Lion Energy Lithium Batteries - A No-brainer

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

I purchased four Lithium batteries for my 1967 Eagle from Lion Energy about three months ago and I am very happy with them. My eight Trojan batteries used to last until about 6:00 - 7:00 AM, which in some places is too early to start my generator. However, my Lion Energy batteries last until shortly after lunch, so no need to wake everyone up until lunchtime now. 

Bus Conversion Magazine has worked out a purchasing arrangement to obtain Lion Energy Lithium Batteries at 15% off retail so you can now purchase them for only about $850.00 each, and shipping is free to all BCM subscribers in the lower 48 states for all orders placed online. Lion Energy batteries also has a Lifetime Guarantee, so they may be the last batteries you will ever have to buy for your bus.

Lithium Batteries have a lot of advantages as you know if you have been reading the very detailed five part article about them in Bus Conversion Magaizine by Jerry Work over the past few months. 

They are pretty much a no-brainer now if...
   1. You plan to keep your bus for a year or more
   2. You need new house batteries anyway

Also, if you have any solar on your bus, Lithium batteries are the only way to go to get the most out of your solar. With lithium batteries, you may even be able to get away with less solar panels then required using lead-acid batteries because they charge much faster and hold more amperage.

You can read the first part of the article on our Blog at: https://www.busconversionmagazine.com/the-advantages-of-lithium-batteries-for-bus-conversions-part-1/

To obtain the 15% discount click on this link:
https://lionenergy.com/?afmc=BCM15OFF

Good luck, and if you have any questions, please call the number on the Lion Energy website and tell them you want the Bus Conversion Magazine discount.

[luvrbus]

That is a 100 bucks ea cheaper than the Battle Born batteries good deal,if I didn't have 6 new 8-D LifeLines AGM 6 months old I would have made the switch after watching Gary install his lol with my battery compartment it would only take 18 to fill the space 

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

That is a 100 bucks ea cheaper than the Battle Born batteries good deal,if I didn't have 6 new 8-D LifeLines AGM 6 months old I would have made the switch after watching Gary install his lol with my battery compartment it would only take 18 to fill the space

18 batteries?  Doesn't your coach have an engine in it? 

[luvrbus]

I saw some 200 amp Lithium marine batteries at Copper State Batteries the guy was going to make me a deal on for 6 that would fit the battery trays for $1450.00 each x 6  I would go that way if the LifeLines gave up

[richard5933]

Do these have built-in heaters for winter use or do they require external heaters?

Living in Wisconsin and camping in cold weather, we'd be all over the lithium setup if there was an easy way to keep the charging through all seasons.

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

Do these have built-in heaters for winter use or do they require external heaters?

Living in Wisconsin and camping in cold weather, we'd be all over the lithium setup if there was an easy way to keep the charging through all seasons.

Anybody living in Wisconsin in the winter is crazy.   
Just kidding, I grew up plowing snow in New Hampsire.  It would get down too no degrees up there many days in the winter.
The good thing about Lithium Batteries that is not possible with lead-acid batteries is that you can put them in your closet as they do not gas.  They also can be laid on their side or even put upside down if you want.  So you do not need to store them in a cold bay in your bus. My plan if I ever decide to go north in the winter, which I don't do much anymore, is to put a drop light in my house battery bay like I do my water bay and this should keep them warm enuf to keep them happy.

[TomC]

I bought 3 100amp/hr Battle Born Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries for $2,700. 31lbs apiece, made here on the West Coast and am very pleased with them. 10 year warranty. Good Luck, TomC

[belfert]

I won't use lithium batteries in my bus because of the no charging under 32 degrees thing.  I have a general principle that I won't buy anything that has to be kept warm to keep working if I can help it.  I don't want to ruin several thousand dollars worth of batteries because the $20 heater to keep them warm failed.

The other thing is even just a 60 watt heater costs $5 to $6 a month to run.  My electric bill now averages around $70 a month so $5 is a decent jump.

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

I bought 3 100amp/hr Battle Born Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries for $2,700. 31lbs apiece, made here on the West Coast and am very pleased with them. 10 year warranty. Good Luck, TomC

Battle Born batteries are okay, but they cost a bit more, are 100Ah batteries where the Lion Energy batteries are 105Ah and only have a 10 year warranty when the Lion Energy batteries have a lifetime warranty.  I decided to go with the Lion Energy batteries.

[luvrbus]

I bought 3 100amp/hr Battle Born Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries for $2,700. 31lbs apiece, made here on the West Coast and am very pleased with them. 10 year warranty. Good Luck, TomC

Battle Born are assembled in Reno from Chinese parts even the case I was there a few weeks ago, the Lion are made in China with a better warranty and cost less with service in Utah the owner is a nice guy too.I personally don't care for the fire hazard with Lithium batteries   
   

[richard5933]

Anybody living in Wisconsin in the winter is crazy.   
Just kidding, I grew up plowing snow in New Hampsire.  It would get down too no degrees up there many days in the winter.
The good thing about Lithium Batteries that is not possible with lead-acid batteries is that you can put them in your closet as they do not gas.  They also can be laid on their side or even put upside down if you want.  So you do not need to store them in a cold bay in your bus. My plan if I ever decide to go north in the winter, which I don't do much anymore, is to put a drop light in my house battery bay like I do my water bay and this should keep them warm enuf to keep them happy.

I actually enjoy the seasons. We like to camp as early in the season as possible, and same for stretching out things till we have to worry about salt on the roads.

But even during the "normal" season, there is still a chance of below-freezing weather. When I was using the bus to live in during my training for my current driving job, it was parked at the truck yard in Marinette (north of Green Bay). This was during May, and we had more than a few nights/mornings with temps too cold for the lithium batteries to charge.

Some of the newer model batteries are coming with built-in heaters that divert power from the incoming charge to warm the batteries. Once the batteries reach proper temp, the system lets the charge flow. Does use more power, but at least it's possible to keep running in the cold.

We don't have enough storage in the upstairs living area to set aside any for batteries. We currently have four L-16 six-volt batteries in a slightly oversized battery box in our electrical bay, giving us about 780 Ah. That box would probably hold enough lithium batteries to give us even more capacity, even more so since you can use more of the capacity in them.

I guess it's possible to insulate the battery box to help keep things warm, but it would require some fail safes to prevent charging with too-cold temps.

[sledhead]

do to the fact I live in permafrost country has any one info on this type of battery ? nickel- iron battery

https://ironedison.com/nickel-iron-ni-fe-battery

thanks   dave

[somewhereinusa]

do to the fact I live in permafrost country has any one info on this type of battery ? nickel- iron battery

https://ironedison.com/nickel-iron-ni-fe-battery

thanks   dave

Just a quick look at that link. They are a flooded battery that needs the electrolyte checked. They also off gass hydrogen, so need to be in a sealed, vented compartment.

[somewhereinusa]

As usual, I went a totally different direction with LiFePo4 batteries. I have 6, 138ah 12V batteries. I overcame the below freezing problem by placing them on temp controlled heat pads.

Last weekend, I ran the bedroom ac all night. Starting at 100% charge when I went to bed at 11PM I still had 75% left at 7AM. In the AM we ran the microwave, Kurig coffee maker, hair curler and one ac. When that was all done still had 68%. Pretty much no sun on the solar panels.

[chessie4905]

What was the overnight temperature? Big effect on length of run time.