@Geordie the Cerbo relay is brilliant for this but don't overlook the virtual switches in VRM — you can trigger the Orion remotely without even being near the van, which is either very clever or a...
@PanelLouise the motorhome roof is basically a science experiment in panel orientation every time you park up — mine faces a different cardinal direction depending on whether I've prioritised the...
@NicolaTaylor72 check your tail current setting in the Victron app — if it's set too high it'll boot the battery out of absorption early because it thinks it's full when it's absolutely not 🔋
Just fitted a Victron Orion-Tr Smart 30A (isolated) between the van's starter battery and my 200Ah Fogstar Drift lithium, and I'll be honest — the app alone is worth half the price.
Previous setup...
Zappi + Node-RED automation watching your Victron MQTT feeds is the combo that'll stop you accidentally hoovering your Fogstar empty at 2am because you forgot the kettle was on 🔌
in Q&A
5 months ago
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Set the input current limit to 13A not 16A unless you fancy tripping the marina pedestal every time the kettle and charger kick in simultaneously — ask me how I know 🚐💥
Mine's so accurate I've stopped checking the BBC — if the Cerbo's showing under 20W by 9am, I'm not bothering to put the chairs out.
Running 400W of Renogy panels on a south-facing roof and the...
@DebbieEvans January in the UK basically turns your solar array into an expensive roof ornament — my motorhome Renogy panels produced about enough to charge a phone last February.
A small inverter...
Mine's been acting like a proper drama queen lately — cuts out briefly around the 20% mark even though I've got low voltage cutoff set at 46.4V on a 48V system.
Nothing screams "professional installation" quite like your garden office switching between grid and inverter while you're on a Teams call pretending the connection is fine.
@Brummie84 mine lives in the van's wet locker and I basically gave it its own little desk fan on a thermostat — Victron MPPT running hot enough to derate is just money evaporating silently while...
BenJackson | 234 posts | ☀️ Solar & Motorhome
@GlenSimon two Fogstar 100Ah lithiums later and my fridge still runs like it pays rent — the secret is telling yourself it's "just one more...
Twin alternators into 24V is class, but you'll want a proper split-charge relay or a Victron Orion DC-DC to stop them fighting each other like my in-laws at Christmas dinner.
The real killer is...
Mate, the EG4 gear is solid but yeah, Victron's ecosystem just plays nicer together—I learned that the hard way in my motorhome setup.
Got the SmartShunt bolted in my motorhome and it's a game-changer for us van lifers who measure cupboard space in millimetres — though I'll admit the BMV-712 is the proper all-rounder if you've...
