It's been 3 days since I added the 16s active balancer. Hard to tell if things are improving. Lights come on indicating it is balancing. Lights are out most of the time. Since the 48v sets don't go much above 54v, they may or may not be doing me any good. More time needed.
On another note, I put in my order for 8 more of the byd 24v modules. This time from Battery Clearing house. These will add to my 48v bank, doubling the size. Its probably big enough already so this addition should be overkill. I'm aiming to have enough capacity to handle the short days/long nights of Idaho winters better.
My original modules are the plain type. The ones on the way are the type with heatsinks and fans attached. My plain modules don't even get warm (so far) so heatsinks and fans seem superfluous. Wondering if I can remove them to simplify things and save weight and space? Besides, I already have a use for the heatsinks....
Anyway, planning to add larger gauge wire for balancing and paralleling the additional 8 modules, ending up with one 16s4p setup that will have one 5a balancer and will then be paralleled to the existing bank. If the balancing works better that way will probably eventually reconfigure the original 8 the same way (the current setup is 4 sets of 16s1p paralled together, each of the 4 sets balanced separately).
Then there is the question of the method for balancing. In discussion with Sid on the Genetry forum, I'm coming to realize the limitations and possibly design flaws of active balancers. He makes a convincing argument of the possibility of damage caused by some types. He has designed a shunt balancer system that bleeds off excess cell voltage as heat. Wasting power but safer for the system. So if he makes it available soon might try one.
Keeping these modules balanced as much as possible seems to be the key to them lasting a long time. I knew nothing about lithium when I started, have learned a great deal in a short time, and still know very little. Working on it, though....