Re: The Battery Game
Here's a few tidbits on batteries, but in the end you're still restricted to what is sold locally, freight is expensive.
1) There are only 3 wet cell lead acid manufacturers in the US: Exide, Johnson Controls, and Penn State. Every other name you see is a re-labeler.
2) Construction varies. Plate thickness, grid design, and depth of case all affect battery life. Different vendors have different build specs. Unfortunately, all they give us are warranty duration and Cold Crank amps.
3) Maintenance greatly affects battery life. Longer periods at low level of charge forms larger lead sulfate crystals that become impossible to change back to lead and acid.
4) Deeper states of discharge reduces the number of cycles for the battery.
5) If you don't kill it from neglect, eventually enough lead oxide forms and falls to the bottom to form a layer. When that layer grows high enough to touch the plates, the cell shorts and will not accept a charge. You're done. This is why depth of case below the plates is important.
6) Each fully charged cell at rest after 24 hours should read 2.15 volts, so a fully charged 6v 3 cell battery should read 6.45 volts. The best way to test the battery is either a load tester, or a specific gravity electrolyte tester. Open voltage is a poor test method.
7) Gel and other improved lead acid batteries last longer and some will accept more abuse, but are much more expensive.
8) Overcharging or too high a setting on a generator will boil off the electrolyte, change the charging rate or add water monthly.
If you have a choice, buy the heavier battery, more lead, longer life, more amps. Find a way to get a charger on it once a month or so, and keep the electrolyte level up.
|