4 ms·

I'm in the market for home backup batteries and was wondering if you could namedrop the mfgs of your batteries if you were satisfied with them.

krasin 5y ago
I highly recommend Will Prowse's channel who extensively covers batteries, solar panels, invertors and other home solar stuff: https://www.youtube.com/c/WillProwse https://www.youtube.com/c/WillProwse
- nathannecro 5y ago
  Perfect, thanks for the recommendation. Looks like I'll have quite a few videos to watch.
AshleyGrant 5y ago
You're opening a whole can of worms in trying to decide what LiFePO4 batteries to buy. There's tons of options, prices have been dropping precipitously this year across the board. The first question to ask yourself is if you want the comfort of a high quality warranty or would you like the cheapest possible price per kWh? In my RV, in May, I went with somewhat high-end Battleborn Batteries. They have a great warranty, which has come in handy as one of the batteries I bought experienced an issue and needed to be sent in for repair. They paid for shipping in both directions. That being said, nowadays even just a few months later, I might decide to "self-insure" given how good the cheaper batteries have gotten.
grayhatter 5y ago
Overkill Solar https://overkillsolar.com/ https://overkillsolar.com/ I've ordered twice, and plan to order another 5kw soon After having 2 unbranded circuit breakers fail on me. Everything else will be Blue Sea, or Victron. They're the most expensive, but they feel as high quality as they are expensive which makes it worth it. Especially considering the alternative is explosions followed by fire.
- jacquesm 5y ago
  Victron is bullet proof. I've seen their inverters used aboard working vessels for decade after decade without so much as a glitch. Highly recommended.
  - m0zg 5y ago
    Looked them up and for LiFePo4 batteries they seem to charge several times the eBay prices. What could they possibly be offering at that premium, given that it's almost certain they don't make the batteries themselves?
    - grayhatter 5y ago
      They're already top balanced grade A cells versus grade B cells. They're also the cells used in industrial mining, so they're able to tolerate vibration and movement. > Why buy something that might explode from a trustworthy business, when it's cheaper out the back of some dudes car.
      - m0zg 5y ago
        IIRC one of the main advantages of LiFePo4 batteries is that they can't "explode" under the normal circumstances. And if they buy batteries in China anyway, then why not buy from China as well? I'd understand 20-30% premium, but not 200-300%.
        jacquesm 5y ago
        Think 'hospital', certified power, military, off-shore (vessels, platforms, emergency power and so on). For a system that is bullet proof and where there are very strict requirements it makes sense to spend that money, for your homebrew system it likely doesn't, but you can pick up their inverters for a good discount at the various surplus auction sites with some regularity and that's the best of both worlds: great quality at a reasonable price.
    - jacquesm 5y ago
danans 5y ago
Enphase Enlighten is the system. If you are electrically handy, they have a self installer certification.

krasin 5y ago

I highly recommend Will Prowse's channel who extensively covers batteries, solar panels, invertors and other home solar stuff: https://www.youtube.com/c/WillProwse https://www.youtube.com/c/WillProwse

nathannecro 5y ago
Perfect, thanks for the recommendation. Looks like I'll have quite a few videos to watch.

AshleyGrant 5y ago

You're opening a whole can of worms in trying to decide what LiFePO4 batteries to buy. There's tons of options, prices have been dropping precipitously this year across the board. The first question to ask yourself is if you want the comfort of a high quality warranty or would you like the cheapest possible price per kWh? In my RV, in May, I went with somewhat high-end Battleborn Batteries. They have a great warranty, which has come in handy as one of the batteries I bought experienced an issue and needed to be sent in for repair. They paid for shipping in both directions. That being said, nowadays even just a few months later, I might decide to "self-insure" given how good the cheaper batteries have gotten.

grayhatter 5y ago

Overkill Solar https://overkillsolar.com/ https://overkillsolar.com/ I've ordered twice, and plan to order another 5kw soon After having 2 unbranded circuit breakers fail on me. Everything else will be Blue Sea, or Victron. They're the most expensive, but they feel as high quality as they are expensive which makes it worth it. Especially considering the alternative is explosions followed by fire.

jacquesm 5y ago
Victron is bullet proof. I've seen their inverters used aboard working vessels for decade after decade without so much as a glitch. Highly recommended.
- m0zg 5y ago
  Looked them up and for LiFePo4 batteries they seem to charge several times the eBay prices. What could they possibly be offering at that premium, given that it's almost certain they don't make the batteries themselves?
  - grayhatter 5y ago
    They're already top balanced grade A cells versus grade B cells. They're also the cells used in industrial mining, so they're able to tolerate vibration and movement. > Why buy something that might explode from a trustworthy business, when it's cheaper out the back of some dudes car.
    - m0zg 5y ago
      IIRC one of the main advantages of LiFePo4 batteries is that they can't "explode" under the normal circumstances. And if they buy batteries in China anyway, then why not buy from China as well? I'd understand 20-30% premium, but not 200-300%.
      - jacquesm 5y ago
        Think 'hospital', certified power, military, off-shore (vessels, platforms, emergency power and so on). For a system that is bullet proof and where there are very strict requirements it makes sense to spend that money, for your homebrew system it likely doesn't, but you can pick up their inverters for a good discount at the various surplus auction sites with some regularity and that's the best of both worlds: great quality at a reasonable price.
  - jacquesm 5y ago

danans 5y ago

Enphase Enlighten is the system. If you are electrically handy, they have a self installer certification.