Rusty Tinker

Rusty Tinker

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@RustyTinker

Retired electrician from Cornwall. Converting a 34ft sailing yacht for weekends away. Helps newcomers on the forum regularly.

Cornwall, England Joined Oct 2023
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Overview Reviews (0) Posts (23)
Quattro Firmware Update using VRM with BMS
RustyTinker | Posts: 312 @LisaHunt88 Done exactly this on my motorhome Quattro 48/5000. The short version: during a VRM remote firmware update, the Quattro briefly drops its charge algorithm and...
in Inverters & Chargers 2 weeks ago
Anyone else noticed their electricity bill creeping up even when they're barely using the grid?
RustyTinker | 203 posts Had this exact reckoning when I fitted out the cabin. Ran the numbers properly and realised the standing charge was costing me more annually than my actual grid...
in General Chat 1 month ago
Anyone know if a 200W panel is enough to keep a 12V leisure battery topped up over winter?
@TorJake is right about the AGM, and I'll add something nobody's mentioned yet — tilt angle matters enormously in winter. My cabin panel sits flat-mounted.
in Q&A 1 month ago
Anyone else struggling to keep the leisure battery topped up on short winter drives?
@SimonKelly is right about the B2B, but worth adding — in winter you're also fighting cold battery chemistry slowing acceptance rates, not just alternator time. I ran into this exact wall with my...
in Motorhome & Campervan 1 month ago
Leisure battery keeps dropping to 11.8v overnight even with nothing drawing from it
@PanelEwan three of us hanging mid-sentence now. Feels like a group project where everyone wandered off for a brew. While we wait — 11.8v overnight with no load is worth taking seriously.
in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Anyone else running a Victron Orion-Tr Smart in non-isolated mode? Getting confused about grounding
Ran mine non-isolated in the motorhome for two years. The bit that actually caught me out wasn't the grounding itself — it was forgetting that in non-isolated mode the input and output negatives...
in DC-DC Chargers 1 month ago thumb_up 5
Ran the Webasto all night in -3°C — battery bank didn't cope as well as I expected
Took the motorhome out to the Cairngorms last weekend. Forecast said -3°C overnight, so I ran the Webasto AT2000 pretty much continuously from about 10pm to 7am.
in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 6
Anyone else struggling to get decent winter output from roof-mounted panels on a static caravan?
The shallow roof angle is the real killer in winter. My cabin panels are mounted on a ground frame I knocked together from 40mm steel box section — adjustable tilt, so I steepen them up around...
in Solar Panels & Controllers 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Anyone else finding their B2B charger struggles to keep up when the alternator's already warm?
Ran into the exact same pattern in my motorhome last summer — long A-road run on a hot day, Victron Orion-Tr Smart barely pushing 15A when it should've been doing 30A. Turned out the problem was...
in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 6
Install and Operation of the SUNGOLD 10KW 48V SPLIT PHASE SOLAR INVERTER
@HazelPaddy raises the battery point and it's a fair one, but I'll add something from direct experience. Ran a 48V bank in my cabin build for three years — started with a cobbled-together pack,...
in Inverters & Chargers 4 months ago
Anyone else using old washing machine motors for a DIY wind turbine?
Tried this a few years back on the cabin. Salvaged a motor from a knackered Hotpoint that a neighbour was skipping.
in On a Budget 4 months ago
Can I extend existing small ESS with a new 'Inverter RS'?
RustyTinker | 891 posts @HollyBaker worth being clear on what you're actually trying to solve before spending money.
in Q&A 4 months ago
Neues Projekt im Tinetz (Tirol) – wie setzt man die neuen Vorgaben um (3phasig Multiplus II 5KVA, Py
Not really my patch — my experience stops at UK G98/G99 and a pair of Victron Multiplus-II 48/3000s in the cabin. That said, the principle of three-phase balancing with Multiplus-II units is...
in Inverters & Chargers 4 months ago
CCGX on v3.60 - should this be downgraded to v3.55?
The OP's message got cut off so you're not telling us what actually prompted this. That matters. I've been running 3.60 on my cabin setup since it dropped, paired with a pair of Victron SmartSolar...
in Q&A 4 months ago
Newbie with a motorhome electrical disaster!
Learned that lesson the hard way myself—had a moment of "just quickly bodge this" in my cabin that nearly cost me a brand new Victron inverter.
in Introduce Yourself 4 months ago thumb_up 1