I suspect but cannot confirm that the ones under the subcategory Smart BMS are configurable. Though not sure how great their sorting/categories are since I think some of the things in the smart BMS section are just active balancers..
Heltec BMS' (up to 350A) with Active Balancing & Independent Active Balancers
- Thread starter Steve_S
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I suspect but cannot confirm that the ones under the subcategory Smart BMS are configurable. Though not sure how great their sorting/categories are since I think some of the things in the smart BMS section are just active balancers..
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
Goodness Gracious, I seem to have started something.
I just want to be perfectly clear. I don't know much of anything about this company, I found it while doing some searches and it piqued my curiosity & so thought to share it with fellow Enthusiasts. I have been looking into Active Balancers with at least 5A if not more for the ShunBin pack mess, which I've now split up into 2X 24V/175AH straight 8S. The Heltec Active Balancers popped up because they are 5A+ and the info was good from what I saw (not a lot though).
The BMS' they have, seem interesting considering the amp ratings (Grain of Salt or Cow Lick ?) and they have Common-Port & Split-Port models.
BTW: If anyone is interested. Here is their Alibaba Store and now they have a LOT of listings with subtle differences.
cncdheltec.en.alibaba.com
I just want to be perfectly clear. I don't know much of anything about this company, I found it while doing some searches and it piqued my curiosity & so thought to share it with fellow Enthusiasts. I have been looking into Active Balancers with at least 5A if not more for the ShunBin pack mess, which I've now split up into 2X 24V/175AH straight 8S. The Heltec Active Balancers popped up because they are 5A+ and the info was good from what I saw (not a lot though).
The BMS' they have, seem interesting considering the amp ratings (Grain of Salt or Cow Lick ?) and they have Common-Port & Split-Port models.
BTW: If anyone is interested. Here is their Alibaba Store and now they have a LOT of listings with subtle differences.
Company Overview - Chengdu Heltec Automation Technology Co., Ltd.
The basic information about Chengdu Heltec Automation Technology Co., Ltd.
cncdheltec.en.alibaba.com
I'm questioning whether Heltec, is in fact the maker of these BMS'
Yeah this blew up quick
there were a couple fragmented ongoing conversations on this BMS that migrated over here. Thanks for starting this thread, always preferable to have a proper on topic thread to centralize knowledge and to make it easier to search for in the future.
Heltec's alibaba or aliexpress site (can't remember which) sells what I'm pretty sure are the new and old version of what we all call the "ant BMS" as well as the "JBD Smart BMS" (the one sold by JBD/Jaibada, Overkill Solar, and Battery Hookup) under their own brand name (Heltec). Based on this, its not 100% clear to me whether Heltec is the manufacture or a brand/reseller, or all of the above. Curious to learn more about them.
Goodness Gracious, I seem to have started something.
I just want to be perfectly clear. I don't know much of anything about this company, I found it while doing some searches and it piqued my curiosity & so thought to share it with fellow Enthusiasts. I have been looking into Active Balancers with at least 5A if not more for the ShunBin pack mess, which I've now split up into 2X 24V/175AH straight 8S. The Heltec Active Balancers popped up because they are 5A+ and the info was good from what I saw (not a lot though).
The BMS' they have, seem interesting considering the amp ratings (Grain of Salt or Cow Lick ?) and they have Common-Port & Split-Port models.
BTW: If anyone is interested. Here is their Alibaba Store and now they have a LOT of listings with subtle differences.
Company Overview - Chengdu Heltec Automation Technology Co., Ltd.
The basic information about Chengdu Heltec Automation Technology Co., Ltd.
Yeah this blew up quick
there were a couple fragmented ongoing conversations on this BMS that migrated over here. Thanks for starting this thread, always preferable to have a proper on topic thread to centralize knowledge and to make it easier to search for in the future.Heltec's alibaba or aliexpress site (can't remember which) sells what I'm pretty sure are the new and old version of what we all call the "ant BMS" as well as the "JBD Smart BMS" (the one sold by JBD/Jaibada, Overkill Solar, and Battery Hookup) under their own brand name (Heltec). Based on this, its not 100% clear to me whether Heltec is the manufacture or a brand/reseller, or all of the above. Curious to learn more about them.
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
I think you may be getting mixed up with LLT Power Systems which I mentioned in here somewhere quite a ways back, I do believe some folks have product from them. I have seen positive feedback on LLT is a few places, for whatever that's worth.
ArthurEld
Solar Wizard
This one has 10A active balance - https://cncdheltec.en.alibaba.com/p...ifepo4_Lithium_Titanate_Battery_Balancer.html
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I don't think I'm getting mixed up on that (though I will admit keeping track of all the overlapping sellers and possible manufacturers is confusing). Here is the Heltec Official Aliexpress Store, nearly sure that the first listing is the 'new' Ant BMS, the second listing is the 'JBD smart BMS'**, and the third listing is the more common/popular model of the ant BMS.
Here is a side by side comparison of some of the Heltec Listings next to images of what I believe them to be identical to. To me it looks like not only are the products the same but the images are identical with logos and backgrounds photoshopped out of the Heltec listings.
| "New" Ant BMS (top Heltec, bottom ICgogo store) | JBD Smart BMS (left Heltec, right JBD official store) | Ant BMS (left Heltec, right ICgogo) |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
**As an aside, to the best of my knowledge:
JBD = Jaibada = LLT Power = LithiumPCB.com = the maker of the 120A 4S BMS sold by Overkill Solar, Battery Hookup, and others. SEE HERE
I have no idea who actually makes the Ant BMS.
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Is this one user configurable?
4S 8S 12S 13S 16S 200A 210A 250A 330A BMS
<h4 class="product-title-text" data-spm-anchor-id="a2g0o.detail.1000016.i2.6fea11e8JelRK1">24/48V Solar Energy Storage BMS Split Port 4S 8S 12S 13S 16S 200A 210A 250A 330A Continuous Lifepo4 BMS battery protection board</h4>heltec-bms.com
I don't have experience with that one, but it might not be. For reference, this is the one I have:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000776885236.html
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
Yes, who makes what for who is confusing. Going by appearance is pretty much moot as well.
Yeah definitely not conclusive, though combined with other factors, about the best it gets. I've been trying to do some research into some of the commodity BMS popular here that dont have the same amount of clear information as options like Chargery, SBMS, Daly.
If I'm trying to verify whether two BMS are the same I usually compare:
(Detailed) appearance (particularly pictures where the heatsinks are removed)
+
Smartphone App
+
Serial Number / Model Number if available
+
Company names or logos
+
(Detailed) Specs
When most or all of these line up, it gives me at least relatively high confidence that its the same model, or at least a convincing knockoff. It doesn't however answer the question of who manufactures it. With the Ant BMS, I'm no closer to knowing than when I started looking. With the JBD BMS, I suspect its LLT power / JBD Jaibada, but can't confirm. I am however highly confident that I can now spot and verify the JBD BMS by appearance and serial number.
In the case of the pictures above, you will notice that not only are they similar in appearance, but they are literally all the same picture and the BMS have literally the same labels except the AntBMS logo has been erased from the Heltec versions, and the background has been changed.
ArthurEld
Solar Wizard
You used 2 of the 100amp version from the link above. You have two 48v battery banks made up of 280 amp cells (28kwh). And you have 10K of solar panels.
I think most people would use a higher amp version. Do you recommend that other people use the 100a version for similar sized systems as yours?
The reason I went with the 100A version is just to test them out. Since they seem to work just fine, I'll get the higher amp version soon-ish. I have a large amount of storage, but a low daily consumption. The storage is basically there to increase my autonomy days. However those two 100A BMS combined can deliver 9kW of power, and handle all the solar of the 10kW array I can push at it - so it all depends on your loads.
ArthurEld
Solar Wizard
Thanks, I was thinking that the 200A version might be good for me. It is less than half the price of the 300A version.
My system will be about the same as yours except I will get a lot more sun. And my daily load will be much higher than yours.
ArthurEld
Solar Wizard
I just realized you mean that two 100A BMSs can deliver 9kw per hour. I think that's more than I will ever use.
Yes, if it draws equally from both (which it should), you can deliver the 9kW (not per hour, just instantaneous power but yes, 9kWh if you would run it for an hour with a 9kW load). I stress tested mine and they can deliver the full 100A apparently without issues, but it would still be best to assume 80% of this figure, so 80A, just to be on the safe side. This, across both devices, still is 7.6kW - much more than what I actually use with my 5kW inverter.
The one additional thing I do is put soft-starters on inductive loads such as pumps to decrease the spike they create at start.
ArthurEld
Solar Wizard
Thanks again. I will look into the soft starters.
ArthurEld
Solar Wizard
I imagine the Heltec label could be removed from the AntBMS. Or someone else could be making them and they both just put their label on them. Alibaba often gives resellers the option to have their logo put on the item. Ant and Heltec could be buying from multiple manufacturers. That wouldn't be unusual
There is definitely something odd going on. We should be able to figure out who makes the item.
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
One could consider that DeliGreen sells a LOT of stuff with their branding on it but they sure as heck don't make all of it. Look at their DALY BMS Lookalikes but they could also just be similar, using similar casing...
All tires are black, some have white walls and some have lettering, they're still tires but also very different too.
All tires are black, some have white walls and some have lettering, they're still tires but also very different too.
I suppose this is possible but not probable, at least for the BMS' referenced above (1) if you look at the pictures above it just isn't the case (2) at least some models of AntBMS have it printed on the PCB board, not just a sticker on the heatsink, not sure if all of them do though, which of course could also just be something an OEM/ODM offers but is more legit than Heltec just photoshopping their logo on pictures of unbranded BMS'.
This definitely could be the case. In fact this might be the most likely situation.
In the case of both AntBMS and Heltec (and even JBD) I'm not really sure whether they are brands or manufacturers or maybe a bit of both.
For most people this probably doesn't matter too much, I've been a bit preoccupied with this lately because (1) I feel like there is too much fragmentation and complexity in the BMS market and on this forum, and was frustrated that people were referring to their BMS by the name of the seller because they didn't know the model or manufacturer, which creates all these little silo's of information under obscure search terms rather than a broader knowledgebase, and also gives the impression that there are an overwhelming number of BMS' in use, when really the majority of people on this forum are using maybe 6 different families of BMS at most. (2) I feel like (or at least hope) the closer to the actual manufacturer we can get the more reliable and hopefully detailed the information available will be, BMS documentation is so atrocious usually, I'm hoping tracing things back to the source might help a bit (3) Information is good, the more we know the better (4) I'm a masochist and willing to subject myself to this sort of painfully boring detective work
And if its not clear (and it probably isn't),
(1) none of this as best I can tell applies to the black aluminum cased BMS from Heltec, I'm still interested in it, and I haven't seen it or anything similar to it sold elsewhere (and if I discovered that it were, I would still be intererested)
(2) none of this is meant to be an indictment of Heltec or even negative really, as you noted its not an uncommon practice for Chinese sellers/brands to relabel commodity items, or to sell commodity items alongside items they actually produce. I don't like the lack of transparency and I don't think they really gain anything from it, but it is what it is. I just want to get the clearest picture possible.
Look harder and longer and you will see whether white or black that tire will have a manufacturer, model, load range, size, and semi-unique tread pattern, and other useful differentiating info on it.
Looking at the case or heatsink isn't a great approach on its own, but take a systematic approach and a lot can be derived.
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