Charge Up Those "New" Batteries
Got a new pair of Flooded 6s from Canadian Tire today branded their way, but same as Deka GC 15s for specs and appearance. (230AH, 64 lbs) Local store would rarely sell 6v batts, so they sit on the s...
Forum Discussion
Anybody that is using there batterys for boondocking would be far better off to switch to a single 100 ah lifepo4 to use the benefit of fast charging.
Lifepo4 is actually cheaper then lead acids when you factor all things in.
I used to run Sams Club GC2 golf batteries, a guy over at Cheap RV living forum showed me how to build a Custom 40 amp battery charger using a Meanwell power supply, I learned how to charge my lead acids up to 85 % soc and then shut charging down to prevent wasting generator gas trying to get to 100%.
I use the Same Meanwell power supply/ battery charger to charge a single 100 ah lifepo4, the difference is that i can bulk/absorption charge the lifepo4 all the way to 100% soc .
Let's say that i run my 100ah lifepo4 down to 50 % soc ...
I can charge the lifepo4 back up with the 40 amp Meanwell and reach 100% soc in about 1 hour and 15 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!
1 hour and 15 minutes to put 50ah back into the lifepo4!!!!!!
And that is when I'm charging with the 40 amp Meanwell that has been ran ragged for years to the point that the output is degraded to about 34amps.
So I'm actually able to put 50ah back into the lifepo4 in 1 hour and 15 minutes using a 34amp charger!!!
Note that a 100 ah Battleborn can actually be charged with a 50 amp charger without any negative effects , I could charge it with a 100 amp charger in about a half hour but that wouldn't give me the full life of the battery.
A 50 amp charger is optimal for a 100 ah lifepo4.
Any battery charger that is over 50 amps will lessen the life of the lifepo4 a little , the higher you go over 50 amps the more life you lose of the battery,
I have a Powermax 60 amp adjustable voltage battery charger that i dialed to 14.4 volts ,, the Battleborn wants to be charged with 14.4 volts.
,I'm going to swap it in place of the Meanwell and my charge times are going to be even quicker.
Keep in mind if you ever get a 100ah lifepo4 get a 50 amp charger , a 50 amp charger is optimal for a 100ah Battleborn lifepo4.
A single 100ah Lifepo4 is all that you need in capacity because if you ever run low on power you just do a quick charge and battery is full again.
When you see people with a bunch of lifepo4 batteries they don't know what there doing, they keep trying to get more power by adding batteries, you don't get power by adding batteries, you get power by having a single battery and a really good charger that can absorption charge all the way to 100%.
Times have changed and the battery technology is crazy awesome.
It's simple too.
I charge my lifepo4 the same way that i charged my lead acid , only difference is that i lowered the charge voltage from 14.8 for lead acid to 14.4 for lifepo4.
The lifepo4 has a built-in battery management system (BMS)
That automatically protects the battery from being damaged.
It protects from overcharging.
It protects from freezing weather.
It protects from letting the soc get to low.
No need to equalize
No need to float
You can leave them at 20----80% soc and no damage will occur.
And the volts don't drop when in storage that's why you need no float
There was people trying to talk me into lifepo4, I resisted mainly do to price but after doing the math the lifepo4 is cheaper.
$200 for golf cart batteries but if your boondocking and only getting them to 85% soc they only last about 700 cycles and so I had to keep replacing golf batteries $200 ,, $200 ,,$200,,$200,,$200 plus all the hassle.
I would've had to buy 5 sets of golf batteries in ten years time at the cost of $1000 , plus lead acid is a pain in the donkey.
And lead acids performance in the cold weather was terrible.
Bought a 100ah Battleborn for $950 ,, the next day the Battleborn company put $100 back into my account because they said the battery was on sale and so I ended up paying $850 and it comes with a 10 year warranty.
The Battleborn is supposed to give about 3000 cycles and even after that the battery is still usable like a 90 ah battery instead of a 100ah battery.
Switching to lifepo4 was one of the best things that I ever did.
Crazy awesome battery, this battery is supposed to last for over 10 years and even then it is supposed to continue but with less capacity, so for example in ten years my 100 ah battery is supposed to perform like a 90 ah lifepo4. Still plenty of life.
If this battery quits on me after 5 years I still got my money's worth because this battery is amazing.
Lifepo4 is actually cheaper then lead acids when you factor all things in.
I used to run Sams Club GC2 golf batteries, a guy over at Cheap RV living forum showed me how to build a Custom 40 amp battery charger using a Meanwell power supply, I learned how to charge my lead acids up to 85 % soc and then shut charging down to prevent wasting generator gas trying to get to 100%.
I use the Same Meanwell power supply/ battery charger to charge a single 100 ah lifepo4, the difference is that i can bulk/absorption charge the lifepo4 all the way to 100% soc .
Let's say that i run my 100ah lifepo4 down to 50 % soc ...
I can charge the lifepo4 back up with the 40 amp Meanwell and reach 100% soc in about 1 hour and 15 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!
1 hour and 15 minutes to put 50ah back into the lifepo4!!!!!!
And that is when I'm charging with the 40 amp Meanwell that has been ran ragged for years to the point that the output is degraded to about 34amps.
So I'm actually able to put 50ah back into the lifepo4 in 1 hour and 15 minutes using a 34amp charger!!!
Note that a 100 ah Battleborn can actually be charged with a 50 amp charger without any negative effects , I could charge it with a 100 amp charger in about a half hour but that wouldn't give me the full life of the battery.
A 50 amp charger is optimal for a 100 ah lifepo4.
Any battery charger that is over 50 amps will lessen the life of the lifepo4 a little , the higher you go over 50 amps the more life you lose of the battery,
I have a Powermax 60 amp adjustable voltage battery charger that i dialed to 14.4 volts ,, the Battleborn wants to be charged with 14.4 volts.
,I'm going to swap it in place of the Meanwell and my charge times are going to be even quicker.
Keep in mind if you ever get a 100ah lifepo4 get a 50 amp charger , a 50 amp charger is optimal for a 100ah Battleborn lifepo4.
A single 100ah Lifepo4 is all that you need in capacity because if you ever run low on power you just do a quick charge and battery is full again.
When you see people with a bunch of lifepo4 batteries they don't know what there doing, they keep trying to get more power by adding batteries, you don't get power by adding batteries, you get power by having a single battery and a really good charger that can absorption charge all the way to 100%.
Times have changed and the battery technology is crazy awesome.
It's simple too.
I charge my lifepo4 the same way that i charged my lead acid , only difference is that i lowered the charge voltage from 14.8 for lead acid to 14.4 for lifepo4.
The lifepo4 has a built-in battery management system (BMS)
That automatically protects the battery from being damaged.
It protects from overcharging.
It protects from freezing weather.
It protects from letting the soc get to low.
No need to equalize
No need to float
You can leave them at 20----80% soc and no damage will occur.
And the volts don't drop when in storage that's why you need no float
There was people trying to talk me into lifepo4, I resisted mainly do to price but after doing the math the lifepo4 is cheaper.
$200 for golf cart batteries but if your boondocking and only getting them to 85% soc they only last about 700 cycles and so I had to keep replacing golf batteries $200 ,, $200 ,,$200,,$200,,$200 plus all the hassle.
I would've had to buy 5 sets of golf batteries in ten years time at the cost of $1000 , plus lead acid is a pain in the donkey.
And lead acids performance in the cold weather was terrible.
Bought a 100ah Battleborn for $950 ,, the next day the Battleborn company put $100 back into my account because they said the battery was on sale and so I ended up paying $850 and it comes with a 10 year warranty.
The Battleborn is supposed to give about 3000 cycles and even after that the battery is still usable like a 90 ah battery instead of a 100ah battery.
Switching to lifepo4 was one of the best things that I ever did.
Crazy awesome battery, this battery is supposed to last for over 10 years and even then it is supposed to continue but with less capacity, so for example in ten years my 100 ah battery is supposed to perform like a 90 ah lifepo4. Still plenty of life.
If this battery quits on me after 5 years I still got my money's worth because this battery is amazing.
