Crinstam Camp

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since Jul 11, 2025

Biography

Crinstam Camp is a remote, 40 acre, off grid(ish) forest farm and private campground in Northern Ontario, Canada.

It's run by a m/f couple in their 40s/50s.

We are not religious, do not tolerate abusive or predatory behaviour, racism, sexism, homophobia or transphobia.

We have been helping others start on this path for literally decades, across numerous properties.

We may not post or participate in the online 'community' much due to an inability to deal with the drama that goes hand in hand with it.

In person though, we are delightful lol

One of us grew up off grid 40+ years ago. Kerosene lamps, outhouse, hand pump etc. I helped build a windmill when I was 10/11 (from the Mother Earth News Handbook to Homemade Power) so we could charge a car battery to power a 12" black and white TV to watch tv after school.

We went from owning a farm 15 years ago that a cancer battle stole from us, ended up homeless 7 or 8 years ago to living in an off grid, 40 year old travel trailer in northern Ontario, Canada for 4 years until we bought our current farm in January.

We have always offered to share whatever we have with others in need, have had many people stay with us over the years until they hit their feet under them again and will continue to do so.

Due to early trauma, one of us has a broken fight/flight response that always responds with fight. Even mild perceived threats or aggression tend to trigger it.

This has led to the clashes, both on and offline that has led to a severe aversion to being around more than 1 or 2 people at a time.

It also tends to get me banned from places, because although lots of people talk about being empathic and compassionate, it almost never extends to trauma related emotional issues.

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Northern Ontario, Canada

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Recent posts by Crinstam Camp

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

After letting it sit until about noon the next day, the bank was testing at 13.5 and when I pulled it apart, each battery was at 13.5.

I hooked it all back up and depending on the meter/tester I looked at, it showed 13.2/13.3.

We didn't have very much sun yesterday, way too much smoke from the fires out west, so I didn't get to see if it would come up at all, but in the morning before the sun came up they all read as we 13.2.

Last night after the sun went down they were showing 13.2/13.3 again.

This morning they were again all showing 13.2

I'm still confused how I can get different readings on every damn meter I use and why it dropped from 13.5 to 13.2/13.3 just from hooking it up, but it's definitely holding charge better now than when I had the 6 batteries hooked up.

I don't know if it's just because they were all properly balanced or if it's because their BMSs just work better with only 4, but I'm happy it's better.

At some point I may try balancing all 6 and hooking them up again to see what happens but for now I'm happy with the improvement.

4 weeks ago

solar

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

I got 4 of the batteries to full charge at least today.

The manual says 13.5 is 100%

13.5, 13.6, 13.7 and 13.9 is what the batteries tested at after sitting for over an hour after charging.

I hooked them all in parallel with no charge or load on it and will leave it like that until tomorrow when I'll unhook and test each one again before hooking them into the system.

They test out at 13.6 as a bank right now.

1 month ago

solar

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

Okay, I'm only part way through this but I thought I'd update and ask a couple of questions.

The battery bank was showing 13.1 when I pulled it apart. After letting them sit for a while I tested each one and they were all at 13.1 or on the verge of it. As in some showed 13.0 switching to 13.1 back and forth.

So I started charging each individually. I let them rest for an hour before testing.

1 of them came up to 13.5. On this one, the charger was only putting out 1 amp by then end.

1 of them came up to 13.4
2 of them only came up to 13.3.

With those 3, the charger was still putting out 50amps when I unhooked it, but the battery voltage hadn't changed in over an hour.

I'm going to continue charging today.

When I get through the other two I'm going to put the low ones back on charge.

Should I just leave them on it longer? If so, how long?
Should I change the amperage for charging them? If so, to what?

1 month ago

solar

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

I disconnected them all and tested each one. They were all within 0.1V of each other, which would seem to indicate I didn't have a balance issue?

I'm charging each one up separately to 13.5V which is what the manual says is 100%. I'll leave each on 30 minutes after it hits that then move onto the next. I'll test each just after they come off charging then again an hour later after they rest.

Assuming I get four that get up to full charge I'll hook them together in parallel, on their own overnight, test them again and if they're still all good, hook them back into the system and see what it shows.

1 month ago

solar

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

So, it mentions in the manual that you shouldn't have more than 4 in a parallel set.

I emailed the company and asked them about having 6 in parallel.

This is what they said.

Timeusb wrote:
Using more than the recommended number of batteries in parallel can lead to several issues. When you connect 6 of the "Timeusb 12V 100Ah LiFePO4 RV Battery Pro" batteries in parallel, you may experience imbalances in charging and discharging. This can result in some batteries being overcharged while others are undercharged, potentially leading to reduced battery life, performance issues, or even damage to the batteries.

To ensure optimal performance and longevity, it is best to adhere to the manufacturer's guidelines, which recommend a maximum of 4 batteries in parallel. If you need more capacity, consider using additional battery banks or configurations that comply with the specifications.

If you have already connected 6 batteries, I recommend monitoring their performance closely and considering reconfiguring your setup to align with the recommended guidelines. If you have any further questions or need assistance, feel free to reach out

I still don't understand why it should matter, but tomorrow I'll unhook it all, charge the batteries up individually, hook 4 up parallel, let them sit for 12 to 24 hours and then hook them back into the system.

It sucks that we'll have two batteries just sitting here waiting until we get two more, a new inverter and charger for 48v, but I don't see what else I can do.

1 month ago

solar

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

Daniel Schmidt wrote:What brand battery are you using? LiFePo batteries have some sort of battery management system (BMS) inside, and different BMS's operate differently.

Timeusb 12V 100Ah LiFePO4 RV Battery Pro

"Flexible Connection Options: Supports series, parallel, and series-parallel connections. Enables the storage of a massive 20.48 kWh of energy utilizing 16 x 12V 100Ah batteries configured in a 4P4S connection."

https://www.timeusbpower.com/products/12v-100ah-pro-lifepo4-battery

1 month ago

solar

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

Well without an actual reason beyond "some guys" and "the community" as to why it's bad, I'm going to have to go with the manual that came with them.

But hey, if anyone wants to buy me a new a set of 48v batteries, I'll be more than happy to use them.

1 month ago

solar

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

R Scott wrote:Do not buy premade battery banks and hook them in series to get a higher voltage, buy the right voltage and hook them in parallel if you need more amp hours

I meant parallel, however, according to the manufacturer, hooking them in series to increase the voltage is fine, why do you disagree?

1 month ago

solar

Lifep04 batteries and balancing

According to the battery manual, during charging they should come up to 14.6. Full charge at rest should be 13.6.

I have the 6 batteries in parallel (edited to fix brain fart) 3 down three up with batteries 1 and 6 beside each other. All the cables are identical to each other, as are the connectors.

The inverter and solar charge controller both hook to the positive on battery 1 and negative on battery 6.

The AC charger from our generator is positive on 6, negative on 1.

The only time I've ever seen them over 13.2 is when I charged them separately, although I haven't done all 6. Last time was when we still only had 4.

I'm thinking I likely should charge them up for a bit then pull them apart and test each one. Maybe one is faulty or something?

1 month ago

solar

PV panels/charge controller issues

Those are exactly what I was looking for to start with. Why would you prefer crimp on ones over reusable ones?

1 month ago

solar