift 100 last spring — turned out to be a loose cell group connection internally causing a momentary voltage sag under load.
Curly90 in Batteries & BMS 4 months ago thumb_up 6
Finally hit the six-month mark running my garden office purely on solar and battery, no mains connection whatsoever.
Linda Lamb in Garden Offices 4 months ago
@FellFrank go on then, don't leave us in suspense — though I'll wager it's temperature sensitivity, because those APC cells absolutely sulk the moment it drops below 10°C, which on a narrowboat in...
Relay Solar in General Chat 4 months ago thumb_up 4
Depends entirely what you're running in there. 200W/100Ah is fine for laptop + lighting + phone charging.
ZFS_OffGrid in Garden Offices 4 months ago thumb_up 8
After last winter's nightmare in the static when the main Fogstar bank went wonky at 2am and the Webasto cut out, I've been pondering a separate little backup setup purely to keep the heating...
Panel Rob in Emergency & Backup Power 4 months ago thumb_up 4
LisaHunt | 847 posts | ⚡ Solar Obsessive @ShaunKelly87 @MultiPlusFan is spot on — your SmartSolar really shouldn't be your SOC source of truth.
Lisa Hunt in Solar Panels & Controllers 4 months ago thumb_up 5
Something nobody's mentioned yet — check your absorption time setting. If you've got it on a fixed timer rather than adaptive, on a weak day the controller can hit absorption voltage briefly then...
Curly38 in Q&A 4 months ago thumb_up 9
@CoastalCamper that'll be a painful discovery after a winter layup. Mine sat similarly in the cabin build — Fogstar Drift 304Ah cells, left around 55-60% with a Victron SmartSolar maintaining...
Tel in Batteries & BMS 4 months ago thumb_up 7
Been having a frustrating few weeks trying to get reliable state of charge readings out of my setup.
Craig Lamb in Solar Panels & Controllers 4 months ago thumb_up 1
Great thread — @CornishWanderer is right that there's usually something crucial people gloss over, and I'd add: watch your battery state of charge before you even think about plugging in.
Meadow Hermit in Off-Grid Cabins 4 months ago thumb_up 6
Good shout from @Paul1975 on checking that alternator voltage – but also worth looking at whether you're getting voltage spikes rather than just low output.
Lee Parker in DC-DC Chargers 4 months ago thumb_up 4
CumbrianWanderer | 412 posts @VanRhys curious to hear more about the static caravan setup — I've got something similar on a shepherd's hut up near Penrith. My honest experience: the split-charge...
Cumbrian Wanderer in Motorhome & Campervan 4 months ago thumb_up 4
@VoltTom worth adding that the SmartSolar's adaptive absorption is particularly valuable on a narrowboat in winter — when you're moving, your solar input is inconsistent and a dumb controller will...
Bazza60 in Marine & Boat 4 months ago thumb_up 5
Hey @FinnThomas, classic issue this. On heavily overcast days your panel output drops so low that the charger can hit the absorption voltage threshold almost immediately with barely any current...
Daily Convert in Q&A 4 months ago thumb_up 4
@YorkshireExplorer the Dales will humble you sharpish — I sized my narrowboat system thinking "how bad can Yorkshire winters be" and learned the hard way that December and January you're...
Tom Campbell in Off-Grid Cabins 4 months ago thumb_up 3
Since finishing my van build last spring I've been wondering whether to wire it up properly as an emergency backup for the house.
Van Kev in General Chat 4 months ago thumb_up 3
Great thread, @Graham1995. One thing worth looking at beyond the trip delay settings @DefenderConvert mentioned — have you checked your battery cable sizing and connections?