Many households are turning to battery systems to make the most of renewable energy sources and time-of-use tariffs. However, like any significant home asset, batteries require proper care and maintenance to ensure longevity and efficiency. 

This article covers best practices for maintaining your battery’s health, understanding warranties, and explores how Loop Optimise – Loop’s AI-driven battery manager – can help you get the most from your battery without risking its health.

Best Practices for Home Battery Health

Maintaining your home battery’s health involves several important practices, from managing charging cycles to monitoring usage patterns. Here are some essential tips to maximise the life and performance of your battery:

1. Control Your Charge Cycles

• Every time a battery goes from empty to full (and vice versa), it completes a cycle. Reducing unnecessary cycles can significantly extend battery life.
• Try to use your battery strategically, aiming to cycle in line with the battery warranties, which generally accounts for around one to three cycles per day.
  
  

2. Avoid Extreme States of Charge

• Batteries last longer when their average State of Charge (SOC) is kept between 20% and 80%. A lower SOC can even help prolong battery health, as batteries experience less wear at moderate charge levels.
• Avoiding extremes like consistently draining the battery to zero or charging it to full capacity unnecessarily can help preserve its lifespan.
  
  

3. Temperature Management

• Cold temperatures can reduce battery efficiency and increase degradation rates if not properly managed. To mitigate this, ensure your battery cycles through charging and discharging during extreme cold, as this helps to warm up the system.
• Some batteries have built-in temperature management features, but you can also help by ensuring your battery is installed in a stable environment with moderate temperatures

Understanding Battery Warranties

Battery warranties often come with specific cycle limits, which can vary from one manufacturer to another. Typically, these warranties allow for around one to three full cycles per day, depending on the model.

With Loop Optimise, your battery should cycle at an average rate of about 1 to 1.5 cycles per day, meaning it’s well within typical warranty limits. This AI-driven system strategically charges and discharges your battery based on grid conditions, aiming to keep it functioning optimally without impacting the lifespan or warranty of your battery.

The ‘Default’ Battery vs. Loop Optimise

A battery that lacks intelligent management (or a ‘default battery’) will typically charge only when the solar generation is in excess, typically at its peak – around midday – and discharge during high-consumption periods in the evening. While this might limit the battery to less than one cycle per day, it does so without maximising potential savings.

In contrast, Loop Optimise integrates with variable tariffs to charge when electricity prices are low (often overnight) and discharge when prices are higher. In some cases, it might cycle your battery more frequently, with an average closer to 1.5 cycles per day. By optimising for both solar production and tariff variations, Loop Optimise achieves more value from your battery while staying within reasonable cycle counts.

How Loop Optimise Works to Protect Your Battery

Loop Optimise leverages AI to manage your battery’s usage carefully, aiming to maximise cost savings while maintaining battery health. Here’s how it’s set up to protect your battery as it works to save you money:

• Cycle Limits within Warranty: With an average daily cycle count of around 1 to 1.5 cycles, Loop Optimise operates comfortably within the warranty parameters of most batteries.
• Optimal State of Charge (SOC): Loop Optimise is designed to avoid extremes in the State of Charge, aiming to keep the battery’s daily average in the 20-80% range when possible to reduce wear.

Reassurance with Loop Optimise

If you’re concerned about the impact of Loop Optimise on your battery’s warranty and health, rest assured that our AI has been designed with longevity in mind. Most importantly, Loop Optimise only cycles the battery 1 to 1.5 times per day – well within standard warranty limits. Plus, Loop is actively exploring even more advanced ways to monitor and improve battery health. 

Safe and Smart Battery Management

Taking care of your home battery doesn’t have to be complex. With simple best practices and an intelligent system like Loop Optimise, you can keep your battery healthy, reduce wear and tear, and optimise savings – all without risk to its warranty. By combining smart technology with effective battery health habits, you’ll not only increase your energy independence but also extend the life of one of your home’s most valuable energy assets.