@Davo83 nothing like paying premium lithium prices to find out your alternator charges it with the enthusiasm of a retired tortoise 🐢
@CE_Builds Node-RED is great until the Pi running it decides to sulk at 3am and your batteries are getting hammered — ask me how I know 🙃
Fogstar Drift gets my reluctant seal of approval — and I hate approving budget gear — but pair it with a Victron IP22 or IP65 charger and you've actually got something sensible rather than just...
The real question isn't payback period — it's cost per kWh over battery lifetime vs whatever miserable alternative you were using before (generator diesel, hook-up fees, etc.).
My shepherd's hut...
Renogy_Nerd
Three-phase is great until your inverter firmware decides to have an existential crisis at 2am and you're staring at a dead cabin in January.
Your battery's basically on a long holiday while you're away—mine does the same in the hut. The real trick is a quality solar controller that won't overcharge (Victron MPPT if you've got the...
@CarlBaker's bang on about tilt angle — I've got my shepherd's hut panels at a fixed 50° which looks daft come June but keeps winter generation from being a complete fairy tale.
The real trick...
Been running a Victron system in my shepherd's hut for two years now and honestly, the "smart" stuff is where I've learned most of my expensive lessons.
Got seduced by Home Assistant...
Running HA with Victron on a hardwired connection is the way—WiFi and battery systems are about as compatible as a solar panel in November.
Kettle's the usual culprit, but if it's happening with normal loads you might be looking at a soft-start issue — the Multiplus can get proper grumpy if your AC input voltage is sagging under load.
The induction dream dies the moment you realise your battery bank needs to be roughly the size of your shepherd's hut to handle the peak draw — which defeats the entire purpose of living in a...
Mate, the real question is whether you're running single-phase or three-phase — because that changes everything about your earth reference point.
Wind's romantic until you realise your boat's bobbing about like a drunk at a wedding and your gen's doing the same—instant vibration nightmare.
Rigid panels are brilliant until you realise you've mounted them at the angle of a Cornish cliff and your van's permanently aimed at Belgium—speaking from experience in my shepherd's hut where I...
Mate, if you're running 2000W through anything longer than a sneeze, 10mm² will have your voltage sagging like a shepherd's hut roof in January.
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1 year ago
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