How to Increase the Life of Your Lithium Battery and Should You Bother?

When it comes to powering your campervan, caravan or 4WD setup, lithium batteries – especially LiFePO4 – are a top choice. They’re safer, lighter, and longer lasting than traditional lead-acid batteries. If you’ve invested in a high-quality lithium battery, it makes sense to want to look after it properly.

There are a few common-sense steps you can take to increase your battery’s lifespan. Keep your battery in a stable environment. Don’t overheat it, don’t freeze it, and avoid storing it in unventilated spots like a tight engine bay or steel toolbox in full sun. Like most of us, lithium batteries prefer a comfortable temperature range to stay happy.

Another smart habit is avoiding full discharges. Even though LiFePO4 handles deep discharging better than most chemistries, it’s still ideal to keep usage within 80 percent of the battery’s capacity when you can. This lightens the load on the cells and keeps internal wear to a minimum.

Charge rates also matter. While it’s tempting to fast-charge and get on with your day, steady charging at moderate currents is gentler on the battery. Aim for around 0.5C – for example, charging a 200Ah battery at 100 amps or less. And make sure your charger uses the correct LiFePO4 profile with a sensible float voltage.

Storage is another area that gets overlooked. If your van or camper is parked up for a while, don’t leave the battery sitting at 100 percent. Store it somewhere around 40 to 60 percent state of charge and make sure it’s disconnected from any loads or chargers. This reduces stress on the cells and keeps them in good condition.

When you combine all of these habits – moderate depth of discharge, sensible charging, climate awareness, and proper storage – you’re putting your battery in the best possible position. Do it consistently and you can expect to see over 6000 cycles from a quality battery like the ones we make at Muller Energy. That’s not marketing fluff. With our use of premium-grade cells, built-in BMS, and smart assembly standards, it’s entirely achievable in real-world conditions.

But let’s pivot for a moment.

What happens if you do… the opposite? Say you run your battery flat all the time. You charge it at maximum rate, leave it plugged in nonstop, store it in a roasting-hot shed, and throw in the occasional 4am cold start in the middle of winter. Will your battery die a sad, early death?

Not quite.

Even under rough treatment, you’re still likely to get more than 2000 cycles out of it. That’s assuming no catastrophic misuse – just everyday “couldn’t be bothered” battery handling.

Now let’s run the numbers. Most campervans, caravans and 4WDs don’t cycle their battery every day. In fact, most systems do less than one full cycle per week. At that rate, 2000 cycles would cover roughly 40 years of use-based wear.

To be clear, we’re not claiming your battery is going to last four decades. Time, heat, and the occasional whoopsie will catch up eventually. But it does highlight the key point:

You don’t have to optimise every detail to get great value from your lithium battery.

So if you’re the kind of person who enjoys optimising your setup, go ahead and take the steps that maximise battery life. You’ll be rewarded with thousands of reliable cycles. But if you’re the set-and-forget type, your battery isn’t going to fall apart just because you didn’t store it at 47 percent SoC in a climate-controlled cave.

Our advice? Use your battery in a way that suits your lifestyle. The freedom of a lithium setup is that it works around you, not the other way around.

And if you’re still deciding which battery to go with, choose one that’s built to handle life as it comes. We design every Muller Energy LiFePO4 battery to thrive in real Aussie conditions – whether you’re running your fridge, charging your gear, or parked up under a gum tree.

Check out our full range here: Muller Energy Lithium Batteries