Leaking Electrolyte from Bigbattery Powerblock

[sshibly]

Not defending BB actions or the lack of QC, but as a small business owner I feel their pain.

You hire good people and design and build a product, one employees lapse of judgement or lack of a brain causes MAJOR head and heartache.
Then the lawyer and underwriters dictate what you can say or do.

Many businesses refuse to even address overt issues with the product they sell, take XUBA for example.

If I was paying a premium, I would expect a level of service. I wonder if their sale contract includes a SLA for battery issues.

 

[colemab]

Not defending BB actions or the lack of QC, but as a small business owner I feel their pain.

You hire good people and design and build a product, one employees lapse of judgement or lack of a brain causes MAJOR head and heartache.
Then the lawyer and underwriters dictate what you can say or do.

Many businesses refuse to even address overt issues with the product they sell, take XUBA for example.

If I was paying a premium, I would expect a level of service. I wonder if their sale contract includes a SLA for battery issues.

We live in an imperfect world. I expect to pay premium prices for 100% QA. On the other end, I simply ask that vendors honor their warrenty when things slip thru. I think BB did that here for me. Renogy did too but just was a bit more of a hassle. That being said, I've found value in both of their products and can say that as of right now I'm a happy customer.

 

[AndyRonLI]

whooo that took a while. Now I had finally gotten honest with myself that I was not in any position to build my own pack by the time I am scheduled to roll the new trailer on its first big trip. And I ended up buying used rather than new so I so have budget for commercial battery packs. I had myself convinced that the Owls were the best deal in the larger 12V sizes and were in stock. Then I read this thread. Oh well. If ignorance is bliss, tis folly to be wise. still may buy a couple of Owls, but will watch them like a Hawk.

 

[sshibly]

We live in an imperfect world. I expect to pay premium prices for 100% QA. On the other end, I simply ask that vendors honor their warrenty when things slip thru. I think BB did that here for me. Renogy did too but just was a bit more of a hassle. That being said, I've found value in both of their products and can say that as of right now I'm a happy customer.

Good deal,
BB and others who do the right thing - kudos.

 

[AndyRonLI]

whooo that took a while. Now I had finally gotten honest with myself that I was not in any position to build my own pack by the time I am scheduled to roll the new trailer on its first big trip. And I ended up buying used rather than new so I so have budget for commercial battery packs. I had myself convinced that the Owls were the best deal in the larger 12V sizes and were in stock. Then I read this thread. Oh well. If ignorance is bliss, tis folly to be wise. still may buy a couple of Owls, but will watch them like a Hawk.

As an aside, decided to go with ampere time. No plans (per my better half) to ever be in the camper when it is below freezing! The camper is for going where it is warm!

 

[Will Prowse]

Uh oh, looks like we have another leaking cell. I will comment back asking them to post here.

 

[Atomic Ed]

Uh oh, looks like we have another leaking cell. I will comment back asking them to post here.

View attachment 56141

Oh no... i have a BB Hawk model on order right now and it is supposed to ship on 8-18-21.

Do you think I should have faith that these are random occurrence with their leaking or should I be concerned and cancel my order?

I have been trying to find a decent lifepo4 pack for months and have watched many of your great videos on them. But I have been unable to find anything like the Hawk for capacity, features, price or availability. It seems almost all the decent pre made packs are either on backorder, way over priced or have reported defects.

I would appreciate your input on what you would do.

 

[DerpsyDoodler]

I doubt Will wants to be the proverbial nail in the coffin. just go back and read this entire thread. It should be enough to make an informed decision.

 

[Bob B]

I doubt Will wants to be the proverbial nail in the coffin. just go back and read this entire thread. It should be enough to make an informed decision.

I agree .... no-one can make a decision for you. All someone else can do is provide the information.

Will is currently not making a recommendation in favor of buying Big Battery product .... that and his video is what started this thread.

If you do a search, you will find other Big Battery threads .... which is what I would recommend before purchasing from any vendor .... see what experience other forum members have had.

 

[Alkaline]

I think bigbattery is now going to go after his forum wanting to shut it down.

 

[Atomic Ed]

I agree .... no-one can make a decision for you. All someone else can do is provide the information.

Will is currently not making a recommendation in favor of buying Big Battery product .... that and his video is what started this thread.

If you do a search, you will find other Big Battery threads .... which is what I would recommend before purchasing from any vendor .... see what experience other forum members have had.

I know what you guys are saying and I understand that concept, however Will has far more exposure to these batteries than I do and he would know better if this is a systemic issue meaning the odds of leaky cells are likely or not.

This is what I am trying to figure out right now. I realize he is not recommending them for awhile and I still gave them a shot thinking the leaky cells would be unlikely for me to also receive as well. In fact I heard they revised things to avoid this issue.

However today I am seeing this so obviously I would like to have his opinion on the facts of the matter in his experience. I also know nothing about the other brands out there that are available to me, so anything I buy could be a crapshoot.

 

[mesquito_creek]

I would like to see some more detail... I don't see any BB that is smaller than 2100 wh, so it would be nice to have the model etc beyond a "large 750wh" battery? Secondly, how do you get one of the heavy monsters into a position where anything would be able to run down your arm?... I can't get my batteries off of the ground beyond wheeling them about on the casters they have?

For the record I bought a large BB 48v battery system based on Will's video and recommendation before he un-recommended them. I have 4 - 48V Hsky's that I am using full time off grid. And as Will has said before, I am abusing the heck out of them. Off Grid, Running them every day cycling Air conditioners and pushing the envelope of temperature on the high side in the summer and the cold side in the winter. So as of today I am in the winning side of the debate, but I am monitoring for any leaks. I don't lift them or carry them in any way that would get them close to my arms etc. and wear the proper PPE (gloves/eyes) whenever I am working around them.

 

[Gazoo]

However today I am seeing this so obviously I would like to have his opinion on the facts of the matter in his experience. I also know nothing about the other brands out there that are available to me, so anything I buy could be a crapshoot.

I think I would go by the combined experience others have had with Big Battery and not rely on only the experience of Will. If you search the forum and read through this thread you will be able to make a decision.

The biggest problem I have with BB is the honestly of the CEO and I won't say any more about that. Read the thread. The problems with this company have not been limited to leaky cells. From what I know this could be the third reported case of BB's cells leaking.

 

[mesquito_creek]

I know what you guys are saying and I understand that concept, however Will has far more exposure to these batteries than I do and he would know better if this is a systemic issue meaning the odds of leaky cells are likely or not.

This is what I am trying to figure out right now. I realize he is not recommending them for awhile and I still gave them a shot thinking the leaky cells would be unlikely for me to also receive as well. In fact I heard they revised things to avoid this issue.

However today I am seeing this so obviously I would like to have his opinion on the facts of the matter in his experience. I also know nothing about the other brands out there that are available to me, so anything I buy could be a crapshoot.

I think if it was unsafe or systemic Will would not have posted a video just 3 weeks ago where he is using a pair of BigBatteries to run his AC unit in his shop. He also put to use the replacements BB sent him when he was using the solar trailer he built. If you already have BigBatteries just keep an eye on them and use the proper PPE and safety precautions around them.

Then go watch Will Rant Video about how everything is built in China. Whatever you buy will have all Chinese stuff in them...

 

[curiouscarbon]

white grease

 

[Will Prowse]

I have always tried to give those batteries a chance, but at this point I am no longer doing so. Even if I have a good experience, if others have bad experiences, and post them here on the forum, then I cannot recommend them. As simple as that.

You should not require "proper safety precautions and PPE" around any lifepo4 battery.

And we do not have any evidence besides a youtube comment, but it does scare me. It is not the only comment like this that we have seen. And again, they keep coming in. I am hoping they will post pictures of their pack and what they mean by 750Wh.

And yes, no need to listen to me on this topic. Simply search around this forum, and you will find all the information you need to come to a decision on buying from that company.

 

[Bud Martin]

Oh no... i have a BB Hawk model on order right now and it is supposed to ship on 8-18-21.

Do you think I should have faith that these are random occurrence with their leaking or should I be concerned and cancel my order?

I have been trying to find a decent lifepo4 pack for months and have watched many of your great videos on them. But I have been unable to find anything like the Hawk for capacity, features, price or availability. It seems almost all the decent pre made packs are either on backorder, way over priced or have reported defects.

I would appreciate your input on what you would do.

Did you read this thread?

BigBattery Reply to Will Prowse Bashing Video's on YouTube.

Will Prowse, You have BANNED our company from commenting on your YouTube video's and released your (6th) Video today Bashing our company (BigBattery.com). Hopefully you will not delete this comment as well and allow your forum to hear both sides of the story. Please see our reply to your...

diysolarforum.com

 

[Just John]

I know what you guys are saying and I understand that concept, however Will has far more exposure to these batteries than I do and he would know better if this is a systemic issue meaning the odds of leaky cells are likely or not.

This is what I am trying to figure out right now. I realize he is not recommending them for awhile and I still gave them a shot thinking the leaky cells would be unlikely for me to also receive as well. In fact I heard they revised things to avoid this issue.

However today I am seeing this so obviously I would like to have his opinion on the facts of the matter in his experience. I also know nothing about the other brands out there that are available to me, so anything I buy could be a crapshoot.

I can't and won't speak for Will.

From what I have heard, the pressure relief valve is where the leak occurs. Either the valve is faulty, or the way it is attached to the cell. Keep them upright. Even if they don't leak, if they are over charged while on their side, they will spit out electrolyte on their side rather than noxious gas. As a side benefit, upright it is designed to fully immerse the internals, on side, not so much if not 100% full. Just because you can put the cells on their side doesn't mean you should is what it boils down to.

Obviously the cell manufacturer needs to address this problem, it is a dangerous quality control issue.

 

[mesquito_creek]

You should not require "proper safety precautions and PPE" around any lifepo4 battery.

If this was directed at me I didn't imply that you need to do anything special, but you should do the basic safety and PPE whenever you are servicing any components in your electrical system.

If you go rearrange your you battery packs in flip flops and shorts and drop a 100lbs battery pack on you toe I have no sympathy. If you spark the leads on your battery connection with no eye protection you deserve what you get.

 

[Atomic Ed]

I can't and won't speak for Will.

From what I have heard, the pressure relief valve is where the leak occurs. Either the valve is faulty, or the way it is attached to the cell. Keep them upright. Even if they don't leak, if they are over charged while on their side, they will spit out electrolyte on their side rather than noxious gas. As a side benefit, upright it is designed to fully immerse the internals, on side, not so much if not 100% full. Just because you can put the cells on their side doesn't mean you should is what it boils down to.

Obviously the cell manufacturer needs to address this problem, it is a dangerous quality control issue.

Thank you very much for your response. It is very informative (to me) info on the possible cause of the issue.
I have searched for the bigbattery info and what I see is a mixed bag of people with different opinions both for and against. I also saw the thread where their ceo was less than professional in his responses to the thread questions but like I said I still gave them a shot.

Knowing now what your saying about the cell relief valves makes sense and I do not plan on laying the unit on its side, so I am going to wait and see what they send me. Its the kind of info I was looking for and I appreciate your sharing that with me,

 

[curiouscarbon]

to maybe try and bridge the gap,

i suspect two types of PPE are being discussed.

1) one type for normal battery maintenance

2) one type for hazmat

i perceived that will was saying that #2 should be unnecessary

 

[mesquito_creek]

to maybe try and bridge the gap,

i suspect two types of PPE are being discussed.

1) one type for normal battery maintenance

2) one type for hazmat

i perceived that will was saying that #2 should be unnecessary

I fully agree... I quoted @Atomic Ed with his concern with his current batteries and simply said use the proper PPE.

When it comes to the problem Will presented by "Chris Bishop".. I am concerned that he had a "strong toxic smell" for him and his son when he opened the box and then proceed to handle the battery in a manner that liquid ran down his arm and hands. At the point of the "strong toxic smell" its time to up your PPE game regardless...

 

[Atomic Ed]

Did you read this thread?

BigBattery Reply to Will Prowse Bashing Video's on YouTube.

Will Prowse, You have BANNED our company from commenting on your YouTube video's and released your (6th) Video today Bashing our company (BigBattery.com). Hopefully you will not delete this comment as well and allow your forum to hear both sides of the story. Please see our reply to your...

diysolarforum.com

Yes thank you for linking it.

 

[mesquito_creek]

Sorry for the safety rant... 25 years in the electric utility industry with DuPont STOP safety training and Smith System driving and I must have been "triggered"... I just don't like to see people hurt. I will go away

 

[Atomic Ed]

Sorry for the safety rant... 25 years in the electric utility industry with DuPont STOP safety training and Smith System driving and I must have been "triggered"... I just don't like to see people hurt. I will go away

Hey, who can legitimately complain about being safe.

I found value in your interest for the safety of others.