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Building your own battery pack - Jackery 500 Explorer

OnTheRoadAgain

Solar Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 22, 2021
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I bought a Jackery 500 Explorer and just thinking down the road.

The battery cycle life is 500 cycles.
So after you've discharged and re charged it about 500 times, the battery will lose or have lost a significant amount of it's capacity.

I have read that the battery packs have 18650 cells inside, but when it comes time, there are many options in lithium battery pack options.
This one I believe has two 250watt battery packs.

In reality, as long as it has identical Voltage and similar capacity, it should work as a replacement.
Perhaps you could even replace it with a LiFePO4

Also, I think the vast majority of people keep their Jackery Solar Generators fully charged, however, that is definitely NOT a good idea.
Lithium Ion batteries are best kept at about 50% of full charge. Keeping them fully charged during periods when not in use is going to reduce the life span significantly.

I have 5000mAh RC batteries that I keep at 50% charge and they test out to 95+% original capacity years later in storage.

PS.....
If you buy yours on Amazon you cannot return it. Returns for 30 days are only allowed if you purchase it directly from Jackery.com
 
Last edited:
I bought a Jackery 500 Explorer and just thinking down the road.

The battery cycle life is 500 cycles.
So after you've discharged and re charged it about 500 times, the battery will lose or have lost a significant amount of it's capacity.

I have read that the battery packs have 18650 cells inside, but when it comes time, there are many options in lithium battery pack options.
This one I believe has two 250watt battery packs.

In reality, as long as it has identical Voltage and similar capacity, it should work as a replacement.
Perhaps you could even replace it with a LiFePO4

Also, I think the vast majority of people keep their Jackery Solar Generators fully charged, however, that is definitely NOT a good idea.
Lithium Ion batteries are best kept at about 50% of full charge. Keeping them fully charged during periods when not in use is going to reduce the life span significantly.

I have 5000mAh RC batteries that I keep at 50% charge and they test out to 95+% original capacity years later in storage.

PS.....
If you buy yours on Amazon you cannot return it. Returns for 30 days are only allowed if you purchase it directly from Jackery.com
Welcome and thanks for your post. The 500 cycles threshold you mentioned is the point beyond which the pack drops to 80% of its original capacity. Yes, it's a hit, but not as dire as one might think. Also, the life of the battery pack depends upon what constitutes an average cycle of the battery. There have been several posts here that mention that cycling from 85% capacity down to 25% capacity extends the life of the pack in comparison to a cycle of 99% down to 5%. So it's really a case of "your mileage may vary".
 
Goal Zero (use the same chemistry) says 500 cycles to 80% with 1C charge and discharge.

It‘s impossible to charge and discharge this units with 1C, so you can get more than the expected 500 cycles. I think you can get 1000+ cycles to 80%.
 
Goal Zero (use the same chemistry) says 500 cycles to 80% with 1C charge and discharge.

It‘s impossible to charge and discharge this units with 1C, so you can get more than the expected 500 cycles. I think you can get 1000+ cycles to 80%.
What is the Ah of the J500? 27? (300Wh/11.1V nominal) so 1C would be exactly 27A... no?
 
About 500 watts charging power are 1C on these 500 Wh units. The input of the Jackery/Yeti 500 is limitated. The Yeti 500X can charge at maxium with 180 watts. Far from 500 watts, far from 1C.

The Yeti 500x has nominal 10.8V @ 46.8Ah, it‘s 505Wh (this shows the label on the bottom). I think the Jackery 500 is near the same.
 
1C discharge at maxium use. If someone use always the max of these 500Wh units they are the wrong choise and it would be better to take a larger one (Jackery 1000, Yeti 1000x, 1500x or greater).
 
1C discharge at maxium use. If someone use always the max of these 500Wh units they are the wrong choise and it would be better to take a larger one (Jackery 1000, Yeti 1000x, 1500x or greater).

Agree. Using the maximum capability of nearly anything ensures less service life.

That is why it made little sense to me to purchase a Jackery 240 since the same applies and using the full 240watts often will lead to premature equipment failure. The Jackery 240 is best kept under approximately 180Watts. The 500 Explorer, under 400 Watts.

I can at least do some things with 400 Watts. But only 180 ? Not much.
 
My Jackery Explorer 500 pooped out just when we needed it most. DEAD, nothing lights up! I'm considering replacing the battery pack myself. Any help is appreciated. I do have some knowledge and nit afraid to use tools.
 
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