Lithium Batteries NZ

Why LiFePO4 lithium batteries?

LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate) is the safest and longest lasting lithium chemistry for house batteries. Compared to AGM or gel, a LiFePO4 battery is about half the weight, lasts 3,000 to 8,000 cycles instead of a few hundred, and lets you use nearly all of its capacity instead of stopping at half. It holds its voltage right down to empty too, so your fridge, pump and inverter run properly until the end.

It's also far more stable than the lithium ion batteries in phones and power tools, which is why it's the chemistry we sell for vans, boats and homes.

Choosing the right voltage

• 12V suits most campervans, motorhomes, boats and small cabins, up to about a 2,000W inverter. Our 12V range runs from 100Ah to 314Ah, and the most popular is our 200Ah lithium battery, the SOK 12V 206Ah.
• 24V suits bigger boats and motorhomes running larger inverters, with half the current and smaller cable than 12V.
• 48V is the answer for homes, baches and off grid houses, and it's what our home solar batteries run on. Our SOK 48V 5kWh rack batteries stack to 30kWh, 50kWh and beyond, and work with Victron and most hybrid inverters.

If you're building new and you're near the line between two voltages, go up. It costs far less than changing later.

Heated or unheated?

LiFePO4 can't be charged below 0°C without damage, so every good battery blocks charging when it's freezing. A heated battery warms its cells first and then carries on charging. If your van, boat or bach sees frosts, especially anywhere in the South Island, get a heated model so your solar and DC to DC charger keep working on cold mornings.

Why SOK

SOK design their own BMS and build their own batteries, and we're their distributor for NZ. That means real stock in Nelson, real support from people who know the product, and warranty claims handled here rather than overseas. 48V rack batteries carry a 10 year warranty and all other SOK batteries carry 7 years.