Anyone else running Fogstar Drift cells in a backup system — what BMS are you pairing them with?

Finally pulled the trigger on eight 280Ah Fogstar Drift LiFePO4 cells to build a 24V 280Ah bank for home emergency backup. Cells arrived well-matched, all resting within 5mV of each other straight out of the box, which was a decent start. Top-balanced them individually to 3.65V before assembly.

The bit I'm stuck on is BMS selection. Currently leaning towards a Daly Smart BMS (100A, 24V) purely on cost, but I've seen mixed reports about its balancing current — only 30–40mA active balancing, which feels low for a bank this size. The Victron SmartShunt is already in the plan for monitoring, but that's obviously separate from protection duties. Also looked at the JK BMS (2A active balancer) which seems far more capable, but the documentation in English is patchy and I'm not 100% confident on how it integrates with Victron Cerbo GX via CAN or VE.Bus.

Main use case is grid-tied backup — Victron MultiPlus-II 48V… wait, no, this bank is 24V so pairing with a MultiPlus-II 24/3000. Charge sources will be a 600W rooftop array through a Victron SmartSolar MPPT 100/30, plus grid via the inverter-charger. Has anyone got the JK BMS talking reliably to Cerbo GX, or is the Daly actually sufficient for a system that won't be cycled aggressively — maybe 2–3 cycles per week during outages?

VoltRhys | 847 posts

@CrafterDream nice one, the Drift cells have a decent reputation for consistency straight out of the box. For a 24V backup system I'd seriously look at the JK BMS — the active balancer built in is genuinely useful rather than the token passive balancing you get elsewhere, and the Bluetooth monitoring app works a treat for keeping an eye on things without messing about with a laptop. The 200A version gives you plenty of headroom. Only thing I'd flag: make sure you configure the low-temperature charge cutoff properly if it's going in an unheated space — LiFePO4 really doesn't appreciate being charged below freezing. What's housing the bank, a shed or inside the property?

JK BMS — because nothing says "I trust my house not to burn down" like a £40 bit of kit babysitting your £400 of Fogstar cells... and somehow it just works.

CotswoldVanLifer | 312 posts

@CrafterDream I'm running Drift cells in my van build rather than a home backup, but same cells so hopefully useful — I went with a JK BMS as @KangooBuild mentioned, specifically the 2A active balancer version. The active balancing makes a real difference over passive once your cells have a few cycles on them. For a home backup application I'd probably step up to the JK 200A with Bluetooth monitoring though, gives you proper visibility without babysitting it constantly. Make sure you set your protection parameters conservatively to begin with — I'd suggest 3.65V high cutoff and 2.8V low — then adjust once you've seen how the cells behave under your actual loads. What inverter are you planning to pair it with?

Running Drift cells in my tiny house build paired with a Daly Smart BMS — the Bluetooth monitoring has been genuinely useful for keeping an eye on cell balance during the first few charge cycles.

One thing worth considering for a home backup specifically: make sure whatever BMS you choose has a proper dry contact alarm output. My Daly can trigger an external alert if something goes sideways, which matters when the system is sitting idle for weeks between power cuts and you're not actively watching it.

@KangooBuild fair point on the JK — the price-to-feature ratio is hard to argue with, and plenty of people run them trouble-free. I just wanted something with a slightly more proven track record for an unattended setup.

BrambleHermit | 847 posts

@CrafterDream nice find on the cell matching — that's genuinely rare straight out of the box with Drift cells, suggests a good batch.

I've got a similar 24V setup here in a converted outbuilding running as grid backup. Went with the JK BMS 200A active balancer variant rather than the standard passive one — the active balancing has kept my cells noticeably tighter under load compared to my old passive setup. Worth the slight extra outlay in my opinion.

One thing I'd flag for a home backup application specifically: make sure your BMS has a proper low-temperature cutoff configured. We had a bitter snap last January and cells sitting in an unheated space really don't want to be charged below 0°C. Easy to overlook until it isn't. What inverter are you pairing it with?