Any Father's Day sales on (good) LifePO4 batteries?

The Eyesore

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 13, 2023
Messages
141
Location
Los Angeles
I don't have high hopes for this, but I thought it doesn't hurt to ask.
What are the trusted brands? And it seems to me that 100AH is gonna cost about $300ish, no matter what, but are there any spectacular sales right now?
 
I don't have high hopes for this, but I thought it doesn't hurt to ask.
What are the trusted brands? And it seems to me that 100AH is gonna cost about $300ish, no matter what, but are there any spectacular sales right now?

I suggest you look at Will Prowse youtube site. He reviews many lithium units and has recommendations for best quality at reasonable price.
 
Generally, LiFePO4 prices have dropped drastically over the last couple of years. Good for customers, right?

However, with these encased batteries you never know what you get. The claims - 2000, no 5000, no 8000 cycles! - are pretty hard to substantiate and associate with leftover capacity.

There is no guarantee you will get NEW cells, and it's difficult to tell how much life is left in them.

Did you see the Will Prowse youtube where he cut open a very cheap battery (which they sent him) which was absolutely wonderful, and a few months later got another one of those and it had used cells and super shoddy soldering?

Point is, if you go for the cheapest, you may just get what you pay for. If you go with a brand name, there is no guarantee you won't overpay. I am not sure you will see a lot of sales for "good" LiFePO4 batteries, because if they use good cells and still want to make some money they can't compete with those no-name batteries with potentially cheap/used cells.
 
If the lithium batteries are rated at 2,000 cycles that means for me if I full timed with normal use of my 576ah battery bank 1/3rd the capacity every day (which I don't) the batteries would last 16 years. That's longer than I will ever keep a van and I proved to my satisfaction in my last van there was no drop off in 6 years. I think my new van batteries are rated for 4,000 cycles. That's a hell of a cushion and the batteries would wear out for other reasons but not for power usage. In other words, it isn't a concern for me. I've had four vans in 16 years anyway.

I have no idea about trusted brands. I've had two different brands (Elite and Valence) and two different types of lithium modules installed outside the van and inside for 8 years. I'm satisfied that it is a viable solution. Lithium batteries have enable me to have comforts and peace of mind with higher amp hour capacity and living off grid almost all the time if I wanted and shuck propane and ICE generators. I've discounted any need for solar as well.

Am I guessing right? Do lithium batteries come from overseas sources and mined in foreign countries? Maybe it is a crap shoot about trusting brands at this time.

Personally I have no idea how we can switch to a battery environment. Supply and demand will have to enter in and I can't imagine how that will happen with all energy demands. Coal and oil may be a CO2 air disaster but lithium mining might be a land disaster way worse than coal.
 

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