TradeFuel
DCA Strategy Basics
A detailed explanation of every TradeFuel setting — what each one does, how it affects your trades, and how to think about configuring them.
TradeFuel's DCA strategy is controlled by a set of parameters that together define how aggressively your bot buys on dips, how much capital it commits, and when it exits with a profit. Understanding each setting thoroughly is essential before you go live. This article breaks down every setting with examples.
Base Order Size
The base order size is the amount spent on the initial buy when a trade is first opened. It is denominated in your quote currency — almost always USDT on a crypto exchange. This is the smallest purchase in the trade; safety orders are typically larger.
- ›Setting:
base_order_size - ›Unit: USDT (or your quote currency)
- ›Example:
50— spend 50 USDT on the opening buy
A smaller base order means less exposure if the trade immediately reverses and no safety orders fire. Many traders keep the base order small relative to the safety order size, treating it primarily as a "trigger" to open the position.
Safety Order Size
The safety order size is the amount spent on the first safety order (SO1). Subsequent safety orders may be larger if a volume scale greater than 1.0 is set. Safety orders are where the majority of your capital is deployed in a typical DCA trade.
- ›Setting:
safety_order_size - ›Unit: USDT
- ›Example:
100— SO1 costs 100 USDT, often 2x the base order
A common starting point is to set the safety order size at 2x your base order size. This ensures that even the first safety order meaningfully lowers your average entry, without requiring enormous capital for the initial fill.
Price Deviation (Step %)
The price deviation step defines how far the price must drop from the price of the last executed order before the next safety order is triggered. It is expressed as a percentage.
- ›Setting:
price_deviation_percent - ›Example:
2.5— each SO triggers after an additional 2.5% drop from the last order price
A deviation of 2.5% means: if your base order filled at $50,000, SO1 triggers at $48,750 (2.5% below $50,000). If the step scale is 1.0 (flat), SO2 would trigger at another 2.5% below SO1's price. If the step scale is above 1.0, each subsequent step is larger.
Safety Order Step Scale
The SO step scale is a multiplier applied to the price deviation for each successive safety order. It controls how the spacing between orders grows as the drawdown deepens.
- ›Setting:
safety_order_step_scale - ›Example:
1.2— each step is 20% larger than the previous one - ›Setting to
1.0keeps all deviation steps equal (flat distribution)
With a 2.5% base deviation and a 1.2 step scale: SO1 triggers at 2.5%, SO2 at 3.0% below SO1, SO3 at 3.6% below SO2, SO4 at 4.3%, and so on. This means early safety orders are placed relatively close together, while later ones spread out further apart — a sensible behavior since deeper drawdowns are less frequent and warrant wider spacing.
Safety Order Volume Scale
The SO volume scale is a multiplier applied to the size of each successive safety order. It controls how aggressively you average down as the price drops further.
- ›Setting:
safety_order_volume_scale - ›Example:
1.5— each SO is 1.5x the size of the previous SO - ›Setting to
1.0keeps all SOs the same size
With a 100 USDT SO1 and 1.5 volume scale: SO1 = 100 USDT, SO2 = 150 USDT, SO3 = 225 USDT, SO4 = 337.50 USDT. Each successive buy is larger, which pulls the average cost down more quickly on deep drawdowns. However, capital requirements grow significantly — be sure to calculate your total exposure before setting this above 1.5.
Max Safety Orders
Max safety orders is a hard cap on the total number of safety orders that TradeFuel will place in a single trade. Once the maximum is reached, no further safety orders are placed regardless of how much further the price drops. The position remains open, waiting for price to recover to the take profit level.
- ›Setting:
max_safety_orders - ›Example:
5— at most 5 safety orders per trade
This setting is primarily a capital protection tool. It defines the worst-case capital outlay per trade (base order + all SOs). Never set this higher than your available capital can support — calculate total capital required before deploying.
Take Profit %
The take profit percentage defines the profit target above your current average entry price at which TradeFuel sells the entire position. It is calculated against your average cost across all filled orders, not your original base order price.
- ›Setting:
take_profit_percentage - ›Example:
1.5— sell everything when position is up 1.5% from average entry
A 1.5% take profit on a 300 USDT position yields 4.50 USDT gross profit (before exchange fees). Small per-trade profits compound significantly when a bot is running multiple pairs and completing several cycles per day.
Worked Example: A 3-Safety-Order Trade
Here is a concrete end-to-end example using the following settings:
Base Order Size: 50 USDT Safety Order Size: 100 USDT Price Deviation: 2.5% SO Step Scale: 1.2 SO Volume Scale: 1.5 Max Safety Orders: 3 Take Profit: 1.5%
Trade Walkthrough
| Event | Price | Amount Spent | Cumulative Spent | Avg Entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base Order opens | $50,000 | 50 USDT | 50 USDT | $50,000 |
| SO1 fires (−2.5%) | $48,750 | 100 USDT | 150 USDT | $49,167 |
| SO2 fires (−3.0% from SO1) | $47,288 | 150 USDT | 300 USDT | $48,387 |
| SO3 fires (−3.6% from SO2) | $45,582 | 225 USDT | 525 USDT | $47,351 |
| Take Profit at +1.5% | $48,061 | — (SELL ALL) | — | +7.88 USDT profit |
In this example, BTC dropped about 8.8% from the base order before the deepest safety order fired. Yet because TradeFuel averaged down across all four orders, the average entry price dropped to $47,351 — meaning price only needs to recover to $48,061 (a $2,479 recovery from the SO3 low) before the entire 525 USDT position is sold at profit. Without safety orders, the position would need a full recovery to $50,000 to break even.