Happy 15th Birthday to my LiFePo4 battery

[CMS]

Happy 15th Birthday to my LiFePo4 battery

 

[Bmarler]

I hope my insurance company will accept them next time I need batteries. It’s just crazy to not use them these days.

 

[Rossland]

Thanks Rod:
Rod is right on with his observations. I have had Battleborn lithium batteries for 2 1/2 years, and could not be happier. I float them at 13.4V, and never charge below freezing. I have a light which warns me when the batteries get down to 10% SOC.
The only thing I can add is that insurance problems is a "red herring". I recently had to change insurance companies because my previous company decided to withdraw from the market. Two brokers contacted a total of six companies, and only one said they would not insure a boat with lithium batteries.

 

[GMS]

Great update Rod! Very nice to hear your capacity results after 1-2 years of floating the battery for backup power usage. The BMS was choose for our house bank does not readily allow for letting the batteries sit at 50% SOC as we would have preferred, it is nice to see some evidence that keeping them more or less at 100% SOC isn't too damaging (or really damaging at all). Our experience would suggest the same, but we have not put in the effort to run official capacity tests to prove it.

We are in the process of buying a new (to us) boat, so I will be working on another LiFePO house bank upgrade - so much as changed since I last did it in 2019-2020. That said, I will probably still build a bank from raw cells as it appears to remain the most cost effective avenue (and I have the equipment and experience to properly top balance and control).

Cheers!

 

[Bmarler]

Thanks Rod:
Rod is right on with his observations. I have had Battleborn lithium batteries for 2 1/2 years, and could not be happier. I float them at 13.4V, and never charge below freezing. I have a light which warns me when the batteries get down to 10% SOC.
The only thing I can add is that insurance problems is a "red herring". I recently had to change insurance companies because my previous company decided to withdraw from the market. Two brokers contacted a total of six companies, and only one said they would not insure a boat with lithium batteries.

My insurance company will not accept them. So it’s not necessarily a red herring. This is a big, well known marine insurer. I think they may change their policy in the future, but for now you’re taking chances if you ignore and install.

 

[GMS]

Checking in with your insurer prior to heading down the LiFePO house bank route is wise, but the insurance thing should become more and more of a non-issue. ABYC has endorsed (or at least approved) LiFePO4 chemistry for use in boats (with certain safe guards of course) and that usually carries significant weight with insurance companies.

 

[guy with a boat]

Bmarler, Is it Markel? They are the only ones I have heard of that object to LFP.

 

[sean9c]

I watched the video and though, damn, now there is really no good reason not to use LiFePO.
Hard to figure why an insurance company would care, they don't seem to care about insuring EV's and the chemistry in those is known to be an issue. I asked my agent, none of the companies they use care.

 

[Delta Riverat]

I'm looking forward to beginning my LiFePO4 experience soon and not having to worry about running the house bank down in a half day like I do now -

 

[Iggy]

I am on my 3rd year and no problems to date.

 

[Bmarler]

Bmarler, Is it Markel? They are the only ones I have heard of that object to LFP.

Yep