Lithium for Beginners: Why use LiFePO4 Batteries?

At Battle Born Batteries, we provide reliable and high-quality LiFePO4 batteries so our customers can make the most of their outdoor experiences. Coast to coast in a marine vessel or off-grid on a spacious homestead, our batteries will help you get out there and stay out there. With our revolutionary lithium technology, Battle Born Batteries can power your system with more power at a fraction of the weight. The deep cycle batteries we design and assemble in the USA are the perfect low-maintenance answer to technologically outdated and bulky lead-acid batteries. 

Here at Battle Born Batteries, we get plenty of questions about our products and their capabilities. You can find our previous installments of our blog posts here! 

What Makes Your LiFePO4 Battery Different? 

Battle Born Batteries are designed to serve your system in a multitude of ways. We understand that for some rigs, every pound counts. That’s why our batteries are a third of the weight of your standard lead–acid batteries and only tip the scales at a sleek 31 pounds.  

If you want to replace your lead–acid batteries with our LiFePO4 batteries, it’s easy to drop them into your system. As drop-in replacement batteries for group 27 and group 31 sizes, Battle Born Batteries are the same exact size and can fit in whatever space you’ve designated for them in your system. They are considered lead acid drop-in replacements for that reason. 

They also work well with a number of components in your system. Want to continue using your inverter, charger, or solar charge controller? Just verify with our team that it’s possible by giving one of our technicians a call at 855-292-2831! We offer opportunities for system evaluations so you get the most power out of your system to get it working like it should.  

In this new FAQ video, we’ll explain how our innovative lithium-ion battery technology can help customers get out there and stay out there longer. It works in tandem with other materials like the plastic of the bin to ensure that the internal structure is stable and can handle vibration or shock, and metal that allows for safe contact and current delivery in your system.  

When switching to lithium, our batteries discharge at a slightly higher voltage than AGM and some components might not recognize this. Even if it’s at a low state of charge, it could potentially be viewed as high voltage. If it thinks it’s dealing with an empty battery, it won’t give a charge so your best option is to replace it with a component that can detect it’s not at full charge or a component that can be programmed. 

AGM has a different chemistry when compared to lithium-ion. If the batteries are not at the same voltage or discharge at different rates, the power runs quickly between each other and leads to heating issues and less efficiency when cycling. They only can be used separately in systems and interconnected by alternator charging. We discuss more of this in our blog post about why they shouldn’t be directly in line with each other here.  

Can I Replace My Current Battery With Your Battle Born LiFePO4 Batteries? 

Our experts say it depends. Usually, you don’t have to change out any other components in your system to have it work. For example, our 12V, 100 amp hour battery will deliver 12V and will be compatible with the same system that the lead– acid batteries it’s replacing. We just have to make sure it’s sized properly and the power that’s drawn is able to be accommodated by our battery within the current limits specified by the battery. 

When it comes to charging, you may have heard that our batteries are a drop-in replacement. As we explained in our previous blog entry, we designed our batteries to give you every drop of energy possible with the technology contained inside it. That’s why they work so well as drop-in replacements for lead-acid. At the same size as a group 27 and group 31 battery, it can easily be accommodated anywhere the rest of your system is located. The charging voltages are used in our battery and in lead –acid. This is important because if you have an AGM or lead– acid battery, they are typically, bulk charged at 14.4 volts and floated at 13.6 volts, parameters that are just fine for our batteries. 

However, our LiFePO4 batteries will discharge at a slightly higher voltage. Even though it could be at a very low state of charge, it will still exhibit a high voltage. Some chargers do not recognize this as an empty battery and will not charge it. The only changes that might have to be made for charging purposes would have to be to replace a charger that can detect that the battery is not at full charge or a charger that can be programmed.  

Some other changes might have to be made to the system to make sure it’s performing at its best. Our LiFePO4 batteries can deliver a lot more power than you’d expect when you’re used to utilizing lead–acid in your system. A larger gauged cable might have to be incorporated so you can properly handle all that power. If you want to run your air conditioner off your batteries, which you can’t do easily with a lead– acid battery system, a soft starter will have to be installed onto the AC unit.  

Can LiFePO4 Batteries Handle Vibration or Water in a System?

We understand that a lot of customers use their rigs to go exploring off-road in often rocky and bumpy areas. That’s why when we test our batteries, we put them through vigorous vibration standards. They can handle vibration on vehicles, as Denis explains in this video: 

Our batteries can be used in marine based applications, whether you live on a sailboat or fish on the lake with a trolling motor. The batteries are water resistant sealed and can handle being in a moist environment, but please make sure not to submerge your Battle Born Batteries or expose them to large amounts of water! Like any other electronics, prolonged water exposure has the potential to cause harm to both you, the batteries, and your system overall.  

Why are LiFePO4 Batteries So Expensive? 

When it comes to the cost of lithium, our team takes pride in how our batteries are top-notch and high quality. We aim to make Battle Born Batteries accessible for all who want to incorporate it into their system. The advanced LiFePO4 battery technology allows you to deliver two to three times more power of the same size battery. It’s also cheaper in the long run as Battle Born Batteries have a lifespan of 3,000 to 5,000 cycles. Per cycle, it’s much more affordable, and you don’t have to deal with common stresses like a drawn-out winterization process or off-gassing. With a 10-year warranty and a customer service team that can’t be beat, we strive to make sure that our products are fairly priced. We also recently started offering the payment program Affirm to assist with larger purchases for your system.  

If you have any more questions about our products and the chemistry behind them, feel free to check out our FAQ section on our website and our YouTube channel. Still looking for an answer? Give our sales and tech team a call at 855-292-2831 or send an email to [email protected]. Stay tuned for more updates to this blog series as well!