Vatrer Server Rack - battery arrived!

[plympton]

Was looking for a battery to increase my storage capacity, and decided to take a chance on this one:
Vatrer Server Rack Battery. $1023 delivered to my door, in less than a week. I was planning on opening it up and taking a look inside, but don't really feel compelled to.



Ordered last week, arrived today, UPS, in good condition. 112 lbs. Included a 6 AWG cable set, which is lower than I'd expect (4 or 2 AWG). I think I'll split the cable and double it up on the terminal block until/unless I get a higher gage set.

I flipped the breaker, turned on the battery, and up showed the voltage and the SOC. The cells appear nearly perfectly balanced.

Just need to finish building my cable, get my pack to the same voltage, and hook it up. Any questions?

 

[AntronX]

Any questions?

What does it look like inside?

 

[plympton]

What does it look like inside?

Gimme an hour. I'm out and about. If it's anything like the YouTube vid from Lithium Solar, I wager it looks pretty nice inside. I'm NOT going to the cell level!

 

[AntronX]

Don't worry, that video is good enough.

 

[plympton]

Not one to disappoint! I did want to verify that the unit Lithium Solar showed wasn't a 1-off. And indeed, it's just like their teardown!

The SOC was nearly identical to the SOC of my system when I got home, so the voltages matched almost perfectly. Just finished my cable, shut the system down, connected, and powered it all up. All good! I'll post more if anything comes up, but I think this could just be the right kind of boring addition that we all want with our systems.

 

[Steve_S]

Not one to disappoint! I did want to verify that the unit Lithium Solar showed wasn't a 1-off. And indeed, it's just like their teardown!

The SOC was nearly identical to the SOC of my system when I got home, so the voltages matched almost perfectly. Just finished my cable, shut the system down, connected, and powered it all up. All good! I'll post more if anything comes up, but I think this could just be the right kind of boring addition that we all want with our systems.

Looking at those photo's that is quite well built IMO, I'm stealing an idea out of those pics for my Cases. I really like that they uses cells with Studs, so "if" something goes wonkey they can be swapped (not likely needed). For 1K I would say that's not a bad deal at all, especially with S&H included !. The JBD is a great basic BMS and given the way it's installed, they actually made it pretty easy to swap out if someone wanted to.

 

[Brucey]

Looks like a solid option if comms aren't desired.

They do have a wall mount with comms for $1200, looks like it uses quick connects on the terminals and pairs to allow easy daisy chaining:

https://www.amazon.com/LiFePO4-Battery-5-12kWh-Lifetime-Off-Grid/dp/B0CWXMNV3Y

 

[plympton]

Looks like a solid option if comms aren't desired.

They do have a wall mount with comms for $1200, looks like it uses quick connects on the terminals and pairs to allow easy daisy chaining:

View attachment 209859

https://www.amazon.com/LiFePO4-Battery-5-12kWh-Lifetime-Off-Grid/dp/B0CWXMNV3Y

Saw that, looks like a pretty good deal. Wonder if it includes cables? Glad the cells are in the same orientation as my rack on its side!

 

[plympton]

Looking at those photo's that is quite well built IMO, I'm stealing an idea out of those pics for my Cases. I really like that they uses cells with Studs, so "if" something goes wonkey they can be swapped (not likely needed). For 1K I would say that's not a bad deal at all, especially with S&H included !. The JBD is a great basic BMS and given the way it's installed, they actually made it pretty easy to swap out if someone wanted to.

I’m trying to get Home Assistant and EspHome to talk to each other, but haven’t found way yet. The Bluetooth Proxy was magic for my Bluetti gear, but not so much for the JBD BMS.

 

[Tip&Ring]

Was looking for a battery to increase my storage capacity, and decided to take a chance on this one:
Vatrer Server Rack Battery. $1023 delivered to my door, in less than a week. I was planning on opening it up and taking a look inside, but don't really feel compelled to.

View attachment 209734View attachment 209735View attachment 209736

Ordered last week, arrived today, UPS, in good condition. 112 lbs. Included a 6 AWG cable set, which is lower than I'd expect (4 or 2 AWG). I think I'll split the cable and double it up on the terminal block until/unless I get a higher gage set.

I flipped the breaker, turned on the battery, and up showed the voltage and the SOC. The cells appear nearly perfectly balanced.
View attachment 209740View attachment 209737View attachment 209738View attachment 209739
Just need to finish building my cable, get my pack to the same voltage, and hook it up. Any questions?

I ordered 1. What rack do you recommend ? Something mobile would be nice. thanks.

 

[plympton]

I ordered 1. What rack do you recommend ? Something mobile would be nice. thanks.

I made a roll around dolly out of 1x4’s and wheels from Amazon and leftover carpet. No rack necessary. Just a saw, glue. Staple and finish nail gun helped. I plan on adding a strap eventually just for extra. Made it big enough for a 2nd battery, too.

Ashgoob wheels

 

[Tip&Ring]

I made a roll around dolly out of 1x4’s and wheels from Amazon and leftover carpet. No rack necessary. Just a saw, glue. Staple and finish nail gun helped. I plan on adding a strap eventually just for extra. Made it big enough for a 2nd battery, too.

Ashgoob wheels
View attachment 210123
View attachment 210124

Looks good. I think I'd like a small rack for an additional battery & maybe attach an AIO somehow to the frame . Of course there's always the hand truck option.

 

[plympton]

Looks good. I think I'd like a small rack for an additional battery & maybe attach an AIO somehow to the frame . Of course there's always the hand truck option.

Agreed! Wheels are much more useful than I imagined. Since I’m using consumer gear, the cables aren’t neat and tidy and connections are in illogical places because…

 

[JoeHam]

72% SOC and 3.336V per cell is unusually high for shipping.

I believe that is a moot point now that it has safely arrived but uncommon.

 

[Steve_S]

I am sorry but I feel I need to point out that these cases are not intended to be in that position. This puts the cells on their sides and then you have the weight/gravity issue of pressure on cells. We have seen Several packs with cells on their sides develop issues. Please do consider that.

 

[Brucey]

I am sorry but I feel I need to point out that these cases are not intended to be in that position. This puts the cells on their sides and then you have the weight/gravity issue of pressure on cells. We have seen Several packs with cells on their sides develop issues. Please do consider that.

The recommended clamping force of 300kg at half or shipping charge which increases to 5000 kilos at full charge when the cells are at full bloat would far exceed any extra weight of gravity.

The Newest Specification Sheets of EVE Cells

EVE has updated their specification sheets in July, the new version ones are more detailed, adding more information, such as the information about clamp. I sent them in the attachment, hope it is helpful for you.

diysolarforum.com

 

[Steve_S]

The recommended clamping force of 300kg at half or shipping charge which increases to 5000 kilos at full charge when the cells are at full bloat would far exceed any extra weight of gravity.

The Newest Specification Sheets of EVE Cells

EVE has updated their specification sheets in July, the new version ones are more detailed, adding more information, such as the information about clamp. I sent them in the attachment, hope it is helpful for you.

diysolarforum.com

The whole compression thing has been beaten to death & regurgitated too often.... 300kg 660lbs Go ahead squeeze a cell with that pressure - stand back and be protected when you do. The tin around a Prismatic cell is NOT THICKER than a Soda Pop Can.

BUT WHATEVER - Your Money, Your Risks & Liabilities and you accept the consequences of your assumptions, interpretations and the choices that result from them.

 

[Brucey]

The whole compression thing has been beaten to death & regurgitated too often.... 300kg 660lbs Go ahead squeeze a cell with that pressure - stand back and be protected when you do. The tin around a Prismatic cell is NOT THICKER than a Soda Pop Can.

BUT WHATEVER - Your Money, Your Risks & Liabilities and you accept the consequences of your assumptions, interpretations and the choices that result from them.

Are you saying that the Eve spec sheets are inaccurate?

Do you understand the pressure is across the entire face of the cell and not just a single point? Also I misspoke early, the expansion pressure test can increase to 50,000N at end of life, at beginning of life it's less than 3000N

 

[Partimewages]

My understanding was the specs are written for industrial/comercial use EVs and the like. Not the DIY solar use. But I don't know everything!

 

[Brucey]

My understanding was the specs are written for industrial/comercial use EVs and the like. Not the DIY solar use. But I don't know everything!

Yes I'm not claiming any kind of special knowledge. But it seems the following is true:

The amount of compression affects cycle life (either not enough or too much compression). Based on the spec sheets an uncompressed cell is still good for a thousand cycles and beyond.

In all the cases I've seen of "over compression" it's due to a failure to use a solid enough material on each end of the cell stack, i.e. Using thin steel plate or plywood that deforms and applies pressure to cell edges, or using ratchet straps that focus force on certain areas of the cells versus applying perpendicular against the flat face etc.

To say that these cells can't be used on their side due to the weight of the cells above...does that mean all wall mounted units with cells in non vertical orientation are somehow a defective design? I e. The eg4 power pro outdoor/indoor batteries?