WFCO CONVERTER WF-8955LIS-MBA Review?

[NickinCO]

So I think I’ve narrowed down my electrical system choices.

I’m planning on ordering two SOK 206aH batteries for a total of 412aH. For now I’m going to swap the stock WFCO 8955PEC converter and board for the 8955LIS which has a switch to flip between lithium and FLA. The unit is cheap ($230 vs $1300) until I decide if I really need a Victron multiplus. I’m leaning towards no for now just because my unit has the Cumins generator but I need to spend some nights in it first.

My understanding is the 8955LIS will charge in bulk at 14.6 (if needed) for 1-4 hours. Being a 55A charger if I ran my battery bank down to close to zero it would take a little over 7 hours to fully recharge. At the 4 hour mark I would have to flip the breaker for the converter so it resets itself for another 1-4 hour bulk charge.

Has anyone done this? Thoughts? I tried searching 8955-LIS without results.

I will also have 600w solar to top off the battery’s if I’m not around to flip the breaker at the 4 hour mark. In the western US I’m assuming 600w of solar will replace about 30-32A per hour in good sun. In reality I’m not sure how often I would run them below 50% to actually NEED to flip the breaker but as a good American more is better right? 😀

Edit: The SOK batteries are rated at a max 50A charge. Running two in parallel would allow me to charge them at up to 100A correct? This way I would see a theoretical max of 95A of charging with solar plus the converter.

[TucsonJim]

So I think I’ve narrowed down my electrical system choices.

I’m planning on ordering two SOK 206aH batteries for a total of 412aH. For now I’m going to swap the stock WFCO 8955PEC converter and board for the 8955LIS which has a switch to flip between lithium and FLA. The unit is cheap ($230 vs $1300) until I decide if I really need a Victron multiplus. I’m leaning towards no for now just because my unit has the Cumins generator but I need to spend some nights in it first.

My understanding is the 8955LIS will charge in bulk at 14.6 (if needed) for 1-4 hours. Being a 55A charger if I ran my battery bank down to close to zero it would take a little over 7 hours to fully recharge. At the 4 hour mark I would have to flip the breaker for the converter so it resets itself for another 1-4 hour bulk charge.

Has anyone done this? Thoughts? I tried searching 8955-LIS without results.

I will also have 600w solar to top off the battery’s if I’m not around to flip the breaker at the 4 hour mark. In the western US I’m assuming 600w of solar will replace about 30-32A per hour in good sun. In reality I’m not sure how often I would run them below 50% to actually NEED to flip the breaker but as a good American more is better right? 😀

Edit: The SOK batteries are rated at a max 50A charge. Running two in parallel would allow me to charge them at up to 100A correct? This way I would see a theoretical max of 95A of charging with solar plus the converter.

I'm trying to understand your post a little more.
Will you be running the generator to charge the batteries through the 8955LIS?
Another consideration is that both your solar charging system and your 8955LIS will both be contributing to the recharge effort at the same time.

Jim

[NickinCO]

I'm trying to understand your post a little more.
Will you be running the generator to charge the batteries through the 8955LIS?
Another consideration is that both your solar charging system and your 8955LIS will both be contributing to the recharge effort at the same time.

Jim

Exactly. Charging will be done mostly through the generator plus solar but occasionally through shore power. 95% of our camping is boondocking with only a 12v need.

[Country Campers]

You could also add a stand alone converter/charger like this Amazon.com: PowerMax PM3-100 110V to 12V DV Power Supply Converter Charger for RV 100 Amp : Automotive instead of replacing the whole distribution box. A stand alone could be sold if you decide to go to a Multiplus or a different system at some point.

Brian

[NickinCO]

You could also add a stand alone converter/charger like this Amazon.com: PowerMax PM3-100 110V to 12V DV Power Supply Converter Charger for RV 100 Amp : Automotive instead of replacing the whole distribution box. A stand alone could be sold if you decide to go to a Multiplus or a different system at some point.

Brian

I’m not replacing the entire box, just the converter and DC board. It is a direct swap into the stock box 👍 Appears to be the cleanest install. From what I’ve seen online many other converters won’t fit in the space of the standard 8955. Here’s an image of what I’m using-

[NickinCO]

https://www.theoutdoorlife.us/upgrad...b25fb211080376

This is a great website outlining the swap

[NickinCO]

Really surprised this swap isn’t super common! It’s cheap, easy to do, and would allow FLA or Lithium charging with a flip of a switch while retaining the factory “face” of the power station. I ended up placing my order, I’ll report back after I do the install. Might be a couple weeks before I get the lithium batteries so I will initially set it up for FLA.

[howson]

NickinCO -- the only downside is the generator likely has way more capability than the converter can use to charge the batteries. (I can't find what is installed in your 21G--what is the generator's power rating?)

A Multiplus can sustain 120A to the batteries or ~1400W. The WFCO's 55A is ~660W. Your two batteries could soak up everything the Multiplus can dish out, the result being a faster charge time / less generator run time.

No doubt about the price difference (plus a Multiplus would require rewiring) but the time (and noise avoidance of the running generator) could make it worthwhile. Just another perspective.

Look forward to your report on the modification.

Howard

[NickinCO]

NickinCO -- the only downside is the generator likely has way more capability than the converter can use to charge the batteries. (I can't find what is installed in your 21G--what is the generator's power rating?)

A Multiplus can sustain 120A to the batteries or ~1400W. The WFCO's 55A is ~660W. Your two batteries could soak up everything the Multiplus can dish out, the result being a faster charge time / less generator run time.

No doubt about the price difference (plus a Multiplus would require rewiring) but the time (and noise avoidance of the running generator) could make it worthwhile. Just another perspective.

Look forward to your report on the modification.

Howard

Thanks Howard. I didn't think to see what the actual output on the generator would be. Google tells me the Cumins Onan 4000 puts out 40A. I was strongly leaning towards the Multiplus just for the 3000w inverter. It appears replacing the standalone 1000w Magnum inverter with something like a 3000W AIMS unit would be more economical.

The BMS in the SOK batteries allows a max charge of 50A (per battery in parallel, I will have two) and they recommend 40A for longevity, so from what I can tell my options theoretically are:

Shore power charging (55A) from the WFCO converter plus solar (35A) = 90A/hr
Generator (40A) + solar (35A) = 75A/hr


I'm also leaning towards a small-ish DC to DC charger like the Victron Orion 12/12/30A, or potentially the Sterling BBW1260 (60A) which has a waterproof rating for mounting outside. I had a very good experience with the Sterling unit in my previous camper van and it has a customizable charge profile. I have yet to do the calculations for wire size requirements but running a monster sized cable for 50' doesn't sound very appealing. Most of the camping we do is in the intermountain west- Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, etc. where there is abundant sunshine. I think solar will keep the batteries topped off and power the 12v fridge while we drive. The cost of a small DC to DC charger isn't terrible as long as I don't need to spend a bunch of money on wire.

Thoughts/opinions/critiques are always welcome!

[acoleman43]

NickinCO do you have the dual alternator or single alternator setup with your truck? If you have the single, is it the 240 amp or 332 amp?

[NickinCO]

NickinCO do you have the dual alternator or single alternator setup with your truck? If you have the single, is it the 240 amp or 332 amp?

I have the dual alternator/dual battery so it is 397A

[acoleman43]

I have the dual alternator/dual battery so it is 397A

Very nice. You shouldn't have an issue with a DC-DC charger.

[NickinCO]

Very nice. You shouldn't have an issue with a DC-DC charger.

Yep. I think I'm going to hold off on it for a little bit though to see if 412aH is enough capacity first. If I end up adding a 3rd battery for a total of 618aH I would be able to charge at 150A/hr. The other reason I might want to do this is I'll also be attempting to use these batteries to start the generator. Two of them in parallel will discharge at 200A. I'm a little concerned this won't be enough. If I add a third it would bump the max discharge up to 300A.

Just thinking out loud here but if that's not enough I would need to strongly consider using an FLA on the tongue for the generator/trailer lights, etc which could charge off the 7-pin and be used infrequently.

If I did end up going with a 3rd lithium battery I would probably bite the bullet and go with a large DC to DC charger like the Sterling BBW12120 that charges at up to 120A. We generally don't stay in the same spot for more than a few days so charging while driving would be beneficial. I'm not interested in adding enough panels to adequately replace that much capacity through solar so the B2B charger would be the ticket. I'm hoping I don't have to spend that much money on batteries

If 412aH IS enough a 30-40A battery charger should be able to function with 2AWG cable for the length of the truck plus some which isn't terribly expensive. If I get into 1/0 wire the cost of the cable will probably exceed the charger itself.

On a side note I ordered the SOK's. I'm hoping they will be here by the end of December. They were backordered to the middle of the month. I went with the plastic encased versions in case I do end up putting them on the tongue.

[NickinCO]

Yep. I think I'm going to hold off on it for a little bit though to see if 412aH is enough capacity first. If I end up adding a 3rd battery for a total of 618aH I would be able to charge at 150A/hr. The other reason I might want to do this is I'll also be attempting to use these batteries to start the generator. Two of them in parallel will discharge at 200A. I'm a little concerned this won't be enough. If I add a third it would bump the max discharge up to 300A.

Just thinking out loud here but if that's not enough I would need to strongly consider using an FLA on the tongue for the generator/trailer lights, etc which could charge off the 7-pin and be used infrequently.

If I did end up going with a 3rd lithium battery I would probably bite the bullet and go with a large DC to DC charger like the Sterling BBW12120 that charges at up to 120A. We generally don't stay in the same spot for more than a few days so charging while driving would be beneficial. I'm not interested in adding enough panels to adequately replace that much capacity through solar so the B2B charger would be the ticket. I'm hoping I don't have to spend that much money on batteries

If 412aH IS enough a 30-40A battery charger should be able to function with 2AWG cable for the length of the truck plus some which isn't terribly expensive. If I get into 1/0 wire the cost of the cable will probably exceed the charger itself.

On a side note I ordered the SOK's. I'm hoping they will be here by the end of December. They were backordered to the middle of the month. I went with the plastic encased versions in case I do end up putting them on the tongue.

Answering my own question here but for anyone else looking for these batteries it may be helpful. On the SOK Facebook group multiple people have stated two 206 batteries start their 6000 and 4000 series Onan's just fine.

[acoleman43]

Answering my own question here but for anyone else looking for these batteries it may be helpful. On the SOK Facebook group multiple people have stated two 206 batteries start their 6000 and 4000 series Onan's just fine.

Thanks, good to know. Trying to find cranking amp requirements for the Onan 4000 was not fruitful. I wish SOK published more specs on their batteries. They show 100a max discharge rate, but I'm curious what their peak/surge discharge rate is. That would be more accurate for stating the generator in my opinion. Battle Born have a 100 amp discharge rate but a 200 amp "surge" (30 second) rate. Big batteries have a 175 amp discharge rate but a 350 amp peak (6 second) discharge rate.