Alternator system choice to charge lithium and car battery ( and concern on car warranty)

[mikecol]

For my boat I just got 4 of the Lion UT1300 from Costco yesterday. All 4 sitting at 60% charge (on led display) and 13.18V. They look great.

I have 10X Trojan 110AH Trillium for the van, but found out they are not available anymore (changing manf)...sure didn't last long.

The online complaints of plastic case and 6mm connections are not a big deal at all for me. Going to use these in series and only draw about 50A... i.e. GPS trolling motor for anchoring.

 

[gltrimble]

Limited Lifetime Warranty.... Do you know if Costco will handle their replacement? That alone almost make it worth it.

I haven't seen them sold for less then 899.00 so I was going to go with battle born but at 699.50 each plus Costco generous warranty policy and the luxury of being able to walk into any costo to replace will definitely change my thinking.

Anyone have any first hand experience with these?

I purchased four of the Lion batteries thru Costco. One of them had a rattle like a small screw inside. I returned it to the local Costco, no questions asked. Prior to returning the battery I called Lion. They said I could send it back for replacement but it would be quicker to return it to Costco for a refund. I immediately ordered a replacement since the batteries were a temporary deal subject to limited quantities.

 

[vita1]

I purchased a 2020 winnebago vita in Jan 2020. It came with two 100 watt flexible solar panels a real noisy 3200 watt onan diesel generator and two lead acid 12v batteries with a wafco 50 amp converter. The first thing I did was have the dealer replace all of the roof vents with maxi fans with weather proof covers. We then replaced the lead acid batteries with three 200 amp 12v life blue lithium batteries. The next thing I did was repalce the "winnebago high efficiency a/c" that would use up to 16 amps with one that has a soft start module and uses about 9 amps. I then installed a power factor corrected 3000 watt magnum hybird inverter/charger that can charge the batteries at 125 amps. The 200 watts of flexible solar was removed and replaced with 780 watts of standard solar panels running at 35 to 40 volts controlled by a midnite classic 150 controller. I then purchased the quietest inverter generator I know of the honda 3000is. I placed it on a 2" hitch carrier behind the rv. The generator remains at low idle when running the a/c and is really quiet a short distance away. I then added a remote temperature sensor to the a/c so it could be controlled from where ever we are in the rv and the fan turns off with the compressor. We also added a curtain between the cab and coach area. I am also considering the dual alternator package.