DIY LiFePO4 Cost Analysis - February 2022 Edition
- Thread starter upnorthandpersonal
- Start date
Bluedog225
Texas
- Joined
- Nov 18, 2019
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I was afraid of that. Thanks!
michael d
off-grid solar pilgrim
strap them to your roof with ratchet straps...easy solution packing blanket underneath if you worry about a scratch... i used to carry unbelievable amounts of stuff on a 750 Kawasaki 2cycle triple.??or just let them ship them to you....
sidpost
New Member
I'm working on an order of 32 CATL 302's from Jenny myself right now.
Bigtruckin85
New Member
I've been trying to decide between 16 or 32 from Jenny Wu too. 32 more would probably be overkill, but I'd kinda rather have them than not.
sidpost
New Member
I opted for 32 to reduce the drawdown on one set and give me more headroom for electrical growth in the future.
Also, I expect the minerals used in these batteries to become a lot more expensive in addition to inflation price pressure.
Bigtruckin85
New Member
I already have 16 I just put together, so the next 16 would be exactly along your thinking. If I got 32, it could be the same, but also I'm ordering from China, so it's a better cost basis for shipping. And since I've gotten started down this rabbit hole, I have family interested in it. So I figure somebody can use them or I can use them. I also tend to overdo things a bit when I find something good. This is also why I end up with huge bags of candy. ?
sidpost
New Member
My recent pricing was $120/ea from China without shipping or importation impacts due to docking and unloading issues versus $143/ea in Houston for in-stock batteries. Houston is close enough to me so, it wasn't worth $17/ea for shipping ~4 hours away. Also, the China shipping cost was pretty close to the $17/ea charge so, in-stock batteries were an easy win for myself with the minor inconvenience of losing one calendar day and $5/gallon diesel to get them instead of playing the shipping from China lotto. 
If I was in the PNW like yourself, shipping directly from China would likely look different.
If I was in the PNW like yourself, shipping directly from China would likely look different.
I was going to buy 16 Eve LF280K batteries, unless there's a better current recommendation for the money. I'll likely use the slow boat from China, assuming it's cheaper as I'm still waiting for an inverter. Who do you guys recommend contacting? Jenny, Amy, Amie etc...
Price is important, but obviously getting genuine new grade A cells and having a trustworthy source is most important... Coming with decent bus bars (preferably with small holes and a "kink" in them to release stress) is a plus.
Best practice for payment method is a good CC or use PP?
Price is important, but obviously getting genuine new grade A cells and having a trustworthy source is most important... Coming with decent bus bars (preferably with small holes and a "kink" in them to release stress) is a plus.
Best practice for payment method is a good CC or use PP?
Bigtruckin85
New Member
The LF280K are what I have. Many people use the 304's. Other people can comment on their experience with the 304, but the 280k's have been rock solid so far.
My first order came with solid bus bars. I'm thinking my next one I'll try the flexible ones which I think costs $.45 extra each from Docan.
Either way, I highly recommend Jenny Wu from Docan and she will answer your questions. jennywu896@gmail.com. Docan batteries so far have been very solid, service from Jenny has been even better. She will have your back with anything she can help with.
I used a credit card through PayPal. I would recommend using a credit card one way or another just in case.
Last time I checked, the 304 AH cells were actually as cheap or cheaper than the 280 AH cells, but that can change.
Always use a credit card. Federal law covers credit card transactions, PayPal covers PayPal transactions. Even better, use a credit card with PayPal.
I'm not saying PayPal protection is no good, but it isn't a law.
michael d
off-grid solar pilgrim
you might want to try more than one vendor for price shipped to your door.
I have used Ryan Zeng 2 times and received grade A cells both times direct from china on the slow boat ride. he can provide ship tracking and I had no problems. the last order I received in December 2021.
I emailed Ryan Zeng to get more complete contact information.
https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Free-Shipping-US-STOCK-Deep-Cycle_1600319823720.html? spm=a2756.order-detail-ta-ta-s.0.0.68912fc2j1qIIj
the above link is from Ryan Zeng
further, he states:
This is EVE LF280, which is a link containing the price of the U.S. warehouse and shipment from China.
1. Us warehouse: the goods are in transit. If everything goes well, it is expected to be available in two weeks. This will enable buyers in urgent need of batteries to provide faster transportation services.
2. Shipment from China, the current transportation time is about 2 months
At present, due to the coming of the new year, the continuous rise in the cost of raw materials and more factors, the price of batteries has also increased compared with before, and the inventory is very tight. According to previous years' experience, this situation may last until March to April next year. If any friends need it,can consult in advance and make a purchase plan.
and he also said to tell you this:
In addition, if you can, if your friends contact us through your sharing way, you can remind them to mention your name, so that we can better give the best discount and service.Thank you!
my name is Michael Clark >>>> in the forum I just used Michael D
seems like they have stock or have a shipment going to a USA warehouse for quicker delivery.
Ryan Zeng also said:
My personal contact email address is:admin@threecreating.com
Ryan
Ryan has always been very helpful and can communicate in good English. hope you have success in your LiFePO4 efforts. they also sell other things like BMS etc , I am using the Electrodacus SBMS0 on my 24-volt builds
cheers, Michael D ?
the last set of 32 EVE 280Ah LF280K cells I bought had the welded-on pre-tapped threaded holes. that way I am able to use other sizes of set screws/grub screws with the serrated flange nut method... some people like the welded on stud method.... nickel-plated copper busbars, ss washers, ss serrated flange nuts, and ss studs were included, I advise to get double the busbar order for initial top balancing and paralleling the cells. ( I received those on December 4th, 2021). so his response was December 2021 also
I have 96 cells (LiFePO4 272Ah and 280Ah) cycling that have all been purchased via the china direct method through Alibaba... this was the cheaper method but expect 60 plus days before the battery cell order gets to you....(I am in South Dakota USA) some places shorter and someplace may take longer for the shipping,,,,, but the cash out of pocket savings was worth the wait for me!!!!
good luck with your DIY project...?
I believe most all resellers get their cells from the same factory, all cells I received had intact QR codes, no used scratched-off ones or any BS like that.
definitely use your credit card to pay....
I have used Ryan Zeng 2 times and received grade A cells both times direct from china on the slow boat ride. he can provide ship tracking and I had no problems. the last order I received in December 2021.
I emailed Ryan Zeng to get more complete contact information.
https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Free-Shipping-US-STOCK-Deep-Cycle_1600319823720.html? spm=a2756.order-detail-ta-ta-s.0.0.68912fc2j1qIIj
the above link is from Ryan Zeng
further, he states:
This is EVE LF280, which is a link containing the price of the U.S. warehouse and shipment from China.
1. Us warehouse: the goods are in transit. If everything goes well, it is expected to be available in two weeks. This will enable buyers in urgent need of batteries to provide faster transportation services.
2. Shipment from China, the current transportation time is about 2 months
At present, due to the coming of the new year, the continuous rise in the cost of raw materials and more factors, the price of batteries has also increased compared with before, and the inventory is very tight. According to previous years' experience, this situation may last until March to April next year. If any friends need it,can consult in advance and make a purchase plan.
and he also said to tell you this:
In addition, if you can, if your friends contact us through your sharing way, you can remind them to mention your name, so that we can better give the best discount and service.Thank you!
my name is Michael Clark >>>> in the forum I just used Michael D
seems like they have stock or have a shipment going to a USA warehouse for quicker delivery.
Ryan Zeng also said:
My personal contact email address is:admin@threecreating.com
Ryan
Ryan has always been very helpful and can communicate in good English. hope you have success in your LiFePO4 efforts. they also sell other things like BMS etc , I am using the Electrodacus SBMS0 on my 24-volt builds
cheers, Michael D ?
the last set of 32 EVE 280Ah LF280K cells I bought had the welded-on pre-tapped threaded holes. that way I am able to use other sizes of set screws/grub screws with the serrated flange nut method... some people like the welded on stud method.... nickel-plated copper busbars, ss washers, ss serrated flange nuts, and ss studs were included, I advise to get double the busbar order for initial top balancing and paralleling the cells. ( I received those on December 4th, 2021). so his response was December 2021 also
I have 96 cells (LiFePO4 272Ah and 280Ah) cycling that have all been purchased via the china direct method through Alibaba... this was the cheaper method but expect 60 plus days before the battery cell order gets to you....(I am in South Dakota USA) some places shorter and someplace may take longer for the shipping,,,,, but the cash out of pocket savings was worth the wait for me!!!!
good luck with your DIY project...?
I believe most all resellers get their cells from the same factory, all cells I received had intact QR codes, no used scratched-off ones or any BS like that.
definitely use your credit card to pay....
Last edited:
Thank you, I will contact him. Also, I have seen some recent images of the Eve 280's with a welded on "adaptor" which appears to have two taped holes, rather than the single. I haven't seen a pre-tapped busbar for it, but it does look like it might offer a superior connection. I'm curious to learn more about it. Link with image: https://www.18650batterystore.com/collections/lifepo4-prismatic-cells/products/eve-lf280k
michael d
off-grid solar pilgrim
I have never seen any with the two tapped holes like the link you provided... wonder what the bus bars look like???
I put together 4P8S 24-volt batteries using 32 cells, and plan to try some 2P16S LiFePO4 EVE LF280K with 32 cells in the future @ 48-volts,
I would seem to make the battery connections more complicated with the 2-hole style welded-on pre-tapped cells...
but then again I have never seen that style.
interesting to see a different version though....??
If you have the right bus bar, I suppose you could fasten it to the terminal with two screws/bolts on each end. That assumes a common 4s battery. A 4p4s could use up to eight fasteners for each bus bar if you created a custom bus bar that spanned four cells.
One nice thing about the two fasteners per terminal is that with the right bus bar, you wouldn't need to stack the bus bars during top balancing when the cells were in parallel.
Do you have a link or contact info for how to do this? I didn't see a direct buy link on their site.
Yes, they have a store on alibaba https://evebatteryglobal.en.alibaba.com/
But I would caution buying directly from them, as there was a user here who did and they were packed poorly and were damaged during shipping.
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