Lithionics 320ah battery with tamper resistant terminal screws

[DavidRL]

Hi, I purchased new in late 2023 a new 2306BHS FLX TT. Recently I decided to add a second GoPower 30a MPPT charger to my trailer to isolate the side Solar port so that I could add a 200W portable solar panel and move it into the sun to improve my solar charging. When I opened the battery compartment, I found that the battery terminals were not the typical hex bolt style, but tamper resistant security screws (pic attached). Has anyone else seen terminal screws of this type and if so, suggestions as to how to remove them. Thanks David

 

[Morich]

Special tool that I 'think" may be called a star drive? I got a set of them for some project that is not remembered! When they have the special stud in the center like what I think I see, they assume you have the special drive?
The way I dealt with that was just to flatten the center stud so the common star drive on hand worked!
A small burr in a Dremel tool to remove the security stud?

Depending on tools on hand, it may also work to drill the center and use an Easy-out to get that fastener out and just replace it with a more common item.
That's assuming you are not concerned about the security feature?
I'm finding way too many industries are now more interested in making us go to their repair folks than they are interested in building a good product!
I do consulting/hand holding for guys who do repair on electrical things and one of their big complaints on new stuff is how to get into it! It is intended to make the DIY folks go to the pros for repair.
The problem is that the folks I get involved with ARE the pro who get called to go fix it when nobody else will. Shops might do it but that means knocking the whole system out for hours or weeks! Many have a two hour service outage window!

Kind of like when they want us to take our RV in and leave it until THEY decide it's time to fix things?

 

[DavidRL]

Thanks for the reply. Have you or anyone else with a Lithionics battery seen these tamper resistant security screws on their batteries? I just found out today from Winnebago that Lithionics told them that is to keep owners from adding anything else to their batteries. Until I reached out to Winnebago Towables they knew nothing of these type battery terminal security screws and I even talked with my Winnebago RV dealership and they had never seen them on any Winnebago batteries. I just want to get them off, but they are very tight and my first attempt was not successful as I was afraid to apply too much force to remove them.

 

[creativepart]

You might try posting your question in the “Electrical, Charging Solar and Electronics”forum here. I’ll link to a thread that is monitored by an electrical engineer that works at Lithionics.

I’m confident he can answer you questions.

Here’s the link to the thread to post in:

Assistance with Lithionics batteries

I'm starting this thread to see if I can provide some assistance to owners of Lithionics batteries, which are now a standard equipment on some Winnebago products. This is not an official Winnebago support initiative, it is purely personal desire to help people, educate people, advance acceptance...

www.winnieowners.com

 

[RayIN]

The wrenches for those screws are sold on Amazon, at flea-markets, etc.
The inventor of this type "tamper-proof screw" patented the screw design but it has long since expired.
These screws can have a hex-socket or star-socket. I've also seen some with a square socket.

 

[RV-Travelers]

Hi, I purchased new in late 2023 a new 2306BHS FLX TT. Recently I decided to add a second GoPower 30a MPPT charger to my trailer to isolate the side Solar port so that I could add a 200W portable solar panel and move it into the sun to improve my solar charging. When I opened the battery compartment, I found that the battery terminals were not the typical hex bolt style, but tamper resistant security screws (pic attached). Has anyone else seen terminal screws of this type and if so, suggestions as to how to remove them. Thanks David

Good explanation:

https://www.makeuseof.com/torx-screws-vs-torx-security-screws-difference/

You can buy a set of Torx security bits just about anywhere that sells tools.

 

[Bnystrom]

You can get a set of security bits at Harbor Freight for six bucks:

Security Bit Set, 33 Piece

Amazing deals on this Security Bit Set 33Pc at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

Hopefully, the T40 is big enough. There are also T45, T50 and T55 bits on the market.

One thing I would be concerned about is whether connecting anything else directly to the battery will affect your warranty. Also, check if the battery cable connects to a bus bar where you can make your additional connection without messing with the battery.

 

[Morich]

Moving away from the battery for a new connection may be a really good idea. How easy to access and such is a question but it is highly likely that there will be one or more positive cables going to places like fuse panels and that may be a good place to look at tying in the solar?
We don't get much online support for the towables, so not any help on drawing checks.

 

[DavidRL]

You might try posting your question in the “Electrical, Charging Solar and Electronics”forum here. I’ll link to a thread that is monitored by an electrical engineer that works at Lithionics.

I’m confident he can answer you questions.

Here’s the link to the thread to post in:

Assistance with Lithionics batteries

I'm starting this thread to see if I can provide some assistance to owners of Lithionics batteries, which are now a standard equipment on some Winnebago products. This is not an official Winnebago support initiative, it is purely personal desire to help people, educate people, advance acceptance...

www.winnieowners.com

Thanks. Reaching out to them to see what other options I might have to connect a second 30a MPPT instead of touching the battery directly.

 

[Gkpasco]

Yes, as said already, many stores Cary the security set. Bought mine at my local Ace for about 10.00 for a nice set.