LITHIUM VS AGM BATTERY for Overlanding. Should I spend the money?

AGM vs Lithium. Get past the sales talk of lithium batteries and understand the facts.
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4xOverland is the world's largest global 4WD adventure motoring channel. Established in 1996, it is hosted by well known 4x4 writer, explorer and filmmaker, Andrew St Pierre White.

[paulshain]

Very well done. I had my lithium’s shut down on me last year and wouldn’t take charge. Did the same thing as described with another battery and woke up the charger.
Great questions and a great report. Keep up the good work

[sreekumarUSA]

082220/1628pst. That was the most intelligent discussion, educational even. The presentation was not scripted, the two people exchanged views and comments that came out quite naturally, which is very commendable. The gentleman in yellow Jacket explained well to the other gentleman, who was quite inquisitive to understand the intricacies of flooded Pb cell batteries and the LiFePo4 batteries, or the comparison between the two. I have yet to come across such intelligent program in YT in my life. No comments on “ others!” You know what I mean !
Thank you, both of you. My respects and 73s...

[helmuthschultes]

Very unclear definition as there are several DIFFERENT Lithium battery technologies. Main known ones are LiPo and LiFePo. The former is used in phones, Electric cars etc as it has higher energy density. But also the known, explosive fire, variety. It use allows smallest size for given energy capacity. The storage battery presented is LiFePo variety, where the far more stable, less fire prone technology is better, at small loss of energy capacity for given volume is of no concern. But for clarity this presentation should not refer to just 'Lithium' battery but state the technology specifics. Even the optimal charging is affected by Lithium technolgy used.

[willdrivesu]

As someone that's trying to get a rig put together, and looking at the differences between these two batteries I really appreciate all this information, especially about how bad of an idea it is to put a lithium battery under the hood. Tons of great information here, thank you! I'll have to check out more of your video's. :D

[sailingavocet]

We just upgraded from AGM's to Lithiums by building our own battery bank on our sailboat (we liveaboard) using 180 amp hour, 3.6-volt CALB cells, and a DALY BMS, wiring the cells in a 4s2p orientation. So stoked on the upgrade! We charge our lithiums in 2 different ways. We send the power from our 120 amp Balmar alternator on our engine to our 100 amp-hour sealed lead-acid starter battery. From there a Renogy 60 amp DC-DC charger takes the load from the alternator and puts it in a lithium profile and in turn charges the lithium batteries. It was a fun build!

[vivianmorresey]

You asked all the right questions, and Heiner answered very well. The first thing he answered well, was that the Lithium battery case is just a "housing" of the bits inside, so that case and how it looks is the thing that actually confuses everything...because if the look the same, then it should be the same, and that is where the issue starts. Lithiums are fantastic BUT you have to match and design it to work how you want, and unless you are technical at heart, you will struggle. You just started to touch on connecting multiple batteries at the end of the clip, and that is really when it gets complicated...if you need 24V or >200AH...then you really need to match and understand....whereas AGM's you can really still connect them in parallel and/or serial as you see fit, and when you need to...LifePo4 need planning. Great Video.

[ksenergy]

I'm afraid I have to disagree with the prismatic being better. Especially in an off road scenario. Cylindrical cells are wound tightly and encased in a metal casing, This minimizes electrode material from breaking up from mechanical vibrations, thermal cycling from charging and mechanical expansion. The complete opposite to prismatic construction ! Remember those Optima glass matt super tough off road starter batteries from the 90s? No coincidence each cell was constructed in a cylindrical manner.

[sulaimanhyatt]

This was a really helpful video. especially the last part about when you run a AGM or SLA off an inverter, compared to a Lithium battery.

[garyguest]

O man I have been watching so many videos on lithium batteries but this has put it in a way I could understand. Thanks so much. Brilliant.

[MrWalko]

Awesome. I learned a lot.

I would live to see some info on putting Lithium batteries in a solar setup.

[cyclemoto]

FYI: Pb Crystal batterie are still available in OZ...

[DTSquared]

Great video and really helpful. The comment about Prismatic cells confused me as it conflicted with some other research I have done. What I have identified is that some manufacturers provide protection both in terms of physical (explosion proof jacket) and electrical (internal fuses) at a cell level. Prismatic cells are bigger and therefore both more dangerous in the case of explosion and cylinder cells. Cylindrical cells because there are more of them, have more redundancy at a cell level so a problem with a single is less likely to be as serious. So it may be more true to say that the quality of the cells used is more important, and a reflection of cost, than whether they are prismatic or cylinder.

[eburn]

Should i/should i not wire a winch to my secondary lithium battery and use winch while running engine, or always wire winch to lead acid starter battery and use when engine running?

[emuwd]

I’ve a lithium and matched with a redarc BCDC the advantages are amazing . Just the weight and capacity are enough on why I really like my set up. Steve 🇦🇺

[Mattcamel]

I learned a lot from this. Thank you. I could put a lithium starter under my seat in my Defender but then I heard 1. The price and 2. The trickle charge issue. So I'll stick with AGM for my starter battery.

[garrygraham]

Great video Andrew. Heiner (sorry if I misspelt his name) is fantastic at giving clear explanations of the technology and the function of the batteries. You both did a great job. Really enjoyed it and feel much more confident about the value and limitations of lithium batteries. Thanks lads.

[frankguernier]

Andrew. I am looking to replace my three 110amp 7 year old Full River AGM deep cycle batteries .
The batteries are housed in a rack under the tray of my Iveco 4x4.
I became keen on the Enerdrive e power B tec lithium batteries.
Reading the fine print the Enerdrive are not suitable for fitment in exposed weather eg under the tray for a 4x4 truck or under the chasis of a caravan.Is that the norm for lithium in general? Also some suppliers are saying lithium should not be connected in series. Say if I want to add an additional battery later.

[jamesmcmillan]

Most lithium ion batteries are made in China, then a company puts its name on it. The weak point of these can be the bms . When buying a battery, ask questions about the bms, if they can’t show you one or give you the proper specs in writing go elsewhere. A great source of information on this subject is Will Prowse’s YouTube channel.

[Stoic-of-Rome]

I just bought an Ultra lead carbon battery, which so far seems amazing in terms of charging speed from Solar and can go to deeper discharge than AGM. (same price as AGM) Biggest issue for me with battery systems is the ridiculous prices for the DC to DC chargers like red arc.

[rd]

Excellent discussion. However, here in the US we have a wide range of weather. During the year I can travel areas where the temperature can vary between -10 (-23C) to 115 (46C). At his time lithium batteries have complications when dealing with weather extremes that my 8D AGM’s don’t have. I’m excited about lithium battery potential, but right now they don’t answer all my needs like an AGM does.