jcussen
-
Posts
680 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Posts posted by jcussen
-
-
You concentrator may even us more power at higher altitudes.
http://nsbri.org/researches/evaluation-of-oxygen-concentrators-at-altitude/
-
Battle Born claims 3000 to 5000 cycles at 100% discharge. Of course if you do not go to 100%, you will get many more cycles. Lithium will take a 1C charge, in battleborn's case 100 amps until fully charged, so they will charge 4 or 5 times faster that a lead acid. If you can afford it, would go to 4 battleborns with 4800 watt hours, this leaves you some cushion and will extend your battery life to 5000+ cycles. This will give you over 13 + years of service if you are full timing and dry camping. Agree with John T solar and a small generator would be the best way to go for recharging. Of course lithium never has to be brought to 100% like lead acid, so you can charge at your convenience.
-
For the price of the Pro Package, you could get 3600 watt hours out of 3 battle born 100 a/h and still have $500+ to put into a small inverter and a improved converter for charging lithiums. Lithiums charge much faster than lead acid, so will cut down on you gen run time..
-
16 minutes ago, maryfair said:
jcussen,
Thanks for the response. My knowledge of electricity is almost non-existent so I don't know how one would go about determining if it will supply the required power. I do know that electricity is (sadly) not generated by magical thinking so I assumed the Joule Case battery would have to be recharged. I don't know if that can be done from a plug in the coach when it is hooked up to shore power or with the generator.
Post the Joule Case model you want, and post the amp or watt draw of the concentrator and we can figure it out.
-
6 minutes ago, maryfair said:
I've been looking into the possibility of using a Joule Case Lithium Ion Battery Module as a power source for my 110 volt oxygen concentrator which needs to run 24/7 in our motorhome. Does anyone know if this could work and if it is safe.
Also, could anyone point me to instructions for changing the rig information that shows up below (ours is outdated).
If it will supply the required power, it will probably work, but no free lunch, you will have to recharge it and replenish all the power the Joule Case used to power your concentrator.
-
13 minutes ago, oldjohnt said:
WOW those are beautiful, congratulations. Connect them so they ALL get equal load and charge balance, keep their SOC up as much as possible so as to avoid using up life cycles, avoid overheating, and they should last you 10 yeas no problem, Makin me jealous lol
http://www.smartgauge.co.uk/batt_con.html
John T
Actually John, most LiFePO4 battery manufacturers do not recommend keeping SOC at 100% if at all possible. Lithium never really has to be brought to 100% like lead acid. Battleborn told me 60 to 80% was optimal.. I do this by turning on and off one solar array. Tesla recommends keeping SOC below 85% for best battery longevity, if not going on a trip where max, mileage is needed.
I liked my smartgauge when I had lead acid, but found that the smartgauge algorithm will not work with lithium, so had to go to a shunt type battery monitor.
Agree with equal load and charge balance, I used the same size wire and length when wiring my batteries to common busbars.
-
33 minutes ago, Johnxhc said:
Thank you.
Just received my batteries ::)
They are beautiful, just like mine. The adventure begins.
-
Agree with more frequent transmission oil changes. I also change mine at 30000 miles and use only Honda transmission fluid.
-
52 minutes ago, Johnxhc said:
is Amps = wattage / voltgage(12v) ?
Yes, would not worry too much about surge, that will probably be less than a second. I size for the normal full output of the inverter, but bare in mind you will seldom be running at full output of inverter. I have a lot of gear in my coach, and seldom draw more than 2000 watts off my 3000 watt inverter.
I use this chart for sizing wire.
-
37 minutes ago, jcussen said:
Lot of variables here. Hard to tell from pictures. Probable best to put batteries inside coach or a sealed compartment if possible, inverter and charge controllers as close to them as possible. Need to consider high voltage runs also, compromises will have to be made any way you do it.
-
48 minutes ago, Johnxhc said:
Great! so I will put Inverter/charge in new location, where do guys guys think is the best location I should put it?
1) The washer/Dryer compartment
2) Driver side compartment?
Should I leave the battery at the same compartment? ( that compartment is half open for the acid batteries)
that means I need to seal the battery compartment? how do I do that? with plywood?
Lot of variables here. Hard to tell from pictures. Probable best to put batteries inside coach if possible, inverter and charge controllers as close to them as possible. Need to consider high voltage runs also, compromises will have to be made any way you do.
-
Agree with John, having panels sticking out farther that coach width is asking for problems. Lot easier to run 120 volt wiring to and from your inverter than running 12 or 24 volt cables. I would try to put all my low voltage equipment in one compartment and just modify your 120 volt lines to your inverter.
-
Towed a 02 all wheel drive and a 08 front wheel drive for many miles. Believe 14 was the last year because Honda went to the CVT transmission. Thinking by the amount of CRV toads I see on the road, they might be the most popular toad.
-
Best I have had for boondocking was a 34 ft diesel pusher. 102 fw, 110 gray, 52 black, 42 gal propane and 148 fuel with an 8 kw generator. Small enough to get into tight spots, but enough tankage to stay a while.
A 25 ft sprinter style or small class c would probably be the best for getting there and back, but the small tanks really curtail your staying power.
-
42 minutes ago, hemsteadc said:
Many mfrs do not even make a 3000w or greater inverter at 12v. Yeah, you can find the real cheapos like that, but I doubt they really produce 3000w.
Have a 12 volt Victron multiplus 3000 hybrid, so load sharing with shorepower if necessary, bluetooth control. best inverter I have ever used, programmable to any type of lithium or lead acid battery. Been used by boaters for many years, only in the last 5 years have they become popular with rvers. I routinely run my 15000 btu ac off of it with no problems.
https://www.victronenergy.com/inverters-chargers/multiplus-12v-24v-48v-800va-3kva
-
1 hour ago, podwerkz said:
Yeah...maybe he got rid of those expensive pampered poodles and is getting by with a misting fan.
Funny you mention that. Was in 110 f Arizona heat last year sitting outside, Set up my misting fan, felt good, but my two rescue dogs thought it was too cool and crawled under the coach.
-
1 hour ago, ALLOY said:
Hey John
I've always gone with (currently 8x6v - suppose to be 940Ah) FLA. Being cheaper I don't worry about protecting the bank with low/high voltage and temperature disconnects. When we are out in the winter the FLA don't need to be kept above 35-40F. I've a friend who's brother in law sells new / rebuilt golf carts. He's can only remember 1 brand new $$$$$ cart being ordered with Lithium everything they do is FLA or AGM.
but....
I've have Lithium in the back of my mind for these reasons:
Lithium don't need to be fully charged. Many occasions there is not enough sunlight to fully solar charge FLA batteries. Each time this happens to FLA the bank looses a capacity. My estimate is we really started with 700-800Ah not 940Ah. After 2 1/2 years of use I'd estimate we've lost another 75-100 usable amp hours. I'll be surprised if we don't replace the bank in another 2-3 years.
Lithium will accept the full capacity of the solar system. The solar will start charging at 8-9am. When there is full sun at noon the FLA will not accept the full capacity (100 -200A) of the solar system. At 4-5:00pm when the sun slips behind the trees or mountains the bank is still in absorption or the float charge is only 1/4 - 3/4 complete.
Lithium charger faster from a generator. In winter there are a few occasion when 2.6Kw of solar is not enough so the generator is needed. I hate running the generator for hours and hours while 1-2 amps (120VAC) are drawn from it so I end up shutting it off before the float charge is complete.
Voltage drop. The 130 amp (12VDC) draw from inverter sets the low voltage (was set at 11.5V and now 11.0V) alarm off. This means we only use the inverter when battery SOC is above 70%. F.Y.I....there is 4 - 4/0 cables (all 40" long) from each 6V bank to a 1/2" x 2" copper buss bar then 18" of double 1/0 (recommended by Victron) from the buss bar (thru a 400A fuse) to the inverter.
Good point on voltage drop, my lithiums at 20% SOC, voltage will only drop into the mid 12's when running a 130 amp microwave load.
-
Temp may or may not be a factor when using lithium. Coaches and trailers with batteries out in the open may present a problem, but on many Class A's, and 5th wheels, batteries will be in a compartment that can be insulated and heated if necessary or in the coach itself. Low wattage heating pads on a thermostat work well. I have mine in a compartment with a 200 watt cube heater on 42-35 degree thermostat. Have not been in extended below 0 temps, but have never seen my heater come on. Battleborn's for example, claim a discharge down to -4 f and charging down to 25 f. Their BMS will prevent discharge or charge if not in the proper range. When charging or discharging, there is alway some heat generated inside the battery, so outside temps are not always an indicator of battery usefulness. Storage temps, with no activity are -10 f to 140 f, so if you are constantly below -10 f, would be a good idea to store batteries in a warmer place, but at 30 lbs each, pretty easy to move.
-
I looked at both, the 2005 dynaquest I looked is of course much bigger outside, but did not like the fold out bed taking up half the interior space, leaving no chairs, did not lay down on it though. the small 210 hp mbz engine did not thrill me either, ended up with a sprinter with rear twin beds, and usable seating even with slide in. But paid well over twice as much for a new sprinter which has the 7 speed transmission. Don't know about newer Dynaquests, if they still make them though, there were none for sale when I was looking.
-
44 minutes ago, Johnxhc said:
Yes, that will be my next question, how big? with 6 12v battle born connected parallel, 2400w inverter/charger.
I assume meme all my existing cable (factory provided, such as level jack, slide , cable to 12v panel, alternator cable) will NOT need to be changed, they will be directly connected to the Busbar. Please correct me if I am wrong here.
so the thick cable we are talking about her is between the batteries, battery to Inverter, charge controllers to busbar etc, to fuses? is 2 gauge good enough?
In most cases, original wiring to 12 volt panels and loads will be fine, I also run 6 battleborn's and run 4 gauge from each battery to busbar. [limited by bms to 100 amps charge/discharge] My original wiring to inverter was 3/0 and with a heavy load got warm, so swapped it out to 4/0, but I have a 3000 watt inverter. Depending on how many amps are coming out of controllers, 2 gauge is probably overkill, I run 50 amps out of one controller and 30 out of the other and use 4 gauge. Alternator will not put out the 14.4 volts your BB's like, so you will probably need a dc-dc charger if you want to fully utilize your alternator. I use this one.
With enough solar, you may be able to run one ac [with easystart] running down the road without running generator.
Don't forget a good battery monitor, very important with lithium, I like the BMV 712, bluetooth so no wires to run. Most Victron solar controllers are also bluetooth, so you can do settings and read amps and volts all from your phone.
-
42 minutes ago, Johnxhc said:
Hi,John,
Maybe I misunderstand the Victron MTTP requirements ?
Here is my understand, please correct me if I am wrong (I have not bought the charge controller yet, still have to time to switch).
The Inverter/Controller I am looking at is Victron Energy 50A SmartSolar MPPT 100/50 Charge Controller w/ Bluetooth
Nominal PV Power (12V System): 700W
Nominal PV Power (24V System): 1400WMy understanding is if my RV battery system is 12v, it will only put 700w to the system, if my RV battery system is 24v it will be able to put 1400w to the system.
Or the 12v , 24v is refer to the voltage on the Solar panel side???
Please advise.
If your solar output is 700 watts at 12 volts you will put 700 watts into your 12 volt batteries. The same 700 watt input will be 700 watts into your 24 volt batteries, the advantage of higher volt batteries, is that you can use one smaller controller. Several controllers will do the same thing at 12 volts. Which ever way you go, there is no free lunch, 1000 watts of solar will only produce 1000 watts of power to your batteries, no matter what your voltage.
It is up to you to determine whether the cost of another controller will negate the extra gear you will need to supply 12 volts to your coach and how to charge your 24 volt batteries off a 12 volt alternator.
In my case it was cheaper to stay 12 volts and buy another controller, plus I like the fact that if one controller goes down, still have production from the other.
Good luck on whichever way you go.
42 minutes ago, Johnxhc said: -
8 minutes ago, jcussen said:
Agree about the black background.
-
12 minutes ago, Johnxhc said:
Of course you have two charge controller! that is already the double the cost than one ::)
I am a little confused here, you say that "... Output is still 12 volts from charge controllers. I have a 48 volt system on the house"
so the output from charge controller is 12v and the house battery system is 48 volt? I thought the output voltgage from the Charge Controller has to be high than the house battery system?
Also "All my 12 volt electrical equipment is in one bay, so cost of wiring there was not a big factor", assume the house battery system is 48v, how do you get the 12v without DC to DC convert?
Please advise.
Thanks.
House is a separate 48 volt system on my house to charge my car and run fridges and freezers.. Sorry for the confusion. On coach am running two series strings, one at 120 volts down and one at 60 volts down. Solar charge controllers will take that high voltage and reduce it to what my batteries require, in my case 14.4 volts. My coach battery system is 12 volts only, if I had a higher voltage would have to reduce it to handle the 12 volt loads and modify alternator charging to charge higher than 12 volt batteries.
Like I said, wanted a 48 volt system in my coach, but after figuring out all the extra cost associated with going back to the 12 volts the coach needs, found it not a fiscally practical. Your case may be different though. For my house higher voltage was more practical.
-
17 minutes ago, lockmup68 said:
and 24/48 is much more efficient than 12v. Especially if you are using dedicated 24/48v devices.
Other than an inverter, what other dedicated 24/48 volt devices are used in a motorhome. I hear there are some 48 volt ac's on the market, but have not seen one. Efficiency on a 48 volt inverter is about the same as a 12 volt one. Wiring will be smaller, of course, but if you have your controllers, batteries, and inverters in close proximity, and use the proper size wiring, can't see much difference.
Fulltiming with an EV
in Sharing the Fulltime Lifestyle
Posted
You are never too old for an EV, bought a used Tesla Model 3 two years ago for less than what I have been paying for the used Porsches and MB's I usually buy. Paid about $9000 for a house solar system to charge the car and run fridges and freezers, and a small AC.. Figure 3 years to pay off the solar in gas and grid electricity savings, then another 4 or 5 to make the car free. I might not make it that far, but the kids will be happy I made the investment.