Just a few weeks in the past, GOLDENMATE reached out to have us check its tackle the deep cycle battery. From what we will inform up to now, it really works precisely as marketed, and it a reasonably straightforward to make use of bundle!

What Would You Use One Of These For?

A deep cycle battery is a sort of power storage unit that’s designed to be discharged and recharged repeatedly, typically all the way down to a really low stage. This contrasts with starter batteries (like these in most automobiles), that are designed for brief bursts of excessive energy to begin the engine, however then get shortly recharged by the automotive’s alternator.

Deep cycle batteries are utilized in varied purposes the place steady, dependable energy is required over a protracted time frame. Some frequent examples embody marine use (like powering electrical trolling motors), RVs and campers for off-grid energy, solar energy storage, and electrical wheelchairs. Should you have been to place a starter battery in one in every of these roles, it wouldn’t final almost as lengthy.

Through the years, there have been a number of varieties of deep cycle batteries enhancing the state of affairs, every with their benefits and downsides:

1. Flooded Lead Acid (FLA): These are the normal kind of rechargeable battery, and are sometimes essentially the most inexpensive. Nonetheless, they require common upkeep (topping up with distilled water), and have to be saved upright to stop acid spillage.

2. Sealed Lead Acid (SLA): These are just like FLAs however are sealed, in order that they require much less upkeep and may be mounted in any orientation. They’re costlier than FLAs and have a shorter lifespan.

3. Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM): These batteries use a particular fiberglass separator that absorbs the electrolyte, offering some great benefits of being spill-proof, maintenance-free, and in a position to ship excessive currents. They’re costlier than each FLA and SLA batteries.

4. Gel Cell: These use a gelified electrolyte, making them leak-proof and maintenance-free. Nonetheless, they’re delicate to overcharging, costlier, and sometimes have a decrease capability than different varieties.

5. Lithium-Ion: These are the latest kind of deep cycle battery and supply a number of benefits like lighter weight, greater effectivity, longer lifespan, and just about no upkeep. Nonetheless, they’re considerably costlier.

Effectively, really, that last item (costly) is one thing that seems to be altering!

What You Get For The Cash with GOLDENMATE

One of many first issues that struck me concerning the firm’s battery was the worth. Like many different deep cycle batteries of its dimension, it has a capability of 100 amp-hours (1280 watt-hours). However, as an alternative of costing nearly $1,000 like they used to, they’ve managed to construct an iron-based battery and promote it for $329 (as of this writing).

Connecting the battery to gadgets that draw energy from it’s fairly straightforward. As an alternative of getting battery posts or wingnuts, they supplied easy bolt-holes you may readily add loop-style electrical connections to. It even has plastic caps that hold issues from touching the connections as readily. With nothing linked, the battery’s caps hold the connections fully closed off to issues which may quick it out, making for simpler carrying and storage in automobiles and different settings.

It’s doable to do fairly a couple of issues with the batteries, too. Most output is 100 amps (steady), and you may join them in parallel or sequence for greater voltage and/or greater capability, permitting them to energy something typical lead-acid deep cycle batteries can, however with much less weight and bulk.

Lastly, it has a built-in carrying strap that’s constituted of a versatile materials. This makes transferring the battery round lots simpler than the common deep cycle battery.

Testing

In some methods, it’s robust to check a deep cycle battery in each state of affairs you would possibly use one in. Few folks have a golf cart, an RV, a trolling motor, and a ham radio setup. However, with the ability to simply draw some energy from it provides you a fairly good thought. One different I experimented with was to energy issues with an inverter I’ve laying round. It’s solely rated for 1,000 watts, however when pulling energy from a 12-volt battery, you’re pulling over 80 amps! So, pulling the 1,000 watts is an efficient check for such a battery.

To actually put a load on the unit, I linked a transportable air conditioner to it, which I had seen pull round 800 watts from my Jackery energy station. The consequence was simply as anticipated, with the battery powering the load as marketed.

The Largest Benefit: Longevity

As I identified earlier, the expertise inside deep-cycle batteries has modified fairly a bit over time. The most cost effective batteries are easy, however have to be largely stationary and upright to perform safely. Sealed items, gel cells, glass mats, and different choices enhance the longevity in movement, however they nonetheless have a restricted total lifespan.

Household which I’ve gone RVing with can attest to the restricted lifetime of lead-acid batteries. When the RV will get parked for the winter, it simply received’t survive till spring except the battery will get trickle-charged. Even when linked to photo voltaic and saved up at full voltage, a lead-acid battery nonetheless doesn’t sustain a very good cost after a 12 months or two, and goes fully useless not lengthy after.

LiFePO batteries (aka “LFP”) keep away from all of this want for maintaining a trickle cost, and keep away from the issues of dropping capability and cost capability after a few years. Not like different lithium batteries, iron-based chemistries additionally don’t have any downside sitting at 100% cost between makes use of, so there’s no want to empty them to a super voltage for storage, both.

The tip result’s which you can take one thing that was a ache (changing and sustaining batteries) and simply change them with one thing that works long-term. Discovering out the arduous manner that an RV doesn’t have a cost for lighting, a trolling motor received’t troll, or a golf cart received’t transfer actually sucks. Minimizing the failures and ache factors of utilizing battery expertise can be a fairly whole lot on the value level batteries are beginning to arrive at!

Featured picture: the GOLDENMATE LiFePO battery throughout unboxing at a mountaintop campsite in New Mexico. Picture by Jennifer Sensiba.

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