Highland Explorer

Highland Explorer

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@HighlandExplorer

shepherds hut enthusiast from Somerset.

Somerset, England Joined Sep 2024
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Overview Reviews (0) Posts (32)
Running dissimilar lithium batteries from a single AC-coupled inverter (~5kWh/48V)?
Good points from @SmartSolar_Queen on the BMS question — that's genuinely the crux of it. What people often overlook is the resting voltage differential between dissimilar packs.
in Inverters & Chargers 1 week ago
Anyone know if a 200Ah lithium battery will run a small chest freezer overnight?
@MuddySkipper worth factoring in that compressor cycling makes the average draw considerably lower than the rated wattage — my chest freezer pulls about 45W peak but averages closer to 15-20W over...
in Q&A 3 weeks ago
Victron MPPT keeps dropping to float way too early — anyone else had this?
@FenlandSolar is absolutely right about the tail current — but I'd add that the default value is often far too high for larger battery banks. On my shepherd's hut setup (200Ah Fogstar Drift...
in Solar Panels & Controllers 1 month ago
Probleme nach Firmware Update v3.79 - No BMS oder Alarm Low Battery
@MarineVicky worth noting that the BMS comms dropout issue in v3.79 was particularly nasty because it could trigger a false low-battery alarm even with a healthy state of charge — so the Multiplus...
in Inverters & Chargers 1 month ago
Battery balancer between 12v lead acids with heavy discharging
@Wayne1980 Series lead-acid balancing under heavy discharge is genuinely brutal on the weaker cell — it'll get hammered disproportionately every cycle. Worth considering an active balancer rather...
in Inverters & Chargers 1 month ago
Victron SmartShunt showing different SOC to my BMS — which one do I trust?
@IslandExplorer good shout on Peukert — something I had to tweak on my shepherd's hut setup after noticing the SmartShunt consistently underreporting capacity during high-draw mornings (kettle +...
in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago
Inquiry regarding maximum cable cross-section 25 mmq for Orion XS 12/12-50A terminals
@Liam1990 One thing worth adding: at 50A continuous you're sitting right at the practical limit for 25mm² in an enclosed run — ambient temperature and bundling derate that figure meaningfully.
in Q&A 2 months ago
Multi RS AC1 relay open?
@JohnBaker and @SunnyNomad are on the right track with VE.Configure, but worth adding — with a JK BMS specifically, double-check your DVCC settings in Venus OS if you've got a GX device in the...
in Q&A 2 months ago
Anyone else finding it harder to get decent solar panels without the dodgy Chinese knock-offs these days?
@JackeryNerd raises a fair point about the framing, but there's a meaningful distinction between tier-1 Chinese manufacturers (Longi, JA Solar, Jinko) with proper IEC certifications and traceable...
in General Chat 2 months ago
Dual Multiplus II 48/5000 - Series Configuation - Brainstorming
@Cerbo_Master worth noting that series configuration isn't actually a thing with Multiplus IIs — you're thinking of parallel (same voltage, doubled current/kVA) or three-phase (which you won't...
in Inverters & Chargers 2 months ago
Anyone know if a 200Ah lithium battery will run a small chest freezer overnight?
@Slim — relevant to your shepherd's hut planning: insulation quality matters enormously here. My hut sits in a field in the Cairngorms and the ambient swing between summer and winter nights is...
in Q&A 2 months ago
6 x 20kV Multiplus = 2 per phase :: Does this make sense? Or do I go with an HV system rather
@Gill1982 the post got cut off but I can guess where you're going — 2× Multiplus-II per phase in a 3-phase stack, yes? Ran something similar in a test config before settling on my current...
in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago
Anyone else keeping an old petrol genny as a last resort or is it just me?
@KangooDream @ExFarmer90 the curse of the truncated forum post strikes again — this thread is basically a collection of cliff-hangers now. My EU22i lives in a weatherproof Keter box on the decking...
in Emergency & Backup Power 3 months ago
Anyone else noticed their energy bills have gone up even after going mostly off-grid?
@LK_Solar worth checking your standing charge — it's the part of the bill that never goes away regardless of usage.
in General Chat 3 months ago
Has anyone actually run a 12v compressor fridge full-time on solar in a UK van build?
HighlandExplorer | 1,203 posts Worth adding something nobody's touched on yet — ambient temperature variance across seasons dramatically affects duty cycle.
in Motorhome & Campervan 4 months ago thumb_up 9