Which battery for off grid

[Lilcoolcharlie]

Hi everyone,
I’m a new (1st time) owner of a Peugeot BoxerHDI conversion and new to this forum so apologies if this has already been covered.
I thought the purchase of a new leisure battery would be one of the simplest thing to do...but for the last week, I have had so many conflicting information that I just don’t know what to do!!
Our aim is to be as off grid as we possibly can.
My vehicle has a Maypole 30A automatic switch relay, which I assume sends charges to the Leisure battery whilst the vehicle is running. Near the battery, it also has been fitted with a PSU (PS167-13.8-BCSM) controls the charge from the mains?
My thoughts were to purchase a 240w solar panel and a Victron MPPT with a new battery or 2 x parallel. The battery that came with the vehicle is 75ah from Halfords and hasn’t really been looked after.
I have no experience in electronics/car electrics (as you can probably tell..) but I assumed (wrongly?) from what I had been told that AGM were the batteries to aim for, although I was then told: No: lithium because you can run them down 100% without damaging them..then I was told:
No, Victron super deep cycle batteries are the ONES!
Then I was told: you can’t have any of these anyway as the current setup on the vehicle will not support any of these....
So....without changing the current set up on my vehicle, would I be ok to purchase Bosch L5 or Yuasa L36-EFB to be used off grid or are these not meant for that kind of use? And if they are not, which batteries would you recommend...
Any help, PLEASE..would be really, really appreciated!

 

[PhilandMena]

Hi,
Your going to get loads of advice to your query and some of it conflicting (to say the least). My take on your set up is simple do it once and do it right.! Your balance sounds just about right 250 W solar panels and 2 leisure batteries and perhaps a small inverter will keep you going depending on your power usage. (Assuming fridge will be on gas not lecce.). I would suggest you forget about AGM leisure batteries, they are on there way out and being discarded by many car manufacturers. Good Lead Acid leisure batteries are now available and you can get 2 x 110 HA standard size batteries that will perform well with your set up. Forget about Halfords. Look towards batteries that are produced by there own manufacturer and not re-branded. I would suggest you look at Yuasa, Varta and Excide, all who produce there own batteries. Many on here recommend the Varta LFT-90, (or the Bosh L5 (same battery)). The newish Yuasa and my own preferrence, the Exide ET650. Any of these will see you through. You will still need to monitor your power usage and if you have 12 V TV, LED lighting, you should be fine.

 

[Lilcoolcharlie]

Thanks for the reply PhilandMena!
Using a non rebranded battery is sound advice..Just trying to keep it simple and start enjoying the outdoors. I think I’ll look at the mentioned Exide ET650 before making a decision.
?

 

[PhilandMena]

Thanks for the reply PhilandMena!
Using a non rebranded battery is sound advice..Just trying to keep it simple and start enjoying the outdoors. I think I’ll look at the mentioned Exide ET650 before making a decision.
?

It's weight alone indicates it's going to perform better than most. It's a big chunk of lead .

 

[Jaws]

Hi everyone,
I’m a new (1st time) owner of a Peugeot BoxerHDI conversion and new to this forum so apologies if this has already been covered.
I thought the purchase of a new leisure battery would be one of the simplest thing to do...but for the last week, I have had so many conflicting information that I just don’t know what to do!!
Our aim is to be as off grid as we possibly can.
My vehicle has a Maypole 30A automatic switch relay, which I assume sends charges to the Leisure battery whilst the vehicle is running. Near the battery, it also has been fitted with a PSU (PS167-13.8-BCSM) controls the charge from the mains?
My thoughts were to purchase a 240w solar panel and a Victron MPPT with a new battery or 2 x parallel. The battery that came with the vehicle is 75ah from Halfords and hasn’t really been looked after.
I have no experience in electronics/car electrics (as you can probably tell..) but I assumed (wrongly?) from what I had been told that AGM were the batteries to aim for, although I was then told: No: lithium because you can run them down 100% without damaging them..then I was told:
No, Victron super deep cycle batteries are the ONES!
Then I was told: you can’t have any of these anyway as the current setup on the vehicle will not support any of these....
So....without changing the current set up on my vehicle, would I be ok to purchase Bosch L5 or Yuasa L36-EFB to be used off grid or are these not meant for that kind of use? And if they are not, which batteries would you recommend...
Any help, PLEASE..would be really, really appreciated!

I reckon you bang on Charlie
So many people put mega bucks in to solar panels and then go for a cheapo controller.
I got mine cheap as it was an end of line jobby ( the newest ones do LiPo as well ) at £135 or there abouts, reduced from £260.. A big lump of a thing that auto detects battery type and is reckoned to be 98% of better efficient .. We go on hook up maybe once a year ( and then only 'cos it is there ! )
I reckon your set up with a pair of 110aH or better batteries should do well.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[ambulancekidd]

Your border collie is a stunner.

 

[maxi77]

If you are really going proper of grid, it is all a matter of just how deep your pockets are. Top end clearly lithium and buy from a reliable supplier to ensure your charging set up is right. Next in line are Trojans, still pricey but one of the best and really proper deep cycle batteries. After that you are getting into the area where there is plenty snake oil. Best value for money tends to be sealed wet acid and the key here tends to be weight, weight tends to mean lead and lead is amp/hours. Finally remember some traditional brands print labels and import boxes from China, where all rests on just how good their quality control is.