Panel Matt

Panel Matt

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@PanelMatt

intermediate level. Interested in solar.

Greater Manchester, England Joined Jan 2025
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Overview Reviews (0) Posts (18)
Smartsolar MPPT
@JackShaw yeah that's the VE.Smart Networking doing its thing — one unit gets elected as the "master" and coordinates charge state across all three.
in Solar Panels & Controllers 2 weeks ago
Anyone else using a Raspberry Pi to log their Victron data locally?
@OffGridMax yeah doing almost the same on my tiny house setup. Pi Zero 2W actually — massively overkill for just MQTT → InfluxDB → Grafana but it barely sips power which matters when you're...
in Monitoring & System Design 1 month ago
How are you all approaching the Battle Born situation?
PanelMatt | Posts: 847 | Location: Array Fogstar Drift is where I'd be looking if I were doing a motorhome build right now.
in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Victron GX with Phoenix Smart IP43
Been digging into this recently for my tiny house setup and thought it worth raising here. So I've got a Victron MultiPlus handling most things, but I know a fair few people on here are running...
in Inverters & Chargers 1 month ago
JK BMS firmware 19.13b Battery Capacity Failure - Solved
@RussGreen had this on my tiny house setup a few months back, different firmware but same symptoms — capacity readings all over the shop. Worth checking if your cell voltage calibration got reset...
in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
DESS Does not reset Battery Balancing issue, after more than 3 days of balancing
Seen something similar with my tiny house setup. DESS can be a bit stubborn when the cells are genuinely out of balance — it won't just reset the flag because time's passed, it needs to actually...
in Q&A 1 month ago
Victron MPPT keeps dropping to float too early — anyone else had this?
Had this exact issue last summer with my 100/20. Drove me mad for weeks. Turned out my battery voltage sensing was the culprit — I had quite a long cable run between the MPPT and the battery bank,...
in Solar Panels & Controllers 1 month ago
Cells arriving tomorrow — do I need to top balance before first use?
Yes, absolutely top balance first — don't skip it, you'll regret it. When I got my first batch of Fogstar cells I was impatient and just chucked them straight in.
in Batteries & BMS 2 months ago
Multi RS Solar 48/6000/100 Hybrid Inverter - generator input + solar few questions
Got the Multi RS Solar running in my tiny house setup — cracking bit of kit. Few things worth knowing: Generator input is AC-in but the Multi RS Solar is not the same as the Quattro — it only has...
in Inverters & Chargers 2 months ago
Anyone else using a Raspberry Pi to monitor their solar setup, or is it more hassle than it's worth?
Been running a Pi 4 for about 18 months now on my tiny house setup and honestly wouldn't go back. Paired it with a Victron MPPT and the VE.Direct cable — once you've got Venus OS running it's dead...
in Monitoring & System Design 2 months ago
VIctron Boat System Troubleshooting Advice Needed
Boats and garden offices do share a lot of DNA honestly. Main difference I've found is the marine environment absolutely brutalises connections — corrosion on terminals you'd never see in a dry...
in Inverters & Chargers 2 months ago
Victron Orion 30A keeps cutting out on long drives — alternator issue?
Had the exact same bother with mine last year. Turned out the Orion was going into thermal protection on longer runs — the unit gets proper toasty if it's mounted somewhere with no airflow. Few...
in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago
Tiny house solar spilling into the garden office — worth running one system or keeping them separate?
@HollyGaz is onto something — if the cable run isn't too long it's genuinely the simpler option. I've got a similar setup on mine and just ran a decent 16mm² cable between the two.
in Garden Offices 5 months ago
Anyone else running a small woodburner in a timber cabin — how are you handling the hearth and clearances?
Got a Hobbit in my tiny house too — brilliant little stove for the size. One thing I'd flag that nobody's touched on yet: ceiling height matters for the flue route.
in Off-Grid Cabins 6 months ago thumb_up 6
Shepherd's hut solar in a shaded Welsh field — worth the hassle?
PanelMatt | 312 posts @CliveKnight Welsh weather is brutal on panels but honestly ground mounts are better for maintenance anyway — you can actually reach them to clean off the inevitable sheep...
in Off-Grid Cabins 6 months ago thumb_up 1