House battery on roof top?

[George C Lone]

I'm considering the possibility of placing a lithium battery and a DC-DC charger in a rifle case and mounting it on my roof rack. I haven't come across any pictures of a setup like this, so I'm wondering if it's a potentially unwise idea. Hehe! Space inside my truck is extremely limited, and I don't want to sacrifice any cargo or cab space. My intention is to have the setup permanently mounted on the roof rack. I'd appreciate hearing your thoughts on this. Furthermore, I'm already planning to add solar panels and camp lights to the roof rack, so there will already be wires running up there. Given that a battery box requires minimal maintenance, it seems like a suitable choice for the roof rack.

Are there any other considerations I should keep in mind?

 

[smritte]

It would have to be lifpo. Those are the least OCD, in my area, they would get too hot.
Lithium's as a whole don't like extreme heat or cold.
I guess if you insulated them for heat and put a warming blanket if it gets too cold, you would be good.

 

[TacoMe]

I wonder if you could add a fan pulling air out, as won't the battery need circulation?

 

[smritte]

You could do it for cooling but Lithium's don't off gas like the others.

 

[George C Lone]

You could do it for cooling but Lithium's don't off gas like the others.

I'm sorry, I'm not following you? Do lithium batteries need ventilation?

 

[smritte]

No.
Lead acid produces hydrogen gas when charging, sulfur gas when over charging. AGM is not as bad but still produces "fumes". These two need to be ventilated. If you have ever seen a battery explode (four here) its caused by the build up of hydrogen gas inside the case.

Lithium's are like flashlight batteries, no gassing. The down side is, their more sensitive to over charging and temperature. Very high temp and over charging can cause a lithium to burn where as a L.A. battery will just explode.