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pianotuna's avatar
pianotuna
Nomad III
May 20, 2019

li batteries--a good primer

Hi all,

This is a good explanation of what to expect from LIfePo4.

https://www.solacity.com/how-to-keep-lifepo4-lithium-ion-batteries-happy/

Here is their summation:

To sum up, for long and happy LFP battery life, in order of importance, you should be mindful of the following:

Keep the battery temperature under 45 Centigrade (under 30C if possible) – This is by far the most important!!

Keep charge and discharge currents under 0.5C (0.2C preferred)

Keep battery temperature above 0 Centigrade when discharging if possible – This, and everything below, is nowhere near as important as the first two

Do not cycle below 10% – 15% SOC unless you really need to

Do not float the battery at 100% SOC if possible

Do not charge to 100% SOC if you do not need it

12 Replies

  • pianotuna wrote:
    Hi all,

    This is a good explanation of what to expect from LIfePo4.

    https://www.solacity.com/how-to-keep-lifepo4-lithium-ion-batteries-happy/

    Here is their summation:

    To sum up, for long and happy LFP battery life, in order of importance, you should be mindful of the following:

    Keep the battery temperature under 45 Centigrade (under 30C if possible) – This is by far the most important!!

    Keep charge and discharge currents under 0.5C (0.2C preferred)

    Keep battery temperature above 0 Centigrade when discharging if possible – This, and everything below, is nowhere near as important as the first two

    Do not cycle below 10% – 15% SOC unless you really need to

    Do not float the battery at 100% SOC if possible

    Do not charge to 100% SOC if you do not need it


    That's a lot of restrictions for a battery that costs at least 10x what a lead acid costs. Operating temp 30C?! horse hockey! Charge current 0.2 to 0.5C, that's terrible.
  • "Keep the battery temperature under 45 Centigrade (under 30C if possible) – This is by far the most important!!"

    86F....I just can't do that with my camping style. It was 105 the four days I was in Death Valley last March. And that's close to 113F!

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