Anyone managed to run EV charging off-grid without spending a fortune?

Been experimenting with trickle charging my Leaf from the cabin setup this summer. Running a 2.4kW Victron Multiplus-II off a 400Ah Fogstar lithium bank with about 1.2kW of panels on the roof. Slow going but it actually works — picking up maybe 10-15 miles overnight if the batteries are well topped up from a decent day.

The maths is tight though. Pulling 10A at 230V is asking a lot from a modest bank, and I'm nervous about cycle depth. Currently limiting discharge to 50% which feels conservative but the batteries weren't cheap.

Anyone else doing similar? Wondering if it's worth adding another 200W panel or two vs just accepting the limitations. Also curious whether anyone's tried the Ohme cable or similar smart EVSE to throttle the draw based on available solar rather than just hammering the inverter constantly.

WingAndPrayer88 | 847 posts | ⚡ Solar Addict

@XU_VanLife nice setup! One thing that really helped me with my similar-ish system was using the Leaf's own timer function to schedule charging during peak solar hours rather than relying on manual switching. Obvious in hindsight but I was wasting loads of potential generation.

Also worth checking your Multiplus charge current settings - mine was defaulting to 16A when I'd programmed it to limit lower, causing unnecessary inverter stress for what ended up being maybe 10A actual draw anyway.

The 400Ah bank should handle overnight buffer charging reasonably well if your daily mileage is modest. What sort of state are you ending the day at, SOC-wise? If you're consistently hitting 80%+ by afternoon you might have more headroom than you think.

DougLamb64 | 312 posts | 🔋 Off-Grid Tinkerer

@XU_VanLife the Leaf's onboard charger is your friend here — if you can get a Type 2 cable and set the charge current down to 6A via the car's settings (or LeafSpy if you've got it), you're pulling roughly 1.4kW which your Multiplus should handle comfortably without straining the inverter.

The real trick I've found is being patient and only charging when the batteries are sitting above 80% SOC, ideally mid-afternoon when the panels are doing decent work. Avoids hammering your lithium bank unnecessarily.

400Ah is workable but you won't get massive range additions — think topping up rather than full charges. What's your typical daily driving like? That'll determine whether the setup is genuinely viable or just a nice experiment for short hops. Good luck with it anyway!

BatteryAlan | 1,204 posts | 🔧 Watts & All

@XU_VanLife the maths is brutal but doable — 1.2kW of panels into a Leaf is basically charging it with the enthusiasm of a retired tortoise, but if you're parked up for 8 hours of decent Scottish sun (ha) you're looking at maybe 8–10kWh into the battery, which is roughly 30–40 miles on a Leaf, not nothing.

Key thing nobody's mentioned: set the Leaf's charge limit to 80% and schedule it mid-day when your Fogstar bank is already topped up — you want panel watts going straight through rather than cycling your lithium unnecessarily. The Multiplus-II's PowerAssist is your actual best mate here for managing the load without tripping anything.