As full-time travel bloggers undertaking an epic road trip across the globe, choosing the right leisure battery for our campervan is important.
We were quite excited to try out Roamer’s specialty lithium batteries.
To be exact, the new 12V 300Ah LiFePO4 battery.
This post can be useful for those of you looking for the best leisure battery for your RV or campervan.
As usual, I want to be honest with my review and share what I really think about the products I’ve directly used and tested for months on the road.
But I’ve been genuinely impressed by the battery quality and performance, and the Roamer app is especially awesome!
Today, I’ll be discussing things like:
And of course, whether they’re worth getting.
Time to dive right in…
Rather than go through and update everything below, I just wanted to add in a quick section here at the top to mention how our 300ah Roamer battery is performing after two years.
Long story short ... amazingly!
We used it extensively for about 18 months, with temperatures dropping below freezing for a long time while we were in eastern Canada.
We then hit highs of 40+ Celsius for about 5 weeks road tripping the west coast of the USA. And the battery has never faltered once.
All in al that battery has been driven almost 20,000 miles all across Canada, Alaska, the USA, Mexico and even South America all the way down to Argentina. Across the worst terrain we have encountered in our camper.
We have never had a single issue with charging or overheating or anything at all. In fact, the big reason for installing this was so that we had tonnes of juice to help run our Zero Breeze Mark II AC unit throughout the night and it has been more than up to the job.
Capacity-wise, we have lost 14ah of usable battery. So the max that the Roamer battery now hits at 100% charge is 286ah.
As far as my limited knowledge of batteries goes this is pretty usual for them to slowly lose some capacity over time. And we have certainly abused the heck out of it, so in my opinion it has and still is performing excellently.
Roamer batteries are designed for use on off-grid adventures by off-grid adventurers.
The company was founded by husband-wife duo Steve and Kate, who bought their first camper in 2012 and has been hooked on van life ever since.
I think this is a huge advantage because it means they know exactly what features are useful on a wild campervan trip.
Specializing in LiFePO4 cells, Roamer offers premium batteries at an affordable price tag, and I’ll talk more about their fantastic value for money later in the review section.
Plus, they can design bespoke batteries for various campervan needs!
Having built a substantial foundation in the UK, the company is currently looking to expand to the European market.
Reflecting the owners’ passion for the environment, they’re launching a carbon offsetting and battery recycling scheme in 2022.
Steve and Kate also run a campervan rental agency called Roamer Vans.
Roamer doesn’t have an official Amazon store, so the best place to buy Roamer batteries is directly on their website.
It’s great because shipping is free to mainland UK.
Meanwhile, anywhere in Europe can enjoy premium shipping, which means delivery in 7 days or faster with UPS.
Not to mention the amazing customer support.
Before even buying the product, you’re free to ask advice from their team of campervan converters and battery specialists.
Before revealing the nitty gritty of the Roamer batteries I’ve tried, I wanted to highlight a few benefits of choosing lithium ion over other types of leisure batteries.
The first is that they’re much more compact and lightweight than other batteries.
That means you can install it anywhere in a campervan without worrying about weight distribution or storage.
Next, they’re longer-lasting than lead acid batteries, and discharging them to below 50% won’t cause permanent damage.
Of course, lithium ion is also maintenance-free, so there’s no need to schedule regular battery services.
Overall, they are great for continual and irregular usage where your charge cycles may not always be consistent.
We use ours constantly, for charging our travel drones, air con unit, heating water, our refrigerator, charging our travel laptops, our MaxxFann. Not to mention constant lighting and other minor appliances we use all day in our campervans electrical system.
Basically, constant and highly variable use. And with a decent B2B and solar setup, we have not once yet needed to recharge using a mains outlet, and the batteries have not experienced any drop in performance despite this.
We were pretty pumped about getting to try these batteries.
The latest Roamer 300SMART2 has a nominal capacity of 300Ah at 12.8V, which sounded like exactly what we need.
This, in specific, is perfect for off grid usage with high energy demands.
One of the first things I noticed was how advanced the BMS is and minimalist the design is.
That said, let’s jump into the details!
Roamer batteries are built for off-grid campervans, motorhomes, and boats.
It has a premium quality and offers steady power, especially considering its small size.
You’ll be able to enjoy a continuous charge or discharge rate of 250A, while the well-made cells can deliver stable voltage for up to 5000 cycles at an astounding 80% depth of discharge.
I really love how the upgraded BMS can balance all internal cells. And if you ever need more power, you can easily install four of these batteries in series or parallel.
Not to mention a series of protections, including low temperature charging.
Another detail worth pointing out is that Roamer is now offering their second-generation batteries.
This means they’re more advanced in terms of battery construction and BMS system, so that it’s compatible with the latest Roamer mobile app.
So, I’ve only tested the 300ah lithium ion version, but there are actually quite a lot of options to choose from.
Remember that all of these batteries can be combined either in series or parallel to generate even more power.
Roamer also offers a 24v 230ah battery for systems that run on 24V, but I’ll be talking about this one in more detail below.
Personally, these are some of my favorite things about this battery…
If I had to choose one unique feature that roamer makes particularly well, it’d be their app.
I LOVE the Roamer battery app.
A huge downside of our old AGM batteries was the inability to check exactly how much charge they had.
But the advanced BMS Bluetooth in this battery solves that exact problem.
It connects to your mobile phone so you can check the charge level whenever you want, as well as how much power is currently going into or coming out of the batteries.
There is also other real-time information for your battery stats including cell voltages, and you can view and edit parameters too.
Not to mention that the app makes identifying problems with the integrated alarms super easy.
I found the overall interface to be fairly simple and intuitive, which is another plus.
At only 30 kg, this 12V 300Ah battery is very lightweight. Whereas the dimensions are equally minimalist: 525mm x 240mm x 220mm.
It’s been super useful to have more power while reducing the battery footprint and it’s giving us more space for extra storage!
Our old setup was made up of two Xplorer™ AGM batteries, which were twice as bulky and 10 times as heavy.
Not only that, but those AGM batteries actually had 70Ah less usable power compared to our new Roamer 300Ah.
I've found the Roamer batteries to offer fantastic value for money.
Yes, it may cost more to buy than AGM or lead acid batteries, but I think it’s a solid investment for the long run.
They offer so many more cycles, weigh almost 90% less, are half as big, and can charge more efficiently.
Furthermore, what I love about Roamer is that they make good on their promise of quality.
The construction feels very solid and strong, and I think the owners’ real passion for campervans has really come through, as each detail has been well thought of.
One more thing I immediately loved about the Roamer battery is how straightforward it was to install.
It’s meant to be a drop in lead-acid replacement so you can easily install the battery in practically any campervan, motorhome, and boat.
The terminals are M8 steel bolts, which you get with the initial purchase. You’ll also get washers and spring rings.
However, I do recommend ensuring that all the chargers you use are compatible with lithium ion batteries and to configure them properly.
One thing to note is that, if you are dropping this battery in, be sure to check the dimensions and prepare accordingly. Compared to other types of leisure battery, like-for-like in power they will be much smaller.
Which is a nice problem to have! I just wanted to point it out as when switching out from our old batteries, we had to rearrange cable lengths and space for the battery to be secured.
How can I talk about a battery without mentioning its battery life?
More good news: this Roamer battery has a really good life and charge cycle.
Depending on the size, the battery offers around up to 5000 cycles at 80% discharge, while the low temperature protection is great for preventing damage when traveling in more extreme climates.
So far, I have had absolutely no problem with charging them. We have a 60amp Sterling B2B and it can keep the batteries fully topped up, even on its own. We also have 480 amps of solar which keeps things topped up, even in mild sunlight, if we aren't moving for a few days.
If on average we use 50Ah-150Ah of power when parking up for the night, within 2 to 3 hours of driving, the batteries will be fully recharged for the next day.
We’ve spent most of our time in Canada with no real sunlight, and this basically shows that we don’t even really need our solar power yet to keep these batteries full!
While not exactly a feature of the battery itself, I truly feel that Roamer’s customer service deserves a special shout-out.
Their team is crazy friendly!
As I mentioned earlier, the founders are a young entrepreneurial couple who’s also passionate about campervans.
They realized that there was a HUGE gap in the market for top quality, affordable lithium ion batteries.
This caused many van lifers to resort to DIY solutions and build their own banks using dodgy, second-rate parts, which can be dangerous in the long run!
The good news is that Roamer has committed to producing superb units with proper customer service and quality guarantees in case they're needed.
If you’re planning to embark on a full-time campervan trip to explore off-grid destinations, you’ll probably love the Roamer.
Their batteries can discharge efficiently, which gives it exceptional lifetime value and thus is appropriate for long-term adventurers.
I also recommend it to anyone who has a motorhome or boat, as the safety is top notch.
Not to mention easy maintenance. So if you can’t be bothered to deal with spilling acids, then this lithium ion battery is for you!
While Roamer batteries may not be as pricey as some other lithium ion battery brands, they can still be quite expensive.
Especially if you compare them to AGM and lead-acid leisure batteries.
If you’re on a budget and want the most affordable option, maybe you should go for an open lead acid battery.
We’ve arrived at the point of this entire review. If you just want a quick answer, then don’t miss this part.
Should you buy Roamer batteries?
I have to say yes!
Their battery range includes a wide variety of sizes to suit different needs.
They’re light and compact, long-lasting, easy to maintain, safe, and come with a fantastic BMS and integrated mobile app.
The one I’ve personally tried, the 300 SMART 2 battery, provides just the amount of power for what I need.
In fact, its 250A discharge rate (with peak at 500A) is enough to run any appliance of up to 3200W via an inverter.
Crucially for us, this means we can use it to safely power our Zero Breeze air con unit (which is a god send now that we are in warmer climates!). Read more about this, and how to install one in your camper in our Zero Breeze Mark 2 review guide.
So yes, I really am loving Roamer batteries very much and can’t recommend it enough for fellow van lifers.
The key reason we went for them in the first place is that they sell top quality lithium ion batteries, much more affordably than other big name suppliers, while also offering top quality customer service.
When splashing out a lot of money on just one component, it's nice to know there is a UK based customer support team right there to help if anything does go wrong.
Roamer mainly sells batteries, and their other products include:
We’ve mostly been talking about the 12V version, but Roamer’s 24V lithium battery is just as excellent.
Go for this model if your vehicle runs a 24V leisure system. Other than the double voltage, it has the same advanced BMS and case.
One battery can give you 6400W continuous charge or discharge.
The Seatbase LiFePO4 battery is also a 2nd generation model with 12V 230Ah capacity.
It’s designed specially to fit under a swivel seat inside campervans, which means it packs more power in a smaller design.
Despite weighing just 20kg, this battery can supply up to 3200W of continuous power. Pretty impressive, right?
Finally, it seems like we can’t tie up this review without mentioning Roamer’s expertise at making bespoke batteries.
If you need a 24V or 48V battery, or even customized casing to fit specific dimensions, they can cater to your needs.
Previous projects include a 300Ah seat base battery and powerful 24V 1200Ah battery for a luxury yacht.
That wraps up our deep dive of Roamer lithium batteries!
If you’ve tried them too, let us know what you think below.
Or if you have any questions, just ask them below!
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