fragment: more on the DIY converter

[found this draft fragment from August]

based on a reddit post that became unwieldy

Perhaps a less expensive multistage charger with higher output current (Amps) would be a better choice.

Last year I was looking for an inexpensive, multistage, and configurable converter and couldn’t find one. I sniffed around and found some folks running 24v dc power supplies (like Mean Well makes) into spare mppt controllers.

I put together a 10A setup for just under $100, fully adjustable for setpoints, durations, etc. Theoretically this is only C/20 charging (half the recommended C/10) but I have solar and alternator charging so it spends most of its time floating at night and handling about 5A of overnight loads.

A 20A version would be about $25 more, but I figured if I had shore power I’d probably be on it overnight (campground or something). I also wanted to be able to run the converter and 1000w of AC through a 12A AC circuit breaker. This would keep me from tripping someone’s 15A residential breaker if I were driveway surfing.

I don’t necessarily recommend it for beginners, but it may be an option for others to consider, particularly if they have a small spare mppt controller on the shelf.