Battery Upgrade on Momentum 21G

[vitaliy]

I have a 2021 Momentum 21G. Considering upgrading the dual stock batteries to a single (for now) LiTime 200Ah (https://www.litime.com/products/liti...60w-load-power).

The recommended charge current is 40A on the Lipo battery while the stock controller is 30 amp with one solar panel on the roof. Should I consider upgrading the controller as well or is that not required at this time?

My concern is that it says that you should not use this battery for starting. I have an onboard Onan 4k generator that I may use occasionally to run the AC. Thoughts on this?

If I upgrade the battery charger, it does have a input terminal to a starter battery which I can leave.

Thanks!

[TribForce]

I recently went down the rabbit hole of upgrading my solar system as well. You don't need to upgrade your charge controller unless you upgrade your solar array. 40 amps may be recommended but 30 amps will work fine too. It will just take longer to charge. If you are going to upgrade consider going big.

I started out with upgrading to a 50 amp charger 660 watt of solar and 300 amp/hr of batteries. Before I even started the installation I decided to double everything. I sent the charge controller back to Battleborn and ordered a larger one. I ordered more panels and more batteries. It's pretty sweet now.

Starting the genny with the lithium battery is not a problem. Most if not all systems on the road are set up this way. The term "starting battery' general refers to a battery connected to a continuously charging alternator. (i believe) Because your genny charges through the converter it will not hurt the batteries.

[vitaliy]

TribForce that makes sense, thank you. Which batteries and equipment did you end up upgrading to and did you do it yourself?

[TribForce]

TribForce that makes sense, thank you. Which batteries and equipment did you end up upgrading to and did you do it yourself?

I did all the work myself. I have three Battleborn and three Litime batteries in separate parallel banks. 1200W of Rich solar panels, A Victron Energy charge controller and a Lynx Power In. If you are considering doing it yourself check out Nate at Explorist Life online and on YouTube.

[TucsonJim]

TribForce

Trib - I'm trying to understand your set up with the two separate banks. The BB and LiTime batts are separated from each other at all times? Interesting.

Jim

[TribForce]

I am able to separate them but for the most part they are used in unison. You can see in the picture that the BB's go through a fuse and a cut-off switch and enter the lynx on the left and the other bank goes through it's own fuse and cut-off switch to the right side of the Lynx. On the negative side they go to a common buss bar before going through a smart shunt and then to the Lynx Power In. The common narrative in the RV world is to never mix batteries. I agree with that sentiment to a certain degree. I would never run mismatched batteries in series or parallel within the same bank. I have done a lot of research outside of the RV community and doing what I did is considered acceptable.

[TucsonJim]

TribForce - I'm guessing the BB and LiTime batteries probably have the same cells.

Jim

[TribForce]

TribForce - I'm guessing the BB and LiTime batteries probably have the same cells.

Jim

I think you are right. They might even have the same BMS. The separate banks need to have similar capacities and similar charge and discharge specs. I just got it up and running. I will see how it works this spring.

[Paul & Deb]

I did all the work myself. I have three Battleborn and three Litime batteries in separate parallel banks. 1200W of Rich solar panels, A Victron Energy charge controller and a Lynx Power In. If you are considering doing it yourself check out Nate at Explorist Life online and on YouTube.

Just out of curiosity, I wonder why you have the 2 different battery brands My guess is you started with the overpriced BBs and when you wanted to increase your battery storage you realized there were much more affordable and equal quality batteries available and went with the LiTime batteries. Is that close or another reason? I can't imagine the argument against this since the battery banks are completely separate from each other. Good on you!

[vitaliy]

I came across this guide from Will Prowse (Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/@WillProwse)

Lots of good information from his channel and guides and he does reviews of all the solar accessories. Definitely will be reviewing this while planning my upgrades!

https://www.mobile-solarpower.com/si...-charging.html

[TribForce]

Just out of curiosity, I wonder why you have the 2 different battery brands My guess is you started with the overpriced BBs and when you wanted to increase your battery storage you realized there were much more affordable and equal quality batteries available and went with the LiTime batteries. Is that close or another reason? I can't imagine the argument against this since the battery banks are completely separate from each other. Good on you!

You are exactly right. I bought my camper with two BBs. I paid full price for one more. $900+. Then I decided I wanted three more. There was no way I was going to pay another $2800. I started looking for an alternative. I found Will Prowse's YouTube channel and came up with this idea. I got all three LiTime batteries direct from their site for just over $700.

[Thorvald]

I have a 2021 Momentum 21G. Considering upgrading the dual stock batteries to a single (for now) LiTime 200Ah (https://www.litime.com/products/liti...60w-load-power).

The recommended charge current is 40A on the Lipo battery while the stock controller is 30 amp with one solar panel on the roof. Should I consider upgrading the controller as well or is that not required at this time?

My concern is that it says that you should not use this battery for starting. I have an onboard Onan 4k generator that I may use occasionally to run the AC. Thoughts on this?

If I upgrade the battery charger, it does have a input terminal to a starter battery which I can leave.

Thanks!

Bwfore you start spending money on other components, other than the upgraded batteries, decide if you want to run a larger inverter now. If you move to the inverter/chargers, such as a Victron multiplus or other manufacturer, you usually end up disabling the onboard charge converter anyways. The inverter/charger handles the job of charging the batteries. This way you can save money by not buying a charge converter that’s just gonna sit there and collect dust.

Last year I ran two Renogy 100 amp batteries and had no problem with everything in my 25G including starting the generator. This year I’m moving to the larger Renogy Rego 400ah battery. Our toy haulers are very low on space so I ended up installing my equipment in the bedroom cabinets under the mirror. The batteries are in the storage compartment behind the wall where the inverter that comes stock was located.

Cheers
Tim

[howson]

This year I’m moving to the larger Renogy Rego 400ah battery.

Wow--had not heard of the Rego. This thing looks awesome--LOVE the Anderson connector setup. Adding a second battery looks so simple. If I was in the market for a battery this thing would be given serious consideration. https://www.renogy.com/rego-12v-400a...phate-battery/

Thanks for posting.

Howard