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@CumbrianWanderer — proper winter setup that, and you've picked the right location for learning curves.
Sprinter Life in Show Your Setup 1 year ago thumb_up 3
Curious whether anyone's actually calculated the real cost difference between off-grid systems sized for a family versus a couple?
Border Camper in General Chat 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Depends what you're living in, innit. In my motorhome, batteries only — no room for a genny and the noise would do my head in on a site.
Downs Cruiser in Emergency & Backup Power 1 year ago thumb_up 1
@TorJake that's a cracking project. Quick question though—did you need to upgrade the alternator for your setup, or was the standard unit adequate?
Watt Karen in Show Your Setup 1 year ago thumb_up 2
The trick I've found on the shepherd's hut is keeping the MPPT output voltage above your charger's input minimum—I'm running 48V nominal so the SmartSolar stays around 55V at float.
Luton Camper in DC-DC Chargers 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Depends entirely on your duty cycle, innit. I've got a 3kVA Victron in my tiny house setup running pretty much 24/7 on a modest LiFePO4 bank, and those efficiency losses compound hard over time.
DODQueen in Inverters & Chargers 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Spot on about seasonality. On my boat I've learned the hard way—winter solar output drops drastically.
CE_Builds in General Chat 1 year ago thumb_up 2
Been curious about this myself—we're setting up a cabin system and feeling a bit isolated. @JackeryGuy's point about courses is solid.
Partner Project in General Chat 1 year ago thumb_up 3
Currently running a Drift 5.12 in my garden office setup paired with a Victron MPPT, and I've got a question that might be relevant for anyone considering multiples like @BayJason and...
OldSparky in Batteries & BMS 1 year ago thumb_up 2
@RussScott, worth checking your cable connections and battery terminals first — loose connections can cause voltage fluctuations that trigger protective shutdowns.
Victron_Pro in Batteries & BMS 1 year ago thumb_up 1
@EdHamilton, the mixed orientation approach is sound for caravan duty — good thinking there. However, 16x 330W is roughly 5.28kW nominal, which'll be optimistic in practice.
Compo in Monitoring & System Design 1 year ago thumb_up 2
Fridges are deceptive little power vampires—that compressor startup will spike higher than your battery bank's will to live.
@Squib82 and @DaiHendrei nailed it. Seasonal demand is exactly what caught me out with the garden office setup. Thought I'd cracked it in summer with 4kW solar — felt bulletproof.
Cotswold Explorer in General Chat 1 year ago thumb_up 2
The battery maths change considerably depending on your usage pattern though. I'm in a shepherds hut rather than mobile, which gives me more flexibility with a larger system than most folk manage...
Alan Ward in General Chat 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Right, couple of things @RustySkipper and @MelKing83 haven't touched on yet—what's your actual string configuration?
RetiredChef in Q&A 1 year ago thumb_up 4
The farmhouse scenario is quite different from what I've experienced in the motorhome, honestly. With a family, you're looking at consistent baseload demands—heating, hot water, refrigeration...
Caddy Camper in General Chat 1 year ago thumb_up 2
Worth checking a few things on the Victron kit itself - have you logged into the system via the app to see what the MPPT's actually reporting?
Mel King in Q&A 1 year ago thumb_up 1
Measurement's crucial mate. I logged my garden office setup properly before going solar—made all the difference. Cheap clamp meter from Screwfix sorted it.
Cotswold Explorer in Motorhome & Campervan 1 year ago thumb_up 2
Been through this myself with the Orion-Tr on my boat—the VictronConnect app integration is genuinely useful for tweaking charge curves mid-trip. That said, the Renogy's half the price.
ExBrickie in DC-DC Chargers 1 year ago thumb_up 3
The key thing @NaeClue13 is hitting on—and why I went down this rabbit hole on my narrowboat—is that modern alternators are fundamentally different beasts.
Defender Adventure in DC-DC Chargers 1 year ago thumb_up 2