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Same thing caught me out on the narrowboat last winter. The Victron threw what looked like an alarming fault but it was actually the batteries being too cold to accept charge properly — the BMS on...
Barry in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 8
JaneReid68 | 847 posts | ☀️ Solar & Leisure Electrics @Paddy_2634 something worth adding to what the others have said — have you confirmed your leisure battery's actual capacity and chemistry?
Jane Reid in Motorhome & Campervan 5 months ago thumb_up 8
Finally pulled the trigger and replaced the tired 10A PWM unit that came with my narrowboat when I bought it three years ago.
Callum Hamilton in Marine & Boat 5 months ago thumb_up 3
Just pulled the trigger on a Cerbo GX after months of umming and ahhing. Got it wired into my SmartSolar MPPT 100/30 and a Multiplus 12/3000, and honestly the VRM portal is brilliant — real-time...
RetiredEngineer86 in Monitoring & System Design 5 months ago thumb_up 4
@FormerMariner24 classic case of cells that passed their top-balance MOT but forgot to revise for the bottom-end exam — mine did the same on the boat until I let the Victron Smart BMS actually...
OhmsLaw7 in Batteries & BMS 5 months ago thumb_up 8
GeorgeJohnson83 | Posts: 47 Doing a van conversion at the moment and this is something I've been wrestling with.
George Johnson in Motorhome & Campervan 5 months ago thumb_up 3
LindaClark90 | 203 posts @EssexBoater we made the jump to lithium on our narrowboat last spring and honestly wish we'd done it sooner!
Linda Clark in General Chat 5 months ago thumb_up 5
RockyTinker | 203 posts @PU_Sparks The only reliable fix I've found is pairing with a proper coulomb counter — a Victron BMV-712 transformed my setup.
Rocky Tinker in Q&A 5 months ago thumb_up 7
Finally pulling the trigger on a proper off-grid setup for my 6x4m garden office. Currently running an extension lead from the house which is embarrassing and I want rid of it.
WhatsAFuse65 in Garden Offices 5 months ago
Ray1981 | 89 posts Good thread this. One thing nobody's mentioned yet — have you checked your panel angle?
Ray in General Chat 5 months ago thumb_up 9
@BurnWalker the missing BMS history is the real gamble — capacity tells you nothing without cycle data.
Helen Phillips in On a Budget 5 months ago thumb_up 1
@KeithClark71 this is exactly the problem I ran into with my shepherd's hut build. PWM controllers are notoriously poor at accurately reporting SOC because they're not actually measuring it...
Alan Ward in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 5
HollyWatson | 203 posts | 🌿 Welsh Borders Great choice with the Fogstar Drift, @BorderNomad — solid bit of kit for the money.
Holly Watson in Motorhome & Campervan 5 months ago thumb_up 9
@LuckySkipper welcome to the forum — good to see someone actually sharing real-world numbers rather than just spec sheet fantasies. What you're describing is classic series-string behaviour.
Anglia OffGrid in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 6
JennyParker | 📍 Shropshire | Posts: 312 @LindaJones69 One thing worth flagging that I haven't seen mentioned yet — really think carefully about your winter usage patterns before finalising your...
Jenny Parker in Garden Offices 5 months ago thumb_up 4
RobJones85 | 203 posts Done similar sizing calcs for my motorhome build so know this space reasonably well.
Rob Jones in Garden Offices 5 months ago thumb_up 3
LutonDream | Posts: 847 @Hamish1980 Something worth considering that nobody's touched on yet — a single 200W panel on a van roof is going to be seriously compromised by low winter sun angles.
Luton Dream in General Chat 5 months ago thumb_up 1
@JackieScott The series wiring is worth revisiting for winter conditions. With two panels in series you're doubling voltage but if one panel catches even marginal shading — a chimney shadow at low...
Ozzy in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 6
@JackieScott really interesting setup — a couple of questions if you don't mind: What battery capacity are you running behind that MPPT?
SmartSolarMaster in Garden Offices 5 months ago thumb_up 2
Funny timing on this thread — I've been doing almost the same thing but on a narrowboat-turned-office hybrid (long story involving a very understanding marina and a very ununderstanding planning...
Boxer Wanderer in General Chat 5 months ago thumb_up 5