Cold Temperature Storage of Battle Born Batteries

[Hokieman]

With Winter coming on, there have been many posts about cold weather storage of Lithionics batteries in newer Oliver trailers with solar packages.   Many of us have converted from lead/acid batteries to Battle Born brand LiFePOH.   In their storage instructions, they reference extreme conditions, but don’t specify what those temps are.   I thought that would be useful info to some who might live or camp in very cold climates, so I called Jacob at BB Tech Support.  He explained their batteries can be safely stored down to -10F (internal  battery temp), but they should be charged to 100% and disconnected.  Below that temp, they recommend warmer storage.   

The following are specific details from the BB manual about safe operating & charging temperatures:

• The BMS will not allow a charging or discharging current if the internal temperature of the battery has reached 135°F (57.2°C).
• The BMS will not allow a charging current under 25°F (-3.9°C) but will continue to discharge down to -4°F (-20°C).
• NOTE: The BB10012|BB10012H has an operating temperature range of -4°F (-20°C) to 135°F (57.2°C).
• How to Properly Store Batteries
  • We recommend bringing the Battle Born batteries to a 100% state of charge. Then, disconnect the battery from any loads by removing the negative cable from one battery. On average, the batteries lose approximately 2-3% capacity per month. This is subject to increasing if stored in extreme environmental conditions.