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Hey @Foggy80, nice setup! Yes, been doing exactly this for about 18 months at my place in Scotland. I'm running a Pi 4 with a Venus OS image flashed onto it — effectively turns it into a GX device...
Great write-up @GlenKelly, looking forward to the full details! Six months is a decent stretch to get a proper feel for seasonal variation too - you'll have caught the tail end of decent...
Wonky Warden in Garden Offices 5 months ago thumb_up 2
Rachel1995 | 347 posts | 🔴 Van Life Convert Really interesting thread this! Just to add something nobody's mentioned yet — the combination of cold air and snow or frost on the ground can actually...
Rachel in General Chat 5 months ago thumb_up 7
@HazelSoul Worth mentioning that your Victron SmartShunt can actually help you track this properly — log your capacity readings against ambient temperature over a few weeks and you'll see a clear...
Shaun Butler in Batteries & BMS 5 months ago
Been scratching my head with my setup for a couple of weeks now. Running a Victron SmartSolar 100/30 paired with two 120Ah AGM batteries (wired in parallel, so 240Ah total) in my Transit...
Sam White in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 3
Really glad this thread popped up — I've been doing something similar in my van for about a year now.
QLE_VanLife in Monitoring & System Design 5 months ago thumb_up 2
DerekMason84 | 847 posts | Shropshire @SuffolkOffGrid Honest answer — yes, but you have to completely reset your expectations.
Derek Mason in Q&A 5 months ago thumb_up 7
Hey @BerlingoDream, one thing I'd add that hasn't been mentioned yet — with a 100W panel and PWM, keep a close eye on your cable runs.
Tim Knight in On a Budget 5 months ago
I've been running a 400W panel setup on my static shed conversion in Suffolk since March, and through spring and summer it was brilliant — regularly hitting 1.5–2kWh a day even on overcast days.
Suffolk OffGrid in Q&A 5 months ago thumb_up 6
Ran a Pi Zero W logging my Victron via VE.Direct at the static caravan — worked a treat until I accidentally used it as a coaster and introduced it to a mug of Yorkshire Tea.
Heather Child in Monitoring & System Design 5 months ago thumb_up 3
Running the BIM on my boat setup for 18 months now and the difference in charge quality is noticeable — particularly on shorter runs where a traditional relay would barely put anything meaningful...
@Trevor1967 beat me to the Bluetooth logger angle but honestly once you've tasted proper VRM historical data on the motorhome you'll never go back — it's like upgrading from a paper map to sat...
Smithy in General Chat 5 months ago thumb_up 4
I've got a 200W panel on the roof of my Transit-based van feeding a 100Ah lithium (a Fogstar Drift, if anyone's curious) through a Victron 75/15 MPPT.
Moor Dweller in Motorhome & Campervan 5 months ago thumb_up 4
RussHunt82 | Posts: 156 | Location: Array My JK spent three days convincing me my Fogstar cells were dying before I realised I'd set the balance start voltage to 3.5V — it was working overtime...
Russ Hunt in Batteries & BMS 5 months ago thumb_up 1
Narrowboat solar and shade tolerance — just series-wire those panels and let the MPPT earn its keep, because partial shading on parallel kills you twice as hard when a bridge clips one panel.
Bay Frank in Marine & Boat 5 months ago thumb_up 7
Running something similar on the cabin — single 100W panel into a budget MPPT I grabbed ages ago. Main thing I'd watch is the absorption voltage setting.
Fogstar_Fan in On a Budget 5 months ago
@BayJason makes a fair point about voltage-based estimation being the root cause, but there's another layer to this story that catches people out. I ran a similar setup for about six months...
Tor Jake in Solar Panels & Controllers 5 months ago thumb_up 4
Running a 200Ah Fogstar Drift LiFePO4 as my primary on the boat, but after a BMS hiccup last winter left me without navigation lights in a tidal channel, I've been paranoid ever since. Now I've...
OhmsLaw7 in Emergency & Backup Power 5 months ago thumb_up 4
Just starting to get my head around what I need for a off-grid cabin I'm planning. It's a modest build — probably 2–3kWh daily usage, heating handled separately via wood burner, so mostly lights,...
ExJoiner in Off-Grid Cabins 5 months ago thumb_up 1
Great shout from @JackeryFan on the charge current — that ties into something I hit during my van build.
Vito Build in Inverters & Chargers 5 months ago thumb_up 9