Having the right battery on board can save you time and money, and keep you on the go for ages. Alexia Santamaria talks to the team at Apollo to find out more.
Anyone who spends many days off the grid in a motorhome will possibly expend more time and energy thinking about battery life than they would ever care to admit. It can become all-consuming, wondering if watching that extra episode on Netflix and using the hairdryer just cost you your Nespresso coffee in the morning; or whether using the air fryer for the kids’ chicken nuggets will mean you can’t use the TV after dinner. It can feel like quite the juggle, working out what you can and can’t do within the limits of your portable power supply.
Duncan and Helen MacMillan, of 12-volt specialist Apollo, have been in the motorhome accessory business for years. They have constantly heard stories from customers complaining about this juggle so decided to custom design the dream battery system that would take some of the stress out of being ‘unplugged’. “We’ve long understood that lithium batteries have advantages over AGM or Deep Cycle batteries,” says Duncan. “But when we delved a little deeper, we realised we could supply something that was more powerful, a lot lighter than the ones most people were currently using, and that had special checking technology to significantly reduce the stress factor.”
Enter the Artemis Lithium Ion Phosphate battery, which has been carefully developed by Apollo. A simple plug-and-play solution, Artemis Batteries are lightweight, have a long life of up to five times longer than standard AGM batteries, is eco friendly and comes with its own Bluetooth app, making it simple to use, and easy for users to monitor their battery capacity.
Duncan and Helen sell a growing range of 12V products at Apollo; however their Artemis Lithium Ion Phosphate battery range is one that many people are increasingly excited about. “They love the economy factor – on all fronts,” says Helen. “A normal AGM battery weighs around 36kg, and you really need two if you run a standard amount of appliances. We know how important weight is when you’re trying to fit in everything you need for a holiday.
For example, the 100Ah Artemis Lithium battery only weighs 10.5kg, so you may only need one, not two; and this model is even one step better – at under 22cm in height, and 34cm long, it will easily fit most motorhomes. Duncan designed the 100Ah battery with these dimensions, in order to allow the battery to be installed under the driver’s seat in a Fiat Ducato.
The Apollo team is seeing a significant increase in customers looking for different battery solutions. “Everyone wants to travel with toys now – e-bikes, computers, gaming consoles, coffee machines, air fryers,” says Duncan. “So naturally, power requirements are increasing. People are so used to easy technology solutions in their day to day life, and they want more reliable ways to keep an eye on their battery consumption when they are on the road. That’s why we built an app to go with all the Artemis batteries – it means people can just flip open their phone and instantly check their battery temperature, input current, output current and either time until it’s fully charged – if they are driving – or time until it runs out, if they are unplugged. It’s been a total game changer on the battery anxiety front.”
The Artemis batteries are also very popular for their longer life as a product. “AGM batteries degrade much faster, so we’ve chosen to go with lithium, not only for the weight advantage but because you can get over four times more life out of them before you need to replace them,” says Duncan. “An older couple with a good sense of humour joked recently that it’s probably the last battery they’ll need to buy!”
It’s definitely worth looking into what kind of battery you currently use and whether there might be more efficient options that will cause you less stress on your next holiday. With summer around the corner, the thought of being able to park near a beach and not have to choose between morning coffee, afternoon TV, kids’ PlayStation and a fully charged e-bike is probably a very pleasant thought indeed.
