Boat Ewan

Boat Ewan

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@BoatEwan

From Ceredigion. Learning about narrowboat.

Ceredigion, Wales Joined Dec 2024
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Overview Reviews (0) Posts (15)
Victron Orion XS keeps dropping out on long drives — anyone else had this?
@PaddyDixon worth checking your input voltage during those dropouts — on the narrowboat I found my alternator voltage was sagging on longer runs once the batteries got closer to full and the...
in DC-DC Chargers 1 week ago
Victron BMV-712 showing different SOC to my BMS — which one do I trust?
@DaiLewis69 biggest culprit in my experience is peukert effect not being set correctly on the BMV. Lithium is basically flat at 1.00–1.05, but if it's still on the lead-acid default it'll miscount...
in Batteries & BMS 2 weeks ago
Charging Humsienk with Victron MPPT Question
Got a Humsienk on the narrowboat myself — decent budget cell for the price. Main thing with the SmartSolar and any LiFePO4 is making sure you've got a dedicated Li profile set rather than just...
in Q&A 3 weeks ago
Converted an old shepherd's hut into a cabin – what's the easiest way to get 12V lighting sorted?
Done exactly this sort of setup on my narrowboat and garden office, so fairly familiar with the 12V lighting rabbit hole. Honestly, the easiest starting point is a simple fused distribution block...
in Off-Grid Cabins 3 weeks ago
No SOC or any information other than voltage for SmartShunt - beginner user
Had something similar crop up on the boat last spring — SmartShunt was showing voltage fine in the VictronConnect app but absolutely nothing else. No SOC, no power flow, no time remaining.
in Monitoring & System Design 1 month ago
3 12v 100ah aolithium disassemble and build 48v 100ah by adding 4 new cells and 48v bms. Thoughts?
Interesting project but I'd pump the brakes a bit before cracking those packs open. The main issue is cell matching.
in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Anyone know if a 200Ah lithium battery is overkill for a small shepherd's hut?
@Cerbo_Geek depends entirely on your solar input and how many cloudy days you need to ride out. For a shepherd's hut with those loads I'd say 200Ah is probably fine rather than overkill —...
in Q&A 2 months ago
Victron SmartShunt showing different SOC to my BMS — which one do I trust?
Had exactly this on the narrowboat last winter — SmartShunt reading 73% while the Daly BMS was showing 58%.
in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago
[BUG] DVCC Charge Current Limit ignores built-in Multi RS MPPT after V1.30 update
@SolarCol yes, hitting something very similar on the narrowboat. Since V1.30 the DVCC CCL seems to be applying correctly to the external SmartSolar but the built-in MPPT on the Multi RS is...
in Solar Panels & Controllers 2 months ago
MultiPlus-II ESS – short total blackout without any logged error
Had something weirdly similar on my narrowboat setup a few weeks back — single MultiPlus-II rather than a 3-phase rig, but the principle felt the same.
in Batteries & BMS 3 months ago
Anyone know if a 200Ah lithium battery will run a small chest freezer overnight?
@MrBodge65 been in almost exactly this situation on my own boat. Key thing people miss — a chest freezer doesn't run continuously.
in Q&A 4 months ago
Anyone else noticed Fogstar prices creeping up lately?
Been watching this too. Built the narrowboat bank last spring with Grade B 280Ah cells and the price I paid then looks pretty generous compared to current listings.
in General Chat 4 months ago thumb_up 4
Anyone else running a cheap Chinese MPPT off a single 100W panel — what settings are you actually using?
Worth double-checking what your battery chemistry setting actually is on those cheap units — a lot of them default to sealed lead acid at 14.4V absorption, which is fine, but some ship with it set...
in On a Budget 5 months ago thumb_up 5
Anyone else noticed MPPT efficiency drops on cold mornings before the panels warm up?
@GaryLewis87 worth noting this isn't really an efficiency drop — the MPPT is actually working harder to find the true MPP when the IV curve is shifting around as panels warm up.
in Solar Panels & Controllers 6 months ago thumb_up 5
Anyone else struggling to keep a small cabin warm without burning through logs too fast?
BoatEwan | 412 posts @CrafterDream good point on thermal mass — I added a few house bricks as a back plate behind my log burner on the boat and it made a noticeable difference to how long the heat...
in Off-Grid Cabins 6 months ago thumb_up 3