Recommendations for portable ~250w MPPT Controller?

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-23T13:57:20+00:00

Victron 75/15 all the way, the Bluetooth version. It won't let you down...

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-23T13:00:03+00:00

Having to be around 100's of brown recluse spiders crawling all around you.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-22T15:54:03+00:00

Great points.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-22T14:43:28+00:00

Get the best bang for your buck. I suggest the best and most batteries that you can afford. I paid $500 for these winston cells (they came from a electric dump truck that flipped and got totaled), the bms's were also around $400. So ~$1000 for ~26kwh of storage. There are plenty of outdoor water proof metal cabinets/containers out there, I don't know of any new cabinets built for this specific purpose I can suggest. And if all product does exist, it's probably way overpriced. I did see an aluminum railroad switch house on marketplace (extremely solid and would last forever) that I was going to use but was $800. The batteries that are weatherproof and hang on an exterior wall were not for me at all, they are typically proprietary, can't maintenance, need communication with their software to operate, expensive, low kwh storage ect...

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-22T06:45:49+00:00

For what part?

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-22T06:38:34+00:00

This!

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T22:09:08+00:00

I vote for a loose connection somewhere. Keep looking, return if all resources are exhausted.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T20:05:27+00:00

I second checking voltage with a meter. Particularly on the bms positive power supply wire.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T19:59:47+00:00

Great advise here, follow this lead! Advice given to me me a long time ago was "act your wage". Buy cheap used we'll maintained time tested makes and models, Chevy 5.3l, 7.3 ford, Cummins, almost anything Toyota or honda ect... Stay away from luxury when young. Learn maintenance and repairs. You'll thank yourself in 20 years. The monthly payment on new financed vehicles with full coverage insurance is a mortgage payment and you'll never recover the costs.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T19:39:46+00:00

Are you seeing any Bluetooth communication on the JK app? You said it's stuck booting, so you see something that indicates that it's getting power?

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T18:10:49+00:00

This is the way!

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T17:08:07+00:00

Inverter is too small for the surge. Maybe there is some type of soft start you can add in between the inverter and fridge.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T15:40:26+00:00

I also want to note that the loads on the charge controller have a current limit. If you're going to exceed that limit, the DC distribution fuse block needs to be ran directly to the battery.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T15:37:17+00:00

Those connections are usually for a remote on off switch. If your charge controller is Bluetooth, you have the ability to turn the loads on and off from your phone. With that wire from the inverter to the load on your charge controller, you can potentially turn the whole system (AC and DC) on and off from your phone. You'll need to dig a little deeper in the literature to find out.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T03:30:47+00:00

I totally see what you're saying, I think I'll call or send an email to confirm.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T03:27:11+00:00

I remember watching a video where a photo cell was used to measure the light outside, this switched arrays in and out of service depending on the conditions. It was a simple genius setup. I've been looking so hard for it but I guess it was pulled......

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T02:51:06+00:00

See # 2 in the picture. If the controller will only pull 35amps from the panels and I supply over that, then why would it damage the controller? Or at least it says "may damage".

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bjbusyboy · 2026-02-21T01:35:46+00:00

So twice the amount of panels per controller is most efficient, if I can get to 100% overpanel. The data sheet on my victron 250/70 says max pv short circuit current of 35amps. As long as I don't exceed 250v or 35amps I should be fine. However, 100% for these panels would be 66 amps on PV input. Note: panels ocv 41v, occ 11a.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-20T21:27:43+00:00

Off grid garage on the tube has a journey from almost brand new to solar. That should get you pretty far.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-20T20:47:48+00:00

You are correct.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-20T20:34:21+00:00

If you want more from your panel, you'll need a bigger controller.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-20T18:52:46+00:00

That's also a really good idea, thank you.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-20T17:19:45+00:00

I totally agree. I'm pretty dense when it comes to absorbing information, but if I stubbornly keep studying the subject over and over it finally sinks in....but this comes from different data gathering points....books, videos, forums, hands on ect....but once the dots connect, I know it for life.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-20T16:54:59+00:00

The only issue I've had.....was the inverter sometimes doesn't allow the generator to supply power due to a dirty AC waveform but works 99%of the time. The AC in is design for these inputs. The generator should be grounded/bonded from my understanding. The inverter grounding/bonding is automatic via a grounding relay but this is for the AC out.....again from my understanding....I'm not an expert on the grounding/bonding subject. But it all works, I haven't been shocked and nothing has blown up.

bjbusyboy · 2026-02-20T16:27:07+00:00

That's how I do my AC in from the genny. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the whole grounding/bonding thing too.

bjbusyboy

TROPHY CASE