Battery Upgrade

[thawkins57]

I sold my 4 6V CG2 batteries and bought 2 Battle Born 100Ah 12 batteries to replace them. The golf cart batteries weighed 280 lbs; the BB's weigh in at 60 lbs - 200 lbs less tongue weight to deal with. I also installed a Renogy 400 watt solar kit with an MPPT controller.

I store my trailer at home and leave it plugged in year round. It can easily get into the upper teens and low 20's at night, so I took some precautions to make sure the batteries would charge. First I insulated the area with 1-1/2" foam insulation and hardboard. Then I installed a 400 watt inverter and mini 200 watt ceramic heater with a temperature control that will come on at 28 degrees and turn off at 32 degrees.

I also have a Progressive Dynamics PD4655 Converter with an Li option for those rare Nevada days when there is no sun and I may need to run my generator. I'm looking forward to trying it out when the weather gets better (and the camping closures are lifted).

By the way, a shout out to Battle Born Batteries, which are made about 15 minutes from my home. Their customer service is outstanding, and if you are fortunate enough to live close enough to pick them up in person, they do offer a decent discount for not having to ship them.

[howson]

I sold my 4 6V CG2 batteries and bought 2 Battle Born 100Ah 12 batteries to replace them. The golf cart batteries weighed 280 lbs; the BB's weigh in at 60 lbs - 200 lbs less tongue weight to deal with. I also installed a Renogy 400 watt solar kit with an MPPT controller.

I store my trailer at home and leave it plugged in year round. It can easily get into the upper teens and low 20's at night, so I took some precautions to make sure the batteries would charge. First I insulated the area with 1-1/2" foam insulation and hardboard. Then I installed a 400 watt inverter and mini 200 watt ceramic heater with a temperature control that will come on at 28 degrees and turn off at 32 degrees.

I also have a Progressive Dynamics PD4655 Converter with an Li option for those rare Nevada days when there is no sun and I may need to run my generator. I'm looking forward to trying it out when the weather gets better (and the camping closures are lifted).

By the way, a shout out to Battle Born Batteries, which are made about 15 minutes from my home. Their customer service is outstanding, and if you are fortunate enough to live close enough to pick them up in person, they do offer a decent discount for not having to ship them.

I'm not familiar with a lot of the items in your setup. One item to consider is a battery monitor if none of the components have that capability. While expensive, many here like the Victron BMV-712. The bluetooth function is fantastic so you'll always be able to quickly check the state of charge (SOC). Battle Born recommends the device. Here's a good video by AMSolar that might be of interest:

Victron's price too steep? Will Prowse has an alternative suggestion:

[thawkins57]

One item to consider is a battery monitor if none of the components have that capability. While expensive, many here like the Victron BMV-712.

I do use a Victron BMV-702 that I bought when I replaced the WFCO converter with the PD4655 two years ago. I've been relying on it ever since.

[Guest]

Lithium batteries do not need to be kept at a full charge like lead acid batteries. Its actually best to keep them at a 50% SOC. BB will tell you to fully charge them and then disconnect them as the lithium batteries have a very slow discharge rate overall. I spoke with them over the phone and they confirmed a 50% SOC is best for long term storage but they recommend the full charge/disconnect method because they do not want folks to store at 50% SOC and forget to check on them where the BMS would shut the battery off at a very low SOC. Storing in protection mode would also shorten the batteries life. I store my Lithium battery at 50% SOC and store it inside/heated space where I can easily monitor the battery with a volt meter. Your storage solution with the heater is very nice but you may also want to add some type of monitor so if the heater fails, you would be notified.

Jim