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Battery upgrade

Alan57Alan57 Member Posts: 15
in Battery/Electrical & Solar
New to camping. I want to replace the lead acid battery in 2017 320 with a LiTime lithium Group 24 battery. This battery was recommended from my prior post on going solar.  What else do I need to do or replace for this battery to function properly? Next phase is adding solar charging, but that is a few weeks out, and I want to go camping right away. 
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  • pthomas745pthomas745 Administrator, Moderator Posts: 4,302
    The battery will just drop in.  You will have about 90 amp hours to work with.  How do you intend to camp?  Shore power?  Boondocking?  Have you sorted out if your 3 way fridge actually works on propane?

    2017 Outback
    Towed by 2014 Touareg TDi
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  • HoriganHorigan Member Posts: 779
    You can drop it in an go camping, though realize the existing charger will only charge the battery to about 80% since LiFePO4 batteries have a higher fully charged voltage than lead acid.  When you add solar you can set that up for Li and then the solar will top off your battery.  If you want to charge fully from shore power, then add a dedicated Li charger in parallel to the existing converter charger.
    Rich
    2019 T@b 400
    2013 Toyota Highlander 3.5L V6
    Bellingham WA
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  • Alan57Alan57 Member Posts: 15
    edited September 28
    I would appreciate a recommendation on a dedicated Li charger. How does this get power? Is adding another charger preferable to replacing the converter charger for one that works with Li? Why am I keeping the existing charger connected. I appreciate an explanation as I have no wiring experience, but am willing to learn.
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  • pthomas745pthomas745 Administrator, Moderator Posts: 4,302
    There are hundreds of simple plug in chargers that will charge a lithium. They would require a shore power source to operate.  In a non-shore power situation, solar is the way to charge the battery.  Or, lug around a generator.
    There are chargers like this one, which has a "dongle" attached to the battery with ring terminals.  When you have shore power available, you simply plug in the charger and connect the "Anderson" connectors.
    I have one like this, which simply connects to the battery with battery clamps.
    Getting a "stand alone" charger is inexpensive, requires no "tools" except something to connect those dongles if you find a charger like that.  The converter in your 2017 will charge a lithium battery.  But, only to about 85 percent.  There is no reason to spend a lot of money and time to change the converter over 15 amp hours.  My solar panels take care of more than 95 percent of my solar charging.
    2017 Outback
    Towed by 2014 Touareg TDi
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  • Alan57Alan57 Member Posts: 15
    edited September 28
    Thank you for explaining this to me. Just to confirm: I leave the wires from the existing converter to the battery and add the Li plug-in charger. The higher voltage from the Li plug-in does not cause any issues with the existing converter that is still connected to the battery? 
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  • AnOldURAnOldUR Member Posts: 1,609
    edited September 29
    I’m not sure that it’s necessary, but when I’m charging with my 30 amp Victron charger and am connected to shore power, I turn the battery switch off. The Victron devices are networked for efficiency, but the WFCO is not. My thought is that voltage coming in from the WFCO might confuse the Victron and change the charging mode prematurely.

    My standalone 30 amp Victron charger is permanently tied directly to the battery and only gets plugged in when needed, but that rarely happens.
    Stockton, New Jersey
    2020 nuCamp T@B 320S * Jeep Wrangler
    (47,171 towing miles through the end of 2024)
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  • pthomas745pthomas745 Administrator, Moderator Posts: 4,302
    The battery chargers I linked to simply connect directly to the battery.  They do not involve the converter at all.  The only difference in those two chargers are how they connect to the battery.  The one with the "ring terminal" connector would be attached to the battery terminals and it would stay there, probably just hanging out of the battery box.  The one with the "battery clamps" would require you to open the battery box (if you use it) and attach the clamps with the box open.
     
    2017 Outback
    Towed by 2014 Touareg TDi
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  • ckjsckjs Member Posts: 106
    Alan57 said:
    I would appreciate a recommendation on a dedicated Li charger….
    If you get rooftop solar — so you can charge while driving — you may not need any lithium-specific charging.

    I touched on “do you need this?” here. If you spend many days in a row camped in deep shade, then auxiliary charging might be needed. We often camp in mixed shade, and still get enough recharge that we don’t run low.

    Trying camping for a while, first.
    Charles & Judy, Santa Cruz, CA
    2018 T@B 320 CS-S; Alde 3020; 4 cyl 2020 Subaru Outback Onyx XT
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