Lithium Battery (LFMP) for Missy

I have made the leap to a Lithium battery for my RV house electrical system.

To be precise, a Lithium Iron Manganese Phosphate (LiFeMnPO4) battery, or simply LFMP.

This is a 400Ah, 24 volt – 10.24 kWh – battery. That roughly equates to a 1400Ah lead-acid battery bank.

LOTSA LITHIUM JUICE!!

Why?

There are many reasons and several industries are still debating some of them – at least to some extent. My short answer is: a lot of capacity in a relatively small and lightweight package.

A comparable lead-acid battery bank would require FOURTEEN 6V batteries. A bank of that size would weigh approximately 1000 pounds and consume a lot of space. Imagine the steel structure required to hold all those batteries – that is probably a couple of hundred pounds alone.

This Lithium battery weighs 230 pounds and measures 22” X 19”x 10” – a pretty small package!

I know… I do not have a shortage of space. However; squandering available space is a sure way to run out of it!! 🙂

Lithium batteries have come a long way in a relatively short time. The current chemistry LFMP is very safe, well proven, and does not erupt in flames. Yes, the media likes to sensationalize everything. My suggestion is to stop listening to them – certainly stop believing them! The Boeing experience was with a very custom lithium battery.

Oopss… let me get down off my soapbox…

I’m not going to go any further into the defense of lithium, there are many good resources on the web that detail this already. Or, simply look at the tens of thousands of cars or millions of phones/tablets that have Lithium batteries and no problems. And, as always, if you don’t like them, don’t use them. There are also a fair number of RV and boat owners running Lithium so I am far from the first.

So… why do Missy and I need so much electrical capacity?

Primarily for my alien defense death ray subspace laser.

However; it is also the “price” for choosing to build an all-electric coach AND wanting to spend some time boondocking – camping in the wild, without hookups. Electric refrigerator, electric cooktop, electric water heater, electric microwave/convection oven, etc. Many motorhomes use propane to operate their refrigerators (yes, refrigerators), water heaters, and stove/oven. I chose not to add a propane system and to use standard residential appliances. So, I need electricity.

Of course, you already know how much I LOVE SOLAR POWER!! If not, see details of my first system and my second system. Missy will be well equipped on that front – we have four 435 watt panels waiting to be installed. They will be going up very soon!!

My Lithium battery installation is four 200Ah cells connected in series/parallel to provide a 400 Ah, 24 VDC battery.

Why a 24 volt system?

Ahh!  I am so glad you asked!  See this post for a full explanation.

While not rocket science, this installation is certainly not simple. I am having to construct the battery trays, hold down clamps, and do a good bit of wiring. The “system” is computer controlled and includes a number of relays, a video screen, shunt, and so forth. I’ll detail all this out later, after it is complete and working.

This battery system was sourced from Larry at Starlight Solar. I am very happy with the package and support that he has provided.

Note from JD: More on the installation of this battery here. Some info on programming the Morningstar TS-MPPT-60 solar charge controller for lithium batteries here.