Looking for rack mount LiFePO4 prebuilts, most reputable from Alibaba

[sandog]

Hello and good afternoon. I have browsed this forum and have seen many recommendations for the different LiFePO4 cells. And perhaps my request is not as DIY as everyone else, but I am looking for a good source of rack mount battery setup. I prefer to not build my own battery packs for this, as the rest of the system is going to be substantially DIY.

Thank you

 

[houseofancients]

seplos is one, eg4 by signature solar, vglory is one..
did you even search ?

 

[robby]

Hello and good afternoon. I have browsed this forum and have seen many recommendations for the different LiFePO4 cells. And perhaps my request is not as DIY as everyone else, but I am looking for a good source of rack mount battery setup. I prefer to not build my own battery packs for this, as the rest of the system is going to be substantially DIY.

Thank you

I ordered one of the EG4 LL a month ago. It seems like a very good battery.
Signature Solar

Will Prowse also has a video review of them.

 

[sandog]

seplos is one, eg4 by signature solar, vglory is one..
did you even search ?

Yes, I did. The EG4 and EG4LL came up. The price being around 1500 and 1700, seemed to be about 500 more than aliexpress. Which is why I came here. On one unit, I would not really care, on 3~5 units, that extra substantially adds up.

 

[sandog]

I ordered one of the EG4 LL a month ago. It seems like a very good battery.
Signature Solar

Will Prowse also has a video review of them.

Yes, I saw his video, he did an incredible review on them.

 

[HRTKD]

There are more and more U.S. based battery makers. @HighTechLab is one and he's on the forum.

 

[robby]

Yes, I did. The EG4 and EG4LL came up. The price being around 1500 and 1700, seemed to be about 500 more than aliexpress. Which is why I came here. On one unit, I would not really care, on 3~5 units, that extra substantially adds up.

You should not only watch the prices but the Quality of the batteries inside the unit. Also the amount of charge cycles plus Warranty and ease of warranty return are a big factor. Any pre built battery pack for $1000 that is 5KWh and coming off of Aliexpress is most likely going to be really poor B Quality cells. God help you if one or two of those packs have an internal issue or even a shipping damage issue.

 

[sandog]

You should not only watch the prices but the Quality of the batteries inside the unit. Also the amount of charge cycles plus Warranty and ease of warranty return are a big factor. Any pre built battery pack for $1000 that is 5KWh and coming off of Aliexpress is most likely going to be really poor B Quality cells. God help you if one or two of those packs have an internal issue or even a shipping damage issue.

That is what i was figuring out with research, which is why I am asking for recommendations here.

 

[HRTKD]

That is what i was figuring out with research, which is why I am asking for recommendations here.

LION Energy makes off-the-shelf batteries that you can buy through Costco. A friend of mine just put four of them in his fifth wheel trailer.

 

[sandog]

LION Energy makes off-the-shelf batteries that you can buy through Costco. A friend of mine just put four of them in his fifth wheel trailer.

I saw them, but price kW is pricey.......essentially 16 of their large battery. The EG4 is fairly inexpensive per kW, I am just seeing if I can shave a little bit more off. Unfortunately, Starlink is not allowing mobility of their dish with any time frameframe so I need to shave some money where I can, with out sacrificing safety in order to buy a sat com system for the boat trip.

 

[robby]

That is what i was figuring out with research, which is why I am asking for recommendations here.

My recommendation is that whatever you buy make sure it has a US distributor and a Warranty.

 

[Steve_S]

The Link here will lead you to Solar Battery comparison charts
The detailed battery comparison tables are separated into the following three main types of energy storage systems primarily used for on-grid and off-grid solar and backup power applications:
* AC-Coupled battery systems
* DC-coupled battery systems
* Off-grid battery systems
NOTE:
There are several offerings for different configurations. A Large Majority have the ability to interact with Solar Charge Controllers, Inverters & AIO's (All In One Solar Units) but you must check for your specific equipment to see if they are compatible.
https://www.cleanenergyreviews.info/battery-storage-comparison-chart

BTW: Several more products & upgraded versions have been released since that review/list was published in the spring.

I Hope this helps, Good Luck with your implementation.
Steve

 

[houseofancients]

Yes, I did. The EG4 and EG4LL came up. The price being around 1500 and 1700, seemed to be about 500 more than aliexpress. Which is why I came here. On one unit, I would not really care, on 3~5 units, that extra substantially adds up.

seplos mason kits 5 kwh sell for around 1000 ex shipping
@Sanwizard please elaborate on shipping costs

 

[sandog]

The Link here will lead you to Solar Battery comparison charts
The detailed battery comparison tables are separated into the following three main types of energy storage systems primarily used for on-grid and off-grid solar and backup power applications:
* AC-Coupled battery systems
* DC-coupled battery systems
* Off-grid battery systems
NOTE:
There are several offerings for different configurations. A Large Majority have the ability to interact with Solar Charge Controllers, Inverters & AIO's (All In One Solar Units) but you must check for your specific equipment to see if they are compatible.
https://www.cleanenergyreviews.info/battery-storage-comparison-chart

BTW: Several more products & upgraded versions have been released since that review/list was published in the spring.

I Hope this helps, Good Luck with your implementation.
Steve

Steve, helps greatly! Thank you.

I also learned that Luyuan Company may do full battery packs.

 

[Sanwizard]

seplos mason kits 5 kwh sell for around 1000 ex shipping
@Sanwizard please elaborate on shipping costs

Shipping was around $1000 for 2 units. They are heavy. So $2000 for 4 units. Very expensive shipping, which I believe in part they do to offset their $1000 price per unit. So figure $1500 per Mason shipped. Still a good deal.

 

[fafrd]

My recommendation is that whatever you buy make sure it has a US distributor and a Warranty.

It’s still early days and essentially the Wild West when it comes to off-the-shelf LiFePO4 batteries here in the US.

We are still a long, long way from having a Duracell for LiFePO4 batteries.

So today, you’ve really only got 2 choices:

-decide warranty is a high-priority for you, in which case you need to pay up to purchase from the largest, most stable company you can find (ie: Tesla, SimpliPhi, Enphase, possibly BYD)

-decide the added cost of buying from a large stable company is not worth the premium, in which case you are taking a big chance there will be no company there to back up your ‘warranty’ if/when you have a failure years from now and attempt to collect on your ‘warranty’

Between purchasing from a well-established Chinese company like BYD versus purchasing from a ‘flavor-du-jour’ US Company such as Signature Solar, I’m not sure which I’d give the nod to.

For sure, if your primary concern is receiving defective product as opposed a failure years from now, buying from a US company with a solid return/warranty policy is a huge plus (though just buying through Amazon goes a long way towards addressing that same concern).

 

[Sanwizard]

It’s still early days and essentially the Wild West when it comes to off-the-shelf LiFePO4 batteries here in the US.

We are still a long, long way from having a Duracell for LiFePO4 batteries.

So today, you’ve really only got 2 choices:

-decide warranty is a high-priority for you, in which case you need to pay up to purchase from the largest, most stable company you can find (ie: Tesla, SimpliPhi, Enphase, possibly BYD)

-decide the added cost of buying from a large stable company is not worth the premium, in which case you are taking a big chance there will be no company there to back up your ‘warranty’ if/when you have a failure years from now and attempt to collect on your ‘warranty’

Between purchasing from a well-established Chinese company like BYD versus purchasing from a ‘flavor-du-jour’ US Company such as Signature Solar, I’m not sure which I’d give the nod to.

For sure, if your primary concern is receiving defective product as opposed a failure years from now, buying from a US company with a solid return/warranty policy is a huge plus (though just buying through Amazon goes a long way towards addressing that same concern).

I bought from Alibaba because there are no US companies making Lifepo4 cells for DIY. It worked out very well so far, and I saved thousands over buying from a US company who buy the same cells from China and just jack up the price for profit.

 

[fafrd]

I bought from Alibaba because there are no US companies making Lifepo4 cells for DIY. It worked out very well so far, and I saved thousands over buying from a US company who buy the same cells from China and just jack up the price for profit.

You’re preaching to the choir (14kWh for $1400, all-in ).

But that wasn’t the question. The question was about off-the-shelf LiFePO4 batteries, not DIY. And the importance (or not) of purchasing from a US company with solid warranty.

 

[Skid]

Steve, helps greatly! Thank you.

I also learned that Luyuan Company may do full battery packs.

Amy at Shenzhen Luyuan built a battery for me, 48v 200a in two parts for easier handling. Less than $1800 shipped to Miami. New CATL 202ah cells, JBD BMS.

 

[tigerwillow1]

I thought the $1000 Mason promotion expired on Oct. 10. There appears to be a cluster of reports that shipping a rack mount batt to USA is in the $400-$500 per unit range. With a large quantity I'm assuming Signature Solar pays less than that on a per unit basis.