Batteries

[Blackmagic94]

I have four 6 volt deep cycle flooded cell batteries that do 220 aH. So I have a combined 440 ah

I have two 100 watt solar panels charging them plus my 8k diesel Onan.

I have a magnum 2000 watt inverter from 2015



If I switch to lithium lipo batteries is my inverter and Gen gonna charge then correctly or do I need a special controller

 

[Uncle Dave]

I have four 6 volt deep cycle flooded cell batteries that do 220 aH. So I have a combined 440 ah

I have two 100 watt solar panels charging them plus my 8k diesel Onan.

I have a magnum 2000 watt inverter from 2015



If I switch to lithium lipo batteries is my inverter and Gen gonna charge then correctly or do I need a special controller

Does your solar charge controller have a lithium profile?

When you say you "charge with your 8K onan"- do you mean your inverter is really a charger/ inverter combo?

 

[Blackmagic94]

P

Does your solar charge controller have a lithium profile?

When you say you "charge with your 8K onan"- do you mean your inverter is really a charger/ inverter combo?

yes the magnum has a charge on/off and inverter on/off on the controller in the coach.


Not sure on the solar it’s an older 2015 unit so probably not

 

[Uncle Dave]

P

yes the magnum has a charge on/off and inverter on/off on the controller in the coach.


Not sure on the solar it’s an older 2015 unit so probably not

Can you link me to the batteries you are intending to use?

 

[Blackmagic94]

Can you link me to the batteries you are intending to use?

Not sure is there a difference in what is out there in terms of this?

 

[mjc]

Change the solar charge controller to a lithium one. The rv one will charge thrm but will not completely do it and the solar will finish the charge. This is how mine is setup now. 400w soon to be 600w to a 40a mppt controller.

 

[Uncle Dave]

Not sure is there a difference in what is out there in terms of this?

They may take standard charging profiles- the manufacturer can tell you. sometimes the specs will tell you.

Im weary of non lithium profiles on lithium batts.

 

[Blackmagic94]

I noticed some said 12.8 colts

 

[mesquito_creek]

I have four 6 volt deep cycle flooded cell batteries that do 220 aH. So I have a combined 440 ah

I have two 100 watt solar panels charging them plus my 8k diesel Onan.

I have a magnum 2000 watt inverter from 2015



If I switch to lithium lipo batteries is my inverter and Gen gonna charge then correctly or do I need a special controller

If you have Four 6v 220 ah each, you have 880 ah at 6v OR 5,280 watt hours.

If you are running 2 batteries in series to make 12v, then you have two 12v 220 ah or 440ah at 12v OR 5,280 watt hours

Because your batteries are lead acid only 1/2 of 5,280 watt are available to use (2640 watt hours)

It’s the same amount of watt hour storage regardless. I always use watt hour not amp hours. It more easy to understand charging/discharge rates.

Having said that 200 watt of solar panels is way small. It would take 26 hours of perfect sun conditions to charge your battery bank.

Newer magnum 2000 watt inverter have lifepo4 charging profiles. You need to check your manual or call magnum on your older unit.

Not all 12v lifepo4 are the same. Some will work just fine with lead acid profiles, some won’t…. But I am also not a fan of using La charge profiles unless you do your homework.

 

[Blackmagic94]

If you have Four 6v 220 ah each, you have 880 ah at 6v OR 5,280 watt hours.

If you are running 2 batteries in series to make 12v, then you have two 12v 220 ah or 440ah at 12v OR 5,280 watt hours

Because your batteries are lead acid only 1/2 of 5,280 watt are available to use (2640 watt hours)

It’s the same amount of watt hour storage regardless. I always use watt hour not amp hours. It more easy to understand charging/discharge rates.

Having said that 200 watt of solar panels is way small. It would take 26 hours of perfect sun conditions to charge your battery bank.

Newer magnum 2000 watt inverter have lifepo4 charging profiles. You need to check your manual or call magnum on your older unit.

Not all 12v lifepo4 are the same. Some will work just fine with lead acid profiles, some won’t…. But I am also not a fan of using La charge profiles unless you do your homework.

What batteries would you recommend. I’m at 12 colts and 440 ah combined on the wiring.


I’m not expecting the solar to do a lot of charging it’s more of it tops it off kind of deal. But I would like enough battery that I can run the fridge on 120 while going down the road for a few hours on colder days I don’t need to run the generator to run hvac while driving.

 

[Blackmagic94]

So one of these would match my power of the LA ones? So two I would double the watt hours. That would be nice.

 

[mesquito_creek]

So one of these would match my power of the LA ones? So two I would double the watt hours. That would be nice. View attachment 1182919 View attachment 1182925

You are correct on both accounts. 1 of those would match your current battery bank (2650) and two would double your available capacity. I actually run a pair of those exact 12v 100 ah amperetime batteries in my boat.

 

[mesquito_creek]

• 5 Hours Fast Charging: 5 hours fully charged by a 14.6V 40A dedicated LiFePO4 battery charger and Within one day by a solar panel more than 900W.

That’s from the amperetime website. You have to figure out what your magnum inverter does for bulk charging. If it’s close to 14.6 it might be a direct swap without issue.

 

[mesquito_creek]

On my setup, I have a straight inverter (no charging) and I wired a battery charger from the generator directly to the battery bank.

 

[boatnam2]

So what a decent package , not crazy expensive with a couple panels for an older RV with no solar?

 

[mesquito_creek]

So what a decent package , not crazy expensive with a couple panels for an older RV with no solar?

Check out Will Prowse on you tube and watch some of his early videos or his website Mobile-SolarPower.com

Cheapest solution is used panels from santan solar and a PWM solar controller wired directly into your existing lead acid battery bank. Couple hundred bucks

Top end solutions are victron controllers/inverters/panels and lifepo4 lithium batteries. Couple thousands of bucks

Also, every conceivable solution in between

 

[Angler]

Can the solar panels over charge acid type batteries? I run (2) 6 volt in my rig, no solar panels yet.
my rig is stored mostly outside.

 

[mesquito_creek]

Can the solar panels over charge acid type batteries? I run (2) 6 volt in my rig, no solar panels yet.
my rig is stored mostly outside.

That’s what the solar controller does in between the panels and your battery… it’s like a battery charger plugged into the wall

 

[boatnam2]

Check out Will Prowse on you tube and watch some of his early videos or his website Mobile-SolarPower.com

Cheapest solution is used panels from santan solar and a PWM solar controller wired directly into your existing lead acid battery bank. Couple hundred bucks

Top end solutions are victron controllers/inverters/panels and lifepo4 lithium batteries. Couple thousands of bucks

Also, every conceivable solution in between

Thanks for info.

 

[bilz]

I'm using 2 costco 6v gc batteries with a grape solar pwm and a cheap 160 watt folding panel from Amazon. Into it for under $450. We just did 7 days six nights in the big bear area. Never needed to top off with genny. We are pretty frugal, but do lots of phone charging and recharge lanterns during the day with the solar. Batteries have 18 months on them. Plan is to put 2- 100 watt on the roof and be able to use my folding panel as needed.
Temp set up as we may be changing trailers.

 

[spark2678]

600w Solar with 600ah of LiTime LifePO4 batteries on my all electric coach. Love this setup but going to add 500w of solar in the next few months. Running the Victron 100/50 controller. With a series parallel system I will be at around 60-70V input and 50A charge.