[Rhodes22-list] A Different Approach to Adding Lithium Batteries To Your Boat

[Peter Nyberg]

There's been some interest in this topic in the past, and I recently stumbled upon a different take on the subject that I found interesting, and I thought I'd share.

LiFePO4 batteries have some benefits that everyone at all interested is probably already aware of, but they also have some potential problems.  The biggest problems stem from the fact that the Battery Management System (BMS), may decide in some situations to take the battery offline.  If you are entirely dependent on the lithium batteries, this would leave you entirely without power.  In addition, if you were charging your lithium battery with an alternator at the time of disconnect, it is likely that the alternator would be ruined.

There are complicated solutions to this problem involving additional equipment, but there's a guy who proposes the best approach is to just combine LiFePO4 and lead-acid batteries into a single battery bank.  

I won't bother trying to explain, because he does a pretty good job of it himself:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAuPfgZgXec

He's got a few more related videos on his YouTube channel, if you continue to be interested.

--Peter

P.S.  I'm not seriously considering doing this on my boat.