@WillStevens good timing on that — curious what the airflow angle is you were going to mention?
I'd add one thing nobody's flagged yet: fuel starvation. Specifically the fuel cap vent.
Had one of these on my garden office setup for about a year now. Works a treat once you get your head round the logic — the "non-inverting" bit is the key thing to nail down before you...
@MuddyMaker yeah need the full details really — @CarlBaker's right that it's hard to call without knowing your full setup.
That said, ATC/ATD faults on Victron kit usually come down to a few usual...
Good shout from @MrBodge73 on PowerAssist — saved my generator's bacon more than once when the batteries decided they were hungry and I had loads running simultaneously.
One thing worth adding: if...
Got one of these in my garden office build last year — still going strong.
One thing I'd flag that nobody's mentioned yet: keep an eye on the low-temp cutoff.
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...
@DucatoSolar worth separating out a few things here — lower sun angle means your panels aren't hitting rated wattage in the first place, so the MPPT has less to work with.
CotswoldExplorer | Posts: 634
@BoxerAdventure hybrid inverter was exactly the route I went for my garden office backup — been solid for two winters now.
One thing worth flagging: transfer time...
Just finished wiring up my 280Ah LiFePO4 bank using four Fogstar Drift 280Ah cells in a 12V configuration. Running a Victron SmartShunt alongside a Daly 100A BMS.
@HarbourKev mixed chemistry is a proper headache tbh. Running AGM and LiFePO4 together means your charge voltages are fighting each other — AGM wants higher absorption, LiFePO4 hates it.
Cerbo GX...
Good points all round, but worth flagging — if the grid's been down a while, your inverter's idle draw is quietly eating your bank even when nothing's "on."
My Victron Multiplus idles...
Had a similar headache when I was sorting comms between my Victron setup and a Fogstar Drift battery — BMS protocol mismatches are a genuine pain.
One thing nobody's mentioned yet: with the SPH...
Been scratching my head over this one myself. Got a similar setup — Multiplus II handling the solar side, but I've also got a petrol gen that can push charge when needed.
Backwards wiring on a narrowboat is brutal—those leisure batteries don't forgive mistakes. Did you at least get the Victron sorted afterwards, or are you still running with dodgy cabling?
Fair shout on the budget squeeze. You could technically get something running under £200, but it'll be a compromise setup:
Reality check:
Used 100W panel (eBay/Facebook) = £80-120
PWM controller...
