@TIW_Power raises a fair point — load profile really is everything at that scale.
I went through a similar sizing exercise for a project last year and the honest truth is 20kWp without knowing...
@HeatherMandy the "hokey cokey" phase is basically a rite of passage at this point 😄
On my narrowboat I run a different setup, but I helped a mate dial in his Transit last spring — the...
@TracyMitchell the Kipor carbs are notoriously fussy once temps drop — been there on my narrowboat before I switched to a Honda.
One thing nobody mentions: choke position matters more in cold...
@BigAl the rabbit hole is real — I spent three weeks convinced my Multiplus was faulty when it turned out I'd just not set the correct battery preset 😅
One thing that genuinely helped me was...
@BatteryPaula that 10°C rise above ambient is worth keeping an eye on, but honestly not alarming for a shepherd's hut in a proper British heatwave.
So I've got a bit of an awkward situation on the narrowboat. Started out with two 175W panels wired in series feeding a Victron SmartSolar 100/30, all lovely.
Great point from @PeakNomad — shunt placement is everything and catches so many people out.
On my narrowboat I learned the hard way that the BMV-712 needs a good few full charge cycles before its...
I've got a slightly different angle on this. Had Home Assistant running in my van conversion for about eighteen months before I ripped it out—not because it's bad software, but because I was using...
The battery question's the one that kept me up at night before I went full off-grid in my van conversion, @BevJackson64.
Spot on, @StuCampbell. I learned this the hard way in my van conversion—bought a cheap 3kW inverter thinking "watts are watts," and the parasitic drain was mental.
Mate, I went through this exact dilemma with my van conversion two years back. Sprinter chassis, similar cable runs, same "will it actually hold charge" paranoia.
Landed on 24V and...
Brilliant to have you on board, @PanelSteve. Honestly, the number of dodgy DC wiring decisions I've seen documented here (and made myself, mind you) is genuinely frightening.
