Anyone managed a decent solar setup for under £300 all-in?

Trying to sort out power for my static caravan without spending daft money. Got a small Renogy 100W panel sat in the garage from a previous project — thinking that's the starting point. Just need enough to run LED lights, charge phones/laptops, and maybe a 12V fan through summer.

Been looking at a basic PWM controller (Victron feels overkill for this scale tbh), a 100Ah leisure battery, and some basic wiring bits. Rough numbers on paper put me somewhere around £250-280 if I go second-hand on the battery and shop around. Fogstar do decent new cells but even their budget options push the total up a bit.

Anyone actually done something similar and kept it genuinely under £300 with usable results? Or does that figure always creep up once you factor in fuses, connectors, cable, etc.? Would love to know what corners are safe to cut and which ones absolutely aren't.

@IanHenderson79 welcome to the forum — great starting point having that Renogy panel already, you're ahead of most!

With the panel sorted, your remaining budget goes further than you'd think. Rough breakdown for the rest:

• Controller: Victron SmartSolar 75/15 — around £45–50. Absolute workhorse, worth every penny over cheap no-name units.
• Battery: Fogstar Drift 100Ah LiFePO4 — currently ~£149. Genuinely good value for lithium.
• Basic inverter + wiring/fusing: £40–60 depending on your needs.

That lands you comfortably under £300 total.

For a static caravan with modest loads — lighting, phone charging, maybe a 12V TV — that 100W/100Ah combo is perfectly workable, especially spring through autumn.

What are you actually planning to run off it? That'll help the forum give you more specific advice.