My progress on this project was documented on a different thread - including some false starts....
See http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/topic/9949-adding-a-lithium-ion-battery-to-fwc/ to follow the saga.....
For medical reasons I need to eat a pretty limited diet - most of the food requires a microwave. In addition I have a bunch of other toys - so I needed enough juice for Microwave, fridge, CPAP, Furnace for winter camping and to run various cameras and radio gear. End result was I needed a lot of good clean power.
The end result of my build is as follows -
Base was a 2015 Hawk on a 2015 GMC Sierra DuraMax-
100 Amp Hour LiFePo4 Battery x2 (200 Amp Hour Total) (Starkpower Batteries)
Install second Alternator dedicated to Camper (220 AMP) (Nations Alternator)
Dedicated LiFePo4 friendly Voltage Regulator (Balmar 614) (Also from Nations)
2 Gauge wire from Camper Batteries to Alternator
Ability to bridge Charging systems if needed
Install 300 watt Roof Solar (Renology) with 15 amp charging (real world is ~11 amps)
Morningstar MTTP 15 AMP Solar Controller
Xantrax LinkLite Amp meter
Xantrax 2000 Watt Pure Sine inverter
Things I removed -
Factory battery isolator
Replacement high amp remote control isolator (not needed with dedicated alternator)
(http://www.blacksnakesystems.com/ - these guys are AMAZING)
Factory camper wiring
OK so how does this all work.......
The batteries can deplete to near zero without damage (2000 times est.). So unlike lead acid there is more usable amps.
The output voltage starts at 14.2 amps, drops to 13.8 under slight load and remains there until under 30% remaining when it slowly drops to cut-off at 10.5 (never been there).
LiFePo4 batteries have very little resistance so they charge very easily.
Batteries can charge at 50 amps for extended time and upto 100 amps for less than an hour.
My charging rate from the alternator peaks at around 60 amps at idle and drops to around 30 amps after 15 minutes or so.
Overnight the fridge will drop the batteries to around 85%
Batteries can recharge from 50% in ~4 hours driving time without solar.
A NOTE about LiFePo4 batteries.....
They are not a fire hazard. The dangerous batteries are the other chemical formulations of Lithium batteries. My LiFePo4 batteries have a built in Battery Management System which will shut down any cell that gets out of line. If you feel otherwise please feel free to contact my vendor and disscuss it with them (Starkpower) - they convinced me.
Photos should be below....
See http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/topic/9949-adding-a-lithium-ion-battery-to-fwc/ to follow the saga.....
For medical reasons I need to eat a pretty limited diet - most of the food requires a microwave. In addition I have a bunch of other toys - so I needed enough juice for Microwave, fridge, CPAP, Furnace for winter camping and to run various cameras and radio gear. End result was I needed a lot of good clean power.
The end result of my build is as follows -
Base was a 2015 Hawk on a 2015 GMC Sierra DuraMax-
100 Amp Hour LiFePo4 Battery x2 (200 Amp Hour Total) (Starkpower Batteries)
Install second Alternator dedicated to Camper (220 AMP) (Nations Alternator)
Dedicated LiFePo4 friendly Voltage Regulator (Balmar 614) (Also from Nations)
2 Gauge wire from Camper Batteries to Alternator
Ability to bridge Charging systems if needed
Install 300 watt Roof Solar (Renology) with 15 amp charging (real world is ~11 amps)
Morningstar MTTP 15 AMP Solar Controller
Xantrax LinkLite Amp meter
Xantrax 2000 Watt Pure Sine inverter
Things I removed -
Factory battery isolator
Replacement high amp remote control isolator (not needed with dedicated alternator)
(http://www.blacksnakesystems.com/ - these guys are AMAZING)
Factory camper wiring
OK so how does this all work.......
The batteries can deplete to near zero without damage (2000 times est.). So unlike lead acid there is more usable amps.
The output voltage starts at 14.2 amps, drops to 13.8 under slight load and remains there until under 30% remaining when it slowly drops to cut-off at 10.5 (never been there).
LiFePo4 batteries have very little resistance so they charge very easily.
Batteries can charge at 50 amps for extended time and upto 100 amps for less than an hour.
My charging rate from the alternator peaks at around 60 amps at idle and drops to around 30 amps after 15 minutes or so.
Overnight the fridge will drop the batteries to around 85%
Batteries can recharge from 50% in ~4 hours driving time without solar.
A NOTE about LiFePo4 batteries.....
They are not a fire hazard. The dangerous batteries are the other chemical formulations of Lithium batteries. My LiFePo4 batteries have a built in Battery Management System which will shut down any cell that gets out of line. If you feel otherwise please feel free to contact my vendor and disscuss it with them (Starkpower) - they convinced me.
Photos should be below....