RV Lithium Battery Ultimate Install Guide! DIY Tips & Mistakes To Avoid!

[@EnjoyTheJourneyLife]

LINKS & CHAPTERS BELOW! BLACK FRIDAY SALE! 🔋Save 15% OFF Enduro Power lithium batteries (until 11/27 ONLY!) enjoythejourney.life/enduro or mention 'Enjoy the Journey' if you call 303-968-1366 Companion blog post enjoythejourney.life/rv-lithium All Black Friday RV deals! enjoythejourney.life/deals ✅ SUBSCRIBE: enjoythejourney.life/KZbin ➡ Subscribe by Email: enjoythejourney.life/newsletter All Solar & Lithium videos enjoythejourney.life/lithium All Amazon links amzn.to/47C9g3F Webb's install video kzbin.info/www/bejne/jaqQdnutjayFjtE Inverter enjoythejourney.life/inverter Our Solar Set Up enjoythejourney.life/solar Shunt enjoythejourney.life/shunt welding wire amzn.to/46kZiTd lugs amzn.to/3QLYkcR heat shrink tape amzn.to/47l7cx7 wire cutters amzn.to/3MKPquP Hydraulic Cable Lug Crimper amzn.to/49VU5V5 heat gun amzn.to/40Srqfh Victron Energy Lynx Power In amzn.to/3G66EPJ Victron Energy Lynx Distributor amzn.to/49VUneD BIM amzn.to/47zk4zo DC to DC charger amzn.to/40NjtrW T Fuse Holder (holder only) amzn.to/47b6mD7 T Fuse 300A amzn.to/3R6hCv2 T Fuse 400A amzn.to/3MQyROt Blue Sea On/Off Cutoff switch (350A rated) amzn.to/46tJIF2 Blue Sea On/Off Cutoff switch (600A rated) amzn.to/49FN9Lr Chapters: 00:00 Intro 01:42 Meet Harrison from Enduro Power Batteries 03:05 Where to start with an RV Lithium battery upgrade? 03:22 Why our current RV lithium battery install is not enough? 03:31 How much RV lithium batteries do I need? 03:38 Why does my RV battery keep running out of power? 04:21 Can I run my RV air conditioning on a lithium battery? 04:37 How to run RV A/C when generator is not allowed 05:11 Why less RV lithium batteries is better 06:02 Why resistance is a challenge for an RV lithium battery install 07:16 Our BIG RV lithium install mistake 07:59 Is the Go Power IC 3000 inverter/charger worth it? 09:07 Our Go Power RV solar set up 09:48 How we run our RV A/C with lithium batteries 10:08 Why you need a battery monitor with a shunt 10:41 BLACK FRIDAY SALE 12:02 Where to install an RV lithium battery system 13:13 Can you put RV lithium batteries on top of your generator? 13:49 Our RV lithium battery install plan using a bus bar 14:17 How to properly wire your RV lithium battery system 16:13 A common mistake when installing RV solar system 16:50 Our cable size mistake 17:21 2 tips for wiring an RV lithium battery bank 17:45 Why you need to ground your RV lithium battery system 18:37 Why our fuse didn't protect our system 20:10 How to keep refrigerator on during install 21:23 Removing old LifePo4 batteries 21:55 How much do RV lithium batteries weigh? 22:23 DIY battery cable tips 22:33 Why you should use welding cable in your battery install 23:00 What tools do I need for a DIY RV battery install? 24:45 Heat shrink tape vs electrical tape? 25:29 How to properly mount & secure RV lithium batteries 28:22 RV battery system wiring explained 29:18 DIY RV battery switch tip 30:11 Do you have to inspect RV battery connections? 31:37 Installing Victron Energy Lynx system 33:26 Installing Victron Energy BMV-712 Smart Battery Monitor w/Bluetooth 35:13 This is a must have if you have a 5th wheel RV 36:09 Setting up Victron Energy BMV-712 Smart Battery Monitor shunt 38:13 Tips for advanced boondockers 39:25 Why the battery monitor does not show 100% 40:56 Complete RV lithium battery install LifePo4 44:11 RV battery Q & A 44:38 Should you hire a professional? 45:17 3 best practices when installing RV lithium batteries 46:24 Can you mix lead acid or AGM batteries with lithium batteries? 47:21 How do you charge your RV lithium batteries? 49:01 How much power does a 12 volt RV refrigerator or residential refrigerator use? 49:44 Do you need a DC to DC charger or a BIM (battery isolation management)? 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Life, All Rights Reserved Our channel is for entertainment purposes only. We are not RV or travel experts. We share our opinions and what has worked and not worked for us in the past. Before taking any action or making a purchase decision, you should do your own research. Some of our links are affiliate links. Thank you!

[@cdee6096]

Wow! What a system. I am going to use the Ecoflow Ultra Pro and plug into the standard shore power input. I will charge with solar and the generator as needed. No inverter wiring at all.

[@jerrysgaragethemoneypit2028]

Why would not use a 48vdc battery system and reduce to 12 VDC? It would seem cable size could be smaller. Also i'm guessing the inverters could be less expensive.

[@sgtfully]

Very useful information. Always great information from this channel. I learn something new every week.

[@EnjoyTheJourneyLife]

Glad to hear it!

[@jimgrieve6683]

Great detailed videos and nice system. I am confused on one thing. You mention more than once about upgrading the wires from #2 to #4, isn't #4 smaller? The lower the gauge, the larger the wire? I looked at the Blue Sea amperage chart. Would appreciate your feedback, thanks, Jim

[@jimgrieve6683]

Apologies, I did more research since I figured Harrison should know what he is talking about. I learned that 4/0 and 2/0 are both larger that just plain #2 or #4. We are off to Utah from Ontario Canada in mid March along with AZ, NV and maybe CA for couple months. Loved the Utah videos too.

[@jasonwilkerson7085]

If you discharge this battery bank to 20% it will take aproximately 3 days of good solar days to charge it back up. Most solar avg 70% of rated solar capacity when mounted flat. So 1100 watts x .70 is 60 amps of charging capacity. At 20% discharge thats about 960 ah that need to be replaced. 960/60= 16 hours of good solar. Typically 5 to 6 hours a day is what you can expect. Definately should have upgraded the solar.

[@rmurphy4446]

A wealth of Knowledge... very helpful building my 800w 400Ah 2000W inverter system

[@EnjoyTheJourneyLife]

Glad it was helpful!

[@patrickcallender8429]

Where do you fine buss bars ? I can't find any at any wholesale houses, Graniger, Camping World.......??

[@lemichaeljohnson2069]

Amazon is where I find them

[@applejacks971]

Blue Sea Systems has really good stuff. Their website has a link for vendors.

[@knowledge8039]

Make your own with copper bars.

[@mascoffeegrande2763]

For that size of battery bank, wouldn’t it be better to up your battery bank voltage to 48v system and then have a dc-dc inverter to step it back down to 12v?

[@Jimmy_Jim_Jim_1234]

I was just about to ask that question.

[@EnjoyTheJourneyLife]

We are discussing that option for the next upgrade.

[@johnsims9023]

I see the inverter was moved into the basement. How was the wire routed past the bulkhead wall between the basement and the battery compartment?

[@junkerzn7312]

@@EnjoyTheJourneyLife You pretty much want to go straight to 48V. It's really silly sticking with 12V at these power levels. With 48V you can use mostly 2 AWG wiring. Not even 2/0. 2 AWG to (each) inverter. 5kW per inverter with almost no losses. For legacy 12V equipment you just down-buffer with a DC-to-DC converter to a small 12V battery (only what is needed to run the legacy equipment / surges). Like a 12V fridge that you don't want to replace yet for example. Any big-ticket items would be AC or native 48VDC. The problem is that it can be quite expensive to retrofit a lower-voltage system to a higher voltage after the fact. That's why you pretty much want to start with 48V from the get-go. Not start with 12V or 24V and then later upgrade to 48V. Once a person has invested in a lot of 12V gear, upgrading to 48V can get expensive.

[@airstreamer]

very complete demonstration!

[@SEANRMZ]

awesome instal !! my only concern is the 1200w of solar on the roof. I have 950w solar and 400ah battery bank. On an average day of sun light its having a hard time topping up the bank. We never see the full potential of solar we have on the roof. I could just imagine how long it would take to charge up the 1200ah battery bank with 1200w of solar. You will see 700 to 800w on a good day. thanks sean great content BTW

[@EnjoyTheJourneyLife]

Thanks! Yes, more solar is needed in the future.

[@wilsond3010]

Once you start going to this level. Can I ask why you wouldn't look to a single server rack 48v battery system. Newbie to the idea of Lithium for trailer

[@LeeeDay]

Thats all fine and dandy if $$$ is not an issue.. i run 3. 12v rec batteries with 200 watt solar, they run lights, heater fan and tv in my modest rig. Propane is used in the furnace and oven..i run 2. #40 lp tanks . I can use lp generator if i need ac. My solar charging setup was under $300. Id bet his is thousands

[@Liimpy]

You tube will pay for it with clicks

[@applejacks971]

Exactly. Kinda like the auto detail guys that just got home from the gym and tattoo shop and 'let's go ahead and I'll show ya how to polish a car...we'll use my $14 million Lamborghini...'

[@CherishtheJourneyy]

Did Enduro buy your old Lion energy batteries or give you a discount for going with their batteries?

[@daveulmer]

I had a battery failure due to faulty crimped lugs inside the battery case. I found this by noting the battery terminals getting hot when ruunning a heavy load. I pried the cover off the battery and soldered all lugs inside. Problem solved.

[@johnsenesi9095]

Thank you guy's for sharing.

[@mikedevita5558]

The 4/0 lug won't fit a 3000w Renogy Rover, suggestions?

[@kadachiman7234]

I know this is an old post but maybe others may benefit from the info anyway 1. I would not use a 12v battery install system with a 3000watt inverter due to the high currents involved (refer to my other post on this video with some maths shown) 2. even though I don't advise a 12v system, if it is already in place, you can use 2 x smaller gauge cables and lugs in parallel in lieu of the 4/0 cable and lug - sorry I do not know the American cable sizes so as an example in metric terms you could use 2 x 16mm2 cables in lieu of 1 x 32mm2 cable as the current flow will divide evenly over the 2 x 16mm2 cables run in parallel.......I am not sure I personally would do this in practice but mathematically it is correct and safe.

[@bryanspears2045]

FYI without 12v dc the fridge won't work with 120v only

[@junkerzn7312]

You just down-buffer to a small 12V battery to run 12V appliances like fridges. You don't want your main system bus to be 12V though, not with the kind of power people want to pump these days. You want 48V, simple as that, with 48V inverters. Then down-buffer with a DC-to-DC to a 100Ah 12V battery for legacy 12V appliances.

[@MrSpaceace1999]

Shouldn’t of batteries be balanced before hand, which I’m under the impression wasn’t voltage but amperage I don’t know I’m noob a newbie, and I saw this on another channel

[@WhiskeyandBrookies]

Great info. Thanks

[@EnjoyTheJourneyLife]

Glad it was helpful!

[@junkerzn7312]

Another 12V build? When are these guys gonna figure out that you need to go 48V in this day and age?

[@didac3918]

What is the benefit of going 48V in an RV over 12V? You are going to use an inverter to get 240V anyway.

[@junkerzn7312]

@@didac3918 Higher efficiency, far far less heat, lower cable losses, much thinner cabling, much greater flexibility and scalability, and beyond a certain size... lower cost as well. For example, lets say you wanted a 5kW system. That's 2 AWG (not 2/0 ... 2 AWG) battery cabling. Lets say you wanted 1000W of solar. That's one 20A charge controller. Inverters, chargers, etc... all 2 AWG or thinner cabling. 800W circuits can run 10 AWG with almost no voltage drop. All with less ventilation needed... sometimes none at all. And the system doesn't even break a sweat even if asked to do 5kW 24x7. Now do the same system with 12V. Or 24V. Now lets say you do all that and now, a year or two later, you want to add another 1000W of solar. Or you want to add another 5kW (for 10kW) in power? Or you want to pump the battery storage up to 20kWh. Or you want to add an external buddy connector. Etc. That's why. That said, there are still good arguments for small systems going 24V instead of 48V. But there aren't really any good arguments for sticking with 12V any more. Even when one has 12V legacy gear to deal with, it is better to go with a higher voltage and then just DC-to-DC down for the legacy gear (with or without a small buffer battery at the lower voltage). -Matt

[@Capt-John-T-Moore]

I’m designing my 48v system on 30 amp TT. Using 3 maybe 4 EG4 48v 100ah batteries. That totals 1200 to 1600ah available for use. Also theses batteries are $1300 each Compared to 16 batteries of the 12v size ($5200 EG4LL $13200 Battle Born). Cons are the EG4 batteries are rack sized and weigh 100 lbs each

[@timjerby5080]

That fridge needs 12v hooked up even if its plugged in to 120v, gas side needs 12v as well!

[@benkok02]

Is a inline converter better then a wave converter

[@theherrin9014]

What are you going to do with those Lion Energy batteries you've taken out?

[@EnjoyTheJourneyLife]

We sold them.

[@theherrin9014]

@@EnjoyTheJourneyLife good! I would have been interested as well. They are good batteries. I've got 4 of them now. Good luck with the new setup! Thanks for the reply! ☺️

[@frankwise7049]

I have a 200 AH Li battery, but ifvI want to upgrade, could I add a 300 AH battery since Li batteries have their own charge controllers?

[@aquanaut3541]

You will have a 400ah battery bank because current draw will be divided equally

[@aquanaut3541]

Sorry I was wrong just watched a video where he got the full capacity with a 400+ ah battery and a 100ah in parallel. The problem he pointed out was the 100ah had a 100a BMS so max out would be 200 even though the bigger battery had a 250a bms

[@kadachiman7234]

This installation should never have been done as a 12volt system.........4 x 300Ah batteries would have made a perfect 48V @ 300AH system. My guess is the system was designed to match the already installed 12v 3000w inverter instead of using a DC-DC converter to match the inverter.....therefore a compromised design and install. In this particular case I might have gone for a 24V system due to - 1. new batteries installation positions being suited to 2 x 300AH batteries in each of the two locations 2. the cabling already installed would have been good for a 24v rated system = upgrade install savings Let's do the math - 3000 watts at 12v = 250 amps current flow 3000 watts at 24V = 125 amps current flow 3000 watts at 48v = 62.5 amps current flow = much smaller cables and much easier to work with e.g. bend radius However, this is not the full story as the longer the cables the greater diameter cable that may be needed to prevent voltage drop impact. Something additional to keep in mind is that with most Lithium batteries it is advisable to keep under 100-amp current draw to ensure battery longevity.

[@kyfeam]

so 6 grand just for the batteries.. wow.. i just bought 4-12v 100amp lithium iron phosphate batteries.. 600 watts of solar.. 2000 watt PSW inverter.. all Renergy items except the batteries.. charge controller.. 2/o cables.. all fuses and breakers.. all wiring and monitors.. for less than the cost of just 2 of those Enduro batteries.. crazy.. and i must be a poor fool..

[@davidmcgee2126]

The control board for your absorption refrigerator runs off of 12 volts. Plugging in doesn’t do anything if the 12volt is off.

[@miller010121]

That’s what I thought too. Heard the gas kick on, so not a DC compressor.

[@davidmcgee2126]

@@miller010121 then it’s not an LP refrigerator. No compressor on an LP refrigerator. Ammonia boiler. It either burns LP or uses a heating element which can be on AC or DC. But an absorption (LP) refrigerator needs 12 volts to run There are 12 volt only refrigerators that have compressors I don’t know of any 12volt/AC hybrid refrigerators, doesn’t mean they don’t exist. Be pretty easy to put a converter in a 12 volt refrigerator to be able to plug in. I’m an RV technician. I work on RV refrigerators frequently Had to see what this was referring to. The refrigerator in this video will not operate without 12 volt The 12 volt control board will turn a relay on to power a heating element if on AC power. There can be a 2nd plug for the ice maker But no LP refrigerator I know of operates without 12volts

[@RandomStuff-zt6qf]

2/0 is fine for 3000watt inverter

[@Bigfishfun333]

I've never seen a guy with a PhD in batteries. Well now I have.

[@jackhouran8851]

Misleading. Not a generator. Nothing more than a big battery.

[@mazecentric4124]

Battery's with built in charge controller, mppt, and inverter are called solar generators. But yes, not the old type of gas generator. :)

[@trangnguyen-xg6ym]

Wow! What a system. I am going to use the Ecoflow Ultra Pro and plug into the standard shore power input. I will charge with solar and the generator as needed. No inverter wiring at all.