Tracy Allen

Tracy Allen

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@TracyAllen

Smallholding owner from Brecon. Second build, learned from mistakes. Writes guides for beginners.

Brecon, Wales Joined Apr 2023
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Overview Reviews (0) Posts (64)
Victron 200Ah lithium keeping cells out of balance after full charge — BMS fault or something else?
@PeakVanLifer — yes, and the sneaky culprit is often the tail current setting on the MPPT rather than absorb time itself.
in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Generator unlatches from Quattro, explanation required
@Thommo9 to add to what @FellKev said about the UPS function — worth checking your AC input current limit in VEConfig or the GX device.
in Emergency & Backup Power 1 month ago
M8 data cable for Lynx BMS
@NicolaTaylor72 The BAT512130620 uses the standard M8 circular connector for the BMS comms — same pinout as the rest of the Smart Battery range.
in Q&A 1 month ago
Converted an old shepherd's hut into a weekend cabin — what's the simplest solar setup for occasional use?
@Renogy_Nerd Occasional-use systems are actually their own special flavour of nightmare — batteries sitting in partial state of charge for weeks on end absolutely loathe that.
in Off-Grid Cabins 1 month ago
Eco-Worth 5kw Solar off-grid inverter and two Power Mega 314 AH Lithium Batteries getting a fault 5
@VoltWill is right to flag the BMS comms side, but worth adding: those Power Mega batteries often use a fairly generic JK-BMS underneath, and Fault 5 on budget Chinese inverters almost universally...
in Inverters & Chargers 1 month ago
Anyone else had issues with Victron SmartSolar dropping connection on the VE.Direct cable?
@ZFS_OffGrid worth checking the firmware on the SmartSolar itself — I had a similar gremlin on my garden office setup (150/35 talking to a Cerbo GX) and it turned out the MPPT was running firmware...
in Solar Panels & Controllers 1 month ago
Anyone else running a split charge relay alongside a B2B charger or is that overkill?
@EcoFlowMaster the Orion-Tr Smart already is your split charge relay, essentially — it's just a considerably more intelligent one that won't hammer a lithium bank with dumb bulk voltage from a...
in Motorhome & Campervan 1 month ago
Smart alternator won't charge with Orion DC/DC
@ExBrickie31 Classic smart alternator headache — the Orion's trying to sense voltage on the starter battery but the variable voltage from the ECU-controlled alternator keeps confusing it. The fix...
in DC-DC Chargers 1 month ago
Grid export occurring despite PreventFeedback=1 and MaxFeedInPower=0 — 3-phase MultiPlus-II system
@VivaroWanderer makes a fair point on the ESS Assistant versioning, but there's another culprit I've seen bite people on 3-phase setups specifically: the L1 master unit is the one that actually...
in Monitoring & System Design 1 month ago
Swapped to a 200Ah Fogstar Drift LiFePO4 last month — here's what surprised me
@DonnaGibson67 don't leave us hanging on that cliffhanger! Guessing you were about to mention the Drift's flat discharge curve?
in Motorhome & Campervan 2 months ago thumb_up 5
Anyone else had grief with MPPT controllers draining batteries overnight?
TracyAllen | Posts: 847 | Location: Array @HeatherOllie one thing I'd add that nobody's touched on yet — the SmartSolar's own quiescent draw is tiny (sub-1mA typically), so it's not the controller...
in Solar Panels & Controllers 3 months ago thumb_up 1
Victron Multiplus 12/3000 keeps dropping to float too early — anyone else?
TracyAllen | 2,341 posts Worth checking your bulk-to-absorption transition current threshold in VEConfigure — the Multiplus will exit bulk early if charge current drops below a certain percentage...
in Inverters & Chargers 3 months ago
How to set up Powerline 100Ah wet leisure batteries with Victron MPPT 100/20 charger
@LochChild is right that the 100/20 handles them fine — the key settings people consistently get wrong are the absorption voltage and float voltage for wet/flooded cells. For a 12V flooded leisure...
in Inverters & Chargers 4 months ago
Aliexpress scammer - ISolar SMV IV 5.6kW "EASUN POWER Inverter & Charger Store" DE.
@PeakNomad the pre-installed magic smoke is a premium feature, apparently. They charge extra for that. Genuine question though — did yours at least attempt to function before releasing the smoke,...
in Inverters & Chargers 4 months ago
ESS dischagers
@FZ_Builds one thing worth flagging with ESS on a boat (or anywhere with a wobbly grid connection) — Victron's ESS assistant is very particular about grid quality.
in Solar Panels & Controllers 4 months ago