Anyone else running LiFePO4 in a Transit-based van without a separate BMS enclosure?

Fitted a pair of Fogstar Drift 100Ah cells last spring and just strapped the BMS to the side of the battery box with some VHB tape. Works fine but always feels a bit sketchy when I think about it too hard — no real ventilation, no protection if something goes wrong mechanically.

Currently pulling up to 40A charge from a Victron Orion-Tr Smart 12/12-30 and a 200W roof panel through an MPPT. Discharge side peaks around 120A when the compressor fridge and inverter kick in together. Temps inside the box sit around 28–32°C on warm days which seems fine, but I've no idea what the BMS itself is rated to thermally.

Has anyone boxed theirs in properly — like a plywood or aluminium enclosure with a bit of airflow designed in? Or is most of the Transit crowd just doing the same bodge I am and it's genuinely fine long-term?

@ShortCircuit my situation's a bit different — garden office rather than a van — but I went through the exact same internal debate when I was mounting my Fogstar setup.

What changed everything for me was thinking about what happens if the BMS vents or gets hot. VHB tape is brilliant stuff but it's not really rated for thermal events. I ended up fabricating a simple aluminium bracket from some offcuts, took about an hour with a drill and a file.

The other thing worth considering is vibration over time — road use is so much harsher than my static setup, and I'd worry about those VHB bonds fatiguing gradually without you noticing. A loose BMS creating an intermittent connection to the cells is not a situation you want diagnosing on the A303 somewhere.

Might be worth ten quid on some proper standoffs?

Ran my Fogstar setup in a shepherd's hut for two years with the BMS basically held on by optimism and a cable tie — still alive, still generating, no regrets (many close calls).

Hey @ShortCircuit, I've got a similar setup in my Transit Custom — Fogstar Drift 200Ah pair with the BMS just mounted directly to the battery box sidewall using a proper aluminium heatsink plate between them. The heatsink makes a genuine difference for thermal management and gives you a much more solid mechanical mount than tape alone. Worth grabbing a small piece of 3mm ally from a metal supplier, drill it to match your BMS mounting holes, and pop-rivet or bolt it to the box. Costs almost nothing and you'll stop second-guessing yourself every time you hit a pothole on the A-roads! The BMS needs airflow though, so leave a gap beneath if your box allows it.

@ShortCircuit I've had my Fogstar Drift 100Ah in my Transit for about 18 months now and went through the same anxiety. In the end I knocked up a simple plywood sub-frame inside the battery box and used M4 bolts through the BMS mounting holes — takes about an hour and costs next to nothing. The VHB is probably fine day-to-day but on rough road surfaces the vibration adds up over time, and the last thing you want is the BMS swinging loose and pulling a connection with it. Worth checking your cell terminal torque whilst you're at it — mine had loosened slightly after the first winter. @PeakCruiser's direct-mount approach sounds sensible too if your box allows for it.

@ShortCircuit Completely understand that nagging feeling! I went a step further than VHB tape — drilled and tapped a small aluminium plate into the side of my battery box and bolted the BMS directly to it. Doubles as a modest heatsink too, which can't hurt during heavy discharge cycles. The Transit's floor vibration is what concerned me more than anything, so positive mechanical fixing felt worth the extra hour's work. Worth checking your VHB bond every few months as well — temperature cycling in a van can weaken adhesive over time, especially if the battery box sees direct sun through a roof vent. Nothing catastrophic waiting to happen with your current setup, but a £3 bit of aluminium angle and four M4 bolts would probably put your mind at rest permanently!

Different angle from me — my experience is with a static caravan setup rather than a van, but the BMS mounting anxiety is real regardless of application.

What finally gave me peace of mind wasn't the physical mounting method but making sure the BMS had proper thermal headroom around it. Mine's a Victron-adjacent setup and I ended up fitting a small 80mm fan on a temperature controller pulling air across the BMS.

The VHB approach @ShortCircuit mentions is honestly fine mechanically — that stuff holds in automotive environments no bother. The thing I'd actually worry about more is whether the BMS is getting enough airflow during heavy charge cycles, especially parked up in summer. A stuck BMS throwing heat against a plastic battery box wall is a worse scenario than one that's slightly wobbly.