diy solar

diy solar

Ordered new batteries from USA/Canadian company and they are not honouring their warranty

Think About It said:

@Chris vandette​

I can't believe the audacity. You cheated the company to warranty 3 batteries that you didn't pay for and now you are complaining that they will not help you. Gee, I wonder why?
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Sorry you believe this

as stated earlier,i said it was up to Renogy

I am not cheating any one , I asked them to warranty the ones that I had purchased and if they would also warranty the free ones , it is there choice not mine

please don’t dash me for asking ,

it is up to them , Wither they do are not it is up to them , where did I cheat anyone , if they feel it’s not right , they will say no

So because I asked I now endure the heckling of the masses

I would rather this thread focus on how to fix the issue of the low capacity or at least get the word out there may be a problem with these batteries
 
Also when did you consider was the end of the season for this RV? October? or say beginning of the year in January? Canada still gets pretty cold early in the season.

Was there anytime these batteries could have been charged when ambient temps were below freezing? Was any sort of low temp charging protection enabled in youre system?

How were these batteries regularly charging. 6 x170ah (one battery for spare) is quite a large storage.

For normal operation over the RV season were you charging at 12v via PV? Or did you charge via shore power and the 20a charger and then boondock?
 
740GLE said:
What was the tailing current? Did the BMS hit over voltage disconnect?

I’d much rather let each battery sit at 13.5v with 2a for hours on end than shoving 20a at them.

Did you use the same capacity test method when they were new? This would have captured a good baseline to compare.

IMO each testing method is kinda like a HP dyno, each one may get slightly different results but if you use the exact same method, you use it to track changes over time.
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Sorry

the testing was only done months after I got the batteries - while in storage to see how well the capacity was as I only charged the batteries at 14.2 in the Rv solar system most of the time

the battery manual says 14.2 to 14.6 so I wanted to see how well that charge level of 14.2 was doing

there was a odd time I would charge at 14.6 just to get a top up

at home I only have a couple lifepo4 chargers that deliver 14.6 volts

I should have done a capacity when new , but I was just new to lithium , always ran golf cart batteries

yes testing can give crazy results , so I used 2 methods to test the batteries

I believe the bms is cutting out at around 11 volts and stopping the charge to early ,this may be due to a bad cell imbalance I was worried about
 
Just curious. Did you do any research on Renogy before purchasing? Or did you simply by the least expensive battery that you could find and expect to get the same service and performance as a more expensive battery from a manufacturer with great reviews?
 
So under normal charging the during RV season, you were charging 6x170ah=1020ah battery bank of 6 batteries all wired in parallel?
Do you have any pictures of the battery wiring connections?

What was the typical charging current this batter bank saw on a given day? Again were you charging via PV?

How were you verifying you were charging the batteries up to 14.6v was that just what the SCC said? or did you measure individual battery voltages? If the bank was say at 75% SOC you’d still have to throw a ton of KWhr into the bank to bring it up to 100% SOC.

Again, at any time we’re the batteries charged when ambient temps were even close to freezing?
 
Chris vandette said:
Sorry

the testing was only done months after I got the batteries - while in storage to see how well the capacity was as I only charged the batteries at 14.2 in the Rv solar system most of the time
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Nothing wrong with the batteries. Totally normal for them to go out of balance while in storage.

Float them at 13.8-14.4V for a few days. Test capacity again, and you should see an improvement.
 
Checkthisout said:
What kind of capacity do you get when charged at 14.6 volts?

You got 3 free batteries, a $1600.00 value. You want warranty on free. K?

They want you to capacity test all 7 because they will just tell you to keep the best 4 out of the 7 and then not ever have to talk to you again.
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Three of those batteries (no longer listed on Renogy site) were more like $3600 before the price crash. Now 200 amp ones are $100 each... $1600 would be for 3 100 amp batteries, which sounds like what he REALLY got!
 
Think About It said:
Just curious. Did you do any research on Renogy before purchasing? Or did you simply by the least expensive battery that you could find and expect to get the same service and performance as a more expensive battery from a manufacturer with great reviews?
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Lol

at the time I did the purchase , lifepo4 where extremely expensive in our area

to get a battle born 100 amphr battery it was over 1600 way way to expensive

will prowse did a tear down of the 100 amp renogy battery and gave it rave reviews

there where very little reviews of the 170 amp model , all I did find where excellant

I could have purchased a cheap Amazon or eBay model but wanted something reliable

or get raw cells from Alibaba but shipping was through the roof for where I live in Canada

renogy had a 5yr warranty , operated in Canada and the USA , and I didn’t hear any bad reviews from either country forums , I wasn’t worried

I have other Renogy products , like the 100 amp model I use in another solar system and it tests above its capacity and has been absolutely great
 
740GLE said:
So under normal charging the during RV season, you were charging 6x170ah=1020ah battery bank of 6 batteries all wired in parallel?
Do you have any pictures of the battery wiring connections?

What was the typical charging current this batter bank saw on a given day? Again were you charging via PV?

How were you verifying you were charging the batteries up to 14.6v was that just what the SCC said? or did you measure individual battery voltages? If the bank was say at 75% SOC you’d still have to throw a ton of KWhr into the bank to bring it up to 100% SOC.

Again, at any time we’re the batteries charged when ambient temps were even close to freezing?
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sorry I though I had pictures , but I can’t find them

i used 4/0 of equal length to the fist positive and last battery negative and 4/0 exact length cables between each battery

the batteries where charged off a pv system of over 1400 watts ,normal charge was around 84 amps between the 2 controllers , most days , I use very little power when not at the Rv , and only use 20 percent of the bank when there and it charged back up by 12 noon to 1 pm most days , have a battery capacity shunt on the main battery negative no I monitor all current in and out of the battery

I checked the voltage with a battery tester myself when charging and volts when it stoped , I would see the amp meter showing the taper of the charge and go to zero when the charge was complete , I don’t remember off hand how long I have it set to hold the charge

the batteries in the Rv only got charged to 14.2 as the manufacture said 14.2 to 14.6 , at home or on the lifepo4 charger they only get 14.6 volt charging

this brings up the discussion again most people say 14,6 some say lower , if the manufacture says 14.2 to 14.6 to me it should be safe to charge in that range with no issues ,

and in the Rv I use Renogy lifepo4 dual 60 amp charge controllers set in user mode with all there lifepo4 settings except the charge is 14.2 which they say in the manual is within the range they recommend

the capacity test at home was done with the batteries charged and cycled several times at 14.6 volts

and no the batteries have never been charged near or at freezing , i don’t remember the exact date , but the batteries never got close to even 45 before they where Put in storage

I would check the temp in the Rv and battery compartment every couple days when the temp started to drop a lot

then they got put into storage in my work room that’s around 55-60 Fahrenheit
 
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740GLE said:
Also when did you consider was the end of the season for this RV? October? or say beginning of the year in January? Canada still gets pretty cold early in the season.

Was there anytime these batteries could have been charged when ambient temps were below freezing? Was any sort of low temp charging protection enabled in youre system?

How were these batteries regularly charging. 6 x170ah (one battery for spare) is quite a large storage.

For normal operation over the RV season were you charging at 12v via PV? Or did you charge via shore power and the 20a charger and then boondock?
Click to expand...
Hello

I don’t remember the exact time in our area , sept or oct , sorry was getting ect treatment for first responder ptsd

when it started to get close to 50 in the trailer , we left a little propane heater in the Rv going when it started getting cool in the fall , I would also check the battery bank early most morning and the temp was toasty warm ,you could say I was the low temp protection

we only did this for a week , then pulled the batteries and closed up camp

we boondock at my brothers property , it stationary at the moment , I have approx 1400 watts of solar , in 24 volt config to the charge controllers that charge at12 volts

I have a generator there but it’s been acting up ,and we mostly use the generator for the a/c

the trailer inverter converter is off , all 12 volts comes from the batteries and the 3000 watt inverter that is on a transfer switch to the 30 amp 120 volt Rv panel unless the generator is running and it provides the 120 volt side

the Renogy charger gets used now and then when we have the generator going and the bank is a little down and its cloudy , so I give it a little boost

we normally only use 20 percent of the bank every night , one extremely hot day we used 45 percent once as I had trouble getting the generator started so i ran the a/c off the battery bank which I don’t like to do will I got the generator started

my model of travel trailer the front of the trailer is the pass though storage that also goes under the queen bed in the front bedroom , so I have lots of area for battery storage , the storage box has extra insulation around sealed and had a complete ventilation system in it , used to have 12 golf cart batteries

i disconnected the ventilation system and added a couple small heat pads on sensors just in case

lots of storage , liked the rule more storage the better , less draw on each battery and get the best cycle life

I eventually want to see if the battery and solar system has enough power to run the standard Rv fridge on 120 volt mode , I think it would be too much for my system , we leave it on propane for now

i am also very suprised that my cpap doesn’t draw as much as I though it would , I have the 12 volt adapter kit , works great , I use the humidifier all the time

thank you for your question
 
Chris vandette said:
we normally only use 20 percent of the bank every night ,
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How are you determining this?

Sorry, I tried skimming from the top and did not see the answer. Your interchanging of amps and amp hours makes it a very difficult quick read too.

I see you have all (7?} batteries in parallel with main leads at the ends (wired diagonally). This is known to be suboptimal and will lead to uneven charging and discharging.
Does your “calculation” of 20% use each night account for likely different Soc batteries in the bank?

I realise my questions assume/imply that the batteries are equally functional. I guess I am the optimist hoping to fix a bad configuration first, if possible.
 
Sounds like he has a shunt, but he didn’t state which one, probably a Renology unit.

If he was using 20% of 7x170ah that’s 170x13.4= 2200whr
2.2kwhrx7 = 15.4kwhr
.2x15.4kwhr = 3kwhr/day when they are using the RV.

That consumption is in line with what a 1.4kw PV array can output a day so as long as the SCC settings are optimal (tail current being key) and bank wiring is sound he should have been keeping that fully charged.
 
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MisterSandals said:
How are you determining this?

Sorry, I tried skimming from the top and did not see the answer. Your interchanging of amps and amp hours makes it a very difficult quick read too.

I see you have all (7?} batteries in parallel with main leads at the ends (wired diagonally). This is known to be suboptimal and will lead to uneven charging and discharging.
Does your “calculation” of 20% use each night account for likely different Soc batteries in the bank?

I realise my questions assume/imply that the batteries are equally functional. I guess I am the optimist hoping to fix a bad configuration first, if possible.
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Hello

I only used 6 of them in the bank

the shunt I use is a Renogy shunt , not the best but my testing shows it within 1 percent accuracy

it has been my understanding that you use the first positive for your bank and the last negative of the bank and that attaches to your main junction block

I also checked with my solar system supplier installer I purchased most of my panels and system parts from , and this is what they recommended

i have seen it the other way , but most people said do it this way , so it pulls evenly from all the batteries

if this is my issue I can fix this
 

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Chris vandette said:
don’t know what to think , in a lot of places the law is very specific if I purchase a item and it’s defective the warranty applies
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The tradition of British Common Law is to make people ‘whole’ in a situation. Your contribution was to order 4 batteries. All of those batteries are broken. To make you whole is either a refund or 4 not-broken batteries.
The other three are irrelevant.
subman631 said:
Now 200 amp ones are $100 each
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where do I sign up?!
Chris vandette said:
if this is my issue I can fix this
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that would be a good start imho with batteries that are sensitive to .01V if you get pickyuni
 
Chris vandette said:
it was said in one of the posts - Renogy

I think it is the bms , and I have not cut into the batteries just in case they want them all back

One of the cells are probably out of balance
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EXACTLY!
Are you even sure they are fully charged before the capacity test?
I would try charging one battery up to only 14 volts, holding it there for an hour, letting it rest disconnected from everything for an hour, and then rerunning the capacity test.
 
TomC4306 said:
EXACTLY!
Are you even sure they are fully charged before the capacity test?
I would try charging one battery up to only 14 volts, holding it there for an hour, letting it rest disconnected from everything for an hour, and then rerunning the capacity test.
Click to expand...
Hello

as far as I know they are/where fully charged to capacity ,

as I have them at home and not in the Rv solar system ,all I have available is a couple lifepo4 chargers that charge at 14.6 volt

my 2 tests I did ,

test one

first was charge the battery with the charger , I had a Drok amp/ volt meter on the negative side , used the charger , waited till the charger red green light , Volt and meter said 0 volts and zero amps going into the battery

then the battery was rested for over a hour

then I used a inverter to draw about a 20 amp draw till the inverter or bms shut off

in all cases the battery bms disconnected before the inverter

the Drok meter showed me the kw/h the battery produced

i then reset the Drok meter and charged the battery with the life po4 charger that’s chargers at 14.6 volts turned off and zero volts and amps where going into the battery

I used a couple different manufacture chargers just in case it was a charger issue



test two

this time I use a brand new Renogy capacity meter that I tested seemed be accurate , but this meter gives the info in watts and amp hours , not much problem as renogy lists the watt hours and amphr rating

i charge the battery up like about , but this time I use a different tester

it’s the little capacity tester will prowse shows on few videos he has

this little tester I draw a load of 10 amps , it’s max is around 14 and I don’t want to burn it out right away

anyhow , I do the test till the bms shuts down , the tester also has a volt limit set at 10 volts , so I don’t top the battery down to far

well the bms cuts the test off at about 11 volts

i then reset the meter and recharge the battery and note the amount of power that goes back in , like before as soon and the charger stops and zero amps and zero volts going into the battery , I say it’s fully charged as much as I can get it

I compare both test one and two and the discharge capacity

they both show just about within 2-3 percent the same capacity for each battery

is my way of testing accurate , I don’t know , the two gave the same results

one thing I did notice was the bms for each battery would cut out at about 11volts and when charging once the battery got to 14.6 the bms would cut off charging , at least the one battery I was present for when it finished charging

which is weird why just cut the charge it didn’t taper the amps at all ,

the 100 amphr Renogy battery I have would taper the amp once it reached 14.6 volts

the same charger and meter were used on the 170 amp battery and the 100 amp battery with 2 results , one tapered the charge at the end the other didn’t

oh sorry , I did leave the charger on the battery for 1/2 hr to hour or more after fully charging them , but they never took any more charge , they basically said that’s it no more charge

let me know what you think

thanks
 
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