[smagown]

This is great. Into the future!

[deckofficer]

Steve,

Like your list of toys. Is the '67 SS Chevelle a COPO Yenko?

[smagown]

Bob:
I wish! It is a 427 but didn't come with it unless it was a COPO order so the motor is NOM. It is a true 138 car tho with no rust and 32k miles. I'm installing 4 wheel disc brakes and Vintage Air on it when I thaw out.It has power steering and brakes.

[deckofficer]

Steve, still very impressive. Last spring I dropped a 427 in the little Track-T in my avatar. At just 1790 lbs and a Tremec TKO 600, it is a hoot. To stay on topic the starting battery is a 16 lb Odyssey PC680 but I plan to swap out for 5 lb of lithium to save some more weight.

[folivier]

Well I moved the inverter shunt to the batteries. No luck, the inverter would not power back up. Not sure if I had it wired wrong or what. So I moved it back and it works now like it did before its trip. I may try running a new set of wires from the Link panel then move the shunt again. Next step I'll reset the Link to factory defaults and start over. I must have something set wrong. When I first charged the voltage went high enough to shut off the BMS. Then I started trying to reduce the voltage. So best to start over.

[deckofficer]

Forest,

Once you get your charge voltages sorted and start using that bank, your going to love the performance. BTW, that is a really clean cell install you did. I predict you could run a 16000 btu A/C at 50% duty cycle for 15 hours with that bank. Remember almost nil Peukert effect.

[folivier]

Installed the Balmar MC-614 voltage regulator for the engine alternator. This thing has a lot of programming capability. One nice thing is being able to control the output to put less stress on your alternator or belts. I set it at 21% reduction and at 1500 rpms it was putting out 200 amps into the LiFePO4 battery. It also has a temperature sensor for the alternator so if it overheats the regulator will drop the output down for it to cool down. The hardest part was running a set of wires from the battery back to the regulator for voltage sense and ground.
I ordered a Junsi Cell logger but it'll take a couple weeks to come from Malaysia. This unit logs each of the 4 cells voltages and gives me an alarm output. I plan to disconnect the alarm buzzer from the BMS high voltage alarm which is set at 14.2 and not programmable then connect the Junsi to the buzzer. Then I can set the voltage at whatever I need. My inverter goes over 14.2 at the end of the charge.

[JCTex]

Forest, I want to put lithium in a camper van I'm building. I've studied a lot but there's not much out there. You, Chris at Technomadia, and a boat guy are all I've found that describe things in detail. I just spoke w/ the CEO of Balqon who was extremely helpful. He said by March, they'll have a more sophisticated BMS out for small applications like RV's and boats. I plan to work directly with them on getting the BMS and battery(ies) all set up for what I need.

The bank will probably be 800-1,000 Ah. It will be recharged by a Victron 3000 inverter/charger, 640W solar panel array and a Victron MPPT controller, and an auxillary 270A alternator dedicated solely to the battery bank. Based on your post, I plan to put a Balmar regulator on the alternator.

I'm excited about getting this all up and running. It will be amazing to be free of the size, weight, and limitations of AGM lead acids. So far as I know, I'll be the first or one of the first owners to put a lithium system in a van. Most will say it's way overkill; but when it comes to electrical stuff, I believe overkill is just about right! Thank you for your detailed postings.

JC

[folivier]

JCTex welcome! If there's anything I can do to help just ask. That's why I'm detailing the install here so others can do it if they want. One thing I wasn't aware of before I started is that it is not recommended to leave these on a float charge. Basically you pump in as many amps as you can at 13.8-14.0 volts then shut off the charger until you get to 20% state of charge before charging again. Or charge at whatever point is convenient. LiFePO4s don't really care. So designing your solar array might be problematic to get away from floating. The http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f14/ has the best information I've found to date. Quite a few guys over there are using these and very happy. There is also a discussion on using solar panels with them.
I spoke extensively with Samra and he was very helpful. You just need patience since they are difficult to get in touch with sometimes. This is definitely cutting edge stuff and finding the information for your use is the most frustrating part.

[JCTex]

I looked the MC-614 over. It seems great EXCEPT it has no setting for lithium's. This means it will go into a float stage which they neither need nor want. I like the things it does; but when the Energy Management System opens its circuit because the batteries are "full", I need the regulator to open its circuit, too. Once the regulator does get up to speed, however, I need it running as full blast as the alternator is comfortable doing.

As a reminder, my aux alternator will be dedicated solely to re-charging the bank; it will be a 270 Amp or 300 Amp size; and will be trying to fill a Balqon 1,000 Ah bank. FYI, Balqon will be coming out with a better EMS specifically for vehicles smaller than big trucks and electric cars. It sounds like it'll be perfect for my van.

So, which setting did you use on the Balmar?

JC