Best Sol-Ark 15 Battery?

[crocodile-man]

Hey folks, new to the forums but long time Will Prowse watcher. I've decided to take the plunge and start designing a whole home backup system. I'm really liking the Sol-Ark 15 for it's quality, ease of use, and customer support.

I'm wondering what people are running as batteries for the Sol-Ark 15? Is there a consensus of which is most plug and play / reliable? I definitely want comms between the battery and the Sol-Ark. LiFePO4 for safety. Would love something fairly modular to expand over time. I will say the EG4 PowerPro form factor is very attractive, but its 300lbs!

Appreciate any and all insight. Thanks!

 

[ArthurEld]

A lot of us build our own batteries for use with Solark. But prices have come down on pre-built UL listed batteries.
If the batteries are part of a permit install, your only choice will be to use UL listed batteries.
I don't have experience with EG4 but they get a lot of attention around here.
Good luck

 

[crocodile-man]

Thanks @ArthurEld any UL Listed favorites?

 

[prometheanfire]

For code, 9540 listed with the 15k, I'd generally say pytes or homegrid both likely give the best bang per buck right now.

 

[ArthurEld]

Something that worked for me was to use AGM batteries. They aren't very expensive, and they work well for solar.
I bought mine from altestore - https://www.altestore.com/store/deep-cycle-batteries/sealed-agm-batteries-c436/

You can probably find them cheaper at walmart or costco.

Listen to others here to see if you can find UL listed lifep04 batteries.

 

[Oldphile]

Sol-Ark recommended batteries

 

[JakeinCanada]

You might want to check out RJ Energy, they just came out with a ul certfied 8.3 kw battery stacking module. Their power wall uses a Deye 12k which I believe is the same as Sol Ark 15. Not sure if they sell the battery separately, the price per kw was lower then I had expected.

 

[Tulex]

I went with DIY, but there are many batteries that work with Sol-Ark. Don't know about codes, but if 9540 is required, many batteries out there say 9540 pending, so I'm assuming that won't be an issue in the near future.

Quick search, this is an example coming in at $1290, their page shows Sol-Ark compatibility.
30kWH, free shipping, $7469 after 10% code. Not bad.

Also, just noticed, looking at the images, they have video of Will reviewing it.

 

[n1helix]

I recently installed a 15k and went with 6x Ruixu batteries. Comms worked right out of the box. Haven't had any issues so far.
The Ruixu rack is very nice, would definitely recommend.

 

[2TrevorJ]

There are quite a few good options but a HomeGrid setup meets all your priorities (quality, ease of use, customer support, plug & play, reliability, code compliance , and lego-like modularity). The only (relatively significant) detractor is the premium price over other options.

I have a thread that details my install if you search.

 

[BlueMarblePA]

I am Using Pytes v5 with my solark 15k

 

[Ampster]

I am considering the Pytes as an upgrade to my SolArk 12K in order to pass inspection with my AHJ. The Pytes is UL 9540 approved but to be sure, I am applying for the permit listing my SolArk with the Pytes Forest RB enclosure to be sure before I buy the batteries. Currently, I am using a DIY LFP pack as shown in my signature.

 

[Danke]

SOK batteries communicate.

SOK 48V 100Ah PRO Server Rack Battery - User Serviceable | Current Connected

SOK 48V Server Rack Battery: 4000+ cycle life, UL1973 & UL9540A certified, UL9540 pending, Built-In Smart BMS, 10 year warranty & support!

www.currentconnected.com

 

[ArthurEld]

I am Using Pytes v5 with my solark 15k

How much are they?

 

[BlueMarblePA]

How much are they?

$1750 per 5kwh

 

[robby]

My Sol-Ark installer uses mostly Pytes batteries and some Fortress Power Batteries.
Pytes seems to be the best bang for the buck and is fully compatible with Sol-Ark Inverters.
If cash is not an issue then the eVault max or HomeGrid batteries are very nice options.

 

[Nobodybusiness]

If cash is not an issue then the eVault max or HomeGrid batteries are very nice options.

I’m sure fortress and home grid are great but $10,000 for 18kWh?

Home grid is $22,000 for 38.4 kWh.

Pytes is $1750 for 5.1kWh.

• Safety UL9540A listed, UL9540 with Sol-Ark, and CEC Listed

I could maybe understand if it was an inverter but that much just for cells, BMS and a case?

 

[SunDave]

Hi, I am running the pytes 48100R's with the 15k. Only had them a few months so far so can't vouch for longevity, but so far so good. They have coms, and the UL stuff I wanted for grid tie later on.

 

[Troubleshooter]

You really cannot "expand overtime". You cannot mix old and new batteries. You have about a year window to add more capacity, but that's about it.

 

[Ampster]

You cannot mix old and new batteries. You have about a year window to add more capacity, but that's about it.

Would you say that applies to rack type batteries like Pytes or SOK which have their ownBMS and are typically expected to be run in parallel? I do not see any warnings on their sites. I agree with the concept and that the weakest one could pull down the others. If one turns out bad it would not be hard to pull that module from the rack.