Is the BLUETTI AC300 made for 24/7 use? I was told that the batteries won’t last as long if you charge the unit with solar while using it… I am thinking about getting the complete setup with the 240v connector for a cabin. But I don’t want to spend the money if it isn’t going last for years.
Yes. You can certainly use it as your suggesting and the batteries will probably outlast the inverter, MPPT, charger and touch screen. But you have to really need a portable system to justify the cost. For 240v you need 2 AC300’s plus batteries, solar panels, the split phase connector and cables etc, etc. Your at the price point where you could just install a formal fixed system that would probably suit your needs better. The attraction to these units are their portability their and plug and play ease of use. But you are definitely paying a premium for that. If it were me and I needed a permanent off grid 240 V system I think I would level up to something better. These seem sexy on the surface, Just pull out your visa, one and done, plug it in and all your worries float away…but the reality could be entirely different. You really need to assess your needs and determine if this is right for you.
scottyat777,
The potential product lifespan concerns really depend on the details of your use case.
If your power station will be supplying loads for just a few weeks a year (e.g. a vacation cabin), then the largest risk to lifespan is improper storage of the power station when it’s not supplying loads. The main mechanisms for battery damage during storage are high temperature, and high state of charge. You should store the unit in a cool place, at a moderate state of charge, and not connected to a charger.
If your power station will be supplying continuous loads (e.g. a full-time cabin), then there are two cases:
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If you have intermittent charging (e.g. an off-grid site with solar) then the battery will of course see daily charge/discharge cycles. Battery lifespan will be determined by those cycles.
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If you have continuous charging (e.g. on-grid site) then the battery won’t cycle much—it will (by default) spend most of its time at a nearly-full state of charge. One might describe this use case as an “uninterruptible power supply” (UPS).
The lifespan concern here is that nearly-full state of charge. A basic property of lithium batteries is that they suffer slow damage when they are in a fully charged condition. The longer they spend in the fully charged state, the more damage suffered. (That damage reduces the energy storage capacity.) If the power station has a charging mode that maintains moderate state of charge (e.g. 70%) then this uninterruptible power supply use case might be feasible, although doecliff’s concerns about the durability of the electronics in these consumer-level products remain.
Bluetti provides unhelpful advice about this UPS mode in the following FAQ:
Q: Does Bluettipower portable power station support charging and discharge simultaneously?](FAQs - BLUETTI)
A: Sure. However, in order to better protect the cycle life of the battery, it is not recommended to charge and discharge the battery at the same time.
Their answer cites battery cycling as the concern, without explanation. With simultaneous charging input and inverter output (powering loads), one would expect fewer (or no) discharge/charge cycles on the battery. I really do not understand this FAQ.
Yes, they will operate 24/7 for most applications such as homes, but if the cabin will be empty , it is better to shut it down if not in use because the AC300 consumes power all the time. And the B300 should be in use charging and discharging with a working load.