[RE-wrenches] Concorde Lifeline Battery failures

[Maverick Brown]

Same here! We use mostly SunExtender and have had the same issue. As far as I know, they are the same battery with different labels. I have had some success in being a LOT more aggressive with voltages & times and sometimes going above FLA settings to get banks to recover and perform closer to spec. Makes me nervous though, since more than 50% of a customer’s investment can just vaporize with what one thought was appropriate charge settings. I suggest EQ as the new norm for AGMs, especially in grid-tied-battery-backup cases and where off-grid use does not give adequate absorb time.


Maverick Brown
Off-Grid Solar Commander since 2006
Maverick Solar Enterprises, Inc.
SunFlow Systems Cathodic Protection 
maverick at mavericksolar.com
512-460-9825

> On Jan 19, 2018, at 11:10 AM, Glenn Burt <glenn.burt at glbcc.com> wrote:
> 
> So the Lifeline models, not the SunXtender models?
> 
> Glenn
> Sent from my 'smart' phone so please excuse spelling and typographical errors.
> 
> ------ Original message------
> From: Starlight Solar Power Systems
> Date: Fri, Jan 19, 2018 12:02 PM
> To: RE-wrenches;
> Cc:
> Subject:[RE-wrenches] Concorde Lifeline Battery failures
> 
> Drake,
> 
> We have at least a dozen systems that failed early from lost capacity over the last 2 years with 2-4 year old battery banks. The AGM failures are all Lifeline battery made by Concorde.  
> 
> Lifeline and my distributor both told me I was “the only one” with failures. I dropped Lifeline battery after being a dealer for 16 years and many hundreds of systems installed. Historically we had seen 7-10 years average life from battery banks that we installed. One regular customer is at 12 years and still going. I have a sense of vindication now hearing from others about Concorde capacity issues.
> 
> Thank you,
> 
> Larry Crutcher
> Starlight Solar Power Systems
> (928) 342-9103 <tel:(928) 342-9103>
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Jan 18, 2018, at 9:18 AM, Drake  wrote:
> 
> A Concorde AGM PVX 3050T recently failed in a bank of 8. Larry mentioned a couple of brands experiencing problems. These batteries are 4 years old and have been kept in float in an off grid system, never stressed. Hopefully Concorde batteries are not going the way of Trojan L-16s. Has anyone else had problems with Concorde?
> 
> 
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