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[QUOTE]nar160 - 1/13/2023  2:40 PM

I switched this year.

I have a 24V/60lb Terrova , 4x 9" screens, and livescope.  My old configuration was all lead acid - group 24 starting, 2x fleet farm 100 Ah deep cycles.  With just the TM on the deep cycles, I could do about 15 hours in low wind, down to 4-6 hours in windy (15+) conditions.  Maybe slightly more brand new, and less as the batteries aged.  Definitely a limiting factor if I want to pull a shift in heavy winds, grind out a long day, or take a multi day trip somewhere without access to power.

With all of the electronics on the starting battery, I could go 14 hours or so without running the outboard before the starting battery would get low.  This was also a limiting factor for long days without much running or multi day trips without recharging.

The boat is a 680T, which is kind of stern heavy anyway and does not have built-in storage for TM batts up front.  Weight was a concern.

I replaced the deep cycles with a pair of 150 Ah lithiums from Eco-Worthy.  This has ~3x the usable capacity of the old system; their rated Ah are 1.5x, and all capacity can be used with the lithium while lead acid can only use ~50% of its rated capacity.  The pair together weighs 35 lbs less than the old setup.  I also wired the GLS-10 (livescope) to the 24 V system to take some load off the starting battery.

Before pulling the trigger I looked around a lot for options.  There are a ton of different lithium batteries out there - check Amazon, for example.  Like many products, there is a kind of idiot tax on the high profile or popular brand names - you pay 2x for maybe slightly better performance but mostly for the perception of quality or security.  Of the cost-competitive options I looked at, I selected Eco Worthy because it offered a 150 Ah battery in group 31 case and had a longer history with positive feedback - been around for years in solar, lots of cases of making it right when there were problems.  The total amount of out pocket for the pair was $1030.  To replace my fleet farms would have been $235.  AGMs would be around $500.

So far the new configuration has worked as intended.  I have yet to run them close to dead.  Time will tell on longevity/durability.  It's probably worth it for me even if I only get 5 years out of them (warranty period), as I don't really have another option for the usable capacity without greatly increasing the weight and size.  If they last 10 years, that's getting similar in cost to the old lead acid solution (but with 3x capacity).

There are quite a few possible configurations out there - 12V, 24V, 36V in different capacities and cases.  My route was much more capacity for slightly less weight.  On the other end, if you have 36V motor and low capacity needs, you might replace 3x group 31 SLA/AGMs with a single group 31 36V 40Ah lithium that weights only 31 lbs and shed 130 lbs.[/QUOTE]

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nar160

Posted 1/13/2023 2:40 PM (#1017116 - in reply to #1017078)
Subject: Re: Lithium-ION batteries

Posts: 408

Location: MN

I switched this year.

I have a 24V/60lb Terrova , 4x 9" screens, and livescope. My old configuration was all lead acid - group 24 starting, 2x fleet farm 100 Ah deep cycles. With just the TM on the deep cycles, I could do about 15 hours in low wind, down to 4-6 hours in windy (15+) conditions. Maybe slightly more brand new, and less as the batteries aged. Definitely a limiting factor if I want to pull a shift in heavy winds, grind out a long day, or take a multi day trip somewhere without access to power.

With all of the electronics on the starting battery, I could go 14 hours or so without running the outboard before the starting battery would get low. This was also a limiting factor for long days without much running or multi day trips without recharging.

The boat is a 680T, which is kind of stern heavy anyway and does not have built-in storage for TM batts up front. Weight was a concern.

I replaced the deep cycles with a pair of 150 Ah lithiums from Eco-Worthy. This has ~3x the usable capacity of the old system; their rated Ah are 1.5x, and all capacity can be used with the lithium while lead acid can only use ~50% of its rated capacity. The pair together weighs 35 lbs less than the old setup. I also wired the GLS-10 (livescope) to the 24 V system to take some load off the starting battery.

Before pulling the trigger I looked around a lot for options. There are a ton of different lithium batteries out there - check Amazon, for example. Like many products, there is a kind of idiot tax on the high profile or popular brand names - you pay 2x for maybe slightly better performance but mostly for the perception of quality or security. Of the cost-competitive options I looked at, I selected Eco Worthy because it offered a 150 Ah battery in group 31 case and had a longer history with positive feedback - been around for years in solar, lots of cases of making it right when there were problems. The total amount of out pocket for the pair was $1030. To replace my fleet farms would have been $235. AGMs would be around $500.

So far the new configuration has worked as intended. I have yet to run them close to dead. Time will tell on longevity/durability. It's probably worth it for me even if I only get 5 years out of them (warranty period), as I don't really have another option for the usable capacity without greatly increasing the weight and size. If they last 10 years, that's getting similar in cost to the old lead acid solution (but with 3x capacity).

There are quite a few possible configurations out there - 12V, 24V, 36V in different capacities and cases. My route was much more capacity for slightly less weight. On the other end, if you have 36V motor and low capacity needs, you might replace 3x group 31 SLA/AGMs with a single group 31 36V 40Ah lithium that weights only 31 lbs and shed 130 lbs.