Firefly Batteries????

Aug 22, 2017
1,609
Hunter 26.5 West Palm Beach
Thanks for the reply. I'm not looking for a distributor. I'm looking for people who have used them & now have an opinion based on experience.
 
Feb 6, 1998
11,667
Canadian Sailcraft 36T Casco Bay, ME
I've been testing and abusing them since 2013/2014 when Bruce first mentioned them to me. I called BS on the claims and immediately began purposely punishing the battery. After many months of extreme abuse I reported back to Bruce that the capacity was still 100%.. Without a defined baseline for comparison, against other brand new AGM batteries, a testing protocol was designed, to mimic real world use, and then other AGM's were run through the identical PSOC testing protocol.

As well as testing them for PSOC cycling abuse (PSOC cycling is when the battery is used for many deficit cycles between 100% full recharges eg; 20% SOC to 85% SOC repeatedly), and installing them on customers boats, none of the Firefly batteries I've installed have yet to lose any quantifiable Ah capacity (I am testing them once yearly).

That said they company is small and the owner (the guy who bought the patent from Caterpillar) is doing more to hurt the company than grow it.. In nearly 6 years he's done absolutely nothing he had promised, in regards to beefing up production to satisfy supply needs.

Supply has always been the biggest challenge with Firefly. Early on there were a few bad valves and the occasional leaking post, quality control issues, but those issues seem to be behind them now.

Also if you do not use these batteries down to 80% DOD you're not using them as designed or getting what you've paid for. I see too many boaters buy them then stick with 50% DOD as the bottom. Big waste of money to do this.

If you can find them in-stock you won't be disappointed.

I would suggest by starting with:
Practical Sailor May 2015 PSOC Testing AGM Batteries
Practical Sailor August 2015 PSOC Testing AGM Batteries
 
Aug 22, 2017
1,609
Hunter 26.5 West Palm Beach
Thank You Main Sail.

That is exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for.
 

Bob R.

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Jun 5, 2004
160
Marlow-Hunter 40 Pasadena, MD
I just spoke with a Maryland Firefly battery dealer at the Annapolis Spring Sailboat Show. He has over 30 back orders for the batteries that he hasn’t been able to fill. The batteries are now manufactured in India and still in very limited supply.
 
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Oct 19, 2017
7,733
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
I'm definitely interested in following this thread. Anyone have any idea what the lead time is?

- Will (Dragonfly)
 
Feb 6, 1998
11,667
Canadian Sailcraft 36T Casco Bay, ME
I'm definitely interested in following this thread. Anyone have any idea what the lead time is?

- Will (Dragonfly)
Last time I spoke with Bruce he said the next container to land is sold already. If you want them, get a hold of Bruce and get on a list with one of his distributors. I believe India is actually producing batteries slightly faster than Peoria, IL did, but they are still slow and we now have boat shipping to deal with. When each container lands here Bruce and his crew are doing QC checks and running tests to ensure they are the quality they should be. This also slows things down a bit but until he is 100% comfortable with Firefly's India manufacturing this will continue.
 
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May 7, 2012
1,338
Hunter e33 Maple Bay, BC
Early on there were a few bad valves and the occasional leaking post, quality control issues, but those issues seem to be behind them now.
Some disappointing news regarding the Firefly Oasis Battery. In a recent article in Sail magazine Nigel Calder outlines the great things about the carbon foam technology but he finishes by stating that he has "found the quality control to be somewhat uneven". Also according to a post on Panbo by an individual that attended a Calder presentation (Understanding Boat Electrical Systems) at Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival (6th Sep 2018), Calder said that he could not recommend these batteries due the quality issues he has experienced during his testing. The post did not go into any further detail about what issues arose during his testing that would cause this recommendation. Unfortunate, as I had this battery on my short list for replacing my 7 year old GC batteries this winter.

When each container lands here Bruce and his crew are doing QC checks and running tests to ensure they are the quality they should be.
I guess one is always taking some risk when purchasing new and unproven technology. Thus buying from a recognized dealer will reduce that risk somewhat and will ensure that if trouble arises down the road, support will be there to back you up.
 

CarlN

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Jan 4, 2009
603
Ketch 55 Bristol, RI
To balance the vague rumors with an actual customer testimonial - I installed 8 Fireflys in May. These had been on order since November. I believe I was in the middle of the India transition delays. Mine arrived in individual cardboard boxes with foam inserts on a pallet with no signs of quality issues or shipping damage. They were all fully charged. After a test charge, they each showed a no load voltage above 12.8 after sitting 24 hours. I spent the summer in Maine only once plugging in for the night (the boat has some 600 watts of solar but with cruising loads (and Maine weak sun) we need occasional engine time or an hour of genset to keep a reasonable charge. The fireflys replaced 8 Lifelines XT (125 AH) that had lost over 40% of capacity in 4 years despite being handled carefully - not left on a mooring, never going below 50% and rarely below 65%, lots of time plugged in at a marina, and several conditioning charges). In use, the Fireflys seemed to stay at a higher voltage than the Lifelines when new despite having 100 fewer amp/hrs. It takes the Firefly bank quite a while under normal load to even get down to 12.8v. In the morning after a night at anchor , the voltmeter will show 12.7. The Lifelines would be at 12.4. I've also noticed that charge acceptance off the 200 amp Balmar alternator seems faster than the Lifelines and the charge amps don't start to decline in absorption until 92% charged or so. I spoke to Bruce before ordering the batteries (although he suggested I order them through his dealer in Maryland as I was down that way). I feel MUCH better about buying batteries through a guy like Bruce who does only boats (and has a great reputation) than the large, all-purpose regional battery distributor ( that a boatyard would use) who does perhaps 5% of their business with the marine market. It's obviously too early to guess at longevity. But it's a good start.
 
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Mar 26, 2011
3,401
Corsair F-24 MK I Deale, MD
Some disappointing news regarding the Firefly Oasis Battery. In a recent article in Sail magazine Nigel Calder outlines the great things about the carbon foam technology but he finishes by stating that he has "found the quality control to be somewhat uneven". Also according to a post on Panbo by an individual that attended a Calder presentation (Understanding Boat Electrical Systems) at Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival (6th Sep 2018), Calder said that he could not recommend these batteries due the quality issues he has experienced during his testing. The post did not go into any further detail about what issues arose during his testing that would cause this recommendation. Unfortunate, as I had this battery on my short list for replacing my 7 year old GC batteries this winter.


I guess one is always taking some risk when purchasing new and unproven technology. Thus buying from a recognized dealer will reduce that risk somewhat and will ensure that if trouble arises down the road, support will be there to back you up.
Did he date his experience? This may be old news.
 
May 7, 2012
1,338
Hunter e33 Maple Bay, BC
Did he date his experience? This may be old news.
The Panbo post certainly does not provide a lot of supporting information regarding the quality control issues and I am hoping that there was some misunderstanding. Given the credibility of Nigel Calder, I would have thought that if there were major concerns, he would have put something in print rather than a passing statement at a presentation to a small group of people in small town USA.
Here is the link:
https://panbo.com/marineelectronicsforum/general-discussion/firefly-battery-quality/
 
Jan 1, 2006
7,040
Slickcraft 26 Sailfish
I
That said they company is small and the owner (the guy who bought the patent from Caterpillar) is doing more to hurt the company than grow it.. In nearly 6 years he's done absolutely nothing he had promised, in regards to beefing up production to satisfy supply needs.
This is sounds like a case of undercapitalization. Maybe he has trouble finding capital, not because his batteries are bad. Maybe it's because there is a giant battery technology company that has sucked all that venture capital out of the market. Now the investors are not so interested in another player. Caterpillar sold it for a reason. Just guessing from looking at the headlines...
 
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