i have a 110ah leisure battery and have a large variable battery charger (turn the knob to what amps you want)which i have aquired but not sure what to have it set on i would appreciate some advice
cheers
dan
cheers
dan
charging a 110ah battery
- Thread starter dandiesel
- Start date
I have not heard of this type of charger.
While you may want as much as 10A on initial charge it would be dangerous to the batteries health and possibly yours to be delivering that at close to fully charged and would involve a voltage that would be too high.
It is possible that this current setting relates to max current in which case somewhere around 10-20A might be OK but I would do some more research into what the battery charger was designed for before using that high a setting.
If it was for charging fork lift batteries or similar it is possible it could blow yours up.
While you may want as much as 10A on initial charge it would be dangerous to the batteries health and possibly yours to be delivering that at close to fully charged and would involve a voltage that would be too high.
It is possible that this current setting relates to max current in which case somewhere around 10-20A might be OK but I would do some more research into what the battery charger was designed for before using that high a setting.
If it was for charging fork lift batteries or similar it is possible it could blow yours up.
the charger was used to charge aircraft batterys i have done a bit of research and found that a leisure battery should be charged at 14.8v so if this is the case i can check it with a multimeter and set it to this
Hello Dandiesel,
What you describe sounds like a constant current charger. These were required to charge nickel-cadmium rechargeable cells, which are very different to lead acid car and leisure battery technology.
The constant current charger changes the charging voltage to maintain a constant current through the cell.
If used on a lead acid type battery, as the cells internal charge increases the charger would ramp up the voltage and eventually this would lead to serious over charging, with excessive gassing (and a risk of explosion) and the permanent damage to the battery.
There are modern chargers that provide constant voltage with variable current rates designed for lead acid batteries.
What you describe sounds like a constant current charger. These were required to charge nickel-cadmium rechargeable cells, which are very different to lead acid car and leisure battery technology.
The constant current charger changes the charging voltage to maintain a constant current through the cell.
If used on a lead acid type battery, as the cells internal charge increases the charger would ramp up the voltage and eventually this would lead to serious over charging, with excessive gassing (and a risk of explosion) and the permanent damage to the battery.
There are modern chargers that provide constant voltage with variable current rates designed for lead acid batteries.
Hi Dandiesel,
I totaly agree with john L, you are risking serious injury to yourself and your battery if you use this charger.
I use a CTEK Multi XS 3600 charger which can be left on for months a no risk of damage to the battery, for the sake of
I totaly agree with john L, you are risking serious injury to yourself and your battery if you use this charger.
I use a CTEK Multi XS 3600 charger which can be left on for months a no risk of damage to the battery, for the sake of
hi thanks for your replys
if i set the charger to 2amps it does drop as the battery comes up
how can i tell if this is a constant current charger if i used a multimeter to check the voltage
cheers
dan
if i set the charger to 2amps it does drop as the battery comes up
how can i tell if this is a constant current charger if i used a multimeter to check the voltage
cheers
dan
Hello again Dan,
I am sorry but I still concerned that this charger may not be suitable for a leisure battery. I could not be confident that any suggestions I give regarding using this device to charge a battery would be correct.
My advice is not to use it until you have found operating instructions or someone who actually knows this type of unit and how to use it.
I am also concerned that you find it necessary to ask how to take certain measurements, forgive me if I am wrong but this suggests you are not fully confident with electrics and safety.
It is often thought that 12Vdc systems are safe because it is low voltage. It is true that the risk of electric shock is very low, but with large accumulators there is potential for very large currents that can cause overloads leading to fires in substandard wiring and connections.
Guessing could be dangerous.
I am sorry but I still concerned that this charger may not be suitable for a leisure battery. I could not be confident that any suggestions I give regarding using this device to charge a battery would be correct.
My advice is not to use it until you have found operating instructions or someone who actually knows this type of unit and how to use it.
I am also concerned that you find it necessary to ask how to take certain measurements, forgive me if I am wrong but this suggests you are not fully confident with electrics and safety.
It is often thought that 12Vdc systems are safe because it is low voltage. It is true that the risk of electric shock is very low, but with large accumulators there is potential for very large currents that can cause overloads leading to fires in substandard wiring and connections.
Guessing could be dangerous.
i only asked how to find out if it was a constant current charger i know how to us a multimeter
anyway have now purchased a 20a charger
after chercking out the other one i set it charging and then returned to the battery a while later and the amps had dropped from 2a to 1a checked the battery with a multimeter and it was at 15.8 volts which i know is over charging
anyway have now purchased a 20a charger
after chercking out the other one i set it charging and then returned to the battery a while later and the amps had dropped from 2a to 1a checked the battery with a multimeter and it was at 15.8 volts which i know is over charging
Hello dandiesel
I ,being a biker, use an optimate 3 trickle charger and I have not had any problems.
I charge the battery(110ah) about every month.
I got this advise off this forum.
the optimate is about
I ,being a biker, use an optimate 3 trickle charger and I have not had any problems.
I charge the battery(110ah) about every month.
I got this advise off this forum.
the optimate is about
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