New battery charger
Submitted: Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 07:31
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Mikee5
What would people recommend to replace my caravan battery charger. It is currently a dead Cristec 18 amp. I have 2 100 a/h agm batteries. I am looking at the Victron 30 amp. Any comments on this or anything better please.
Reply By: Bushranger1 - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 09:22
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 09:22
G'day Mike,
I have had the Victron charger that charges 2 off 120Ah deep cycle batteries for 3 years no problems.
Mine has bluetooth option & if you put the Victron Connect app on your phone you can monitor charge rates.
Cheers
Stu
AnswerID:
635801
Reply By: Member - Bigfish - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 10:49
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 10:49
I would ensure the charger is capable of also charging a lithium battery. You may not have one now but I would be surprised if you don't own one in the future. It will save nearly 50 kg in weight on your present system and charge a lot quicker. I have an enerdrive 40 amp. It has variable amperage charge rates and charges all types of batteries used in cars/vans/campers. Not cheap but quality seldom is. I use it for my lithiums, an older agm as
well as several wet cell batteries. Works fine on all. Its great having the ability to set the amperage to suit the battery size.
AnswerID:
635803
Follow Up By: Mikee5 - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 11:09
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 11:09
That is definitely a consideration. My batteries should be good for 3-4 years then I will be looking at lithium.
FollowupID:
913487
Follow Up By: Idler Chris - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 11:13
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 11:13
I have the same Enerdrive charger it is brilliant. It is not cheep but it is excellent value for the money. Chris
FollowupID:
913488
Follow Up By: Frank P (NSW) - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 12:56
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 12:56
Crikey, Cuppa, you made those links work.
Well done! But why not use the link button?
Link Button
Cheers mate :-)
FollowupID:
913490
Follow Up By: Member - Cuppa - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 13:03
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 13:03
"Crikey, Cuppa, you made those links work.
Well done! But why not use the link button?"
Ummmmmmm ..... I plead ignorance.
1 outlet3 outlets
FollowupID:
913491
Follow Up By: Member - Bigfish - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 15:44
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 15:44
I looked at the Victron as I have several of their products. However the Enerdrive offered 4 various rates of charge. In hindsight I should have gone the 60 amp model. Lithium loves the higher amperage.
Whatever you choose. go for quality...not some e-bay special.
FollowupID:
913493
Follow Up By: OzzieCruiser - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 16:30
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 16:30
There is plenty of quality stuff on ebay - just because an item is bought in a
shop does not mean it is quality.
FollowupID:
913494
Follow Up By: Member - Bigfish - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 16:43
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 16:43
Thats true Ozzie. However there is a hell of a lot of chinese junk that is rebadged and made to look as it is a world beater. Cheap agm and lithium batteries are flooding the markets. As I said buy quality the first time. Lot of rubbish also sold in shops. So much 12 volt electrical equipment flooding the scene now and there is just so much rubbish amongst it as
well.
FollowupID:
913497
Follow Up By: RMD - Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 22:20
Wednesday, Mar 31, 2021 at 22:20
Bigfish
Lithium does accept the higher charge rate than normal batteries, but do they really love it? Maybe their life is longer if not stressed so much during the charging regime. I know Bill Shorten can charge his Tesla in 8 minutes, but the battery isn't going to last long in his vehicle, if true.
FollowupID:
913507
Follow Up By: Member - Cuppa - Thursday, Apr 01, 2021 at 09:18
Thursday, Apr 01, 2021 at 09:18
I really think that when the topic of Lithium Batteries (LiFePo4) is discussed it should be clarified whether the batteries in question are the ‘drop in replacements’ or the custom built battery packs. They might have the same chemistry but are very different batteries. Drop in replacements are just that & require no special charging regimes as their built in BMS is designed for simple drop in replacements of the previously owned lead acid batteries, including their charger, but are generally limited to how much current they can provide at any given time. Plenty of anecdotal evidence around of folk asking too much of them & killing the built in BMS & thus the battery too. The custom battery packs do require a specific Lithium charger & are capable of providing higher currents. Both have the advantage of lighter (than lead acid) weight, & faster charging (due to accepting higher charging current) but if wanting to run high current appliances like air con, coffee machines, kettles, toasters & hair dryers then the drop in types are no more suitable than lead acid batteries. At least that is my understanding & I find the promotion of most drop in types bordering on dishonest in this respect. I believe that many folk will be quite disappointed when they find their drop ins dying prematurely.
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Follow Up By: Frank P (NSW) - Thursday, Apr 01, 2021 at 09:31
Thursday, Apr 01, 2021 at 09:31
Spot on, Cuppa.
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Follow Up By: Member - Bigfish - Thursday, Apr 01, 2021 at 09:43
Thursday, Apr 01, 2021 at 09:43
Spot on Cuppa. Drop in replacements is in my opinion just more marketing jargon. With my lithiums I have dedicated, chargers, both dc/dc and ac as
well as lithium capable regulators.
RMD...The recommended charge current for my lithiums is 20-50 amps...Manufacturers figures. They readily accept this and will not shorten their life. Agm/wet cell the charge rate is around 10% of the A/h capacity....about 15A/h for a 120 A/h agm. Manufacturers figures once again.... They also happily take this. I have good quality lithiums and rely on the manufacturing knowing a lot more about their product than others. I am comfortable using recommended settings.
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Reply By: Member - Racey - Thursday, Apr 01, 2021 at 15:57
Thursday, Apr 01, 2021 at 15:57
I also agree with Cuppa. I have a 60amp Enerdrive charging 400a/h of lithium and a 30amp Victron charging 2x 120 a/h agm and have no hesitation in recommending either. I chose the Victron mainly because it was cheaper than the 30amp Enerdrive, plus being mounted in the back of the wagon I can use the Blue Tooth feature to
check on the status of the batteries.
Cheers
Racey
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