Xuba Electronics: DEAL - 280AH LiFePo4 cells. Purchase & Review
- Thread starter Steve_S
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Capt Bill
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Sounds sort of Good (Requesting Protocol Clarification: If I am exploring options from a different Alibaba LifePO4 seller, and wanted to promote them: I would make a different thread sharing my experiences about that buyer. Any other protocol opinions? I am totally not in a position to make such a new thread. I would only consider such an effort after I ordered and received a set of batteries I was impressed about after testing. Right now I am in Pre- First LifePO4s purchase mode.
As a newbie Alibaba buyer; who has only recently purchased a few smaller LifePO4 set up battery tools on Alibabaexpress, I am very aware of my reliability/security concerns about buying through Alibaba. This forum gives me great references, along with my Internet study about how to rate the trustworthiness of sellers on Alibaba. ... To anyone reading this: Shenzhen Xuba Electronic Trading with contact Way Amy gets my thumbs up, (without any purchases from me yet) from just studying this forum, plus looking at their presentation on Alibbab. Xuba looks like a great way to go when their new 5000 pcs 280Ah shipment comes in (hopefully early April) .
I am studying to maximize use of my $ while pursuing the higher 280Ah battery bank. ... Seems to me, with a bit of research, one can go from 100 Ah options to 280 Ah options for just a bit more in cost, or in some comparisons, the same price. That Said: I Wonder how it might be taken If I simply asked if anyone had reference or for another Alibaba battery supplier I am considering, or an experience related to them (without a bunch of additonal info. about em / or their competing price, other than name) IF this thread soley a promotion for Xuba (does not look that way to me), as opposed to comparing notes on 280 amp hour batteries ( I can see stuff how this thread with side topics of discussion is a challenge for the moderator; Hi Will), ... I won't ask, and let this go.
IMO: There are new risks right now in ordering during our coronavius challenge curve. I read the shipping port in Florida has reduce hours of operation. From the 2 or 3 suppliers I have dialoged with: It looks good for shipping by sea (from their view) at present (unless you can swallow maybe doubled air route prices jumps); and by sea gets a 30 days estimated time for arrival, for battery options from China. I might be ordering before Xuba's new batch of batteries come in. Kind of a new learning curve for me.
As a newbie Alibaba buyer; who has only recently purchased a few smaller LifePO4 set up battery tools on Alibabaexpress, I am very aware of my reliability/security concerns about buying through Alibaba. This forum gives me great references, along with my Internet study about how to rate the trustworthiness of sellers on Alibaba. ... To anyone reading this: Shenzhen Xuba Electronic Trading with contact Way Amy gets my thumbs up, (without any purchases from me yet) from just studying this forum, plus looking at their presentation on Alibbab. Xuba looks like a great way to go when their new 5000 pcs 280Ah shipment comes in (hopefully early April) .
I am studying to maximize use of my $ while pursuing the higher 280Ah battery bank. ... Seems to me, with a bit of research, one can go from 100 Ah options to 280 Ah options for just a bit more in cost, or in some comparisons, the same price. That Said: I Wonder how it might be taken If I simply asked if anyone had reference or for another Alibaba battery supplier I am considering, or an experience related to them (without a bunch of additonal info. about em / or their competing price, other than name) IF this thread soley a promotion for Xuba (does not look that way to me), as opposed to comparing notes on 280 amp hour batteries ( I can see stuff how this thread with side topics of discussion is a challenge for the moderator; Hi Will), ... I won't ask, and let this go.
IMO: There are new risks right now in ordering during our coronavius challenge curve. I read the shipping port in Florida has reduce hours of operation. From the 2 or 3 suppliers I have dialoged with: It looks good for shipping by sea (from their view) at present (unless you can swallow maybe doubled air route prices jumps); and by sea gets a 30 days estimated time for arrival, for battery options from China. I might be ordering before Xuba's new batch of batteries come in. Kind of a new learning curve for me.
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Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
Several other vendors / suppliers have been mention in this and MNDares thread on his Xuba purchase. Compare away, THAT is smart shopping and things are changing almost daily it seems too, so it is doubly wise to do so. Two Wise owl's, one on each shoulder, whispering into each ear ! hehehe. {old European saying}
The whole courier thing has me wondering because they are taking this opportunity to puff up shipping costs, to compensate for what ? Loss of other courier business. One thing for sure, it shows which one is a bigger shyster than the other. Shyster's should be Identified and outted ! I feel unethical companies should get weeded out during things like the Covid-19 Crisis and put down to rest permanently.
ATM, there is a bit of a glut of LFP Cells in China. The min reason, is the cheaper low cost, low range EV's in China mostly use LFP cells due to price. But when the Chinese Gov cut subsidies for the low end low range cheapster's, sales plummeted, so manufacturing demand from the EV makers fell, leaving companies producing the cells Holding the Cells as it were, so now they have to clear stock / inventory. This has resulted in lower costs across a large selection of Cell Capacities which is to our benefit. Things are also changing as the CTP Format is coming to take the place of square prismatics to an extent. CTP = Cell to Pack
The whole courier thing has me wondering because they are taking this opportunity to puff up shipping costs, to compensate for what ? Loss of other courier business. One thing for sure, it shows which one is a bigger shyster than the other. Shyster's should be Identified and outted ! I feel unethical companies should get weeded out during things like the Covid-19 Crisis and put down to rest permanently.
ATM, there is a bit of a glut of LFP Cells in China. The min reason, is the cheaper low cost, low range EV's in China mostly use LFP cells due to price. But when the Chinese Gov cut subsidies for the low end low range cheapster's, sales plummeted, so manufacturing demand from the EV makers fell, leaving companies producing the cells Holding the Cells as it were, so now they have to clear stock / inventory. This has resulted in lower costs across a large selection of Cell Capacities which is to our benefit. Things are also changing as the CTP Format is coming to take the place of square prismatics to an extent. CTP = Cell to Pack
Sgt Raven
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It was stuck on 3.36xV for the longest time, while I was pumping 10A into them...
12 hours later it was at 3.37xV and rising....
Another six hours and it jumped to 3.56xV and filling up fast....
When they say once you get over 3.4xxV they fill up fast, believe them....
Gonna have to switch out of CC mode real soon.......
Looks like I had the PS setup right, It's at 3.610V and dropped out of CC mode to CV mode... and the amps are dropping fast...
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Sgt Raven
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One channel was at 0.0A and the other at 0.60A and both of my DMMs said 3.65V.....
Shut the PS down and now they rest for a while and then see where they land at....
Been a wild ride. Figuring out the proper setup from my PS.
Still it was stuck at 3.36xV for so long yesterday. I turned everything off and went thru the PS setup menu again.
It's 4 days to get to this point and was some frustration involved, but here we are....
Shut the PS down and now they rest for a while and then see where they land at....
Been a wild ride. Figuring out the proper setup from my PS.
Still it was stuck at 3.36xV for so long yesterday. I turned everything off and went thru the PS setup menu again.
It's 4 days to get to this point and was some frustration involved, but here we are....
AndreL
More AH's
Hang in there @Sgt Raven. (-: (am a lefty).One channel was at 0.0A and the other at 0.60A and both of my DMMs said 3.65V.....
Shut the PS down and now they rest for a while and then see where they land at....
Been a wild ride. Figuring out the proper setup from my PS.
Still it was stuck at 3.36xV for so long yesterday. I turned everything off and went thru the PS setup menu again.
It's 4 days to get to this point and was some frustration involved, but here we are....
I charged my cells in series, therefore passing 10Amps through each cell to a touch under 3.6V. Then reconfigured to a parallel pack and charged to exactly 3.6V and then left to balance for 18 hours.
I also recalibrated my BMS cell voltage per my multimeter (see questions on the batteryhookup BMS calibration above, and yes it works). Seems the BMS was off just a little so others take note the BMS may need nudging a tad. This worked out well as after a close charge and good parallel balance, all voltages should be super close. So if the BMS is off, set it right.
Am now into the discharge test at -10Amps with all cells within 0.005v after 110AH discharge from 280AH. Cell average is 3.273V at the 10Amp draw.
Lastly, yes these certainly are not Grandad cells. Almost scares me the power they hold. My SLA would have been toast by now....
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
OIvey, 6 PM with the SAME QUESTION from different people.
No other fees or charges when they arrived. Thta was PRE-COVID lockdowns and all of that here in Canada or US.
No other fees or charges when they arrived. Thta was PRE-COVID lockdowns and all of that here in Canada or US.
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
If they all settled to that level your 99% safe to go ! Once assembled up with BMS, do another fast top off charge and let the sit overnight again and they should be nice & level, if BMS has balancing while charging mode then use it on that charge.
Sgt Raven
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Built my battery today. Having a little trouble with the Android App, but other than that I have the beginnings of a battery...
With the 120A SmartBMS, the 3 "tinned" B- and C- cables just fit in 4AWG cable lugs and my hydraulic crimper did the job.
So a 4AWG butt connector would let you splice them to a 4AWG battery cable. I need to order a pack of them, so I can lengthen both cables.
But I can do my further testing like it is, now.....
Still have to figure how I'm going to tie everything together and what I'm going to do about a box/case.
I have a type 31 battery box, but it's in my storage unit and I have to go get it.
The empty cable lugs on the cell terminals are there as spacers during the build up and give me a point to clip an alligator clip.
I do think it is fitting I'm building this on a old "Tech Bench"....
Here is where my little project is at now...
With the 120A SmartBMS, the 3 "tinned" B- and C- cables just fit in 4AWG cable lugs and my hydraulic crimper did the job.
So a 4AWG butt connector would let you splice them to a 4AWG battery cable. I need to order a pack of them, so I can lengthen both cables.
But I can do my further testing like it is, now.....
Still have to figure how I'm going to tie everything together and what I'm going to do about a box/case.
I have a type 31 battery box, but it's in my storage unit and I have to go get it.
The empty cable lugs on the cell terminals are there as spacers during the build up and give me a point to clip an alligator clip.
I do think it is fitting I'm building this on a old "Tech Bench"....
Here is where my little project is at now...
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Delta-V
Solar Enthusiast
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Hi everyone,
I've been a lurker lately. A few weeks ago I decided to buy 16 of these 280Ah cells from Xuba (alibaba.com).
About 14 kW capacity (11 kW @ 80%), closer to 10 kW usable, figuring inverter conversion/ efficiency losses.
---
4 Groups of 4 (16 pieces) total price of 280AH to America:
Product price + air freight = 4 * $330.68 + $799 = $2121.72 USD (Shipped to Florida)
$82.67 USD per cell before shipping (slightly cheaper to buy in groups of 4)
$132.61 USD per cell overall cost
Order Time-line
Fri 6 Mar - I placed order with CC, no payment problems, no extra fees. I mentioned DIYsolarforum, got free bus-bars. Thanks Steve!
Tue 10 Mar - Amy sent Pics & Vid with my name (Thanks Steve!)
Tue 10 Mar - Cells shipped out
Sat 14 Mar - Amy sends me FedEx tracking number
Fri 20 Mar - Tracking number showed estimated delivery for Mon 23 Mar
Mon 23 Mar - 3 of 4 boxes (12 Cells) delivered to my door
Tue 24 Mar - Received 4th box (4 Cells) (FedEx must have missed it the day before)
About 18 days from payment to delivery.
NOTE: This was during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) concerns.
The cells were very well packed (Thanks Steve!), brand new, no scuffs on terminals, all were within 3.301 - 3.303 Volts. About half charged as I had to put in another 5-7 kW to fully charge them. I paralleled them then did a fine-tune charge to 3.65V with adjustable power supply.
Initial Capacity Test (tested only half, 8 of 16 cells)
Expecting 25.6 V x 280 Ah = 7,168 Watts (24V Nominal)
Started nearly fully charged (resting voltage)
3.625V x 8 cells = 29V (forgot to take a picture)
Test includes powering home office stuff and some kitchen appliances for less than a day:
2 Desktop computers w/ monitors, laptop, Stereo, TV, Fan, Refrigerator, Microwave, Coffee maker, Toaster oven
The cells stayed pretty well balanced (less than 30mV) until about the 24 Volt range then the mV differences started drifting farther apart.
Good news!
1st Pic - Reached expected 7,168 Watts total (averaging 25.78V)
2nd Pic - Reached expected 280Ah, over 7,200 Watts
3rd Pic - 1st cell goes below 2V, nearing 20 Volts overall (Refrigerator had just kicked on), quickly turned off
4th Pic - Cells recovering after shutting off inverter a few minutes earlier
I did a minor recharge soon after to get all cells above 2.8 Volts. I'll do a bottom balance later.
I've been a lurker lately. A few weeks ago I decided to buy 16 of these 280Ah cells from Xuba (alibaba.com).
About 14 kW capacity (11 kW @ 80%), closer to 10 kW usable, figuring inverter conversion/ efficiency losses.
---
4 Groups of 4 (16 pieces) total price of 280AH to America:
Product price + air freight = 4 * $330.68 + $799 = $2121.72 USD (Shipped to Florida)
$82.67 USD per cell before shipping (slightly cheaper to buy in groups of 4)
$132.61 USD per cell overall cost
Order Time-line
Fri 6 Mar - I placed order with CC, no payment problems, no extra fees. I mentioned DIYsolarforum, got free bus-bars. Thanks Steve!
Tue 10 Mar - Amy sent Pics & Vid with my name (Thanks Steve!)
Tue 10 Mar - Cells shipped out
Sat 14 Mar - Amy sends me FedEx tracking number
Fri 20 Mar - Tracking number showed estimated delivery for Mon 23 Mar
Mon 23 Mar - 3 of 4 boxes (12 Cells) delivered to my door
Tue 24 Mar - Received 4th box (4 Cells) (FedEx must have missed it the day before)
About 18 days from payment to delivery.
NOTE: This was during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) concerns.
The cells were very well packed (Thanks Steve!), brand new, no scuffs on terminals, all were within 3.301 - 3.303 Volts. About half charged as I had to put in another 5-7 kW to fully charge them. I paralleled them then did a fine-tune charge to 3.65V with adjustable power supply.
Initial Capacity Test (tested only half, 8 of 16 cells)
Expecting 25.6 V x 280 Ah = 7,168 Watts (24V Nominal)
Started nearly fully charged (resting voltage)
3.625V x 8 cells = 29V (forgot to take a picture)
Test includes powering home office stuff and some kitchen appliances for less than a day:
2 Desktop computers w/ monitors, laptop, Stereo, TV, Fan, Refrigerator, Microwave, Coffee maker, Toaster oven
The cells stayed pretty well balanced (less than 30mV) until about the 24 Volt range then the mV differences started drifting farther apart.
Good news!
1st Pic - Reached expected 7,168 Watts total (averaging 25.78V)
2nd Pic - Reached expected 280Ah, over 7,200 Watts
3rd Pic - 1st cell goes below 2V, nearing 20 Volts overall (Refrigerator had just kicked on), quickly turned off
4th Pic - Cells recovering after shutting off inverter a few minutes earlier
I did a minor recharge soon after to get all cells above 2.8 Volts. I'll do a bottom balance later.
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
Hey Delta ! sure is a better way to go than the Cursed ShunBin mess EH ? ! I have to replace 3 pooched cells in that mess now... so breaking it up to be 2x 8S/175AH each with a BMS8T. The math is better too ! Welcome to the New Dark Side hehehe
Capt Bill
Sailing Options
Awesome Info. Sharing & Review for me to look at right before ordering. I will likely have to go by sea, then fedex or ups,. I think and have heard: since you ordered, air freight prices went crazy and maybe doubled. ... I would be OK with sea shipping for my situation. From what I have read last week or two (now almost April); sea shipping to West Coast looks safe enough to make my purchase. I will make sure shipping quote is for a DDP shipment (all tax, import fees etc. dealt with,and paid for by the seller, and not me)! Thanks for helping me and other learn the ropes.
;+) Bill in Mendocino County, Northern California
;+) Bill in Mendocino County, Northern California
Sgt Raven
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I'm happy with my deal, but now kinda wished I had gone Sea DDP, and put the difference towards 8 instead of 4. To WC Cali.
maharzan
New Member
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- Feb 1, 2020
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- 95
Thanks so much for this report.
Is it normal for the low voltages to differ so much? does bms help maintain the cell voltages at this point?
Capt Bill
Sailing Options
RE: my desire to order 8 or 16 280 Ah LifePO4 cells via Alibaba. I am reconsidering my Sea Shipping idea (as opposed to Airfeight that has maybe double in price recently) afer hearing from one forum member; that even with DPP agreed to, there may be unexpected hoop jumps with Customs on sea shipping as compared to that being way less likley via air shipping (unless huge order/ not sure what limit trigger more customs sruteny. I am a newbie here making these comments; who has not yet purchase on Alibaba, and who has been spending too much time on this forum, while getting inspired, and learning more all the time. ... I am taking a pause right now to learn a little more from others who are or have ordered and/or received orders. I want to hear and study more from others about their experiences with sea shipping vs air freight rides, as related to potential extra surprise fees on the delivery end, even with DDP agreed to. ... Food for Thought ... and hopefully further discussion ...
I will copy and paste this in a better thread title for comment. ;+)
Maybe his Topic of: "Air vs Sea Battery Shipping from China; and DDP vs DAP", deserves in own thread ??? letting go of this at the moment ... blows my mind how this forum has grabbed allot of my attention time.
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Sgt Raven
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Amy lined up the Air Freight DDP, although I didn't know to say DDP at the time. I asked for a price to my door, all taxes and fees paid.
With the latest shipping prices people are saying, I should have spent the extra on my order and got 8 cells.
But at the time I was thing of 2 sets of 100AH cells and 280AH is a lot more by itself...
Capt Bill
Sailing Options
Thank you Steve S for this piece of Info: Your (from Steve: In my humble experience you will not save money using ocean. It might even be cheaper to do 2 Fedex shipments of 4 or 8 cells to keep the weight below some threshold. I will never again use ocean. Unless I am ordering a full container, to a warehouse completely under my control. Then you save big. Of course this is what Costco, Walmart, Home Depot, etc do. AliBaba sellers have no real way of knowing what US charges will be - DDP. So all they can do is contact a shipper, and tell them its going DDP.
Delta-V
Solar Enthusiast
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- Sep 20, 2019
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- 97
@Steve_S
Bummer! Guess I was lucky with my ShunBin battery box. It's been working well aside from the capacity issue. Yep, you're right, the price is much better with Xuba. Also, I opted to go with your Samlex 4000W Inverter/ charger recommendation and used it for several weeks at home with the ShunBin battery box before setting them up at my recreational camp a couple hundred miles away. I bought the Xuba cells and another Samlex 4000W inverter/charger for here at home (planning for hurricane season). It's scheduled for delivery tomorrow.
I'm exploring the Dark Side, ha ha. I had issues yesterday with a new 100A BMS w/ bluetooth Will had recommended. Ended up using a Daly 200A BMS I had so I could do the initial capacity test. I have the Opto 22 Solid State Relay I wanna test with the Samlex relay switch once it arrives. I also received 2 really cheap 15A BMS's. I wanna see if I could really get away with using it to balance the 14 KW Xuma cells with the Samlex 4000W inverter.
---
Guess I got lucky with no additional shipping fees (DDP):
From Amy at the time I placed my order (Fri 6 Mar):
1. Air Freight - $799 - Tax included, arrive at home, arrive in about 10 working days
2. Sea transportation - $551 - Tax included, arrive at the door, arrive in about 30 days
Sea is $248 cheaper, but I didn't want to wait a whole month plus any potential coronavirus delays on top of that.
---
Low voltage balancing differences. I've seen this with the 8 50Ah cells I have for tinkering. My understanding is the top 10% and bottom 10% tend to be less stable balancing-wise. Hence, why it's usually recommended to use the middle 80%.
---
The pic below is the basic setup I used for this initial capacity test. The optimal/ safety/ more long-term features are a work-in-progress once I have some other variables worked out.
Bummer! Guess I was lucky with my ShunBin battery box. It's been working well aside from the capacity issue. Yep, you're right, the price is much better with Xuba. Also, I opted to go with your Samlex 4000W Inverter/ charger recommendation and used it for several weeks at home with the ShunBin battery box before setting them up at my recreational camp a couple hundred miles away. I bought the Xuba cells and another Samlex 4000W inverter/charger for here at home (planning for hurricane season). It's scheduled for delivery tomorrow.
I'm exploring the Dark Side, ha ha. I had issues yesterday with a new 100A BMS w/ bluetooth Will had recommended. Ended up using a Daly 200A BMS I had so I could do the initial capacity test. I have the Opto 22 Solid State Relay I wanna test with the Samlex relay switch once it arrives. I also received 2 really cheap 15A BMS's. I wanna see if I could really get away with using it to balance the 14 KW Xuma cells with the Samlex 4000W inverter.
---
Guess I got lucky with no additional shipping fees (DDP):
From Amy at the time I placed my order (Fri 6 Mar):
1. Air Freight - $799 - Tax included, arrive at home, arrive in about 10 working days
2. Sea transportation - $551 - Tax included, arrive at the door, arrive in about 30 days
Sea is $248 cheaper, but I didn't want to wait a whole month plus any potential coronavirus delays on top of that.
---
Low voltage balancing differences. I've seen this with the 8 50Ah cells I have for tinkering. My understanding is the top 10% and bottom 10% tend to be less stable balancing-wise. Hence, why it's usually recommended to use the middle 80%.
---
The pic below is the basic setup I used for this initial capacity test. The optimal/ safety/ more long-term features are a work-in-progress once I have some other variables worked out.
Sgt Raven
Solar Addict
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How many cells did you buy and how far were they shipped? Just curiosity on my part.
My quotes to San Jose, CA for 4 was $169 Sea and. $238 Air.. The $69 was worth being sure no extra bill on my end.
Order made 02/28... Pictures/Video posted 03/03... one of pics was them in their shipping box before box sealed.
Said they were shipped 03/02 but was too busy to post pics/video then.
Tracking showed label made 03/06.
If they really left their location on 03/02, it took 15 days to clear customs, when tracking went live and 2 more to my door.
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