Thanks, that's an interesting article. ------------- Max Charleston SC
On Wed, Oct 31, 2018 at 2:41 AM fmiser via Mercedes <mercedes@okiebenz.com> wrote: > > Randy wrote: > > > I have a battery that may be junk. I had it on the charger one > > afternoon this weekend at a 2 Amp rate. It did not come up to > > the point where the charger light turned from red to green > > Is that a Red Green reference? *smiles* > > Sounds to me like maybe it needs de-sulfating/equalizing. This > effectively means a controlled over-charge. It will shorten the > life of the battery - but if it's junk (or nearly so) that's not > much of a risk. > > But if you don't have a way to set the charge 16 V, it may not be > practical. > > > Here is the text of an article on the topic. > > ~'^`~ ~'^`~ ~'^`~ ~'^`~ ~'^`~ ~'^`~ ~'^`~ ~'^`~ > from https://shop.pkys.com/Battery-Equalization_ep_44.html > > Battery Equalization > > Equalizing lead acid batteries is a process designed to > de-sulphate the battery plates by carrying out a controlled > overcharge. Battery plates tend to acquire a sulphate coating > over time which then hinders the chemical action between the > electrolyte and the plate. By equalizing the battery in this > controlled overcharge the outer layer of the plate, including > the sulphate coating, is blown off, thereby rejuvenating the > battery and allowing all the surface area of the plates to > interact with the electrolyte. It also causes the electrolyte > to bubble and in wet cell batteries this mixes up the acid and > distributes it evenly throughout the cell. > > Recommendations on the frequency at which equalization be > carried out vary from monthly to once or twice a year. Some > manufacturers only recommend it be carried out when necessary, > (Trojan), or once every six months or as necessary, (Rolls). > My personal experience is that equalizing the batteries is a > rather tedious, worrisome and smelly process so once or twice > a year is more than enough. I particularly recommend it > though for boats that rarely come to the dock. Such vessels > get their batteries fully charged less often and seem to > report tired batteries on a more frequent basis than boats > that get fully charged on a regular basis. > > Equalizing the batteries is a tool that can be used to > rejuvenate tired batteries or to prevent batteries from > becoming tired. As a tool it is a double edged sword of > course, this removal of the outer layer of the plates reduces > their size and volume and thus their longevity. The material > removed will fall to the bottom and may eventually short out > the plates. I find that the best way to decide on whether to > equalize and how often is to consult the information from the > relevant battery manufacturer. You will find different > opinions even among battery manufacturers on the way > equalization is to be carried out. > > Victron Amp Hour MeterIf you are reading this article it is > probably because you are having battery trouble. One of the > best ways of heading off trouble in the future is to install > an amp hour meter to give you a better idea of how your > batteries are performing. Scroll to the end of this article > for more information. > > Equalizing wet cell batteries > > 1. The batteries must be fully charged to begin with. > > 2. Disconnect all loads. You are going to allow the battery > voltage to rise higher than normal; to 15 or 16 volts for a > 12 volt battery bank. You don't want to damage sensitive > electronic equipment that might be connected. > > 3. Remove any hydrocaps fitted to the cells > > 4. Connect the charger and set it to the equalizing voltage. > (For Trojan wet cell batteries the recommended equalizing > voltage is 15.5 volts for a 12 volt bank, for Rolls the > equivalent voltage is 15.5 - 16 volts) > > 5. Batteries will begin gassing and bubbling vigorously > > 6. Don't allow the battery temperature to rise much above 115 > degrees F and never above 125 degrees. Measure from a > center cell. > > 7. Take the specific gravity at hourly intervals > > 8. Equalization is complete when the specific gravity no > longer rises. > > For Rolls batteries the end of the instructions were more specific > > 9. If severely sulfated, it may take many hours for the > specific gravity to rise. > > 10. Once the specific gravity begins to rise the bank voltage > will most likely drop or the charging current will > increase. The charging current may need to be lowered if > temperature approaches 125F (46C). If the charge > controller was by passed, it should now be used or put > back in line. > > 11. Continue measuring the specific gravity until 1.265 is > reached. > > 12. Charge for another 3 hours. Add water to maintain the > electrolyte above the plates. > > 13. Allow bank to cool and check and record the specific > gravity of each cell. The gravities should be 1.265 0.005 > or lower. Check the cell electrolyte levels and add water > IF necessary. > > Equalizing AGM and other sealed batteries > > Equalizing AGM and other sealed batteries is a bit more tricky. The > bubbling electrolyte results in some loss; electrolyte vapor exits the > vent caps. However because there is no way to replace the lost > electrolyte it is obvious that a different strategy is required. I > couldn't find any manufacturer that recommended equalizing Gel > batteries. These batteries are highly sensitive to over-charge and > equalizing is not going to work for them. However although I did find > a manufacturer that definitely did not recommend equalizing their AGM > batteries (Trojan) I did find at least one manufacturer (Lifeline) > that did recommend equalizing their AGM batteries. Lifeline use the > term "Conditioning". They say this should only be done when the > battery is showing loss of performance due to having spent extended > time in a partial or low state of charge, or that don't often get > charged above 90% (Cruisers that never come to the dock please take > note!) Lifeline AGM instructions: > > To apply a conditioning charge, first go through the normal charge > cycle to bring the battery to full charge. The conditioning charge > should then be applied by charging for 8 hours. At 77F (25C), the > conditioning voltage should be set at 2.58 VPC (15.5 volts for a 12 > volt battery). The conditioning voltage at other temperatures is shown > in Table 5-2. By using the temperature compensated conditioning > voltage, batteries that are not in controlled temperature environments > may be conditioned without bringing them to room temperature. If > temperature compensation is not available, it is best to bring the > battery as close to room temperature as possible before applying the > conditioning charge. > > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > > To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
