I have a few questions about the charge modes, I apologise if similar questions have already been asked.
If I charge the station in silent mode most of the time, how much will this increase the battery life?
If I only charge the station in standard mode, will this have a negative effect on battery life (in normal home temperature conditions)?
I have frequent power cuts at home and I can’t charge in silent mode all the time, but I’m afraid of damaging the battery in standard mode.
How often can the turbo charge mode be used and how much damage can it do to the battery?
Thanks in advance for your help, this forum helps me a lot.
I suggest you should trust the manufacturer (i.e. Bluetti). Based on the claimed 3500+ cycles for battery and the ‘standard’ mode naming I’d expect exactly that 3500+ cycles in standard charging mode. Even if you completely discharge the battery 3 times a day it corresponds to 3+ years of service to 80%.
Based on common sense no one would name a mode ‘standard’ if it does self-harm to equipment.
How often can the turbo charge mode be used and how much damage can it do to the battery?
Not enough damage to invalidate the warranty.
Deeper to your question, the path is not straightforward. To answer your question, one should somehow identify the exact LFP cell used by Bluetti. Then one should look into the cell manufacturer sheet to find the ‘Recommended continuous charging current’ and ‘Cycle life, 80% DOD’.
If the ‘Recommended continuous charging current’ is 1C then it is absolutely safe to use Standard and Turbo mode.
As @Serge states and to add. LiFePo4 batteries, standalone and those in power banks are generally rated 80% discharge i.e. 20% left and a qty of cycles. Some manufacturers will give additional info. I have a brand of 100Ah LiFePo4 in my RV rated at 4,000 cycles to 80% Depth of Discharge. (DOD) However, my research and from testing I am aware of, if I only discharge to say 30% DOD, I might get 6-7,000 cycles. This is common with this battery chemistry. This is also only half the equation as there is discharge and recharge.
Re Charging - There is a limit as to how fast charging can occur for safety reasons. If you use Turbo every time you charge, battery life will lower, it is available for those occasions when you need a fast recharge and it will slow down once the battery reaches 80% anyway, for safety reason. However, can we as users ascertain cycle life at different charge rates? not exactly. What I can say is that a slower, more gentle charge is always better for a rechargeable battery.
I have an AC70, AC180 and AC200P, the 200 has a charging block and the other 2 have the 3 modes. I always charge them at silent mode for regular use. But if I need to recharge when time is the issue, I use standard mode. I doubt I will ever use Turbo. (Retired mech/elec designer)
Forgot to mention, once 3,500 cycles have occurred, the battery is still rated to provide 80% of original capacity, which will also slowly lower. It does not mean it is end of life. :)
@Design I had a further thought on your original Qs.
1. If I charge the station in silent mode most of the time, how much will this increase the battery life?
I doubt there is an answer, but it is certainly kinder to the battery. 2. If I only charge the station in standard mode, will this have a negative effect on battery life (in normal home temperature conditions)?
This is what I would term the “Regular” charging mode, therefore no negative affect. However, you are on the right thought re temperature. Charge and discharge environmental conditions do affect batteries, most ratings and tests are performed at 25C (77F). Providing the majority of use/charge is not extremely different, your good. I have frequent power cuts at home and I can’t charge in silent mode all the time, but I’m afraid of damaging the battery in standard mode. 3. How often can the turbo charge mode be used and how much damage can it do to the battery?
I can’t answer this and I doubt there is an accurate answer, but minimise as much as you can. The way I’ve answered this is having more than one power bank. My recharge even in silent mode is quicker than the load run time from another, so use one while charging the other.