EcoTech Marine Vortech Battery Backup?

[radiata]

What is the life expectancy of the EcoTech Marine Vortech Battery Backup?

I see used ones for sale, but why pay a relative premium for a battery that only has 6 months of life left in it?

TIA...

 

[pecan2phat]

Even ones that have not been cycled much will lose their holding capacity only after 3~4 years. I have 3 units and in the last 5 years, they have probably been run on battery power once or twice for less than an hour and they roughly only hold 70% of a charge now.

 

[FFFishy]

In my experience, they are good for 30 to 36 months. I have 4 of them in my system. Each battery is connected to a single MP40QD pump. I test the batteries (approximately every 2 months) by unplugging the AC Power Supplies.

 

[radiata]

In my experience, they are good for C. I have 4 of them in my system. Each battery is connected to a single MP40QD pump. I test the batteries (approximately every 2 months) by unplugging the AC Power Supplies.

Does your testing include how long the MP40QDs run after taking them off of AC? (I think a record of such testing would be really, really interesting!) BRS has recently conducted such testing, and I'd really like to know how many months the battery is good for. But, I do appreciate your test data...

 

[italquam]

On eBay there is a guy who sells a voltage display specifically made for Ecotech battery backups , it has an OEM cable that plugs into the backup and a digital display showing the voltage. He says it should be over 12.5

 

[nickkohrn]

On eBay there is a guy who sells a voltage display specifically made for Ecotech battery backups , it has an OEM cable that plugs into the backup and a digital display showing the voltage. He says it should be over 12.5

I purchased one the other day, and it arrives tomorrow. I'm excited to be able to identify when I need to replace the battery.

@TheHarold makes them, but it appears that they are currently out of stock since they are no longer listed on his eBay store.

For reference, here is the description of the item, taken from Harry's eBay store:

Ever worried that your Vortech's battery backup isn't holding a charge or performing to your expectations? After hurricane Irma, my MP40wQD unfortunately only lasted under an hour on the battery backup. It was around 3 years old, but no longer performing well. A healthy battery should be above 12.5 volts. Mine only held 7.

For that reason I designed a voltage monitor that plugs into one the battery backup 12v DC output.

This voltage monitor uses an OEM Ecotech Marine™ fused battery backup cable, that I have purchased from them directly and then modified to connect to the voltage monitor. I have applied a conformal coating to protect the internal electronics, and the 3d printed housing roughly matches the size of an Apex module.

Battery Backup NOT included.

Here are photos of the item, taken from Harry's eBay store:

If you want to see more cool stuff that he makes/made, check out his Instagram page.

 

[italquam]

I purchased one the other day, and it arrives tomorrow. I'm excited to be able to identify when I need to replace the battery.

@TheHarold makes them, but it appears that they are currently out of stock since they are no longer listed on his eBay store.

For reference, here is the description of the item, taken from Harry's eBay store:


Here are photos of the item, taken from Harry's eBay store:

If you want to see more cool stuff that he makes/made, check out his Instagram page.

I bought the last one in stock yesterday...lol

 

[AZMSGT]

The batteries are easy to replace and much cheaper than buying a new unit. I will never buy a new Ecotech battery back up.

 

[nickkohrn]

The batteries are easy to replace and much cheaper than buying a new unit. I will never buy a new Ecotech battery back up.

I have watched that a few times and added a couple of batteries to my Amazon cart.

 

[FFFishy]

Does your testing include how long the MP40QDs run after taking them off of AC? (I think a record of such testing would be really, really interesting!) BRS has recently conducted such testing, and I'd really like to know how many months the battery is good for. But, I do appreciate your test data...

I saw the BRS video. IIRC, they got 81 hours of runtime from Ecotech's battery. My criteria is "will the MP40QD run from the battery for 24 hours". I disconnect the AC Power, note the time of day, then check back 24 hours later. If the pump is not running at the 24 hour mark, I replace the battery. I hit that wall in the range of 30-36 months.

 

[moreef]

The batteries are easy to replace and much cheaper than buying a new unit. I will never buy a new Ecotech battery back up.

Thanks for this I also have some batteries in my amazon cart.

 

[TheHarold]

I bought the last one in stock yesterday...lol

It will go out today! :D

Im not sure if I mentioned it on the item description, but it’s best to unplug the charger when getting a reading. Because the charger is at ~13v, and you don’t want to read that- you want the actual battery.

Here is some good information- the Ecotech backup is a lead acid battery.

Deep cycle battery voltage & state of charge

A guide to determining deep cycle battery depth of discharge and how battery voltage levels relate to remaining capacity.

www.energymatters.com.au

 

[nickkohrn]

Im not sure if I mentioned it on the item description, but it’s best to unplug the charger when getting a reading. Because the charger is at ~13v, and you don’t want to read that- you want the actual battery.

Thanks for mentioning that as I didn’t see it in the description. While it makes sense, I didn’t think of that. Electricity is not my forte. :)

 

[CoralNerd]

I have watched that a few times and added a couple of batteries to my Amazon cart.

That's funny I have a battery in my cart too. I just need to find time to order it and make the conversion.

 

[CoralNerd]

Is this a good replacement?
Expert Power EXP12180 Lead_Acid_Battery Amazon product

 

[TheHarold]

Is this a good replacement?
Expert Power EXP12180 Lead_Acid_Battery Amazon product

So here’s the thing.

Ecotech Rivets the enclosure shut, which means it will be a lot of work to drill out the rivers and replace them with screws or something.

There is no reason to go that path.... you can buy any (larger ;) ) lead acid battery and just wire that in instead. Connect charger to battery, and battery to the Vortech wire. pretty simple.

 

[TheOne]

1000 hours runtime.

 

[AZMSGT]

So here’s the thing.

Ecotech Rivets the enclosure shut, which means it will be a lot of work to drill out the rivers and replace them with screws or something.

There is no reason to go that path.... you can buy any (larger ;) ) lead acid battery and just wire that in instead. Connect charger to battery, and battery to the Vortech wire. pretty simple.

Not to sound argumentative. But the video explains how to drill out the rivets and what screws to get if I recall. Very simple task And keeps things looking nice.
You are absolutely correct a bigger battery would be nice. However... well they are larger and some folks might have space issues to contend with. Me, I already got the Ecotech units so knowing how to keep them running by just replacing batteries is worth while knowledge.

 

[mtnrunner]

I purchased one of Harry“s monitors and my battery is at 14.4. Reading above, it sounds like as long as it is above 12.5 the battery is still good?

 

[AZMSGT]

I purchased one of Harry“s monitors and my battery is at 14.4. Reading above, it sounds like as long as it is above 12.5 the battery is still good?

Totally normal for a battery rated at 12V to read 14.4V. All batteries that are good and/or new will read higher than the label says. Automotive batteries typically read 14+V.