WattCycle 300Ah Mini Test &

WattCycle sent one of their new 300Ah Mini LiFePo4 Batteries for testing. I put it through various tests including a 100% DoD deep cycle test to verify the capacity claim. A 1200w set of solar panels and a 60A MPPT Charge Controller were used to charge the battery.
Also, I tested my small portable space heater with an inverter to see how many hours it would run without charging from solar panels. This type of battery is very compact for its capacity. It's a great nearly plug and play building block of a large off electrical grid solar power system.
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🟢 See Also: WattCycle 100Ah Review
• Off Grid Solar Power f...
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🟢 Converting a Space Heater to run on PV DC Solar panels
• Home Shop Heating with...
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Music credits: by TuneTank, Pixabay

[@OFFGRID_Trucker]

Good stuff Dave..! I'm using Four Li Time 400Ah here..(1600Ah) it's alot of power. My panels (2 arrays) just don't get enough sun hours here with all the tall trees around here.. and can't cut them down either. I'm using an EG4 12k Hybrid for my AC and heat. It runs off a pair of 305w panels when the sun is out. Getting ready to relocate to AZ for lots of sun there.

[@solarpoweredge]

@OFFGRID_Trucker Thanks :D that's a nice setup. It's amazing what solar can do. Maybe I'll do a video about my house batteries some time. Never shown that. Exciting moving to AZ... apparently zero problems with sun... that will get the batteries charged up.

[@OFFGRID_Trucker]

@solarpoweredge yes.. I would like to see that video. Yeah.. full 10hrs of sun. The mini split starts working at 90 volts. I will add more panels to it when I get relocated and have the space to use them. Yes, the big move is exciting. 900 miles away. It's going to take four trips , almost 8000 miles. Lol

[@solarpoweredge]

@OFFGRID_Trucker Wow that's going to a different world. Very exciting!

[@petersimms4982]

I’ve had a 100ah lifepo4 battery hanging around my boat for years , I use it to charge everything ! I’ve just checked it and it’s as new , must be 4/5 years old 😊😊😊

[@solarpoweredge]

@petersimms4982 Nice :) the blue colored one on my workbench is at least 10 years old, let's just say it's been through some hard times :D

[@SeventhSamurai72]

Great info and video, very thorough, and I really appreciate the visual of seeing all the components connected. I appreciate you and the effort in posting this video.

[@solarpoweredge]

@SeventhSamurai72 Glad to hear it, thank you so much :D 👍

[@philc.9280]

Your findings were similar to Wil Prowse as he tested the 100 AH model. Watt cycle seems to be the lowest priced LiFePO4 battery out there. I heard there is an abundance of lithium hence battery prices are dropping.

[@solarpoweredge]

@philc.9280 Hi, you are right... there has been too much mining of lithium (over production) and it sometimes costs more to mine it than what they can sell it for. It's good to have lower prices, but at the same time we certainly don't want the market to collapse leading to production problems and a battery shortage. PS I reviewed a the WattCycle 100ah units also, and they seemed to be pretty good batteries. They are in long-term testing right now in my shop. If things go well, I will be able to do long term updates on all the batteries I have reviewed after 1 year or so.

[@wallacegrommet9343]

Amazing energy density. Better form factor, too. Wish I waited on purchasing new batteries but didn’t have that option

[@solarpoweredge]

@wallacegrommet9343 As long as your batteries are serving you well, nothing to worry about :D I have a mix of super old and newer LFP cells mixed in. They don't look great, but they power all my stuff just fine!

[@dc13032]

Good info, I really wonder if there is a tradeoff with the compact size. I’m a boater and the smaller size would let me put much more capacity in my limited area. I’m 79 so did I mention the much lighter weight would be great. So,, Can they and others mfg shrink all Lipo batteries

[@solarpoweredge]

@dc13032 Hi, the energy density on this battery is higher than past options (more power crammed into smaller space) It is 57 pounds, so lifting it is pretty challenging. Lipo or pouch cells in a hard case might be an interesting option! as long as they're covered by a protective shell

[@wallacegrommet9343]

The power storage of lithium prismatic cells has increased steadily in these bargain brands

[@solarpoweredge]

@wallacegrommet9343 Yeah it's good to see... I hope the prices stay low for everyone, the way the world is these days we might see some instability

[@larryjanson4011]

i could use 4 of them. two for the rv, one for the aux system in my truck, one for my ham shack. future 8 for the whole house system. it does get below freezing at times but far more days over 100F.

[@solarpoweredge]

@larryjanson4011 I'd sure like to have 8 :) if I had to put them in freezing temps, probably would build an insulated battery box and install a small heater, could be an interesting project

[@schautamatic]

I still have to watch this but I did some snooping around. The one thing that stands out is the weight: 57 pounds. Usually, lithium batteries are considerably lighter than lead batteries of the same dimensions. But a 300AH lithium battery of that size has a lot of LiFePO4 crammed in it! Gotta wonder how safe this battery really is...

[@solarpoweredge]

@schautamatic They must have higher energy density, appear to be aluminum cases. I am doing long term cycling on it now, I believe it will be very safe. Have been cycling the 100ah versions and no problems whatsoever

[@OFFGRID_Trucker]

@schautamatic my single 400ah li time is 180lbs and i have of them.

[@MaritimeUnprepared]

​@@OFFGRID_Truckerare your batteries 24v? All 4 of my 100ah lifepo4 batteries don't weigh 180 lbs

[@wallacegrommet9343]

So many of the previous generation lithium batteries had lots of empty space inside the case, with blocks of foam rubber acting as filler

[@bikesbeersbeats]

The drops in pricing and increase in features just blows my mind. Why do we still see van life battery systems charging insane amounts over $5k?

[@solarpoweredge]

@bikesbeersbeats Batteries have been getting very cheap... 5K could get a lot of storage!

[@leeinwis]

Watt ?

[@bikesbeersbeats]

@ correct. I think the kit oems cant keep up with the dropping prices or maybe business is just so good they are killing it on margins.

[@colin8532]

Very impressive. I'd love to see how they're built, i.e. the build quality. Sure would be a nice one to add to my system though

[@solarpoweredge]

@colin8532 This battery is in long term testing... several other batteries here are going through the same process. The best test is to use them for awhile! If they survive that, I am done :D

[@solarpoweredge]

@colin8532 Hey Colin I know you are in Canada. I opened the WattCycle battery giveaway to overseas subs. We can't ship batteries overseas. But if you want to enter it anyway, I will send you a gift card or similar if your name is drawn. I really hate excluding anyone :)

[@colin8532]

@@solarpoweredge Hey, thank you sir. I'm used to it. Most of the good channels on KZbin are in the US, and most can't ship beyond the lower 48. Just far too expensive, and probably a real hassle. I'll go watch the video again, and enter the draw. Thank you. Have a great day :)

[@solarpoweredge]

@colin8532 You are welcome sir and I hope you win something... in the future I hope to do giveaways with "digital" prizes so shipping is no longer a problem

[@79gbell]

Just ordered 2. Wished I ordered last night when it was 475 each. Purchased today for 499 each

[@solarpoweredge]

@79gbell Yikes sorry about missing the discount, but I'm glad you got more batteries and hope they serve you well. My personal opinion is not to deep cycle LFP cells to 0% and be easy on them. If they last 5+ years, maybe that 25$ won't be so bad. I hope to get 5-10 years out of my batteries

[@s.mendez7160]

Can provide a link to those Solar controllers in this video? Thank, and appreciate your testing of these batteries. Sooo many choices now...

[@solarpoweredge]

@s.mendez7160 Hi, glad this video was useful. There are certainly a lot of options! The controller is a MakeSkyBlue MPPT, a very basic but affordable solar charge controller. The links to the product are in the description of these videos, which you might find interesting too. You can also just search online for MakeSkyBlue MPPT to find it. Hope this helps! -Dave kzbin.info/www/bejne/qIG4coeFZ56rfrc kzbin.info/www/bejne/jWW8Xoqgr8eNq6s

[@samfish6938]

If making system use 48 volts as you can use smaller wires,would be good for rv

[@solarpoweredge]

@samfish6938 Good point :)

[@ryan52403]

Any downside to using these vs an EG4 battery for home battery backup?

[@solarpoweredge]

@ryan52403 I'm not very familiar with EG4, had a quick look at it just now. In my opinion, it's probably cheaper and better to assemble a standard DIY system with discrete components. Anotherwords battery, inverter, charge controller and cable it all together. That said, EG4 looks like a premium solution!

[@malk6277]

Hey, great video! If you were to put four of these in series for a 48v battery for solar, how would you go about wiring it and monitoring it, and what would be the options for getting it to communicate with an inverter like a Victron? Would it make sense to connect another BMS to the four batteries, and have that BMS communicate with the inverter?

[@solarpoweredge]

@malk6277 Thanks! Here is 100% my personal opinion.. if just starting out, I'd recommend using only 12v/parallel connections (join all positive and negative battery terminals). Monitoring using a basic coloumb counting battery meter they are about 80 bucks. Add a good quality 12v inverter with a fuse. No extra BMS needed, it is internal to the batteries. There is no way for these batteries to communicate with an inverter, BUT they will power an inverter just fine! Hope this helps - Dave

[@malk6277]

@@solarpoweredge Thanks Dave, much appreciated. I need to build a 48v battery, for our home. I'll keep researching.

[@solarpoweredge]

@malk6277 Welcome sir :) sharing a bit of my experience: if you do put normal 12v LFP batteries in series, I recommend checking each 12v unit with a quality voltmeter at least once per month. If one of the 12v units drops or raises it's voltage more than a little compared to the rest, I recommend to stop using the system immediately and manually re-balance each 12v battery. Use the greatest care and caution! The 4 individual "BMS" circuits are often not able to solve this type of issue at all, and it can cause a serious "problem" if not caught. Best option (but not really cheap) is to use native 48-volt batteries. It is not my intent to discourage solar DIY'ers, only share truth, knowledge and prior experience :)

[@CriticalThinker-42]

WattCycle Claims they use EVE A Rated Cells in these Batteries. According to a video on the EVE 280 and 300 Ah Cells, Both Cells are the Same Size, and EVE under rates their Cells by 10% so their 300Ah Rated Cells will Actually Flow ~330Ah, and their 280Ah Cells ~311Ah (Max) before the BMS cuts them off. Remember that Battery Manufacturers usually stick to standard size Cases for their common rated batteries for same form factor mounting, and that LiFePO4's Cells are Smaller than Lead Acid cells. ALSO Overseas Shipping Charges are mostly based upon Volume, and smaller Dimensions per unit allows for less shipping cost per unit from China. (NOT Shipping as much Air!) *** APPARENTLY... WattCycle is taking advantage of this and are using EVE's 280Ah cells to be able to Claim/Give 300Ah Capacity while selling them at a lower price, and allow for a Smaller Void to be left within the Battery case allowing the MINI's smaller size. Thanks for the video! 🍺🍻

[@solarpoweredge]

@CriticalThinker-42 Good breakdown of the details, thanks :D

[@cocoloconuevo]

Thanks for sharing. What make/model is the battery meter you are using? Do you have a video or blog post with the tools you use for testing?

[@solarpoweredge]

@cocoloconuevo Welcome :D the meter is very generic, goes by several brand names. You can see one I installed here for the shop and there is a link in the description to the exact listing kzbin.info/www/bejne/hXazn6qlqKeMe5I

[@Miles7955]

What brand is your multimeter?

[@solarpoweredge]

@Miles7955 It's a Gochifix, here is a video about it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iHPSgo2VfbygbZI

[@dougtheslug6435]

I think in any battery what they claim it will do is tell you the amount of cycles without any severe derogation, with any luck they'll last for twice that as they become less efficient as time goes on.

[@solarpoweredge]

@dougtheslug6435 Good point - my hope is to get 5-10 years or more cycle life from LFP by not abusing, overcharging or deep cycling. I truly hate running these batteries down to 0% for testing, but it has to be done....

[@dougtheslug6435]

@@solarpoweredge I get the test and why, those are impressive results with one battery. Definitely will be going to similar size when the time comes, amazing the tech they're coming up with.

[@solarpoweredge]

@dougtheslug6435 Yeah hard to believe they crammed 300 ah in that small box - good stuff :D

[@BlenderRookie]

I was not expecting a battery that size to actually have 300 amps capacity.

[@solarpoweredge]

@BlenderRookie Pretty amazing what they can cram into the case

[@jimmy_Ross]

i did these batteries are getting better and better and smaller and smaller and cheaper and cheaper lol by this time next year these batteries will cost 100.00 dollar per 100amp hour battery ill bet anything on that

[@jimmy_Ross]

@@ChadKovac the smaller batteries are for sure but the 100amp hour batteries are presmatic or like the battery I bought has 8 pouch cells to make up the 100amp hours but the smaller batteries are using smaller cells for sure sill good tho well there all built from the same factory just slap different labels on the product lol

[@markeh1971]

@@jimmy_RossHi, currently the DC house 12v 100ah battery’s are £167 delivered and 12v 200ah battery’s £358 diliverd ( from memory ). I think that is good! Cheaper is always better as long as it has the quality. Take care M.

[@jimmy_Ross]

@@markeh1971 facts facts

[@CharlesNewkirk-lb6uh]

Nice video review!

[@solarpoweredge]

@CharlesNewkirk-lb6uh Thank you sir :D

[@trainmaster0217]

What do you do if the battery doesn't meet it's rated capacity?

[@solarpoweredge]

@trainmaster0217 Most likely send it back

[@trainmaster0217]

@@solarpoweredge ok, Thank you.

[@solarpoweredge]

@trainmaster0217 NP

[@Sparkjumper59]

How long was the yellow extension cord that ran to the heater?

[@solarpoweredge]

@Sparkjumper59 Hi, it is a 50ft heavy cord from HF, I don't know what gauge the wire is

[@deanedeane4318]

Excellent video ! Thankyou ! 😉🙃😎 NZ

[@solarpoweredge]

@deanedeane4318 Welcome, and thanks a lot for watching :) :D 👍

[@Boondocker99]

What is that meter you were using that showed the percentage of the battery?

[@solarpoweredge]

@Boondocker99 Hi, the official technical name is "coloumb counting amp or battery meter" or it's also called a battery fuel gauge or battery meter. Here is the video where I installed it for my workshop kzbin.info/www/bejne/hXazn6qlqKeMe5I and there is a link in the description, or just search online for "battery meter" there are several different kinds. hope this helps! -Dave

[@mor8266]

Excellent review and test. Very thorough.

[@solarpoweredge]

@mor8266 Thanks a lot!!! :)

[@steveadal4735]

Bluetti charger1 video got my 10 year old interested 😮❤❤❤ 2:20

[@solarpoweredge]

@steveadal4735 Good stuff :) :D he will be a solar expert when he grows up :)

[@OFFGRID_Trucker]

@@steveadal4735 I have the 500 W pecron charger that charges my Ecoflow delta.

[@hisnameisiam808]

What heater is this?

[@solarpoweredge]

@hisnameisiam808 I love space heaters... this one was previously sold on the "big A" website under the brand "numifun", but I don't know if they still have it in stock

[@garys6898]

Wow good price

[@solarpoweredge]

@garys6898 Not bad for so much energy crammed into a small space!

[@garys6898]

@solarpoweredge yeah I just grabbed 280ah eco worthy ones for like 470 each

[@kkutube1972]

Thanks

[@solarpoweredge]

@kkutube1972 NP :) :D

[@leeinwis]

More Powa !

[@solarpoweredge]

@leeinwis Right on! :D

[@ianball3972]

hey thanks for the info

[@leeinwis]

Watts up ? Sorry

[@solarpoweredge]

@ianball3972 NP thanks for watching :)

[@solarpoweredge]

@leeinwis No harm done :D

[@offgridlife1-s2v]

With WattCycle batteries, RV camping is a breeze. They're long-lasting and powerful, keeping me powered up no matter where I am.

[@solarpoweredge]

@elysefang4651 :) 👍

[@alexbrodie6886]

Ammazon: currently unavailable

[@solarpoweredge]

@alexbrodie6886 They are on Wattcycle website, listed as pre-sale / limited quantity

[@dan32one44]

They might be using pouch cells…

[@solarpoweredge]

@dan32one44 On their website photos it shows Al encased cells. I believe they use EVE as their cell supplier. I have not "sawed" this one open, but my feeling is as long as it works and has the advertised capacity it's fine :D

[@KU9L]

I was considering several 400-600 AH Lifepo4 Brand of batteries, but most had single 200-250 amp BMS limitations. It would run a 3 KW inverter, but I like the idea of having the potential of 400 amps total if there are other loads besides the inverter. However I would need to add a couple of 4/0 jumpers to complete the setup in my RV. Currently there is a pre-molded battery tray for 2 group 27 batteries, these almost would fit! The LiTime 560 AH battery does not fit that space. Currently we are planning to be on the road headed to FL when AMZ would be able to ship these to my son where we are visiting now. Maybe checking for a Black Friday special is in order. Cheers, David - KU9L

[@solarpoweredge]

@KU9L Hi, I cannot see the RV layout, just sharing my thoughts... maybe you can modify the battery tray or add a second battery compartment. it can be difficult to find batteries when there are space constraints. It's an engineering challenge... hope you're able to find the right ones. One option I have leaned on in the past is long 4/0 cables and add an extra battery any where it can be hidden. Or just hide one right next to the inverter. It will share some amps and reduce the load on the batteries closest to the inverter. Of course this kind of thing is a bit stressful if one has OCD :)

[@elelegidosf9707]

It would be better for noobs of you actually said the battery capacity you tested - not everyone knows how to calculate it based on watts and run time.

[@solarpoweredge]

@elelegidosf9707 I hear ya... I used my Amp meter set to 300ah and it went to zero, that was my way of showing capacity. I definitely don't wish to cause any confusion... anyway thanks for the feedback

[@jimmy_Ross]

lol im waiting till these batteries come down to 1 dollar per amp hour lol then i will be happy to buy them to me they still cost to much

[@solarpoweredge]

@jimmy_Ross You're right they ain't cheap

[@priestesslucy]

Going to be waiting a while. It's hard to come by less than $1.40 per amp hour, and I don't see prices dropping much in the short term with tarrifs on China. Would be nice if I was wrong though. Just looked at the Amazon listing, with the coupon it's $1.50 per AH, with the mini form factor that's honestly a decent price if weight is at all relevant to you. I paid less per AH for my 280AHs on Prime Day, but they weigh more than this despite less capacity

[@jimmy_Ross]

@@priestesslucy lol well last yeat at this time these batteries cost over 300 dollars and today i can buy the same battery for 150.00 dollars lol i just paid 140.00 dollars for 1000amp hour battery with a good JBD BMS and it has bluetooth witch i love and it has all the protcetion you would ever need and i only paid 140.00 dollar after taxes and shipping and i got it within 2 days of buying it so yeah im 100% percent sure these batteries will be half the price by this time next year and everyone allready knows this i could of spend 300 dollars last year but i waited 1 year and these batteries dropped down in half the price so yeah these batteries will be under 100.00 dollars for sure buy next year at this time ill bet anything ON IT

[@jimmy_Ross]

@@priestesslucy yeah for now but last year at this time these batteries cost 300 dollars an now there half the price and i know for sure these batteries will be around 100.00 dollars at most by next year lol so that battery i bogght for 140.00 dollars shipped and taxes and it got to my house in 2 days and that cost me 140.00 dollars so im pretty sure by this time next years the price of a 140.00 dollar battery will be only 100,00 dollars to buy next years so stop it these batteries are alomst at 100.00 dollars allready for cheap battery for 12 more months from now of course the batteries will be 100.00 dollar for sure so stop it why are you lying to people

[@jimmy_Ross]

ill bet anythign these batteries will cost 100 dollar per 100amp hours by this time next year since last year these same batteries cost over 300.00 dollars but i just bought one OFF AMAZON for 140.00 dollars after TAXES AND SHIPPING so im pretty sure by this time next year these batteries will be way cheaper like 1 dollar per amp hour and ill bet anything on that so priestesslucy ill bet you anything these batteries will cost 100.00 dollar max by next year just like these batteries are half the price since last year so do the math last years this same battery cost over 300.00 dollar and now you can a 100amp battery under 150.00 dollars now so if you do the math that mean by this time next year these batteries will deffinitly cost 100.00 dollars for a 100amp hour battery and ill bet anyone anything on this priestesslucy

[@solarpoweredge]

@jimmy_Ross I used a lot of prismatic cells for my house batteries... waiting for a load of prismatic LFP cells for the workshop, they should be cheaper than the drop-in style batteries

[@jimmy_Ross]

@@solarpoweredge true true

[@kimmer6]

@@solarpoweredge I had a 3600 ah 24 volt system on line for 2 years. 12x300 ah batteries. A BMS failed on one battery...dead shorted...and set fire to the power console and did $150,000 damage to my shop and garage. The battery bank was at 100%, MPPT charger was off, not outputting, total load on the system was under 750 watts. This was my 12th build of 14 LFP systems. Everything was assembled correctly, fused everywhere, 12kw split phase inverter, etc. Why it failed is being looked at by a forensic fire investigator. The system was online for 2 years with zero signs of distress. Max loads typically under 2300 watts. WHY????

[@solarpoweredge]

@kimmer6 That is horrific! Sorry for the loss... I have never used any "BMS" on my hand built prismatic cell banks (mostly CALB cells), and in fact one of the reasons IS the risk of them shorting out. Problem is, batteries usually need some kind of protection circuitry to sell to the common market. It is a real dilemma. Anyway I hope you are able to recover your losses and rebuild.

[@kimmer6]

@@solarpoweredge Thanks. My 8x280AH EVE cell homebuilt is supplying power for lighting and tools right now. Home built in 2020. The fire impacted my life but the contractor begins repairs tomorrow after 3 months red tape.