A timely bit of history, Augie Meyers is no longer with us, and in the “well this certainly inspires confidence” department…
I’ve been watching lithium batteries for ages. But, while prices are falling, I’m yet to be convinced to replace our lead acid batteries just yet. Which, is not to say I have any great love for lead acid batteries.
You might say it’s a bit complicated.
As it happens, I’ve been thinking a lot about re-powering the Islander. Partly because our lead-acid is getting a bit long in the tooth and I’d like to replace the Yanmar.
All the hip kids say lithium is the way to go. As it happens, the hip kids also say Battle Born is the gold standard. Well, not all the hip kids it would seem…
Will Prouse, whose main gig on his YouTube channel is finding faults in lithium batteries. A lot of his current output on Battle Born batteries is worth checking out.
Anyway, here’s another bit of info that bothers me. Combine those figures with Prouse’s fault finding and, all of a sudden, lithium is sorta/kinda scary.
However, the really scary part is, if you’re a regular to Prouse’s output, you quickly find that the main issue is quality control. While Battle Born (for instance) is classified as a bespoke top tier battery they seem to have issues. Most lithium batteries seem to be good some of the time. But as most sellers are using merry-go-round suppliers, the battery that you’ve seen tested with flying colors may not be the battery you actually buy. Especially in batteries available on the lower price rung.
Face it, all batteries look the same in their sealed plastic boxes.
So, yeah, I expect my next house bank is going to be lead acid. Same goes for the current electric propulsion system I’m designing for the Islander. Lead acid works. It isn’t going to burn my boat up. But, more importantly, I won’t have to wonder whether the battery’s a hodge-podge of lowest common denominator parts.
There’s no real hurry as I have at least a few more years on the house bank. On the other hand, unless I see some real improvements in lithium battery quality control we’ll stay with lead acid.
Need I say more?
I bought my first LiPo4 battery 100amp for less than local price FLA, via Poland. The sting was i had to spend almost 80% of the battery price on a bespoke charger, and another MMPT solar controller that had the correct output for charging. If you can carry enough FLA where 50% discharge is maximum, thats good, smaller boats need a bit more power density. However, seeing one youtubers stack of 5Kw is another thing entirely. If i need a battery bigger than 300AH, something has gone wrong in my life…….
I’ve always wondered if there is a way to manage/mitigate a liPo4 fire. A specialized enclosure? Or keep em on the stem and be ready to kick em overboard? I know that on my small boat a pair of lithium batteries would be transformative in the energy department. And weigh a bunch less.