Another Lithium Battery Review

[TNCharlie]

Somewhere there is thread where I said that I would report on my lithium battery performance. I gave it pretty good test yesterday. I am VERY happy with the results. The pic shows my battery connected to the charger.

I ran it almost solid for close to 4 hours driving a 40-lb thrust Minn Kota trolling motor pushing a 14-foot square stern canoe with 2 adults at mostly slow to medium speeds with occasional wide open runs.

When I got home I connected it to the charger. In just a couple of minutes it marched right through the 3 red lights on the charging graph and lit up the green. (I don't think the green shows in the pic.) I did leave it on for a short while just in case it could use a little top-off, but I really don't think it needed to be recharged at all.

Granted this was a light load compared to running the MInn Kota i-Pilot on my boat, but I've had similar results there. I have not come close to actually running the battery down.

Throw in the advantage of being so very light compared to a conventional battery, and, yeah, I'm a happy camper.

 

[Snowwolfe]

I plan on upgrading to three lithiums for my trolling motor after this season. What did the battery cost and does it have a good warranty?

 

[TheLBLman]

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/tracker-marine-lithium-super-high-output-lithium-deep-cycle-marine-battery?ds_e=MICROSOFT&ds_c=BPS%7CShopping%7CStandard%7CCatchAll%7CGeneral%7CNAud%7CNVol%7CNMT&msclkid=f784ab7d96fe11564ffac9c50c39df4b&gclsrc=ds

I've been looking at those, and have been somewhat torn between the 60 Ah
and the 80 Ah, mainly for use in powering a large canoe, but may be all-day trips.

The weight of the Tracker Marine Lithium Super High Output Lithium Deep Cycle Marine Batteries are as follows:
60 Ah weighs 15.9 lbs.; 80 Ah weighs 23.8 lbs.; 100 Ah weighs 29.8 lbs.

The 80 Ah weighs only 8 lbs more than the 60 Ah,
and is still taking off considerable weight compared to most Group 24 lead batteries.

 

[TNCharlie]

This^^^

The battery like mine (60ah) is about $530. And you will need a lithium battery charger. The one in my pic is about $100.

I can't remember the length of the warranty.
Correction: Just found it. 5-year warranty.

And, yes, the initial outlay is a bit steep. But assuming that the battery will last the predicted 5-6 years, the overall cost is no more than I would be likely to spend on convential lead acid batteries. The light weight is a big deal to me.

 

[Spurhunter]

The battery like mine (60ah) is about $530. And you will need a lithium battery charger. The one in my pic is about $100.

I can't remember the length of the warranty.
Correction: Just found it. 5-year warranty.

I paid $430 for my Dakota Lithium 54ah batteries and that includes the charger they send with the battery. Plus Dakota's warranty is 11 years, granted it drops off considerably at the 6 year mark. The prices have gone up though. The 54ah with charger is $499 now.

 

[TheLBLman]

Dakota Lithium 50ah batteries

What does that one weigh?

 

[Spurhunter]

What does that one weigh?

17.5 pounds

 

[Spurhunter]

Correction: Mine are 54ah.

 

[Snowwolfe]

Going to be an expensive off season upgrade this winter. Hope to add three group 27's plus a Garmin livescope sonar system. Gives me a few months to work on the wife trying to get her onboard

 

[Hduke86]

It's a expensive investment for sure but there's no way I'd go back the lead acid or gel batteries. Besides the light weight aspect and quick charging. The benefit of being able to run it at full tilt till about 90% discharge with a constant voltage. Regular batteries are always going to start dropping voltage faster for sure and you can't get the long usage out of them before they fall below the voltage requirements of some electronics.

 

[TNCharlie]

It's a expensive investment for sure but there's no way I'd go back the lead acid or gel batteries. Besides the light weight aspect and quick charging. The benefit of being able to run it at full tilt till about 90% discharge with a constant voltage. Regular batteries are always going to start dropping voltage faster for sure and you can't get the long usage out of them before they fall below the voltage requirements of some electronics.

That's a very good point and one I should of mentioned. It certainly makes a difference when running a trolling motor.

 

[Spurhunter]

It's a expensive investment for sure but there's no way I'd go back the lead acid or gel batteries. Besides the light weight aspect

And not just the weight, but the size. I had to remove my fuel tank to get the old lead acid batteries out. I can remove the DL batteries in 5 minutes without breaking a sweat.

 

[Hduke86]

And not just the weight, but the size. I had to remove my fuel tank to get the old lead acid batteries out. I can remove the DL batteries in 5 minutes without breaking a sweat.

I was tired of struggling to remove my old batteries for sure

 

[WTM]

It's a expensive investment for sure but there's no way I'd go back the lead acid or gel batteries. Besides the light weight aspect and quick charging. The benefit of being able to run it at full tilt till about 90% discharge with a constant voltage. Regular batteries are always going to start dropping voltage faster for sure and you can't get the long usage out of them before they fall below the voltage requirements of some electronics.

yeah but discharge an LFP battery to 90% all tue time and youll only get about 750 cycles out of it.

mid DoD is where youll get more usefullness and longevity out of it. all of these battery claims of 10,000 cycles is because they are only assuming a 20% discharge rate. cycle life is a function of DoD rate. so its best to choose a capacity that doesnt put you below 40% too many times in the charge cycle.

i wouldnt buy a battery based on warranty either. more times than none these battery companies dont stay in business for that long before they change names and suppliers.

 

[Hduke86]

yeah but discharge an LFP battery to 90% all tue time and youll only get about 750 cycles out of it.

mid DoD is where youll get more usefullness and longevity out of it. all of these battery claims of 10,000 cycles is because they are only assuming a 20% discharge rate. cycle life is a function of DoD rate. so its best to choose a capacity that doesnt put you below 40% too many times in the charge cycle.

i wouldnt buy a battery based on warranty either. more times than none these battery companies dont stay in business for that long before they change names and suppliers.

Yea I hear ya, even if I got 750 cycles that would probably be 7+years for me but I understand what you're saying for sure

 

[WTM]

fyi, these tracker batteries are rebranded relion batteries.

 

[WTM]

Yea I hear ya, even if I got 750 cycles that would probably be 7+years for me but I understand what you're saying for sure

yeah maybe depending on the quality of the cells. after the first year youll start getting degredation in SoC capacity. ionic batteries for example, the warranty claims that their batteries are considered good at 70% of the original SoC capacity. im not too impressed with that company after seeing a couple of tear downs with their lower capacity batteries using recycled grade b cells. hopefully they are not doing that with their 50 and 100ah batteries.

 

[Andy S.]

Great subject and great insight, thanks everyone.

 

[jetwrnch]

Have you tried in cold weather yet?

 

[Hduke86]

Have you tried in cold weather yet?

I can't speak for the OP but mine are just fine in the winter. Granted I don't stay out on the water as long in the winter but for what I have done in the winter months they seem to be just fine. Now charging them is a different story in the cold weather. No charging below freezing outside or it could possibly damage it.