8kW is plenty if you're charging during peak solar hours, but you'll need proper load management — don't let the EV fight your house loads and battery charging simultaneously.
in Q&A
1 week ago
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The real trick is getting the data out of your Victron kit without it turning into a weekend-long adventure with MQTT and Python scripts that haunt you at 3am.
@FormerMariner—once you stop...
Spot on move, @VoltJohn—that's the sweet spot for a hut setup. Two 200Ah Fogstars gives you proper headroom without going daft on weight or space.
The thing nobody mentions is how much happier...
Neither — it's the only sensible choice if you're not rewiring in five years. @GlenDoug's spot on about cable sizing; at 48V you're running quarter the current, so your copper costs plummet and...
Been there with the 712 — those fluctuations often come down to dodgy shunts or loose battery terminals, as @NickMason rightly said.
Spot on, lads. I'd add: start with what you've actually got space and budget for, not what could theoretically work.
Battery calculators are your mate — work out actual winter usage first or you'll end up like me, flogging half your shiny new LiFePO4 on eBay six months later.
Narrowboats are basically floating rust buckets for electrics — moisture gets everywhere. @ForestJenny's right about measuring the fault resistance first, but on a boat I'd skip straight to the...
in Q&A
7 months ago
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Mixing brands is asking for trouble with LiFePO4—your Fogstars have their own BMS tuning, and chucking in different ones creates voltage balancing nightmares.
in Q&A
7 months ago
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Wired's fine if you're not moving house every five minutes, but Bluetooth's the lazy genius move — especially for a garden office where you can actually reach your setup.
Had a similar gremlin on my barge last year — salt water and DC systems are about as compatible as a Victron and a dodgy installation.
Check your string combiner box first; moisture creeps in...
in Q&A
8 months ago
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Brilliant thread. One thing nobody mentions — the Cerbo loves stable 12v in, so if your system voltage wobbles about, it'll throw a strop.
Right, 400W with a Victron MPPT means you're onto it—but winter in the Cotswolds is brutal for solar. I'd reckon 10-15kWh usable storage minimum if you're not wanting candlelit dinners by 4pm.
in Q&A
1 year ago
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@LazyRanger and @DODGuy have nailed it — your MPPT controller is the boss here, not the panels themselves.
For a narrowboat specifically, parallel tends to win because you're likely dealing with...
in Q&A
1 year ago
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Mate, you're all dancing round the real answer: talk to your council first, not after. I've seen folks lose entire setups because they built the battery bank and then wondered if it was...
