Heater Vest - Can this be used for lithium batteries?

[Santa]

Someone posted a link here to this website yesterday. I ran across this heated vest (really too big for me to wear, but could be OK with wearing layers) and I was wondering if it could be used for batteries in a pinch. I don't plan on being in areas that drop below 32F, but could this work as a battery heating pad (XX size)? I didn't see the type of battery it even uses though, so that could be a bust if it's lithium?? I love dual duty stuff. It has a coupon so its pretty inexpensive. Any thoughts? https://www.rockpals.com/products/rockpals-heated-vest-with-power-bank?variant=31318632431673

 

[Justin Laureltec]

I don't see why this wouldn't work... they don't specify the battery type anywhere that I can see, but at that capacity/size I'm sure it's basic li-ion... shouldn't be a problem at temperature though, because A. it's charging that's the real problem with LFP at low temps, not so much discharging, and B. the vest itself should warm its own battery pack. In a pinch, I feel like this would be a viable solution.

A longtime customer of ours who's built several systems over the years just uses 12v snowmobile handlebar warmers like these stuck to the outside of his LFP banks and swears by them: https://www.ebay.com/itm/US-Motorcy...190523?hash=item23cb17cefb:g:ywUAAOSwzwBd1D-Q

 

[Santa]

I don't see why this wouldn't work... they don't specify the battery type anywhere that I can see, but at that capacity/size I'm sure it's basic li-ion... shouldn't be a problem at temperature though, because A. it's charging that's the real problem with LFP at low temps, not so much discharging, and B. the vest itself should warm its own battery pack. In a pinch, I feel like this would be a viable solution.

A longtime customer of ours who's built several systems over the years just uses 12v snowmobile handlebar warmers like these stuck to the outside of his LFP banks and swears by them: https://www.ebay.com/itm/US-Motorcy...190523?hash=item23cb17cefb:g:ywUAAOSwzwBd1D-Q

Wow, those are cool! (no pun intended.) I could get those for my scooter. Forgive my ignorance, but how exactly do you power them?

 

[Justin Laureltec]

Wow, those are cool! (no pun intended.) I could get those for my scooter. Forgive my ignorance, but how exactly do you power them?

Well I'm pretty sure they just come with pigtails to wire directly to a 12v source... the customer in question wired them to a 12v relay connected to a digital thermostat so they'd kick on when the temp got below 34F, but of course you could also wire them (properly fused, of course) to a little switch and connect to your battery from there and just turn them on manually or, technically, if you had a BMV-7xx with a temperature sensor you could connect them to a relay triggered by the relay-out on the back of the BMV, with the relay-out being closed by the temp reading from the sensor. Quite a few viable options, really, depending on the existing components you might have and the level of automation that you want.

...obviously this method isn't manufacturer-approved, so I can't necessarily professionally comment on it, but personally, if done right, I think it's a great idea.

 

[Santa]

Well I'm pretty sure they just come with pigtails to wire directly to a 12v source... the customer in question wired them to a 12v relay connected to a digital thermostat so they'd kick on when the temp got below 34F, but of course you could also wire them (properly fused, of course) to a little switch and connect to your battery from there and just turn them on manually or, technically, if you had a BMV-7xx with a temperature sensor you could connect them to a relay triggered by the relay-out on the back of the BMV, with the relay-out being closed by the temp reading from the sensor. Quite a few viable options, really, depending on the existing components you might have and the level of automation that you want.

...obviously this method isn't manufacturer-approved, so I can't necessarily professionally comment on it, but personally, if done right, I think it's a great idea.

I like what you said, just wish I could follow...ty

 

[Justin Laureltec]

I like what you said, just wish I could follow...ty

Ah, sorry... I just mean that I believe each of the pads comes with a POS wire and a NEG wire sticking out of it, and when you connect to a 12v source, the pad heats up (I believe these pads have adhesive on one side so you can just stick them to a battery).
Obviously you wouldn't want them running all the time, so you could connect the NEG lead to the battery and connect the POS to a small switch that you just manually switch on when it gets cold. Or there are digital thermostats like this that are programmable so that when a certain temperature is reached, they close a relay (thus connecting a power source to a load) and would turn on/off the heating pads automatically.

 

[Santa]

Ah, sorry... I just mean that I believe each of the pads comes with a POS wire and a NEG wire sticking out of it, and when you connect to a 12v source, the pad heats up (I believe these pads have adhesive on one side so you can just stick them to a battery).
Obviously you wouldn't want them running all the time, so you could connect the NEG lead to the battery and connect the POS to a small switch that you just manually switch on when it gets cold. Or there are digital thermostats like this that are programmable so that when a certain temperature is reached, they close a relay (thus connecting a power source to a load) and would turn on/off the heating pads automatically.

Nice! Thanks for the info!

 

[Santa]

I just received my heated vest. Very nice! I bought it in case my batteries get below 32F, or in case I get cold. I bought the XXL (I am a pretty small woman). They run small, compared to the picture. If you buy one, get the XXL. I got mine for 50% off yesterday and shipped to me in one day.