Ionic Lithium 12V Group 31 3000 CA LiFePO4 Heavy Duty Battery

Discussion in 'Ask An Owner Operator' started by Siinman, May 23, 2024.

  1. ajax1337

    ajax1337 Light Load Member

    107
    67
    Apr 27, 2018
    Overland Park, KS
    0
    I've got a friend running the SkelStart Engine Start Module 12V paired with 3 XS power group 31 batteries. You're gonna spend a bit of money on that setup but, he said it's enough to power up several houses lol.
     
    Siinman Thanks this.
  2. Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.

  3. Ridgeline

    Ridgeline Road Train Member

    22,234
    114,380
    Dec 18, 2011
    Michigan
    0
    Do not mix batteries.

    1 - the BMS of the LiFePo will cut off the battery if the voltage exceeds 14.4/.5 volts. most truck electrical systems will see ~14.7v. The other part of this is the charging profile is different between batteries, so with a LiFePo battery, you may want to use an external regulator like a BalMar.

    2 - there is a problem with balancing in an idle state. The agm will pull power from the LiFePo battery and draw that down.

    3 - there is also a problem the AGM or LA battery going bad and having a shorted cell, which produces heat and if it is hooked up to a LiFePo battery or batteries, then that battery with that bad cell is going to pull a lot of current from the LiFePo and that could be a fire hazard or at least cause the battery to boil.

    My question is why does anyone want to go to a LiFePo battery in the first place?

    Trying to spread the cost of the battery over time or just want to impress people you can say you have them?

    My trucks don't use them unless they came this way from the factory and we definitely do not use them for a starting application. We did a lot of testing and the best combo so far has been the maxwell starting module with AGM or LA batteries for the house. The LiFePo batteries that we have all are internal to the sleeper because of the low temp cutoff which can be triggered as high as 15ºF if it is outside.
     
    ducnut and Siinman Thank this.
  4. Siinman

    Siinman Road Train Member

    5,192
    13,099
    Mar 5, 2017
    Kansas City, MO.
    0
    I am gonna have that option on the new truck when I buy it. Volvo will be offering the sell start on this model coming out.
     
  5. Siinman

    Siinman Road Train Member

    5,192
    13,099
    Mar 5, 2017
    Kansas City, MO.
    0
    The problem is AGM does not have a good life and also does not keep enough power for over 10 hour breaks. Most of the time it works for ten but that is when they are new.
    This battery is made different than the ones you tried out. Will be interesting to see if anything bad comes into play. I’ll pay to play the game just like I do on everything in life. Not the first to try and has been tested before so not a big issue.

    my biggest issue right now is changing the apu batteries to lithium at some point so they are all the same kind of batteries.
     
  6. Ridgeline

    Ridgeline Road Train Member

    22,234
    114,380
    Dec 18, 2011
    Michigan
    0
    Well stop abusing them lol. They are good for 80% of DoD, and that diminishes as time goes on. To expect them to last if you are pulling a lot of current from them, well that's not going to happen no matter what.
    Which battery? Most of them are the same, they have the same BMS specs, the same limitations and the same ... well everything. Quality of the build is the only thing that sets them apart. As I said if you want to do it right, seperate the starting and house batteries and use the LiFePo on the house side.
    I would recommend you learning how to charge the batteries up, monitor than as close as possible, hell even use a charge controller that will give you the right profile instead of mixing them up.
     
    ducnut and Siinman Thank this.
  7. 86scotty

    86scotty Road Train Member

    4,422
    11,769
    Aug 27, 2017
    Appalachia
    0
    What size panel and how is it currently wired? I see they have a bunch of different sizes.
     
    Siinman Thanks this.
  8. Siinman

    Siinman Road Train Member

    5,192
    13,099
    Mar 5, 2017
    Kansas City, MO.
    0
    These are group 31 batteries.

    This is the battery I got and talking about https://lithiumhub.com/product/lithium-12v-3000ca-lifepo4-semi-truck-starter-battery/

    This has proprietary set up in the charging and BMS
    These have bluetooth app as well to see what it is doing at all times. I have the TriPac Envidia EPU and will look into how it is truly installed. See if I need to change how they are charged with these new batteries. Most likely will need to add a controller in front of them to charge them correctly without draining the Lithium batteries.
    TriPac Envidia
    Screenshot 2024-07-10 at 9.49.37 PM.png
     
    ducnut Thanks this.
  9. Siinman

    Siinman Road Train Member

    5,192
    13,099
    Mar 5, 2017
    Kansas City, MO.
    0
    See above post. They are group 31 batteries. The EPU I have has a 4 battery box mounted on the side and will change those out to lithium later or maybe not. Will need to see how this works out and can still add 2 more of these batteries. I think I will need to add one more and most likely will be fine.

    Will need a cut of switch or something to the EPU batteries I think while sitting on time off at worst case.
     
  10. Siinman

    Siinman Road Train Member

    5,192
    13,099
    Mar 5, 2017
    Kansas City, MO.
    0
    Well batteries are going to be delivered this weekend. I am taking a load to get home and will try and get them installed Monday. Have to get them all charged 100 percent before putting them in according to what I read. I should had just bought 3 instead of two. I was reading a review on them and he said he bought 4 and never has drained the 3rd one. So I think that will be what I will need in the long run. The guy has a similar set up as I do so should be decent information. Getting excited to test them out. Funny how stuff like this can make a person excited. Ha ha I have no life!
     
    Vitkouski Thanks this.
  11. 86scotty

    86scotty Road Train Member

    4,422
    11,769
    Aug 27, 2017
    Appalachia
    0
    No, not the batteries. I was asking about your solar panel. What size is it and how is it wired? Through typical charge controller to chassis batteries?
     
    Siinman Thanks this.
  • Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.