Our Solar/Lithium/B2B/Inverter upgrade journey

[Helen Ariel]

So we really enjoy spending time in the van off grid as much as possible, and having bought e-bikes just over a year ago we decided to upgrade the electrics in the van.

Our original set up was as follows;

1 x 130w solar panel
2 x 100Ah lead acid batteries
1 x basic PWM solar controller. It was supposed to have been an MPPT but we were hoodwinked/let down by JC Leisure. The less said about them the better…

This set up served us pretty well as we are not heavy power users, but as mentioned the new e-bikes necessitated a change.

With some significant input from Lenny HB we ended up buying the following from RogerIvy and nigelivy at Off Grid Power Solutions;

1 x Fogstar Drift 230Ah under seat lithium battery
2 x Victron 140w solar panels
1 x Victron MPPT 100/30 solar controller
1 x Victron Orion XS 50A B2B
1 x Victron Phoenix 12/1200 inverter
1 x Ablemail battery maintainer
1 x new starter battery while we were at it because why not! We fitted the biggest we could.

We were one of the first to order the 50A B2B and the comms from the guys @ Off Grid were great as there was a bit of a delay.

Once we’d got all the parts it was round to Lenny’s to get everything fitted. I couldn’t have done it without him as he basically designed the whole set-up, then guided me in what to do; mainly passing him the tools, getting up on the roof with the solar panels, cutting the plywood boards to mount the B2B and Solar Controller under the seats etc. I’m envious of his hydraulic crimper; didn’t even know such a thing existed!

We’re now able to be completely off grid, only needing water & waste facilities, and when we do stay on a campsite we don’t need hook-up. It’s fair to say it has transformed our motorhome experience!

We’re just back in Spain after spending 3 and a half weeks in Morocco where we got a maximum of 1.27 kWh in 1 day, with a P max of 243w so far.

The Ablemail keeps the starter battery at a healthy 12.8V as a minimum.

I even managed to sell the old leisure batteries for £150! Result!

The below pic was consecutive days parked on Terre d’Ocean

We managed to get a brilliant spot as we no longer need hook-up!

As you may have guessed we couldn’t be happier with how it’s all worked out. Helen loves having a toaster and the induction hob works fine if we don’t turn it up too high. We’re still fine tuning it as the size of the contact area between the pot or wok, as well as the thickness of the pot seems to affect how high we can turn it up.

Lenny HB has got free bike maintenance and cheap parts for the foreseeable! I can’t thank him enough for his friendship & help.

Gratuitous e-bike pics…

Cheers, Paul

 

[pat100]

Looks great for off gridding! Note that folks say when the battery is very cold, you shouldn’t charge it.

 

[Helen Ariel]

Looks great for off gridding! Note that folks say when the battery is very cold, you shouldn’t charge it.

From the Fogstar site;

“However, with the Fogstar Drift range, you can continue to use your battery throughout the cold weather because all of our LiFePO4 leisure batteries contain heating as standard. This is something unheard of without paying a premium!”

I think their more basic batteries lack heating which is why we went with the Drift model.

 

[pat100]

Ah! I didn’t see that listed on the Drift specs which I Googled!

 

[WESTY66]

So we really enjoy spending time in the van off grid as much as possible, and having bought e-bikes just over a year ago we decided to upgrade the electrics in the van.

Our original set up was as follows;

1 x 130w solar panel
2 x 100Ah lead acid batteries
1 x basic PWM solar controller. It was supposed to have been an MPPT but we were hoodwinked/let down by JC Leisure. The less said about them the better…

This set up served us pretty well as we are not heavy power users, but as mentioned the new e-bikes necessitated a change.

With some significant input from Lenny HB we ended up buying the following from RogerIvy and nigelivy at Off Grid Power Solutions;

1 x Fogstar Drift 230Ah under seat lithium battery
2 x Victron 140w solar panels
1 x Victron MPPT 100/30 solar controller
1 x Victron Orion XS 50A B2B
1 x Victron Phoenix 12/1200 inverter
1 x Ablemail battery maintainer
1 x new starter battery while we were at it because why not! We fitted the biggest we could.

We were one of the first to order the 50A B2B and the comms from the guys @ Off Grid were great as there was a bit of a delay.

Once we’d got all the parts it was round to Lenny’s to get everything fitted. I couldn’t have done it without him as he basically designed the whole set-up, then guided me in what to do; mainly passing him the tools, getting up on the roof with the solar panels, cutting the plywood boards to mount the B2B and Solar Controller under the seats etc. I’m envious of his hydraulic crimper; didn’t even know such a thing existed!

We’re now able to be completely off grid, only needing water & waste facilities, and when we do stay on a campsite we don’t need hook-up. It’s fair to say it has transformed our motorhome experience!

We’re just back in Spain after spending 3 and a half weeks in Morocco where we got a maximum of 1.27 kWh in 1 day, with a P max of 243w so far.

The Ablemail keeps the starter battery at a healthy 12.8V as a minimum.

I even managed to sell the old leisure batteries for £150! Result!

View attachment 1005031

The below pic was consecutive days parked on Terre d’Ocean

View attachment 1005048

We managed to get a brilliant spot as we no longer need hook-up!

View attachment 1005052

As you may have guessed we couldn’t be happier with how it’s all worked out. Helen loves having a toaster and the induction hob works fine if we don’t turn it up too high. We’re still fine tuning it as the size of the contact area between the pot or wok, as well as the thickness of the pot seems to affect how high we can turn it up.

Lenny HB has got free bike maintenance and cheap parts for the foreseeable! I can’t thank him enough for his friendship & help.

Gratuitous e-bike pics…

View attachment 1005051

View attachment 1005050

Cheers, Paul

Wow you got some great power from the sun through 280w solar panels, wonder what I’ll get in similar sunshine with 885w

Just need to get my ass down to Morocco for the sun when I’m retired

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[suavecarve]

From the Fogstar site;

“However, with the Fogstar Drift range, you can continue to use your battery throughout the cold weather because all of our LiFePO4 leisure batteries contain heating as standard. This is something unheard of without paying a premium!”

I think their more basic batteries lack heating which is why we went with the Drift model.

Thats some impressive replenishment at this time of year but still not replenishing what youre using on a daily basis.

One for Lenny HB ... the 280 ah under the seat on its side ?

 

[Helen Ariel]

Wow you got some great power from the sun through 280w solar panels, wonder what I’ll get in similar sunshine with 885w

Just need to get my ass down to Morocco for the sun when I’m retired

We kept the original panel on so 1 x 130w and 2 x 140w but from my understanding you only get a max of 3 x 130w so a total of 390w of solar.

 

[Helen Ariel]

Thats some impressive replenishment at this time of year but still not replenishing what youre using on a daily basis.

One for Lenny HB ... the 280 ah under the seat on its side ?

I don’t understand your comment about not replenishing what we’re using? We’ve not been below about 50% on the battery yet.

 

[jumar]

Impressive set up...similar to ours except more solar....we tilt our panels for winter usage to gain more....and also use a freestanding panel to put out in the sun whilst the van is in the shade.... essential stuff for eBiking....

 

[Raul]

I don’t understand your comment about not replenishing what we’re using? We’ve not been below about 50% on the battery yet.

It means you are not putting back each day, what you been taking out, you still work on deficit in some days. That's ok as long as you ease off in some days to allow it to catch up.

Nice set up, and well done Lenny.

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[suavecarve]

I don’t understand your comment about not replenishing what we’re using? We’ve not been below about 50% on the battery yet.

Just that at the moment youre not getting back up to float and absorption, and using roughly a KW a day, a couple of cloudy days (without the motor running) and that may (or may not) become an issue, which is easily resolvable

 

[WESTY66]

We kept the original panel on so 1 x 130w and 2 x 140w but from my understanding you only get a max of 3 x 130w so a total of 390w of solar.

Shudda looked a bit more closely at the pic of your van near the beach

 

[suavecarve]

Shudda looked a bit more closely at the pic of your van near the beach

I never noticed that either !

 

[Helen Ariel]

Just that at the moment youre not getting back up to float and absorption, and using roughly a KW a day, a couple of cloudy days (without the motor running) and that may (or may not) become an issue, which is easily resolvable

Ah yes, I get that but it’s very rare we’re ever parked up anywhere for more than a couple of days. The B2B works its magic as soon as we move on if the sun hasn’t been out!
I’m slightly addicted to watching the input on the app. Only cleaned the solar panels twice this trip as P Max has been pretty good.

 

[Helen Ariel]

Better view of the roof. Can’t really squeeze much more on to it!

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[Lenny HB]

One for @Lenny HB ... the 280 ah under the seat on its side ?

It is the 230ah Underseat battery.

 

[Lenny HB]

From the Fogstar site;

“However, with the Fogstar Drift range, you can continue to use your battery throughout the cold weather because all of our LiFePO4 leisure batteries contain heating as standard. This is something unheard of without paying a premium!”

I think their more basic batteries lack heating which is why we went with the Drift model.

Also the B2B and the Solar controller won't charge below 5° unless you have messed with the settings.

 

[suavecarve]

It is the 230ah Underseat battery.

View attachment 1005122

The 280 (although not designed to) also fits under the seat of a Fiat (on its side....just)

 

[Helen Ariel]

Also the B2B and the Solar controller won't charge below 5° unless you have messed with the settings.

I’ve not changed a thing! I promise boss!
Plus, Helen likes to have the van at about 14c to 15c overnight so hopefully it won’t ever get too cold.

 

[Tombola]

Nice upgrade
similar to mine, but also (like mine) keep in mind the shading of the roof skylights shadow when parking if open, doe smake a difference if in parralel set up

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[Kannon Fodda]

One for Lenny HB ... the 280 ah under the seat on its side ?

280Ah Fogstar Drift is OK on it's side. I had clarified that with Fogstar before doing so in my van. Apparently heating pads for cold temps are between the cells, not on bottom of casing, so all works fine.

 

[lorger]

We only have the basic lithium setup, I’ve thought about upgrading to give us that bit more freedom, just wish I was as knowledgeable as Lenny HB as I’d imagine a large % of the cost is labour. I know it gives more freedom and flexibility but it would take a good few nights in a campsite to pay for the upgrade, especially when we only need to use a site every 3rd night unless we’re moving then we can go longer.

 

[Lenny HB]

I’ve not changed a thing! I promise boss!
Plus, Helen likes to have the van at about 14c to 15c overnight so hopefully it won’t ever get too cold.

Blimey and you are youngsters, we never use heating at night even when it's well below zero outside.

 

[Helen Ariel]

Blimey and you are youngsters, we never use heating at night even when it's well below zero outside.

You must be joking! What temp does you end up with inside the van?! We forgot to fill the gas at the start of our trip and ended up running out whilst crossing France it was low single figures outside and not much better inside overnight. We had an awful night shivering under a wool duvet and the van was so cold and damp when we got up. Just miserable.

 

[Lenny HB]

You must be joking! What temp does you end up with inside the van?! We forgot to fill the gas at the start of our trip and ended up running out whilst crossing France it was low single figures outside and not much better inside overnight. We had an awful night shivering under a wool duvet and the van was so cold and damp when we got up. Just miserable.

Last 2 years left our 4.5 tog summer duvets on all year round same at home.
Used the van every week for a few days since before Christmas.

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[funflair]

Wow you got some great power from the sun through 280w solar panels, wonder what I’ll get in similar sunshine with 885w

Just need to get my ass down to Morocco for the sun when I’m retired

On a good clear day you should see 900watts at least, I find the Victron controller maxes out the panels much better than the old Buttner/Votronic ones did.

 

[Helen Ariel]

Blimey and you are youngsters, we never use heating at night even when it's well below zero outside.

That’s the Blitz spirit mate!



Paul

 

[Helen Ariel]

On a good clear day you should see 900watts at least, I find the Victron controller maxes out the panels much better than the old Buttner/Votronic ones did.

Haven’t heard a bad report about any of the Victron kit. Might be a little more expensive but just works well and good support if you need it.
Same with buying the Fogstar battery; the Drift has a 10 year warranty!

One of my mottos in life is ‘buy cheap, buy twice’.

Paul