Today's recommendations for off grid 3kwh daily use. Panels. Inverter. Batteries

Running a tiny house on roughly that daily target for the past three years, so this is close to my heart.

Panels — I'd go 800W-1kW of solar minimum, even for 3kWh daily. UK irradiance is brutal in winter and you'll regret undersizing. Renogy do decent budget panels but I've shifted toward used Tier 1 commercial panels off eBay — incredible value if you can collect locally.

Batteries — This is where I'd spend properly. A 100Ah 48V LiFePO4 (so 4.8kWh usable at ~80% DoD) gives you comfortable headroom. Fogstar Drift cells are brilliant bang-for-buck and I've had zero issues with mine over 18 months. Avoid cheap no-name BMS units — false economy every time.

Inverter/Charger — Honestly, just buy Victron. A Multiplus-II 48/3000 covers your load, handles grid passthrough if you ever need it, and the VictronConnect ecosystem ties everything together beautifully. Yes it costs more upfront. No, you won't regret it.

The combination I'd actually spec today:

• 4x 250W used Tier 1 panels
• Fogstar 48V 100Ah battery
• Victron Multiplus-II 3000
• Victron SmartSolar MPPT 100/30

Total outlay somewhere around £2,000-2,500 depending on panel sourcing.

What's your actual load profile though? 3kWh spread evenly or heavy evening peaks? That changes the inverter sizing conversation quite a bit. Would love to hear what others

Good shout from @48VWizard on oversizing the panels - UK irradiance really does punish the optimistic. I'd add that string orientation matters enormously here too. If you can manage even a modest east-west split rather than a single south-facing array, you'll flatten the generation curve and get more usable hours either side of the peak.

On the battery side, I'd strongly suggest sizing for at least 6kWh usable capacity for a 3kWh daily target. Sounds excessive but December and January will genuinely test you - I've seen three consecutive grey days wipe out undersized banks completely. Lithium gives you that depth of discharge without the grief.

What's the actual load profile like? Evening-heavy or spread throughout the day? Makes a real difference to inverter sizing recommendations.

Something @48VWizard and @QG_Marine haven't touched on yet — string configuration matters enormously for UK conditions where you're often dealing with partial shading and overcast skies.

When I kitted out my van I ran two strings into a Victron SmartSolar MPPT rather than wiring everything in series. On a typical grey Norfolk morning, one partially shaded panel wasn't dragging the whole array down.

For batteries at that daily consumption, I'd look seriously at Fogstar Drift lithium — genuinely competitive pricing for UK buyers and solid BMS protection built in. Pair that with a Victron MultiPlus-II for your inverter/charger combo and you've got an ecosystem that actually talks to itself properly through VRM.

The often-overlooked bit: cable sizing and fusing between components. I've seen more grief caused by undersized DC cabling than by any component choice.

Been down this exact rabbit hole fitting out my narrowboat last winter. One thing nobody's mentioned yet — east/west panel splits can actually work in your favour on a boat (or tiny house with roof constraints), smoothing the generation curve across the day rather than one big midday spike that your inverter can't always handle cleanly.

On the inverter side, I'd lean Victron MultiPlus-II without hesitation. The tight integration with Cerbo GX changed how I manage everything — especially useful when you're away from your setup and monitoring remotely via VRM.

For batteries, @48VWizard's point about UK irradiance makes two days of autonomy essential storage planning, so don't shortchange yourself. Fogstar Drift cells have been solid value for lithium without the eye-watering premium of some alternatives.

The whole system lives or dies on how well these components talk to each other, honestly.

@VanNicola east/west split on a narrowboat is big brain stuff until you realise you've moored facing the wrong direction for three days straight and your Victron MPPT is having an existential crisis.

@BC_Boats that narrowboat orientation problem is real — I've seen lads completely rethink their panel mounts mid-fit because they didn't account for typical canal mooring angles.

For the original question though, batteries are where I'd spend hardest. For 3kWh daily you want roughly 6-8kWh usable capacity to survive a few grim November days without hammering your DoD. I've been running Fogstar Drift LiFePO4 cells — brilliant value for UK buyers, no import headaches. Pair that with a Victron Multiplus-II and you've got proper generator integration when December decides to be properly miserable.

One thing worth flagging: BMS communication with your inverter/charger is massively underrated. Getting your battery talking CANBUS to the Victron means charge parameters self-adjust. Saved my pack considerable stress over two winters.