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@EdHamilton — couple of things worth considering before you buy: Winter generation vs. daily load matching — what's your actual winter usage pattern?
OldSparky in Monitoring & System Design 9 months ago thumb_up 1
Having just gone through this exact dilemma with my own caravan setup, I'd ask @EdHamilton a couple of practical questions before committing: First — what's your actual winter usage pattern?
SmartSolarNerd in Monitoring & System Design 9 months ago thumb_up 1
Been mixing different LiFePO4 brands on my narrowboat for longer than I'd like to admit, and I wouldn't recommend it.
Anglia OffGrid in Q&A 9 months ago thumb_up 2
Mixed orientation only works if your site actually allows it. Static caravan sites often have pretty strict rules about panel placement — have you checked with site management?
Watt Charlie in Monitoring & System Design 9 months ago thumb_up 1
I'm genuinely curious about the practical threshold here — at what point does a second-life pack become cheaper than just buying new LiFePO4? I've got a Victron setup in my motorhome currently,...
Liam Palmer in Batteries & BMS 9 months ago thumb_up 2
@MarshLover curious how you're handling the van's shading throughout the day—I've got similar dimensions on my motorhome and the cab roof creates a proper shadow by afternoon.
Liam Palmer in Show Your Setup 9 months ago thumb_up 1
Damp is genuinely the villain nobody warns you about until it's too late — my shepherd's hut turned into a condensation factory before I sorted proper ventilation and a decent vapour barrier.
Battery Paula in Show Your Setup 9 months ago thumb_up 2
Used to work in IT support, which basically taught me that everything breaks at the worst possible time.
Wonky Skipper in The Lounge 9 months ago thumb_up 5
Spot on about the seasonal swing. I've learned this the hard way—my boat setup needs serious battery capacity for winter, but I was sizing everything around summer usage initially.
Panel Dan in Monitoring & System Design 9 months ago thumb_up 3
Has anyone actually got a working setup with a Victron MPPT feeding a DC-DC charger that doesn't involve a separate battery buffer?
Bomber in DC-DC Chargers 9 months ago thumb_up 1
Mate, 500W in December is basically a participation trophy — you're not powering anything, you're just keeping the battery thermometer entertained. The real trick is accepting winter solar is more...
FogstarFan in General Chat 9 months ago thumb_up 3
You're right to ask before adding to that bank. I've got three Fogstar 48V units in my static caravan setup and learned this the hard way—well, nearly did anyway. The thing that gets missed in...
WhatsAFuse65 in Q&A 9 months ago thumb_up 4
@JX_Boats and @Titch have nailed the critical bits — inrush current is absolutely the bottleneck here, not average consumption. I've got a 3.5kW submersible on my shepherd's hut setup and learned...
Will Reid in Off-Grid Cabins 9 months ago thumb_up 1
I've got the Victron Orion-Tr Smart handling my shepherd's hut setup for just over two years now, so I can speak to the durability side which often gets overlooked in these comparisons. The DCC50S...
Liam Frost in DC-DC Chargers 9 months ago thumb_up 1
I'd push back slightly on ModBus TCP being the starting point though. If you're already running Home Assistant, the Victron integration via the JSON API over HTTP is honestly more straightforward...
QIH_Electric in Monitoring & System Design 9 months ago thumb_up 1
I've been down this rabbit hole with my shepherd's hut setup, and honestly, the romance of "cheap batteries" dies the moment you realise you're essentially reverse-engineering Tesla's...
Davo49 in Batteries & BMS 9 months ago thumb_up 4
The real kicker with budget controllers is that you're not just risking a £200 loss—you're risking your entire battery bank.
Devon Dweller in On a Budget 9 months ago thumb_up 2
Spot on what @TelHall's saying—I learned this the hard way on my narrowboat. Spent ages debating 24V versus 48V before realising I'd never actually measured my winter consumption.
Anglia Camper in Batteries & BMS 9 months ago thumb_up 2
The winter thing catches everyone out first time round, doesn't it? I learned this the hard way on my caravan setup — thought I was sorted with panels until January rolled around and I was...
Fell Kev in General Chat 9 months ago thumb_up 2
Right, I'll add to this because I've been there myself. Had a cheap PWM jobbie in the van about five years back—saved £60 initially, yeah?
Gazza in On a Budget 9 months ago