We made it through winter without incident other then mould growth on some area's of the bus that were not insulated enough, or had metal that although being insulated behind and in front with foam board, tape and foil was still forming mould.
The issue seems to be that when dust, or dirt can build up and then moisture is present, hard to avoid in negative temps in the little areas under beds and at the rear of the bus this black/green mould will start to grow on the metal.
easy to clean, but starts to smell after a while. Only solution is to kill it all, clean it and then spray foam anything that is metal, seal any gaps and try to keep things heated and nice and dry and clean.
Spray foam everything!
Anyway back to electrical. Added some cool items to the Victron build to make take it online. The Cerbo GX unit adds some cool features to your Victron Equipment as well as a nice interior touchscreen.
Main reasons I upgraded
- I had to use Bluetooth to check my levels, it's all on my phone which was annoying to pull out, and then in the front of my bus the Bluetooth was weak.
- The Cerbo GX allows you to access the power system from online, so I can remote view and control all my power system
- Cerbo also allows for relays, and generator on off etc so I can build in more automation and control additional appliances from remote VRM
- I have added Ruuvi Tags which remote measure temp, humidity and movement and tell me that info remotely via the VRM app
Setup was pretty easy, some proprietary cords for Victron to hook the units up and some cable running. The Ruuvi Tags also linked in easy with Bluetooth, I added an external Bluetooth dongle to the Cerbo GX to increase the Bluetooth range and my sensors all hook up easy.
I have a Ruuvi pro outside for temp and Ruvvi standards inside for temp, humidity and motion. The cool part is I can see the history in Victron VRM or on the Ruuvi app, it lets me easily see what my temps are inside and control/ monitor when I am not home.
I have two cats so this has been essential to monitor them, with my AC and a couple remote camera's hooked up to my Starlink I can monitor my rig from anywhere.
It's pretty cool because now, with my solar running, Starlink on and Cerbo GX connected to Starlink I can see and control my system from anywhere in the world completely off the grid.
You can also link up Bluetooth propane monitors, and the Seelevel tank monitor system to the Cerbo GX and I will be doing this soon sto monitor my water, propane and grey tanks. Then everything will be In the Cerbo!
I'll dump links and images here for the parts and sources I used for info.
https://www.vanlifeoutfitters.com/st...ergy-cerbo-gx/
https://ruuvi.com/ruuvitag-pro/
https://ruuvi.com/ruuvitag/
https://www.amazon.ca/Victron-Energy...96504870&psc=1
https://www.amazon.ca/Mopeka-Check-S...f-fa04f1ca0da8
https://www.vanlifeoutfitters.com/st...-for-cerbo-gx/