Originally Posted by marksextra

I've read that page but it was good to read it again as I had forgotten most of it. Although it doesn't tell what level to keep my wet cells it does specify using distilled water to fill them and mentions they should all be the same level.

Just keep the water above the plates, you don't want any exposed plates

However the level should be above the plates when it is discharged which is the best time to check it.

http://www.trojanbattery.com/Tech-Su...intenance.aspx

WARNING: A brand new battery may have a low electrolyte level. Charge the battery first and then add water if needed. Adding water to a battery before charging may result in overflow of the electrolyte.

Originally Posted by typeRA

http://www.trojanbattery.com/Tech-Su...intenance.aspx

That's a pretty good link right there for battery maintenance. Thanks

So when its discharged I would think the water should be just above the plates, this way you have room for expansion, IMO the plates should never be exposed no matter what charge level.

Be advised of the heat -- most chargers are not temperature compensated.

My Minder doesn't auto toggle to float/desulfating with the heat; and the 330d doesn't reach full either.

So, I'm terminating @ a bit lower @ 14.2volts and manually switching the minder.

Originally Posted by everydayflyer

Issue with charging in series is same as with Nicads,NiMH, and unbalanced high cell count LiPoly,LiFePO4,LiIon the cells become inbalanced and there is the posibility of overcharging / boiling one or more cells.

Go to an Optima battery site and read the warranty . If two are used in series the warranty is cut in half.

On the other hand there are many applications where massive deep cycles are used in banks up to 48 volts or more. Most of these applications the batteries are never drained over 50% and that is over a rather long period of time in hours or even days.

IMO tthe most revealing number on a deep cycle or hybrid starting deep cycle is the reserve minutes rating. This is the length of time the battery can support a 25A load from full charge down to 10.5V for a 12V one.

An example my 125Ahs have a reserve rating of 310 minutes. thus 3.5 X 25 = 87.5 Ah not the 125Ah listed. The 125Ah rating is for a 10 or 20 hour discharge ( can not remeber which off hand).

Pbs same as other rechargeables can not deliver as many amps. when discharged at a higher rate.

Also remember that one should limit depth of discharge to 50% if possible thus my two in parallel should only be discharged a total of 87.5Ah and the less the better. Most times mine are discharged 50 Ah or less and often closer to 20Ah. That is one reason I have magaed to get 5 years of service from them but they are fading fast now and need replacing.


Still the best Pb site I am aware of.

http://www.windsun.com/Batteries/Battery_FAQ.htm

Charles

Dear Mr Charles hallo, i have 3 packs 4S 6500 and i charge in parallel 19.800A.Can i use one deep cycle 12V battery 100AH , and how many charge can i have?Thank you very much.

Dear Mr Charles hallo, i have 3 packs 4S 6600 and i charge in parallel 19.800A.Can i use one deep cycle 12V battery 100AH , and how many charge can i have?Thank you very much.

Originally Posted by argyris

...i have 3 packs 4S 6500 and i charge in parallel 19.800A.Can i use one deep cycle 12V battery 100AH , and how many charge can i have?

1st you will pull more amps out of the deep cycle than your are putting into the 4Ss -- since the charger needs to "step up" the voltage (not always needed for 3S).

And you will likely use 20% more AH out of them too.

To better answer the question -- how low are they when you start for each charge?

Fyi:

Originally Posted by grimbeaver

this calculator is your friend:
http://www.progressiverc.com/chargingdemand

you'll be limited by either the amp rating or the watt rating of your charger, whichever is hit first.