Can someone please sell me on Dakota lithium. What am I missing?

[Deveak]

I have had zero interest in reviewing or testing their batteries because they seem overpriced for the features and capacity. It honestly looks like a $400 relabeled battery for the price of a battleborn or Discovery.

Am I missing something here? I've read the spec sheets multiple times and I am not seeing the justification for the price.

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I would love to be proven wrong though! Are there any Dakota lithium owners here? What lead you to purchasing from them instead of any of the other options available these days?

All I can tell about them is they have been selling lithium batteries longer than anyone I can remember. I remember seeing them sell small format lithium batteries back in 2017. 7 ah batteries like a UPS.

 

[l00semarble]

If you are going to review one do the new DL+ series which has a much higher spec BMS and supposedly good for engine starting applications. They seem to be moving their product line this way. I am a dealer and I also have contacts to owner/founder. I can easily sell you one at a discount for this purpose or if you like or can try to make a connection for you to see if they want to sponsor the review.

We have had good luck with them in marine applications.

(Wait I just realized you said “sell me on” not “sell me a”. Please disregard offer to sell you one.)

 

[Hedges]

1. They sell some batteries with a very high surge capacity; this one claims to be able to do 1000A for 2s, and 900A for 5s, which is pretty large for a 135Ah 12V battery.

If you are going to review one do the new DL+ series which has a much higher spec BMS and supposedly good for engine starting applications. They seem to be moving their product line this way.

This would be the thing to review.
We've seen how much trouble people have with server rack batteries not being able to drive heavy loads, or tripping on connection to inverter.

Topics to cover:
1) A battery like this may still need precharge circuit for capacitors on input of large inverter.
2) This is a 12V battery; is the BMS compatible with 48V series connection? (Ask vendor first!)
3) Does it ever disconnect (short of preventing catastrophic failure), because in automotive applications that kills alternators.
4) [Edit: Also how overloads are handled. (1000A is easy if no BMS FET or other disconnect. Relay could handle, but is it protected?)]

I agree $1200 is a very high price for 135 Ah 12V. But I suggest ignoring the price and reviewing it for the functionality and performance it offers. As a 12V starting battery even if it can't do 48V (hope it can at least do 24V, common for starting applications.) My K2500 uses 2x 800 CCA batteries in parallel.

If a company offers an exceptional product not available from anyone else, would be good to tout its capabilities even if the price is not right for most. Leading products bring in customers most of whom buy something else (e.g. Dodge Viper), and featuring what this can do for the well heeled motor vehicle enthusiasts could also bring you new viewers.

DL+ 12v 135Ah Dual Purpose 1000CCA Starter Battery Plus Deep Cycle Performance

DL+ 12v 135Ah LiFePO4 Golf Cart & 1000CCA Automotive Battery. Free charger with 11 year warranty. 135 Amp Hours of deep cycle Dakota Lithium performance.

dakotalithium.com

"The ultimate battery in energy density and versatility. 135 Amp Hours of deep cycle Dakota Lithium performance PLUS 1,000 CCA of engine starting power PLUS internal even-heat technology for use in extreme temperatures = unlimited possibilities. Start your car, crank up the car audio, or run your trolling motor, golf cart, or any electronics — this is one battery built to power many passions. Engineered for high performance in rugged and extreme conditions, the DL+ 12V 135Ah battery includes DL’s internal even heating technology that allows for charging and using the battery in extreme temperatures down to -20F. Built to start boat and car engines, the DL+ 12V 135Ah battery also has 135 Amps of charging capacity, allowing you to charge the battery from your vehicle’s alternator. Charges 5X faster than traditional batteries. 60 minutes or less when combined with a 135 Amp charger or alternator."

[Edit: You might have to promote your video to the market which would be interested in this product.]

 

[l00semarble]

I would hesitate to ever use 12v batteries in series in a 48v application but boats often stick with 12v as many house systems are 12v.

The DL+ 280ah or DL+ 560ah would be the most interesting to see reviewed having the best specs and energy density.

The 280ah is $8.56/ah. What is considered a good value $/ah nowadays for a quality battery? I work in marine world to ABYC Standards so what we do is always more expensive than non-UL DIYish landlubber equivalent.

 

[Jeff-ve7eff]

I have had zero interest in reviewing or testing their batteries because they seem overpriced for the features and capacity. It honestly looks like a $400 relabeled battery for the price of a battleborn or Discovery.

Am I missing something here? I've read the spec sheets multiple times and I am not seeing the justification for the price.

View attachment 163387View attachment 163388

I would love to be proven wrong though! Are there any Dakota lithium owners here? What lead you to purchasing from them instead of any of the other options available these days?

I would very much like to see a teardown review of the Dakota 54 or 100 Ah battery.
I own 4 of their smaller LiFePo4 batteries: 7, 18, and two 23Ah versions.
I'm an Amateur Radio operator (ham radio). So far, I used the batteries to make my on Go-Boxes for portable and emergency power for my ham radio gear. To be better grid-down prepared, I need to think about upgrading to 54 and 100 Ah batteries.

Why Dakota?
I originally purchased smaller capacity Bioenno Power LiFePo4 batteries for my portable ham radio ops. Bioenno is very popular in the ham radio community for portable ops.
The problem is that I live in BC, Canada. Everything here is expensive to buy. After converting the US$ to CA$ plus taxes, plus Duty, plus Shipping, my cost of the batteries increased by a good 50%.
Here in Canada, almost everything we buy either comes from the USA or China.
There are no low-cost sources of LiFePo4 batteries made in Canada. If a battery is sold in Canada, you can count on a good 30% markup.
Anyway, my research led me to Dakota Power.
Dakota Power claims to be manufactured in Grand Forks, North Dakota and that their batteries are geared for the north country (well, I'm in Canada). They claim their batteries are designed for long life and have an 11-year warranty. They also claim ISO-9001 engineering and QA certification.

So, I bought my Dakota batteries because they were cheaper than the Bioenno batteries I had, AND they ship Free to Canada. That is a big deal for me here in Canada. In the USA, you get free shipping on almost everything, but none of those Free Shipping offers apply to shipping to Canada. I usually pay through the nose for Shipping+Brokerage+Duty+Taxes. (Free Trade is a Joke).
But, Dakota Litium is the only company I can order product from the USA that ships to Canada free and no extra customs/duty tacked on.

Are they a quality company they claim to be? And, does their prices reflect that? And free shipping to Canada makes it a better deal for me.
But, true enough, I don't have enough experience to say what brand of LiFePo4 batteries would be a better option, after factoring in the cost of shipping and customs duty.

Long story short, I would love to see what Will Prowse would have to say about Dakota Lithium after testing and dissecting.
If you can get ahold of one.....

 

[Crowz]

To me the dakota and the battle born stuff is ridiculously overpriced.

I can buy two or more of other brands with the same features and capacity for the price of one of them.

As for dakota lithium

 

[Crowz]

Even the short circuit protection failed according to him.

 

[zanydroid]

Dakota Power claims to be manufactured in Grand Forks, North Dakota

Most likely best case, they assembled it there from Chinese cells with some locally sourced chassis, wiring, BMS, etc.

Since the cells are doing the heavy lifting in a battery, I'm not sure it matters that it's assembled in the US.