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What @OffGridRuss said about the 15A cap is the real ceiling here. 200W ÷ 12V = ~16.7A theoretical max, so you're already bottlenecked by the controller even before factoring in winter losses. My...
Solar Trevor in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 9
@WhatsAFuse65 my narrowboat ran entirely on a cliffhanger once too — turned out I'd just forgotten to connect the negative terminal, so don't rule out user error before you've even told us what...
FormerMechanic43 in Garden Offices 5 months ago thumb_up 4
Great thread, @BerlingoWanderer! Running 280Ah of LiFePO4 on a 60ft semi-trad on the Llangollen and it's been transformative honestly.
Ewan Morris in Marine & Boat 5 months ago thumb_up 5
Solid find on those Renogys, @RKE_Builds. On my van build with a 100/30 and 400W of mono I'm typically seeing 1.8–2.2kWh on a decent June/July day with good positioning, dropping to maybe...
LDV Build in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 5
Got a JK BMS (the 200A 8S model) wired up to a 280Ah LiFePO4 bank in my van build and I keep losing the Bluetooth connection on cold mornings — talking anything below about 5°C.
Ben King in Batteries & BMS 5 months ago thumb_up 1
Fitted a Victron SmartSolar 100/30 in the van last month alongside two 200W panels wired in series. One panel gets shade from the roof vent for a chunk of the morning and the output tanks hard —...
Lucky Skipper in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 6
GazAllen | Member Running a Smart Orion into my shepherd's hut setup — the engine profile stuff is genuinely useful for alternator protection, especially on older engines with less beefy...
Gaz Allen in DC-DC Chargers 5 months ago thumb_up 7
Spent the weekend up near Loch Lomond and my 200W Renogy panel produced an embarrassing 15–20Wh on the Saturday.
Muddy Ranger in General Chat 5 months ago
@JackieScott Worth checking your SmartSolar app data for the irradiance hours you're actually getting vs. expecting.
Kangoo Nomad in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 1
Really good thread this. One thing worth adding to what @PanelGraham and @MXM_OffGrid have touched on — if you're running lithium specifically, a decent MPPT will have a proper lithium charge...
Daily Dream in On a Budget 5 months ago thumb_up 4
Just pulled the trigger on setting up my garden office completely off-grid — no DNO application, no grid connection at all.
Linda Jones in Garden Offices 5 months ago
@Cerbo_Queen @FormerMechanic15 the morning recovery question is key. On my own setup I swapped a basic PWM for a Victron SmartSolar 100/20 mid-October and the logged data tells the story clearly —...
24V_Queen in Q&A 5 months ago thumb_up 8
Picked up four 280Ah LiFePO4 cells from Fogstar last month for my garden office build — cracking price, no complaints there.
Defender Solar in Batteries & BMS 5 months ago thumb_up 3
@GeoffKing83 interesting on the tilt swap — does that mean you're physically adjusting them seasonally or did you just fix them at the steeper angle permanently?
Mel King in Off-Grid Cabins 5 months ago
ZoeBurns | 📍 North Yorkshire | ⚡ 3.8kW solar + 15kWh DIY LiFePO4 (EVE 280Ah) @24VPro Had similar last summer in my garden office setup — cells touching 36°C during a proper hot spell.
Zoe Burns in General Chat 5 months ago
Got a Gen 2 Leaf pack myself (30 kWh, reckon ~22 kWh usable). Running it through a Victron Multiplus-II for the garden office and as whole-house backup. Main thing I'd flag — the BMS situation is...
Dizzy70 in Emergency & Backup Power 5 months ago thumb_up 5
ForestDaz | Posts: 2,156 @Rodney47 The relay's about as useful as a chocolate fireguard now — your Orion-Tr already handles voltage sensing, charge profiling, and won't murder your alternator on a...
Forest Daz in Motorhome & Campervan 5 months ago thumb_up 5
CotswoldExplorer | 203 posts | Cotswolds @Chalky 😂 brutal but accurate — my garden office setup taught me that lesson the hard way. @WillWebb the bit nobody mentions: panel orientation matters...
Cotswold Explorer in Off-Grid Cabins 5 months ago thumb_up 3
MattJones | 134 posts Great thread! One thing I'd flag that caught me out badly — always test second-hand leisure batteries individually before wiring them together in a bank.
Matt Jones in On a Budget 5 months ago thumb_up 9
Been mulling this over for a while and finally pulled the trigger last month. Picked up a used Nissan Leaf Gen 1 battery (24 kWh pack, probably down to around 18–19 kWh usable given the...
Glen Lover in Emergency & Backup Power 5 months ago thumb_up 5