FAQs

Essentially this refers to the ‘chemistry’ of the gen Z LFP battery. LFP can also be represented by its chemical formula which is LiFePO4. So, the LFP chemistry (developed in 1996) of a gen Z LFP battery is vastly different to say that of a ‘lead acid’ battery where its main elements are lead (a heavy metal) and Sulphuric acid, a highly corrosive and toxic chemical.

BMS stands for Battery Management System. All gen Z LFP batteries are fitted with a BMS regardless of model, voltage or capacity. The BMS is an essential part of the battery as it protects the battery from a number of potentially damaging external events such as: Over Voltage from the charger, Over Current (short circuit), and Over Temperature. In addition, the BMS maintains the balance of the internal cells that make up the battery. All gen Z BMS’ operate completely automatically and require no intervention from the user. In summary, the BMS ensures ongoing safety and reliability in the each and every gen Z battery.

It is very important to understand that gen Z LFP batteries use the Lithium Ferro (or Iron) Phosphate (LFP) chemistry. The gen Z chemistry is VERY different from the more common Lithium ion (not to be confused with ‘iron’) battery that uses Lithium Cobalt Oxide. It is the Lithium Cobalt Oxide batteries that are much more volatile and can suffer from thermal runaway causing fire or explosion. gen Z LFP batteries using the LFP chemistry are intrinsically non-combustible and hence vastly safer than Lithium Cobalt Oxide. Even traditional Lead Acid batteries have been known to explode causing damage from the acid released. In some cases, fatalities have occurred from the resulting explosion of a lead acid battery that has produced the highly explosive Hydrogen gas. It should be noted that hydrogen is a colourless, tasteless, odourless gas meaning you may have no warning of a dangerous situation. The gen Z LFP range of batteries DO NOT produce this deadly hydrogen gas!

The gen Z battery range, in addition to their inherent chemical safety, are also fitted with an internal Battery Management System (BMS) that provides an added layer of protection for you and the system it is connected to.

With a standard Anderson connector fitted to all of our gen Z 2RU models, dangers associated with traditional methods to connect batteries using a wrench are avoided. And finally, all our 24V and 48V 2RU Home Energy Storage LFP modules are protected by one of the electrical industries leading hydraulic-magnetic circuit breakers. These combined features provide the highest degree of safety and reliability for you and your system.

All gen Z LFP’s are made up of military grade cylindrical cells that have been manufactured to the strictest standards. gen Z, as an Australian company, recognises the challenging environments we have in Australia and this strict attention to quality and safety provides a very high level of confidence in the gen Z LFP batteries across Australia and New Zealand. This is why gen Z LFP batteries have been chosen by clients in the Australian government, military, mining and industrial sectors.

Always ask your supplier to provide the vastly safer and superior gen Z LFP battery.

gen Z supply a large range of LFP batteries in various voltages, sizes and capacities. These batteries can be found in Mining, Government, Defence, Marine, off grid and hybrid (commercial and home energy) installations.

Yes, they are on the CEC battery approved list. gen Z has undergone IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) independent testing, AS (Australian Standards) independent testing as well as verification by Energy Safe Victoria and the Clean Energy Council themselves for the 48V rack mount batteries to be permitted to be allowed on this list.

This is probably the most asked question along with “How many batteries do I need?” With existing installations there are many variables that need to be considered. The best advice is that you should contact either the company that installed your solar system or a reputable installer to advise you on the options you have with the gen Z battery range. If your installer is not familiar with the gen Z range, please contact us directly at info@genZ.com.au.

This is always going to be a challenge to answer without having a clear understanding of your electricity usage, what you want to achieve and of course your budget. With that in mind some questions you may want to consider are:

• Will my existing solar system allow for the addition of batteries?
• Will my existing solar system have the capacity to charge the number of batteries I need to meet my requirements?
• Do I just want to supply my own power requirements during periods of time that the sun is not shining such as overnight?
• Do I want sufficient battery storage to provide me with my own power during a power outage?
• How many days of autonomy do I want? For example mid-winter when the sun is at its lowest point and I’m likely to be using heating?
• Can I change the time of the day that I run certain appliances (such as pool pumps, washing machines and dishwashers) so they only operate during peak solar production reducing my need for power when solar is not available?
• Can I change appliances or make other improvements such as using LED lighting to reduce my power usage?

1. Usable capacity – With a lead acid battery, you are advised to use just 30 to 50% of its rated capacity. In other words, if you have a 100Ah lead acid battery, you really only should use a maximum of 50Ah’s. This can be thought of as having a 100 litre fuel tank in your car and being told you are only allowed to use 50 litres of the 100 litres! With the gen Z LFP battery, if it is rated at 100Ah, you can use 90Ah’s or even the full 100Ah.
2. Extended cycle life – With a lead acid battery (even deep cycle) may only last for 500 to 1000 cycles. In contrast, a gen Z LFP battery can deliver up to 10,000 cycles.
3. Energy Density – What this actually means is the weight of the battery compared to other battery types that would deliver the same amount of energy. A gen Z LFP battery is typically well under half the weight of an equivalent lead acid battery and if you consider useable capacity, the gen Z LFP battery is an even more attractive option.
4. Peukerts Law and Voltage Losses – OK, so this is technical now, but, essentially, the discharge voltage of gen Z LFP batteries (compared to lead acid) is essentially flat. So, a gen Z LFP battery with 80% Depth of Discharge (DoD) will be providing nearly the same output voltage as a gen Z LFP battery with only a 20% DoD. This prevents a ‘sagging’ in the voltage that is typical of a lead acid battery. This sagging from a lead acid battery means more current is drawn that results in greater loss of energy. This also means that gen Z LFP batteries can provide their full rated capacity even at higher currents. This characteristic of the gen Z LFP batteries is ideal for situations such as home energy storage systems.
5. Fast and efficient charging, with little wasted energy – The gen Z LFP battery is around 96 to 97% efficient when it comes to what energy is stored and is then taken out from the battery. Compare this to a lead acid battery that is only 85% efficient. Imagine if you could improve the efficiency of your car by 10% while improving overall performance, life and reliability? This is what you can get from a gen Z LFP.
6. Operating Temperature – A gen Z LFP battery provides not only greater capacity in higher temperatures than an equivalent lead acid, but, many more cycles at higher temperatures. At lower temperatures, a gen Z LFP will provide much greater energy when compared to other chemistries.
7. Maintenance – The gen Z LFP batteries are maintenance free! Is all you need to do is keep them charged and you will have a reliable DC power source for many years.
8. Overall lower cost of ownership and added safety – Sure, an LFP battery will generally cost more than an equivalent lead acid battery, but, consider the warranty, benefits and features you receive with a gen Z LFP battery and the many benefits will result in a lower cost of ownership compared to an equivalent lead acid battery.

The rate of discharge is the amount of energy you are taking from the battery over a certain period of time. The best way to think of this is that it is very similar to your car and how much fuel you use to do the same distance. If you drive at a consistent and moderate speed on an open highway, your fuel economy will be much better than if you drive at very high speed.

Many of the inverters that work with lead acid batteries can also be programmed to work with the gen Z LFP range of batteries. gen Z maintains a test facility where we test our batteries with various inverters, chargers and MPPT solar chargers. Some of the manufacturers we have tested with are Selectronic, Victron, AERL, Goodwe, Plasmatronics, Eltek and Eaton to name a few. As always, talk to your professional solar installer.

No, you can only use gen Z batteries with gen Z batteries.

The Anderson connectors supplied with the batteries are designed for 16mm2 cable. Always consult the installation manual and user guide supplied with the battery or available on the gen Z website.

Yes, they can, please refer to the installation and user manuals.

No, the gen Z range of batteries is not designed for this purpose.

gen Z offer a 10 year or 10,000 cycle warranty. Having said that, you should always read the warranty document to ensure that the situation that you are using your battery in does not void your warranty. As always, talk to your professional solar installer.

*These results may vary depending on a number of factors including ambient temperature, type of charger used and rate of charge/discharge.