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Charge it right.It’ll outlive the car.

Charging windows, first-install steps, safety and troubleshooting for every Advanced Electric pack — including the models we no longer build.

KILO55 V2 with the AE programmable charger

Read this first

Your pack ships at 30% charge.

Every battery leaves here at roughly 30% state of charge — that’s deliberate, for safe transport, not an oversight. A sodium ion pack will read around 11V out of the box.

Before it goes in the vehicle

Bench-charge it up to your vehicle’s charging voltage first. 10A is plenty — there’s no rush. Dropping a 30% pack straight onto a running alternator is the fastest way to have a bad first day with it.

Charging

Know your window.

Every chemistry has a floor and a ceiling. Above the ceiling you damage the pack and void the warranty. Below the floor you simply never see the output you paid for.

Pack Charging window Max Set it to Max alt charging
KILO HP40 / HP80 13.8 – 15.5V 15.5V 15.5V 375 / 750 A
KILO HP 200 13.8 – 16.0V 16.0V 14.4 – 16.0V 1,200 A
Legacy KILO 37 / 55 / 110 13.8 – 15.5V 15.5V 15.5V 250 – 700 A
AE15 / AE30 / AE45 LTO 15.2 – 16.2V 16.2V 16.0V —
THE DON 55 / 110 / 220 NMC 14.8 – 16.6V 16.6V 15.3V nominal 200A+ alternator
AE LV 20 / 40 / 80 / 160 LiFePO4 12.8 – 14.6V 14.6V 14.4V (stock alternator) Stock alternator

Never undercharge LTO

We do not recommend charging LTO below 15.2V. Premature failure caused by undercharging is not covered under warranty — this is the single most common way people kill an otherwise 40,000-cycle pack.

Never exceed the max

15.5V on the KILO line (16V on the HP 200), 16.2V on LTO, 14.6V on AE LV, 16.6V on THE DON. If your alternator or external regulator can overshoot, set it and verify it with a meter before connecting the pack.

Mixing chemistries: sodium only

Lithium chemistries (LTO, LiFePO4, NMC) are never banked together — that is unsafe. Sodium ion is the only chemistry we bank alongside a lithium pack, and only inside the narrow band both windows share (LTO: 15.2 – 15.5V, 16V with an HP 200). Set the charging system at the top of that band; every product page shows the overlap for that pack.

Troubleshooting

Find it before you buy anything.

Voltage does not drop because a battery is vaguely weak. It drops because current is flowing through resistance — and a 0.01 ohm connection at 800A costs you 8 volts. So the question is never “is my battery good”, it is where is my voltage going. Work these five in order. Most people find it well before step five.

1 — Measure at the amplifier, not the battery

Meter on the amp’s power and ground terminals while the system is playing hard. If the battery holds 13.5V and the amp only sees 11V, the battery is fine — two volts are disappearing in the wiring between them and no new pack will fix that. If both read the same low number, carry on down the list.

2 — Check the grounds, then check them again

Meter between the amplifier’s ground terminal and the battery negative post while it plays. Under 0.1V is fine. Over 0.3V is your problem. Look for paint under the ring terminal, a factory seam doing the job of solid chassis, or a ground point that has survived three builds.

3 — Torque every terminal

Finger-tight measures fine cold and falls apart under load. Battery posts, distribution blocks, amplifier terminals, alternator output. While you are there, look for discoloured lugs or brittle insulation — that connection has been getting hot, and heat means resistance.

4 — Check charging voltage against your chemistry

A pack charged below its window is not sagging, it is undercharged — and sustained undercharging damages it permanently. Every chemistry has its own floor and ceiling: sodium ion 13.8 – 15.5V (HP 200 to 16V), LTO 15.2 – 16.2V, NMC (THE DON) 14.8 – 16.6V, LiFePO4 (AE LV) 12.8 – 14.6V. Meter the charging voltage at the pack and check it against the table above — that table is the authority.

5 — Only now, suspect the bank

If the wiring is solid, the grounds measure clean, the terminals are tight and the charging voltage is right, then capacity is worth looking at — and the number that matters is discharge rate, not amp-hours. The Battery Advisor sizes it both ways and tells you which limit you hit first.

What normal sag looks like

A volt or so of drop on a hard note that snaps straight back is healthy. Two volts with a slow recovery means you are at the edge of what the bank can do. Three or more, or amps dropping into protect, is a fault worth chasing.

Cells reading uneven

The pack is actively balanced, so give it a full charge cycle at the recommended voltage and re-check. If a cell stays out of line after a full cycle, send us the readings.

The long version, with the reasoning behind each check, is in why your voltage drops on the hit.

Safety, plainly

What we’d want you to know.

These are high-current energy storage devices. Treated properly they’re extremely safe — sodium ion especially. But we’d rather tell you the real risks than pretend there aren’t any.

Sodium ion is the safer chemistry

It’s far more tolerant of abuse than lithium and much less prone to running away thermally. It also contains no metallic sodium — despite what you’ll hear repeated online, these are not water-reactive.

Short circuits are the real danger

Not fire, in normal use — a dropped wrench across the terminals. At 1,200A of available current a short will vaporise metal instantly. Cover terminals during install and pull your rings off first.

If a pack ever vents

Get people away from it and ventilate the space — vented gas is both toxic and flammable. Don’t breathe it, don’t lean over it. Then call the fire service and tell them it’s a battery.

On fire: call 911 first

Per the DOT Emergency Response Guidebook (Guide 147, which covers both lithium ion and sodium ion), the correct response to a small battery fire is large amounts of water — not dry chemical, not CO₂. For anything larger, let it burn out and protect the surroundings. Get out and let professionals work.

Never charge outside the window

Overcharging is the most common way a pack is damaged. Set your voltage, verify it with a meter, and don’t rely on a regulator you haven’t checked.

Physical damage means retire it

A dropped, crushed or punctured pack should come out of service even if it still reads fine. Internal damage doesn’t always show up on a meter. Contact us before you scrap it.

A note on the water myth

You’ll see it claimed that you must never put water on a sodium battery. That’s true of sodium-metal and sodium-sulfur cells, which react violently with water. It is not true of sodium-ion, which contains no metallic sodium. Our Safety Data Sheet is the authority here — ask us for a copy and we’ll send it.

Questions

The things people actually ask.

Choosing a pack, charging, ordering, lead times, returns and safety. If yours is not here, email us — a person reads it.

Choosing a battery

Which chemistry do I want?
It comes down to your charging voltage. On a stock alternator (12.8 – 14.6V), AE LV LiFePO4 is the pack that works as-is. From 13.8V up to 15.5V, sodium ion (KILO HP) is the everyday sweet spot — safer chemistry and more capacity per dollar. At 15.2V and above with a boosted system, LTO holds voltage hardest on the hit thanks to 50C constant discharge. Running 15.5V+ and chasing maximum power, THE DON (NMC) is built for it. Run your numbers through the Battery Advisor and it will show all four side by side.
How many do I need?
Depends on two things, not one: total RMS wattage and discharge rate. A pack can be big enough on paper and still not deliver the current you need. The Advisor sizes on both and tells you if one pack is genuinely enough. If it comes back suggesting more than about five packs, talk to us first — there is usually a better way to build a bank than stacking units.
What wattage rating should I trust?
We publish two. Cell Power is the raw output at the terminal. True Amplifier Rating is that figure at 80% amplifier efficiency — what your amps can actually make. The second number is smaller and it is the one that predicts your build. We also lead with constant output rather than a five-second burst figure, because you play music for longer than five seconds.
Can I run different sodium models together?
Yes. Any KILO HP packs can be paired with each other — an HP40 alongside an HP80, two HP200s, an HP80 with an HP200, whatever the build needs. They are the same chemistry with the same charging window, so they charge and discharge together correctly.

This is one of the real advantages of staying on one chemistry: you can start with what you can afford and add capacity later without replacing what you already own. The legacy KILO37 V2, KILO55 V2 and KILO110 V2 pair with the HP line too.

Wire them with matched cable lengths so they share current evenly, and make sure every pack in the bank is at a similar state of charge before you connect them together.

Can I mix chemistries on the same bank?
Only sodium ion pairs with another chemistry, and only inside the band both charging windows share. Lithium chemistries (LTO, NMC, LiFePO4) are never banked together — that is unsafe. Sodium + LTO works between 15.2V and 15.5V (up to 16V with a KILO HP 200); sodium + NMC between 14.8V and 15.5V (16V with an HP 200); sodium + LiFePO4 between 13.8V and 14.6V. Set the charging system at the top of the shared band: any lower and the lithium pack is undercharged; any higher and the sodium pack is past its max. Every battery page has a chart of this for that exact pack.
Can I mix LTO, LiFePO4 or NMC with each other?
No. Lithium chemistries are never banked together — that is unsafe and we do not support it. Sodium ion is the only chemistry we pair with a lithium pack. One lithium chemistry per bank.
Can I run these with my existing AGM battery?
Not in parallel on the same bus. Different chemistries have different internal resistance and charge acceptance, and the stronger pack ends up trying to charge the weaker one. If you are transitioning, go all the way.

Charging

What voltage should I charge at?
Sodium ion: 13.8–15.5V, best results at 15.5V (the HP 200 takes up to 16V). LTO: 15.2–16.2V, set 16.0V. THE DON (NMC): 14.8–16.6V, 15.3V nominal. AE LV (LiFePO4): 12.8–14.6V, a stock alternator is fine. Rated output figures assume that voltage — an LTO pack at 14.4V falls well short of its 16V numbers, and that is expected. The full table is at the top of this page.
My cells are reading uneven.
The pack is actively balanced, so give it one full charge cycle at the recommended voltage and re-check. If a cell is still out of line after a full cycle, send us the readings.
Why can’t I charge LTO below 15.2V?
It will not reach rated output, and sustained undercharging damages the pack. Premature failure caused by undercharging is not covered by warranty. It is the single most common way people kill an otherwise 40,000-cycle battery. If your system cannot reach 15.2V, buy sodium instead — we would rather sell you the right one.
My new battery arrived reading 11 volts. Is it faulty?
No, that is expected. Packs ship at roughly 30% state of charge for safe transport. Bench-charge it up to your vehicle’s charging voltage before installing — 10A is plenty and there is no rush. Dropping a 30% pack straight onto a running alternator is the fastest way to have a bad first day with it.
Do I need a special charger?
You need one that lets you set voltage and current, which most automatic “smart” chargers do not. Our AECharger is a programmable CV/CC supply built for exactly this. Any bench supply that holds your target voltage works fine too.
How big an alternator do I need?
Under 2,000W, stock is usually fine. 2,000–12,000W wants 200–250A. Above 12,000W you want 300A+. Above about 30,000W the alternator is for recovery between hits, not for playing — the bank does the work and the alternator refills it.

Ordering & lead times

Why is sodium a pre-order?
Because we build it to order. Cells arrive in batches, and packs are assembled, balanced and tested when they land. Our next cell shipment arrives October 10. You wait, but you get a pack built for you rather than one that sat at partial charge on a shelf for a year.
Is LTO in stock?
No — the AE series is built to order as well, typically shipping in about a week. The AE45 is a limited run of four; when they are gone the listing closes.
Where am I in the queue?
Builds run oldest order first. Order size does not move you up — a dealer buying five does not jump ahead of someone who ordered one in July. Ask us any time and you will get your actual position, not a stock answer.
Can I cancel a pre-order?
Yes — full refund any time before your unit enters the build. Once it has been assembled and tested for you, it is handled case by case. Details on the Shipping & Returns page.
Can I return it if I change my mind?
Within 14 days of delivery, unused and in its original packaging, with a restocking fee. Built-to-order packs are not returnable for change of mind — they are assembled, balanced and tested to your order. Before you start a return, talk to us: most of what people want to send back turns out to be a charging setting or a ground, and that is a fix rather than a refund.
Do you take payment up front?
Yes. Payment reserves your place in the build queue and funds the cells. It is how a small manufacturer builds in batches without carrying stock nobody ordered.

Shipping

Can I pick up locally?
Yes — local pickup from Dunn, North Carolina is available at checkout, free. Handy for dealers and anyone close enough to collect.
Can you ship outside the US?
Not currently, though it is something we are looking at. Ask us if you are interested and we will tell you where it stands.

Safety

Are these safe to have in a car?
Treated properly, yes — sodium ion especially. The realistic everyday risk is a short circuit, not fire: cover the terminals during install and take your rings off. The full safety notes (venting, fire response, the water myth, damaged packs) are in the Safety section above.

Trade

Do you do dealer pricing?
Yes — four tiers for brick-and-mortar shops, with invoice terms and consolidated freight. We verify every dealer, so you are not competing with someone selling out of a garage. Apply here. Pricing is sent by email; we do not publish it.
Do you have an affiliate program?
Yes. You earn 6%, your audience gets 6% off automatically, with a 60-day attribution window. You also get 20% off your own builds. Details here.
What happened to the KILO37, 55 and 110?
Discontinued April 2026. Their product pages, specs and charging rules stay online permanently — if you own one, nothing goes away. They follow the same sodium ion charging rules as the current HP line.

Discontinued models

We don’t delete your pack.

The KILO37 V2, KILO55 V2 and KILO110 V2 were discontinued in April 2026. Their product pages, specs and charging rules stay online permanently. If you own one, nothing here goes away — and the sodium ion charging rules above still apply to it.

KILO37 V2
KILO55 V2
KILO110 V2

Still stuck?

Send us your pack model, your charging voltage and what you’re seeing on the meter. You’ll get an answer from the people who built it.

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