Quick charging a lipo4 (1 Viewer)

[MCtree]

On another thread I have been trying to figure a way to power my lipo4 “power station” (an ecoflow delta 2)
Since that thread is actually about fridges, I think it is more fitting that I ask this question on a new thread.

Long term I do plan on setting up a DC DC charger in the cargo area but due to my poor planning, I don’t have time now before I head out on my trip.

So in the meantime, what think you guys of this plan:

My plan is to attach one end of this to my battery:

Winch Power Cable | Quick Disconnect | 7 Ft

Winch Power Cable | Quick Disconnect | 7 Ft

www.roughcountry.com

And the other end to the Renogy 700w pure sine inverter.

When I need to charge the lipo4 battery I would carry it and the Renogy up to the front of the LC and connect them to the plug already connected to my battery.

Is this a bad idea?
I can regulate the AC input on the Ecoflow and would set it to 500W max.
I think I could keep my Ecoflow charged by doing this an hour or so a day which I could do in the evenings or mornings. (I don’t expect to be driving every day when at camp)

Are there any pitfalls I would need to consider?
I would ensure my engine is running when doing this.

My main worry is that this would be drawing about 45A from the alternator.
I have been searching this forum and while I see many posts that tell me our alternator produces 180A, I can’t find how much of that we can “borrow.”

 

[MCtree]

Ps. This is the thread where I started this line of questions, if anybody is interested.

Opinions on fridges

Ladies and Gents, I’m considering getting a fridge. I certainly want one, but am not sure if they are truly worth it or if I just want one because they are in vogue. Right now I travel with a 75L yeti. It can keep food and drinks cold for 5 days to a week. And keep some ice for drinks...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[TeCKis300]

Should work but if I'm being honest, sounds like a PITA. Should work

Everyone I camp with including my own setups...slow and steady is the name of the game.

Sometime like a 60-200W on board charger, even if it's a basic cigarette lighter charger will help. Pair with a portable solar, panel, creating more charge current and flexibility options.

 

[MCtree]

Agreed. It is certainly a PiTA.
Later I will install the victron DC DC charger when I have a bit more time.

But it does occur to me that there is an advantage to this PITA way; faster charging.
Those victrons are limited to 15A or 30A. So to charge up a battery bank you would need to run your engine every day for several hours. This PITA can get it done quickly if you are in base camp and hiking everyday.

And yes, solar might be better yet, but that presents other issues.

 

[linuxgod]

You can hook your battery up directly and run the vehicle to charge it. The alternator will limit voltage so you won’t overcharge. More likely you’ll undercharge but that’s probably fine, you’ll still get to 80%+. As you note LFP will allow very high Amp rates when charging, which can result in overheating and damaging the alternator. 500W charging is probably fine, that’s only 40A. I wouldn’t have any qualms about doing that, just note that depending on your battery size it might take a couple hours to charge.

 

[MCtree]

500W charging is probably fine, that’s only 40A. I wouldn’t have any qualms about doing that, just note that depending on your battery size it might take a couple hours to charge.

Great. Thank you and @TeCKis300 for the input. I just wanted to make sure there wasn’t something crazy I was missing.

Though I hate that the manual side of my plan requiring me to set the max AC input to 500W. It will be too easy for me to forget to do this and leave it at the max 1200W AC watts and blow something up.

And yeah, it could take a couple of hours to charge up the Ecoflow battery but that will depend on how much my fridge consumes. I’m hoping it won’t require as much power in the cooler weather but I haven’t tested the consumption in cold weather.

 

[Sandroad]

The alternator makes AC, which is converted to DC for the vehicle, which is inverted to AC by the Renogy inverter, which is converted to DC in the Ecoflow to charge its battery, which supplies DC to the fridge. So, yup, get that DC-DC Victron in there ASAP. Other than PITA and inefficiency, the plan will work fine short term. In fact, I like it......I think way too many campers carry a separate generator for short term use when the vehicle engine and alternator could be used for many types of camp electrical needs like supplemental battery charging without having to carry a generator and its gas.

 

[linuxgod]

The alternator makes AC, which is converted to DC for the vehicle, which is inverted to AC by the Renogy inverter, which is converted to DC in the Ecoflow to charge its battery, which supplies DC to the fridge. So, yup, get that DC-DC Victron in there ASAP. Other than PITA and inefficiency, the plan will work fine short term. In fact, I like it......I think way too many campers carry a separate generator for short term use when the vehicle engine and alternator could be used for many types of camp electrical needs like supplemental battery charging without having to carry a generator and its gas.

I’ve used my $85,000 generator a few times before I had lithium and solar

 

[Muddy.au]

I’ve used my $85,000 generator a few times before I had lithium and solar

In Australia for touring I am using 240 AH of Lithium mounted in the side of my drawer system charged by a Redarc 1250D and recover the power consumed ( Induction cooking, coffee, fridge, lighting, assorted charging and Starlink) in the first hours the next day, for base camping definitely have to run 300-400W of solar to maintain the lifestyle.
The take up here has been slow on Ecoflow / Bluetti style battery pack chargers because of the difficulty recharging in the field and then initial cost and value $/AH

 

[Fisher23]

I have/use a DC to DC 40 amp and it works great. (50 amps is the battery limit).

For that temporary Idea .. I would use a set of jumper cables instead of moving the battery.

 

[MCtree]

In Australia for touring I am using 240 AH of Lithium mounted in the side of my drawer system charged by a Redarc 1250D and recover the power consumed ( Induction cooking, coffee, fridge, lighting, assorted charging and Starlink) in the first hours the next day, for base camping definitely have to run 300-400W of solar to maintain the lifestyle.
The take up here has been slow on Ecoflow / Bluetti style battery pack chargers because of the difficulty recharging in the field and then initial cost and value $/AH

View attachment 3451357

View attachment 3451359

Nice setup.
What’s the larger grey circular device on your control panel? And can we get a closeup of that?

@Fisher23
What DC DC is that? All the ones I have seen are 30amps.

Thanks!

 

[sdnative]

What’s the larger grey circular device on your control panel? And can we get a closeup of that?

Victron BMV-712 or the like

BMV-712 Smart - Victron Energy

Communicate wirelessly between products and simplify system installation and enhance performance using the BMV-712 Smart. Find a dealer now.

www.victronenergy.com

 

[lx200inAR]

Just want to throw in here that most of these responses are generalized ideas for charging a raw lithium battery, not for charging your EcoFlow. The only way to get a lot of watts into an EcoFlow is by AC, or a perfectly sized DC to DC that outputs the 50-60v the EcoFlow can accept on its solar input.

Both setups are great, but they require different charging strategies.

 

[TLC2013]

Been following this tread as I am in a similar situation. Using a LIFEPO4 EcoFlow to power my fridge/freeze combo.

I'll share my lessons learned in this process of what I assumed would have been an effortless plug and play setup.

My initial plan was to run the fridge off the Ecoflow while having the Ecoflow plugged into and charging off the 100w inverter in the 3rd row. I assumed 100 watts into the Ecoflow battery and approx 50watts being pulled from the battery pack to run the fridge. Seemed seemless enough.

However, the inverter is unable to charge the battery pack. The inverter Trips/shuts off immediately. Plan B was to then run the Ecoflow off the 2nd row 12v cigarette lighter outlet however I could not get it to provide more then 65w without tripping and stopping the charging of the Ecoflow. I had to set the Ecoflow to only 6 amps inorder for it to accept charging from the 12v cig outlet. This only provided apprx. 65w which was less then ideal.

Another option i came up with was to charge the battery pack by using the 3rd row AC Inverter with a 65w USBC charger/cable. I was able to pull 65w using this method without tripping the inverter. 65w is not going to suffice.

After going though these growing pains I have now installed a Blue Sea 12v cigarette lighter plug into the third row area. I am providing power to this new 12v outlet through the driverside footwell fuse panel. Installed a "add a fuse" to the 20 amp windshield washer fuse (number 10). Utilizing this fuse provides power only with the ignition "on" which was my plan.

So far so good. Getting a consistent 100w into the Ecoflow from the new 12v outlet. I can also add another 65w of charging by connecting a USBC charger/plug from the 3rd row inverter into the Ecoflow. 165w of charging should be sufficient for my current needs.

 

[MCtree]

However, the inverter is unable to charge the battery pack. The inverter Trips/shuts off immediately.

For what it’s worth, I ran into this yesterday as well.
I had the 700W Renogy inverter connected directly to my battery via the winch-cable quick connect that I gave the link to above.
The inverter worked fine on everything except the Ecoflow Delta 2. Like you, it would instantly flip the GFI on the inverter.

I think this is an issue with having a GFI on the inverter and then one also on the Ecoflow.
I used a three-to-two prong adapter on the wire from the Ecoflow into the Inverter and it solved this issue.

I tested this morning and was able to charge the ecoflow at 500W for an hour.

And @linuxgod, you were right. Even at 500W I underestimated how long it will take to charge. I gained 30% of the battery in my hour of charging.
So, given the consumption of the fridge, I may need to run the engine for an hour in the morning and then an hour in the evenings. (Cooler temps aside)

 

[TLC2013]

For what it’s worth, I ran into this yesterday as well.
I had the 700W Renogy inverter connected directly to my battery via the winch-cable quick connect that I gave the link to above.
The inverter worked fine on everything except the Ecoflow Delta 2. Like you, it would instantly flip the GFI on the inverter.

I think this is an issue with having a GFI on the inverter and then one also on the Ecoflow.
I used a three-to-two prong adapter on the wire from the Ecoflow into the Inverter and it solved this issue.

I tested this morning and was able to charge the ecoflow at 500W for an hour.

And @linuxgod, you were right. Even at 500W I underestimated how long it will take to charge. I gained 30% of the battery in my hour of charging.
So, given the consumption of the fridge, I may need to run the engine for an hour in the morning and then an hour in the evenings. (Cooler temps aside)

500w charging is solid. I have the River 2 Pro that can take up to 900 watts of AC charging. I'd be happy to go from 0-100 in less than 2. Other then that winch cable disconnect was there anything else needed to pair with your inverter to charge at those speeds? That sounds like a nice setup.

 

[MCtree]

500w charging is solid. I have the River 2 Pro that can take up to 900 watts of AC charging. I'd be happy to go from 0-100 in less than 2. Other then that winch cable disconnect was there anything else needed to pair with your inverter to charge at those speeds? That sounds like a nice setup.

The Delta 2 can to 1200 watts input AC, but I’m afraid to go that high from my alternator/battery. So I set the max to 500 watts.

And you have it right:
The cable Rough Country quick disconnect
The Renogy 700W inverter
The 3 to 2 prong adapter ($5 at Home Depot this morning)
And the Ecoflow Delta 2

For other reasons I do have a 150A fuse attached to my battery that I connected the quick-connect through.
This might not be a bad idea if you want to be extra safe but I don’t think it’s essential.

 

[TLC2013]

The Delta 2 can to 1200 watts input AC, but I’m afraid to go that high from my alternator/battery. So I set the max to 500 watts.

And you have it right:
The cable Rough Country quick disconnect
The Renogy 700W inverter
The 3 to 2 prong adapter ($5 at Home Depot this morning)
And the Ecoflow Delta 2

For other reasons I do have a 150A fuse attached to my battery that I connected the quick-connect through.
This might not be a bad idea if you want to be extra safe but I don’t think it’s essential.

Thanks!

 

[Muddy.au]

Nice setup.
What’s the larger grey circular device on your control panel? And can we get a closeup of that?

@Fisher23
What DC DC is that? All the ones I have seen are 30amps.

Thanks!

As above a Victron Smart BMV 712 shunt which I monitor on my phone in the car or mounted on the fridge whilst cooking, coffee etc. as I get a handle on consumption.

The Redarc BCDC comes in 25,40 and 50 here in Australia mine is the 1250D which has a solar input, mine runs around 48 amps input so does not take long to replenish the power consumed for dinner and breakfast.

 

[daneo]

After going though these growing pains I have now installed a Blue Sea 12v cigarette lighter plug into the third row area. I am providing power to this new 12v outlet through the driverside footwell fuse panel. Installed a "add a fuse" to the 15 amp (or maybe it's a 20amp? Can't recall at this moment) headlight washer fuse. Utilizing this fuse provides power only with the ignition "on" which was my plan.

So far so good. Getting a consistent 100w into the Ecoflow from the new 12v outlet.

Just wanted to double check, are you using the “WIPERS” fuse in the drivers kick panel, or is there additionally a fuse for washers down there?

Either way, if you aren’t doing it already, I would strongly suggest using the add-a-circuit to switch a relay that gates a wire from your battery to the cig socket.

If you are pulling 100w on a fuse rated for 180w, that only leaves 80w for the original load— the wipers. It seems very possible that when charging and running your wipers, the fuse blows.

Trying to save you having no wipers in a blizzard one day in the future.