Solar controller for LifePo4 batteries

[Typhoon]

Originally Posted by SV THIRD DAY

I have a BlueSky 3000 on another string of solar and it also has an adjustable outlet voltage. It's a less expensive and lower Amp unit. Despite some of the chatroom sages over on the LiFePO4 thread saying it won't work, as long as you set your solar controller (or battery charger for that matter) at a lower voltage then once your batteries hit that voltage then there is no more driving force and they stop charging. The perfect example has been my last week in the boat yard. I'm plugged into shore power with my 130A battery charger and have set the Bulk and Float to 13.3v. At his voltage my 400AH LiFePO4 battery bank is sitting at -82AH (80% SOC) with no net charge gain or loss. Sometimes I scratch my head at just how easy these LiFePO4 batteries are in comparison to how difficult people want to make them.

Hey Rich .

I just had a look at the Bluesky 3000 controller manual. Looks like a simple straight forward set up. I like to be able to set up these thing with out using a laptop .
How do you find the RF interference on it ?

Regards John.

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by thomm225

I used a $12.00 controller
...
batteries were a Walmart Marine Starter Battery
...
I bought my boat and every thing in it for $2,000

Yah different conversation, most marine users of LiFePO4 have more than that invested in chargers or an inverter, much more than that for their bank.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by john61ct

Yah different conversation, most marine users of LiFePO4 have more than that invested in chargers or an inverter, much more than that for their bank.

That's nice and their choice.

I'm not so sure a more expensive controller is necessarily better though but it's up to the guy that bought the batteries

I just like to point out at times that there's another way that works.

Plus it's fun to experiment with different controllers and batteries to learn more and see how well they function which is why I had to figure SOC by reading the voltage on the panel side of the controller with the lower priced units

I think it was the Briggs and Stratton Mini Bike Engine that was mounted as an inboard on a 22' Chesapeake Bay (Crabbin') Work Boat that got me to thinking when I was in my teens about low priced ways to be on the water

[Colin A]

Not sure I could recommend it but I helped someone put one of these on an RV recently. Seems to work well and very easy to set up. Not sure how well it will hold up on the water thou.

https://www.wholesalesolar.com/34803...ller#downloads

Note this unit is PWM vs MPPT, so you would likely lose some output.

[Typhoon]

Thinking of going with the Victron , as I have said in the other thread , looks like it is easy to adjust and there is a Canadian vendor up here .

Regards John.

[Wolverine6300]

I have an Outback controller getting power from 2 Sunpower 245 watt panels to 400 amp hours of LiFiPo4. Works great and pretty much maintenance free.

[hellosailor]

ColdEh-
Not to go OT, but the few companies that make LiFePO4 batteries either make no comment, or they say specifically that batteries over 100AH in capacity are not physically robust enough for marine use, not to use them.
Are you batteries actually 600AH? And have you either reinforced them, or noticed any deformation?
We hear very little about how they upload after years of actual use.

Outback and Blue Sky seem to get consistent praise for *working* over the long term.

[Wolverine6300]

Alex from Sea Tek did the solar battery and controller install for me. Might want to check him out. He's located in Marathon, Fl. Keys.

[Typhoon]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

ColdEh-
Not to go OT, but the few companies that make LiFePO4 batteries either make no comment, or they say specifically that batteries over 100AH in capacity are not physically robust enough for marine use, not to use them.
Are you batteries actually 600AH? And have you either reinforced them, or noticed any deformation?
We hear very little about how they upload after years of actual use.

Outback and Blue Sky seem to get consistent praise for *working* over the long term.

Yes I have 600 ah of LifePo4 . Eight, two hundred amp hour cells wired in 4S .
There has been a lot of discussion about this on the larger cells , I have never heard of one failing because of it , my cells are just fine, no deformation at all, , actually I think it is a lot of bunk . I have my cells a midships and there is not enough pounding on a boat like mine to hurt the cells . Maybe in an offshore planning power boat .

Regards John.

[hellosailor]

"Eight, two hundred amp hour cells wired in 4S"
Confused. If you have two strings of four cells each, that would be two "12volt" batteries of 200AH each, for a total of 400AH when the two strings were paralleled.
Or does that make 600AH with metric voltage?(G)

200AH cells should, in theory, be more robust than 400AH cells, if the cases were built similarly. I know, i was raised wrong, but it just seems that "everyone" knows a battery for mobile use has to be able to bounce over cobblestone streets all day. I'm so easily baffled by these things.

[SV THIRD DAY]

I'm in agreement with John on this one.
The word gets out that larger cells will have problems in the marine world but when I talk to the folks that sold me my 400AH cells they laugh out loud and say, "find something else to worry about and go sailing and stop listening to the panic pushers on the internet, the larger format cells will be fine on a boat".

[Typhoon]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

"Eight, two hundred amp hour cells wired in 4S"
Confused. If you have two strings of four cells each, that would be two "12volt" batteries of 200AH each, for a total of 400AH when the two strings were paralleled.
Or does that make 600AH with metric voltage?(G)

200AH cells should, in theory, be more robust than 400AH cells, if the cases were built similarly. I know, i was raised wrong, but it just seems that "everyone" knows a battery for mobile use has to be able to bounce over cobblestone streets all day. I'm so easily baffled by these things.

Daa. yes been awhile since I installed it , eight , 300 amp hr cells in 4S .

Take a look at my vid

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVvBCat9qsw

Regards John.

[Typhoon]

Originally Posted by SV THIRD DAY

I'm in agreement with John on this one.
The word gets out that larger cells will have problems in the marine world but when I talk to the folks that sold me my 400AH cells they laugh out loud and say, "find something else to worry about and go sailing and stop listening to the panic pushers on the internet, the larger format cells will be fine on a boat".

Hmmm sounds a little like fake news . In real life our large cells are just fine .


Regards John,

[Maine Sail]

Originally Posted by ColdEh Marine

Hmmm sounds a little like fake news . In real life our large cells are just fine .


Regards John,

I have 8.5 year old 400Ah cells doing far better than I ever believed they could.

I will say though that I do get an disproportionate amount of email on 700Ah and 1000AH Winston cells with weird issues where one cell self discharges, impossible to keep in balance etc... but I can't really say this is related to cell size.

FWIW I have received the same answers from Winston/Voltronix, CALB, GBS & from Sinopoly that all the cells, at least to 400Ah, are tested to the same vibration standards.

[senormechanico]

Originally Posted by Maine Sail

I have 8.5 year old 400Ah cells doing far better than I ever believed they could.

I will say though that I do get an disproportionate amount of email on 700Ah and 1000AH Winston cells with weird issues where one cell self discharges, impossible to keep in balance etc... but I can't really say this is related to cell size.

FWIW I have received the same answers from Winston/Voltronix, CALB, GBS & from Sinopoly that all the cells, at least to 400Ah, are tested to the same vibration standards.

I've got 4 200 aH HiPower cells on my boat with no problems in several years.
The home's 24 volt 700 aH Winstons also have no issues in 4? years.
Of course, they don't move except in an earthquake.