Has this episode changed your mind about the Kings Lithium (LiFePO4) battery?

@jeffreythomas815

Жыл бұрын

I was on the fence, but I think I'm satisfied enough now that my next battery might well be a King's. 👍. Thanks for the great video.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

@@jeffreythomas815 You're welcome! the next will be the disassembly, don't forget to check out the final episode when it drops.

@Bens172

Жыл бұрын

Can u upload the next one now, super keen to watch it

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

@@Bens172 I'm not done with the testing yet!

@outdooraussie6355

Жыл бұрын

Yep, I reckon so. Hard to argue with those results. Keep 'em coming! Cheers 🍻

I love these technical episodes, as they give us great info backed by real knowledge and testing. Thanks and please keep them coming.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Thanks mate, I think there's too much opinion on YT reviews with any solid data to back it up, all I hope is to help people make an informed opinion before putting down their hard earned!

Running 2 of these in parallel in our camper trailer and they're absolutely perfect - runs up to 2.2kW of constant AC power via the inverter along with all the usual DC gear. Even over a 5-day trip in not ideal conditions for solar charging, its safe to say we're highly impressed with their ability. Definitely good!

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Great to hear they're working for you, so far they seem to be a decent thing!

Really well done video! Genuinely shocked that it surpassed it’s rated capacity- many at the same price point dont! Looking forward to the tear down. Also keen to see how it goes long term (as that’s where most of my kings gear has fallen short..)

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Rest assured it'll be shown mercy on the long term testing, every time I go on holidays the corrugations seem to hunt me down!

Can't wait for the disassembly, Always love your in depth testing Simon,👏👏

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

You should see the insides!

Thanks, Simon, for this video. I'm glad you put graphs in because you know what I'm like. Looking forward to you putting in a park and seeing what's inside

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

You know every graph was for you mate..... :)

That performance is insane. I was expecting it to only last 30-45 minutes at 120 A, it's normal for most batteries to be derated at high loads. This battery is the real deal. Thanks for doing these tests, they are epic.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

8 ай бұрын

Glad to help, the battery definitely was a little warm, though I couldn't see any damage during the tear down.

Great video simon, getting straight to the point and answering all the questions people are wondering. cant wait to see the insides as one of my pet hates is wasted space inside these things! 🍻

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Hmmmm, you might be both happy and disappointed with the next video then! :)

That’s pretty impressive stuff. I’m very interested in the tear down now to see how well it’s been put together or not. Thanks for doing this.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

It's on the healing bench at the moment, I'm conducting the temperature protection testing today. But I was surprised about the construction.

Good stuff mate. Thanks. Keen to see that 'drop in lithium' test too!! Cheers 🍻

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

There's a bit of a back log, but I'm getting there!

@outdooraussie6355

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing All good mate. No pressure! 😁😁

Great testing mate 👍

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Thanks mate.

I have 2 Hiace campervans , each have a 300 ah king’s battery, they are awesome. I even run in each a 1500 w kings inverter. 23 000 km later, fully off grid, only use 240v appliances and zero gas, that are pretty good so far. Can’t fault them. I swapped over from 2 itechworld batteries. Kings are more battery for less money. Would love to see a tear down of a 300 ah battery. Awesome video mate.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Great to hear you're having a good buying experience! I would love to have a crack at the 300Ah.

Great informative vid mate! It gives me alot of confidence after i just brought three of them for the boat. 2 in parallel for the 24volt trolling motor and one to run the sounder! They should do the job nicely! Cheers!

@LockyourHubs4WDing

7 ай бұрын

You're welcome, these blue tops seem to be a decent thing, mine is still working like a champ.

Amazing video! Thanks for such an informative video

@LockyourHubs4WDing

5 ай бұрын

Glad you liked it!

Really impressive battery . Awesome video mate 👍🍻

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Thanks 👍

Very informative great analysis, subscribed

@LockyourHubs4WDing

2 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Excellent video! Thanks.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Cheers! The teardown video drops next Sunday. Or tomorrow for the patreon supporters.

Great video, I’m considering taking mine apart to upgrade the BMS to a JBD 4S 200A w/ Bluetooth, so before I release the dremel I’ll wait for your next video 🤓

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

The blue top is definitely 4s, but not the black top (pouch cell) version.

I told you in your previous teardown video I bought King's 120A lithium and tested it and got more than 120A from full discharge so I am happy with that.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Gotta be happy with that!

@michaelmedicworldoftanks33fps

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing definitely and it was on discount too 😃

I bought one 3 weeks ago. Awesome battery

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Ай бұрын

Nice 👍

Great testing video. I’m almost sold but after so many bad experiences with Kings products a few years ago I just can’t bring myself to trust their products, and with me doing a lot of remote travel I need reliability.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

I'm the same, it needs to be decent quality if you're going to rely on it for remote travel. I've also bought rubbish from Kings as well. Check out the next video all about the construction and you'll be able to just for yourself.

Nice job. Thankyou

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

You're welcome!

Last week i bought one of these for $349 (black friday sale and ebay plus voucher code) and also got their 1500w inverter and i put a smartshunt in between the two, and i maxed them both out with an induction cooker on 1400w, it pulled 1450w (117a) from the battery for the whole test, and i got 130.1ah when the inverter cut out on low voltage. Im thoroughly impressed with both, especially since this time last year i picked up a pair of voltx 100ah batteries sold at aldi for $429, they tested at 98 and 95ah each, can only supply or be charged with 50a continuous, cant be connected in series or parallel according to the manufacturer. Also another aussie youtuber dismantled those and found obvious used and mismatched cells that werent even the same shade of blue, and voltages werent even close across the cells.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

7 ай бұрын

I was pleasantly surprised, mine's still running great, they seem like a decent thing.

Brilliant test and analysis. This video really gives me confidence on the performance of this battery. Are these number also a reflection of their longevity and durability? Or do you need to do different types of tests to find that out? It would be interesting to see in your next video if the high temp you mentioned melted any internal components. 👍

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Thanks mate, to artificially age cells, manufacturers use high heat (but don't tell "under bonnet lithium rated" manufactures that! :)

What an excellent result, great job in review and testing procedure, I like that you repeated ur tests 3x, most reviews show the batteries barely make capacity if they do at all and this has smashed it in. I just saw ur 2nd part teardown & regardless of the cons you found, I have to say Kings lithium Batteries seem to be great value at this time. I have bought 2 x 200A Kings lithiums recently ($800ea on special) a week apart and got a black top battery first delivery with a recessed post at each end, and then the second to arrive has a blue top and is about 25mm wider with both posts at one end and not recessed as the first battery to arrive, it would be interesting to see a teardown of these two types, Im guessing the first may have pouch cells while the second battery maybe a more recent upgrade to a prismatic configuration, it is a bit of a nuisance as I want to run them in parallel for a 3kwh inverter & was counting on them being the same configuration and size. Cheers

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

I assume you're right, that the black top is pouch cells and prismatic in the blue tops. I would love to both test and disassemble the 200Ah and 300Ah batteries. Just gotta find someone to lend me one .......

@evil17

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDingI would love to see that teardown & tests.

People always put shit on kings but the stats look good 👍 thanks for sharing

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

And don't get me wrong, some of their stuff definitely is! Lol

now would be great to see same test after a year of moderate usage

@LockyourHubs4WDing

9 ай бұрын

Great idea!

cool test

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Thanks!

Great testing methodology. It may change my views on Kings. Looking forward to the next video. Would you consider similar testing including tear down with other name brands of batteries to see what differences there are and where any true “value” lies?

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Yep, sure! I'm talking to a couple of mates who are thinking of upgrading, so I'll see if I can steal them before the install!

@johnwigg3683

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing that would be really informative. Thanks so much for your work helping people understand equipment performance

i run 2x 120 amp kings battery's in my camper trailer and i love them

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

The older pouch cell version, or the newer prismatic cell version?

@jcbfeather

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing was not aware they did a pouch cell but at time of ordering (witch took 3 mouths to get)they where advertised as a prismatic cell so iv had them now installed for 6 months and im running a shunt and iv found i am getting the full advertised capacity

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Great to hear, I think the black tops are pouch cells and the blue top is prismatic.

I recon u should campare a Iteck battery with the kings 1 would be really keen in seeing that, and i recon a lot of other people would be as well. And there on special at the moment.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Hmmmm, I would just need to get my hands on one!

Really liked this episode, well done 👏👏👏 something I’m not sure of though, I noticed your testing went all the way down to 10.5v. Would that be an explanation for the better than expected performance?? Also would that Level of discharge on a regular/ongoing basis be detrimental to battery life/performance over the medium or longer term??🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️ Love your work, keep it up 👍👍

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

The BMS should be set to cut out at 10v to prevent damage to the cells. If you check out the gradient of the graph around that sort of voltage there is negligible extra Ah capacity going below 11 or so volts. While you would get longer life with a shallower discharge, as these batteries are rated for multiple thousands of full discharge cycles, you may as well use all of the capacity you payed for!

@michaelbignell2385

10 ай бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing Curious - running your battery down to the 10V cut off or 9V on the 200aH is surely damaging to the cells? Just becuase you can do it doesn't mean it is a good idea. Ie I can drive my car on redline every gear change but..... Anyway if you compare the usable current to 12V is that the 120aH at a safe discharge level rather than the 136aH? I think Enerdrive have an 11.2V cut out or 2.8V per cell as a safe cut off level. Running these down to 10V is assuming the BMS is monitoring all 4 cells [hopefully] and not 1 cell at 2.5V which could mean a discharge lower than 2.5V on the other cells, which would do damage

@LockyourHubs4WDing

10 ай бұрын

The BMS is individually monitoring each cell voltage, not just overall voltage, so if an individual cell is lower because the pack is out of balance, the BMS should cut the whole supply.

Simon, did u buy this one yourself? Good job for doing this

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Yes mate, the same as anyone else, no skin in the game on this one. It's going in the 80 if it survives the torture! :)

@boxheadmr

Жыл бұрын

Thats great simon, i was looking at the 200ah ones for the camper as they seem good value. If you do a simple cost to ah, comparing even 80% remaining capacity after a year, you still end up in front.

If you can see the bms that clearly with thermal cam and the wires on the outside of the box its a lot hotter than the hot temp you read from outside the box which is bad.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

It definitely would have been, though hasn't seen to done any damage thankfully.

How did the bms not cut out with that much discharge ( I thought it would cut out at 20 percent )without hurting the battery ? Thank you great video

@LockyourHubs4WDing

11 ай бұрын

They should cut out by 10v, the tester (CBA4) was set to cut at 9.5v. There may have been a voltage drop between the battery and the tester, though you're right, the BMS should cut the discharge around 10v.

cool

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Thanks!

Like many other Lithium battery brands, it's obviously a rebadged Chinese battery. I researched the BMS functionality before I put my trust in a Lithium battery. To limit the chance of a fire, I wanted to know if it turned off during a short circuit. If it had a temperature sensor that worked and shut down the battery if too hot or too cold. I also required bluetooth and an app, so I could keep an eye on things. A battery that was well constructed, and could take the vibrations in an off road vehicle. Hence I paid more and went for the Renogy Lithium battery. Anyway, I will be looking forward to the tear down of the new model Kings battery, as the first model tear down I viewed was rather frightening. 😂

@6226superhurricane

Жыл бұрын

you'd be more likely to get a fire from your external wiring than from a lifepo4 battery cells.

@RGVJ21

Жыл бұрын

And your Renogy is made where?

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

The temp testing is still underway, though as far as blue tooth is concerned, if the balancer works well enough, there isn't really a use for individual cell voltages other than peace of mind. I prefer a decent shunt like the Victron to keep an eye on things especially in banks of batteries.

@CamperKev

Жыл бұрын

@@RGVJ21 China i bet, but that's not the point. The point is that it works correctly, unlike some other cheap Chinese lithium batteries.

@CamperKev

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing I don't use it for individual cell voltages and I also have a shunt. I'm more interested in knowing it's state of charge, if the solar is charging the battery and if the alternator is charging the the battery. Bluetooth and an app is the best way to monitor the situation. I can even do it from inside my tent or from within my house. I can also see if the fridge is working. It's too easy.

Just got one of these and I think I'm using it wrong - should i be charging it to 14.2v? That would be full right? I'm running two 60w solar panels in parallel and I don't think it is enough to fully charge the battery (through a dcdc mppt charger) as it plateaued at 13.2v in full sunlight I think my solution is to put the solar panels in series to get to the higher voltages - would you agree? Awesome videos by the way, gave me the confidence to buy the battery

@LockyourHubs4WDing

10 ай бұрын

They usually charge at 14.4v DC, make sure your DCDC is set to lithium and if the mppt charger can take the voltage of the two panels in series, connect them up

@JacekSzymenderski

10 ай бұрын

Thanks mate! Appreciate that!@@LockyourHubs4WDing

seriously thinking abot buying one

@LockyourHubs4WDing

7 ай бұрын

Mine's still running like a champ.

What charger are you using? What is the off charge standby voltage before you start the test?

@LockyourHubs4WDing

3 ай бұрын

I just used a variable voltage lab power supply to charge the battery. Standby voltage is around 13.3-13.4v.

Hi, Any chance you can add accurate voltage figures to your info/graph please. eg charge graph, start to finish, beginning curves and end curves start to finish (at least to the tenth of a volt at minimum would be nice). This test is the closest ive found to some factual data and i am hoping for everyone that someone with the correct tools can supply accurate useful info so we can decide what to set our chargers to accuratly work with these kings batteries :) This is a high selling product but for some reason no one will share accurate charge and discharge graphs.?.?.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Shoot me an email at the contact address and I'll happily send the raw data logs if that helps.

how do i hook up the app or which app to monitor the kings 120ah battery please

@LockyourHubs4WDing

9 ай бұрын

Unfortunately, the Kings battery doesn't have an app.

would love a followup video. How is it after 10 months?

@LockyourHubs4WDing

3 ай бұрын

It's now living in a projecta power hub, being charged by solar with a Victron MPPT charger. Working great to power a fridge and charge phones etc. No issues.

@unitedstates3068

3 ай бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing thanks for the info 👍

Wow. Too bad you can’t put more than 2 of these in series. Be great to build a 16 battery bank at 48V with these for the home.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Probably not the market they're aiming for to be honest. Though agreed, it's a shame.

@AlexSwan

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing Kings support told me 2 max in series. However the website states up to 4 batteries in series. Might work after all.

now lithium battery warranty can up to 10years

@LockyourHubs4WDing

8 ай бұрын

Great point, hopefully Kings starts playing catch up.

But the battery was at 4.11v when you finished the test? From what I understand about lithium batteries, that's low enough to cause damage. Thought the BMS would have stopped that from happening

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Sorry I should have explained in the video, the battery's BMS had shut off and the voltage seen was just the residual voltage in the capacitors of the inverter.

@damoknows1543

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing thanks for explaining mate. Really enjoyed the video! New subscriber for ya 🤝

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Cheers and welcome!

Vey interesting video. I have a 200ah voltx battery which has a fault. Neither Outbax or voltx will help me. Is there a email I can use to explain the issus, thought you might be able to shed some light on the problem.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

10 ай бұрын

Sure, send me an email (the email address is under the channel contacts)

@KennethStock-bv9bw

10 ай бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing Thanks for that. Found the Twitter, facebook etc links but no email address or should I use this formatt.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

10 ай бұрын

@@KennethStock-bv9bw enquiries (at) lockyourhubs4wding.com

Hi there, i have recently purchased this battery and it didn’t even keep my 50l 12v fridge running over night. I’m new to this and don’t know anything about how long they should be able to power a fridge but I’m thinking it should be able to power it over night ?? Voltage dropped to 10.6 and now currently charging it via 100w solar panels. Should it be able to run the fridge all day with solar charging the battery and over night ? I’m thinking i have a defective battery, i took it in to kings and they tested it with positive results…

@LockyourHubs4WDing

10 ай бұрын

Did you initially charge the battery? LiFePO⁴ batteries are usually shipped only partially charged. You need to charge them before use. The only real way to test the battery capacity is to charge the battery at about 14.4v until the current drops to zero, then run a capacity test on the battery. The battery shouldn't have an issue to run an already chilled 12v fridge for several days, even without solar. With a decent amount of solar, you should be able to run the fridge just about indefinitely. That's exactly what Matt (part of LYHs) is doing in his ute, the car gets only driven every so often, though it's parked outdoors and the fridge is never turned off.

@user-by4eg6jv3p

10 ай бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing thanks for your response, no I didn't charge it straight away. I plugged it in to the fridge and run it for a few hours then realised I had to charge it so I plugged it in to a 240v mains charger and only charged to 75% so I took it back to king's and they tested in saying it was fine.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

10 ай бұрын

@@user-by4eg6jv3p does the mains powered charger have a lithium profile? If it doesn't, you possibly won't get a full charge. As a battery fills up, the current starts dropping off, so the last little bit takes a while. If your battery charger has a lithium profile, place it on the charger until it's telling you that it's full, then you know where you're starting from.

@user-by4eg6jv3p

10 ай бұрын

It's been charging all day now via the 100w solar blanket and has stopped at 13v and won't go any higher. Would you say the battery is cooked ?

@user-by4eg6jv3p

10 ай бұрын

The battery charger didn't have a lithium profile, it's an older one about 15 years old

They are getting very cheap. Getting 4 in parallel. Charged and monitored by victron.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

They are certainly getting cheaper.

Puncher it with a long nail watch it run away.... no safety measures

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Don't confuse Lithium Ion with Lithium Iron Phosphate, they're two completely different battery chemistries. Lithium Iron Phosphate are safer than lead acid, Lithium Ion can impersonate fireworks if punchered. .

@ausguy4385

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing do it then... you'll find these still run away and catch fire...

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

@@ausguy4385 that actually might make an interesting video, there seems to be plenty of confusion about the two chemistries out there.

And when will you tell us of the critical issues of Lithium batteries, BMS Hibernation and Storing them for some time and "waking them up again " No one talks about this issue and it is a MAJOUR concern. It is the dead pool of the tech.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

Not sure it's a big issue to be honest, if you use a low voltage cutout, there will be no need to "wake up" the battery, just put sufficient charge into it and the cutout will allow electricity to pass again. If you don't have a low voltage disconnect, and the BMS disconnects the output, either put the DCDC in power supply mode. (If your DCDC allows it) or simply run a wire from the cranking battery to "wake up" the BMS. My Victron DCDC can change over to power supply mode in the app, no need to even touch the system at all.

When did camping become an over complicated shit show?

@LockyourHubs4WDing

5 ай бұрын

It always has been, but never has to be. It is your choice to make it as simple, or as complicated as you like.

it is funny how people crap on kings yet never actually owned anything, i've got an old kings generator abused it left outside for years starts everytime an powers the things i want powered

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

It looks like it's a bit hit or miss, some of the things are great and some not so much....

@arronjohnston742

Жыл бұрын

@@LockyourHubs4WDing same can be said about most things no matter the brand name

@theeahsee

Жыл бұрын

Like any mass distributor, Kings are just a store front and brand. They don't have Kings factories in China where the guy who makes the awnings works next to the guy making batteries. Kings probably has hundreds of contracts and different manufacturers. All of them having differing levels of quality, as well as Kings having varying levels of acceptable quality assurance before things go to market. Most mass distributors operate like this, you shouldn't ever judge a product by its brand. Kings just has a low common denominator problem, they make EVERYTHING... naturally there's going to be varying levels of quality acceptance monitoring by their buyers.

@LockyourHubs4WDing

Жыл бұрын

@@theeahsee agreed 110%.

@SirFuseable

Жыл бұрын

Yep, just like the stuff from Aldi, pick and choose carefully and you can get some great stuff at decent prices.

what app do i use and how to hook app up to the kings 120ah battery

@LockyourHubs4WDing

9 ай бұрын

Unfortunately there isn't an app.