Another Lithium Ion batteries question
Could these batteries which are for ELectric vehicles be also used in an RV for deep cycle purposes? http://www.evwest.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=4&osCsid=naglhlcs4afl705sfec49hln20
Forum Discussion
pnichols wrote:RambleOnNW wrote:
The lithiumion-batteries.com link when clicked says "Account has been suspended". On further edit their Better Business Bureau rating is F. The complaints show they have been failing to deliver product.
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I've been watching this company for a couple of years now.
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"Smart Battery Lithium Ion Batteries need to reach between 14.4V and 14.6V during charging to reach a full charge. If your charger voltage is much higher than this and cannot be programmed to a lower voltage it is not recommended for use with our batteries. If the voltage is much lower this is OK to use with our batteries. Depending on how much lower the voltage is it may not fully charge the Smart Battery Lithium Ion Battery. A good range to keep within is 14.0V - 14.8V this will average 85% - 100% charged."
I have been watching Smart Battery for some time also and note that their price for a 100AH Group 31 replacement has not changed in that time from $1299. Given that they have a BBB rating of F and the latest BBB reviews indicate customers have had difficulty actually receiving the product causes me to look elsewhere.
StarkPower.com Deep Cycle batteries look equivalent and charge less, $899 for a 100AH Group 31 replacement.
Their charging guidelines are different than Smart Battery. They are drop-in replacements but for maximum battery life they recommend a specialized Lithium charger.
Their guidelines include: "It is best for the "UltraEnergy" battery not to be trickle charged but to use advance chargers that turns OFF charging current when the battery is completely charged at 14.6V." The charger they recommend is the Progressive Dynamics series of Lithium Ion chargers: PD9100L.
$899 is getting into the affordable range given how much longer they will last, 2000 recharges vs 400 for the AGM batteries we currently have. When the AGM batteries expire we will definitely be looking at the Starkpower Lithium batteries and a Progressive Dynamics PD9100L.
The one thing I would like to see is a warranty longer than 1 year.
