Litime 320 ah mini lithium battery for 2021 Tab 400 Boondock

jdzioba

Has anyone installed the Litime 320 ah mini lithium battery in a 2021 400 boondock? We will be changing our harris agm batteries to lithium and this one looks like the fit may be possible though the width seems very close. 

marleecamps

Yes, I did.  Fits perfectly, although I added a small block of wood to secure it lengthwise (2 inches at most).

jdzioba

Thanks Marlee. Did you make any other changes to your system? Our WFCO power converter is not set up for lithium so we probably will live with it charging to 85% and get the rest from solar if we can. We boondock a lot in the northeast and can't always rely on solar. We have no interest in a generator. 

qhumberd

The lithium batter apparently likes to get a 100% charge from time to time to balance the cells with its built in battery management module (BMS).

If your solar controller is set to Lithium you should be fine, and a small plug in charger when you are on shore power or storage away from sun can do the rest. We got a 10 amp Lithium from LiTime for ours and it rests right next to the battery.

jdzioba

Thanks for the info. Do you need to do/disconnect anything when using the small charger?

marleecamps

I added a Smartshunt at the same time but did not upgrade my inverter as my factory delivered one can handle the 230 Amp battery capacity.

jdzioba

Are you saying you installed the 230 ah Battery? I am interested in the 320 ah battery.

qhumberd

jdzioba said:

Thanks for the info. Do you need to do/disconnect anything when using the small charger?

There is discussion about whether it is necessary to disconnect the battery from the WFCO when using a dedicated lithium charger. I do with mine simply to ensure the charging profile is correct for my new battery as I have the non lithium WFCO and no roof solar. Others with roof solar have indicated it doesn't cause any issues. You disconnect your batttery from your WFCO by using the battery disconnect switch, and in my case the small charger remains connected to the battery and only needs to be plugged into shore power to charge.

I also have the 230 amp hour LiTime version, but except for the capacity everything else is the same for your setup.

jdzioba

By disconnecting the battery are you shutting down your Alde and refrigerator?

AnOldUR

@jdzioba
Like @qhumberd, we also have the old non-lithium WFCO. When on shore power and needing to charge our LiFePO4's, I'll turn off the battery switch and use a dedicated charger (mounted in the tub with the batteries) to charge our lithium batteries. The WFCO provides power to the fridge and Alde in this situation. The charger we use is the Victron 30 amp model. The advantage to this is that it will network with our Victron solar controllers for more efficient charging. 

jdzioba

Thanks for the info

marleecamps

Yes, I installed the 230 Amp version.  Sorry, I transposed the numbers.  

Binghi

We installed a 300ah Renogy Core Mini lithium battery in the compartment where the two Harris AGM 6V batteries were located. Replaced the WFCO converter with a Progressive Dynamics PD4655V converter set to lithium mode. Installed a bigger gauge cable between the converter and the battery to speed charging. Installed a SmartShunt to keep track of things.

westernstates

jdzioba said:

Has anyone installed the Litime 320 ah mini lithium battery in a 2021 400 boondock? We will be changing our harris agm batteries to lithium and this one looks like the fit may be possible though the width seems very close. 

I don’t know if you got your question answered about the 320ah battery fitting into the existing space where the 2 Harris AGMs are now but I’m also interested. I want to replace ours and if it doesn’t fit I figure I could always move it into the storage space just forward of the battery compartment. This storage area is very hard to access so we never use it. One would just have to secure the battery from moving around and possibly replacing the cables with slightly longer ones.

dlb

I moved the separator wall between the battery space and front storage to get my 320ah battery to fit.  Took all of about 10 minutes to move it forward about an inch.

westernstates

I was thinking the same thing. I have opened up the entire area and I noticed a seal around the top of the plywood and ABS vents for the battery compartment. Correct me if I'm wrong but if I go with a lithium battery the vents and sealed area are not needed.

jdzioba

I figured I would have to move one of the side walls a bit. I like this battery not only for its 320ah rating but because it is self heating. We use our Tab year round and often without hookups.

westernstates

I plan on installing either a 230ah or 320ah battery with a separate charger located near the battery with the 120v cord accessed from the outdoor cubby. When on shore power I will turn off the battery switch and plug the charger into the exterior receptacle located near the door. Shore power powers up everything and will charge the battery with the correct charger. 

tphaggerty

westernstates said:

I was thinking the same thing. I have opened up the entire area and I noticed a seal around the top of the plywood and ABS vents for the battery compartment. Correct me if I'm wrong but if I go with a lithium battery the vents and sealed area are not needed.

This is true. I used the lower vent hole to bring in my solar wiring and used the upper vent hole to add an SAE plug wired to the battery to plug in a solar suitcase when needed. 

jdzioba

Finishing up my install of the LiTime 320 ah battery. I purchased a LiTime 20 amp charger that I will use with the battery switch turned off and on shore power. Question, can the charger be connected to the distribution block where the battery cables are connected? I want to mount the charger in that compartment and that would make the install much less complicated.