Tl;dr version: I need (a) new battery (or 2). (If you've missed the backstory, the thread is linked at the bottom of this post.) 

As my inverter is 24V, there aren't that many options in SA, so I've made a spreadsheet (can you tell I'm in IT? 😆 )

And I've come to an interesting conclusion: Buying a 24V battery is considerably cheaper per rated cycle than the 12V drop-in replacements like the Hubble S-series (spoiler alert: by more than 50%).

Considering mainly price per cycle, the SunX battery slightly edges the Esener and PylonTech but it has a screen and looks like it might be able to give detailed battery state feedback (which I consider very important, seeing as pretty much no battery is guaranteed to talk to my little Axpert, so I'm leaning towards giving it the nod. Warranty and other important specs also look reasonable, so what do you think?

From other threads (https://powerforum.co.za/topic/5009-hubble-into-batteries/ and https://powerforum.co.za/topic/14587-esener-lithium-battery), it seems the Sunx, Hubble and Esener all have the same Chinese parentage (Chang Hong).

I know that just because the OEM is the same, it doesn't mean the batteries are the same (e.g. Voltronic firmware customized for larger brands) but I feel there's a difference between a physical product (where you get economy of scale with larger raw material orders) and software/firmware (which is a virtual product - please note, I'm using virtual here as something you cannot touch physically).

Also: binning (putting "better" parts in more expensive SKU's and "lesser" in cheaper items) is a thing, I know. Intel is famous for doing it and our friends in the East have learnt that lesson long ago as well.

However, given how established the processes and manufacturing methods are, is that really something to be concerned about? I'd wager that for most manufacturers of the raw cells, they will have little variance in quality because it's simply not economically efficient. And I'm also of the opinion that the manufacturing process itself is probably quite mature by now, so there shouldn't be large differences in the end product.

Given all the ramblings above, please chime in. I need your recommendations please, for manufacturers as well as suppliers.

If you disagree with my conclusions, please tell me and more importantly, tell me why. I would really like to get this monkey off my back now and go back to pottering around in my tech shed 😉

PS: If you're interested in seeing the actual spreadsheet and links within, please drop me a DM and I'll share a Google Docs link with you.

Backstory here:

 

Edited November 25, 20223 yr by selenium
Title change

Hi @selenium, so glad I found your post. Ive been looking at the 12V lithium options for quite a while, but I changed my mind.

What battery did you go with and what was your experience?

I stiil need to get a 24V inverter, i'm considering the MUST 3KW or the Synapse 3KW.

The Must has great solar and battery charge specs for the price.

Any advice will be appreciated.

Great work on the spreadsheet, clear and easy to understand. 

 

 

On 2023/01/24 at 6:31 PM, Nimitz said:

Hi @selenium, so glad I found your post. Ive been looking at the 12V lithium options for quite a while, but I changed my mind.

What battery did you go with and what was your experience?

I stiil need to get a 24V inverter, i'm considering the MUST 3KW or the Synapse 3KW.

The Must has great solar and battery charge specs for the price.

Any advice will be appreciated.

Great work on the spreadsheet, clear and easy to understand. 

 

 

@Nimitz

Sorry for slow response, lots of hectic here currently.

Battery replacement is still in limbo but I've finally managed to get a return/refund organised for the blasted gels. Just waiting to complete that.

Esener is currently front-runner because price and also local company. They offer a very good price if you're willing to take 3 units, otherwise you need to go through a reseller.

Only caveat: the Esener battery doesn't seem to have a way to talk to inverters (via CAN/RS435/whatever), but I bought a Victron SmartShunt recently, so I don't really care about that.

The battery will deal with max. discharge protection itself and the SmartShunt can tell me where the battery state is at, and also remotely.

I have an RCT 2kW (genuine Voltronic), and aside from it's inability to deal with lead gel batteries, it's a nice little unit. I imagine the 3kW variant will do equally well.

FYI: both your inverter options seem to be Voltronic units, but be aware that Voltronic clones also exist.

@Coulomb did an EXCELLENT write-up about how to tell real from clone - do a forum search, you find it.

So to recap: I've pretty much decided on Esener, but don't have any experience yet, so will only be able to report back in a few months.

Hi. New here. Thought ill reply on the post most relevant to me. 

 

Have a 3kva Mecer unit. Also doesnt have any communication ports. And considering the esener 24v litium. 

 

What was the bulk price of 3 units if i may ask?  

Edited January 31, 20233 yr by Flouw

Hi @selenium - your post on the comparison of batteries was most useful - do you perhaps have the user manual for the SunX 2.6KWH 24V battery? I am trying to ascertain whether I will be able to connect the battery to my Must inverter and what pin configuration will work between the two. Thanks in advance!

 

I suspect they'd use the same Pinout as hubble,as they are basically manufactured by the same guys,and you tell them what branding,connectors,screen to add

https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Grade-A-6000cycle-Lifepo4-Lithium-BYD_1600655507230.html? 

 

On 2023/01/27 at 2:26 PM, selenium said:

@Nimitz

Sorry for slow response, lots of hectic here currently.

Battery replacement is still in limbo but I've finally managed to get a return/refund organised for the blasted gels. Just waiting to complete that.

Esener is currently front-runner because price and also local company. They offer a very good price if you're willing to take 3 units, otherwise you need to go through a reseller.

Only caveat: the Esener battery doesn't seem to have a way to talk to inverters (via CAN/RS435/whatever), but I bought a Victron SmartShunt recently, so I don't really care about that.

The battery will deal with max. discharge protection itself and the SmartShunt can tell me where the battery state is at, and also remotely.

I have an RCT 2kW (genuine Voltronic), and aside from it's inability to deal with lead gel batteries, it's a nice little unit. I imagine the 3kW variant will do equally well.

FYI: both your inverter options seem to be Voltronic units, but be aware that Voltronic clones also exist.

@Coulomb did an EXCELLENT write-up about how to tell real from clone - do a forum search, you find it.

So to recap: I've pretty much decided on Esener, but don't have any experience yet, so will only be able to report back in a few months.

A quick update for those following the thread:  I eventually got the Esener.

I installed it, fiddled a bit to get the float voltage happy and have now basically forgotten it exists.

No hiccups, no weirdness from the inverter, it just works.

Battery is f'ing heavy and feels like it could withstand a nuclear bomb, fit and finish is excellent and everything feels like it's a quality product.

I'm of course itching to get inside and see which BMS and cells it uses, but I will respect the warranty period under threat of severe violence from she-who-must-be-obeyed before I start unscrewing stuff...

Next step is to get it wired into the house wiring (lights, a few designated plugs) and then some solar panels.

On 2023/05/17 at 9:44 AM, skai said:

Hi @selenium - your post on the comparison of batteries was most useful - do you perhaps have the user manual for the SunX 2.6KWH 24V battery? I am trying to ascertain whether I will be able to connect the battery to my Must inverter and what pin configuration will work between the two. Thanks in advance!

 

Unfortunately not - good  luck with your search.

On 2023/05/19 at 1:59 PM, selenium said:

 but I will respect the warranty period under threat of severe violence from she-who-must-be-obeyed before I start unscrewing stuff...

Unless it was installed by a licensed elec the warranty is void anyways, usually... so may be no reason to wait to start unscrewing stuff.

I just put in a 120Ah 25.6V Esener. So far the voltage seems to drop significantly lower under the same load than my previous 2x12V 44 Ah Blue Novas. Also getting over charge warnings from the cheapo Must 3kW inverter. Not sure what is to blame here. Float is at 26.6 and bulk 28.