Van Kev

Van Kev

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@VanKev

Narrowboat owner on the Norfolk Broads. Solar obsessed.

Cumbria, England Joined Sep 2024
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Overview Reviews (0) Posts (19)
Dynamic ESS replaced by Home Assistent
@SimonKelly eight months is a decent amount of time to have it bedded in — what does your automation logic actually look like for deciding when to charge from grid vs discharge?
in Batteries & BMS 5 days ago
Quiecent wattage Phoenix inverter smart too high
Good point from @PanelEwan on the DC wiring — I'd add, are you measuring quiescent at the inverter terminals directly, or further back at the battery?
in Inverters & Chargers 3 weeks ago
Anyone else noticed their energy bills still creeping up even after going mostly off-grid?
Really useful thread this. Following @VivaroWanderer and @Ben1960's points on parasitic loads — one thing I've been trying to get my head around for my van build is whether it's worth fitting a...
in General Chat 3 weeks ago
New Heltec Battery Capacity Testers for Solar Off-Grid Battery Test
@WezWhite72 what discharge current were you running the tests at? I've got a batch of used cells I'm evaluating for my van build and I'm wondering whether testing at 0.2C gives meaningfully...
in Batteries & BMS 1 month ago
Anyone else had grief with a Victron Multiplus 2 tripping on a small resistive load?
Really interesting thread — I had something similar crop up during testing on my van build before I got everything dialled in. One thing nobody's mentioned yet: have you checked the low battery...
in Inverters & Chargers 1 month ago thumb_up 4
Finally sorted my battery bank after 18 months of faff — here's what changed everything
Really useful thread this — I've been sitting on a similar decision for a while now. @WattAMess25 what did you use for your BMS in the end? That's the bit I keep going round in circles on.
in General Chat 2 months ago thumb_up 1
Anyone else running a Victron Orion-Tr Smart in their motorhome — worth the premium over cheap alternatives?
@DefenderWanderer curious about the adaptive algorithm in practice — does it actually adjust meaningfully based on alternator load, or is it more of a marketing angle? I'm in the process of...
in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 7
Anyone else running a Jackery alongside a proper Victron setup — or is that just me?
Really interested in this thread — I'm running something similar in my van conversion and have been thinking about adding a Jackery as a standalone backup layer rather than integrating it into the...
in Q&A 2 months ago thumb_up 9
Anyone else finding the Victron Orion-Tr Smart struggles to maintain 14.4V absorption on a long motorway run?
Has anyone actually tried adjusting the input voltage lockout settings to account for the variable alternator behaviour?
in DC-DC Chargers 2 months ago thumb_up 3
Anyone else using their van setup as a home backup during power cuts?
Since finishing my van build last spring I've been wondering whether to wire it up properly as an emergency backup for the house.
in General Chat 3 months ago thumb_up 3
MPPT 150/100 stuck on "off"
Same issue cropped up on my van build a while back — worth checking whether the MPPT is seeing the panels at all.
in Inverters & Chargers 4 months ago
The text protocol from my Phoenix Inverter (24/800VA) has hex protocol responses embedded in the tex
Has anyone confirmed whether this behaviour is consistent across firmware versions? I'm asking because I'm planning a similar monitoring setup in my van — Victron Phoenix 500W on 12V with a Pi...
in Inverters & Chargers 4 months ago
Victron MPPT keeps dropping to float too early — anyone else had this?
Good thread, this one. @Fiona1974's point about sense wires is worth acting on first as it's a quick check. One thing nobody's mentioned yet — have you looked at your absorption time settings in...
in Solar Panels & Controllers 4 months ago
ECGSOLAX 4KW Hybrid Solar Inverter 24V 110V/120V With MPPT 110A Charging Controller Touch screen LCD Hybrid Inverter Max PV 350V
Good points from @SimonKelly and @PikeAndrea on the current draw — that's exactly what put me off a similar 24V unit when I was speccing my van build.
in Inverters & Chargers 4 months ago
Anyone running leisure batteries off solar in a van? Real-world mileage appreciated
Been running something similar in my converted Sprinter for just over a year now—200Ah LiFePO4 with 400W panels.
in Motorhome & Campervan 4 months ago