Thor Forums

[Beau388]

Lead acid batteries need a three charge to reach maxim charge without boiling the water out or damaging the plates from heat. For longest life, the max charge current for deep cycle batteries should be 10% to 13% of the battery bank's capacity in amp-h. LA batteries can accept more current but at some risk. The ions can only move so fast from the cathode to the anode and back. This is particularly a problem in deep cycle AGM and Gel VRLA batteries.

LiFePo batteries all contain a battery manager that limits the max current the battery can accept or supply. The generally accepted max amperage is 50% of the batteries 12 volt amp-h capacity. LiFePo batteries only need a two step charger - bulk and float. Xantrex now makes a 150 amp @14.6 volt charger specifically made for large LiFePo battery banks.