Looking after deep cycle battery
Submitted: Thursday, Oct 28, 2010 at 20:02
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Hi all, apologies if this is covered somewhere in the
forum - I did search but could not find a thread dealing with this issue..
I have a deep cycle battery for running our
camping fridge away from power. When we're not going to be using the battery for say several months, does it need to be on the charger continuously or just intermittently?
Many thanks
Reply By: Member - reggy 2 (VIC) - Thursday, Oct 28, 2010 at 20:11
Thursday, Oct 28, 2010 at 20:11
I put
mine on a charger about every 2/3 weeks for 3/4 days they do not like to be flat .A small solar panel is another way to maintane as it does not let discharge(regulatored would best).
hope this helps cheers reggy2
AnswerID:
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Reply By: Member - Stuart P (WA) - Thursday, Oct 28, 2010 at 20:17
Thursday, Oct 28, 2010 at 20:17
buy a small charge maintainer costs about $50
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434450
Reply By: Sand Man (SA) - Thursday, Oct 28, 2010 at 20:26
Thursday, Oct 28, 2010 at 20:26
Depends on the makeup of the deep cycle battery.
AGM batteries do not lose that much voltage when stored.
After a trip I charge my Thumper AGM battery pack if required, then leave it until the next trip, which could be several months away.
When preparing for the next trip, I check the voltage level of the Thumper which usually hasn't changed that much.
I guess I am fortunate in that both the 75Ah Thumper and the 100Ah AGM in the rear, are both charged on the go via the vehicle alternator.
The 100Ah AGM is permanently connected and receives whatever charge it requires from the alternator on a day to day basis.
It is this battery pack that the fridge is connected to while travelling.
Bill.
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Follow Up By: Who was that again? (Vic) - Sunday, Oct 31, 2010 at 16:28
Sunday, Oct 31, 2010 at 16:28
Hey Bill, make sure your AGMs get charged all the time with a smart charger if you want them to survive. Our Karavan has 10 of them and nine are still good after 4 years because they are looked after.
Many cars won't charge them effectively straight from an alternator if they get down a bit as they need a good level voltage input to get them charged. My charger inputs at 14.4volts for a bulk rate of 25 amps. That has enabled me to keep them charged on the road.
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Reply By: Member - Bucky - Friday, Oct 29, 2010 at 03:34
Friday, Oct 29, 2010 at 03:34
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I keep our Deep Cycle battery topped up.
It is out of the weather, and every month, I hook it up th my 120 Watt Solar panel, for a day. Before solar, it was the charger.
5 yrars old now and still going strong, and trust me it has been around.
Cheers
Bucky
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434484
Reply By: Mandrake's Solar Power- Friday, Oct 29, 2010 at 09:43
Friday, Oct 29, 2010 at 09:43
Buy a small 5 Watt Solar panel and leave it hooked up permanently to your battery - It is too small to do any damage and will maintain a good SOC ..
Costs about $40 from Jaycar and the like ..
Cheers
Steve
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434507
Reply By: The White Ox - Saturday, Oct 30, 2010 at 14:39
Saturday, Oct 30, 2010 at 14:39
Note: there are two types of chargers. Multi stage and single stage. Most single stage chargers automatically switch off but not all do. Regardless they are not ideal for battery maintenance. Multi stage chargers as
well as being faster, incorporate a 'float' mode into their charging program. They don't as such, simply switch off but instead hold the battery at around 13.4 -13.8 volts, thus compensating for any internal losses. This is optimum for a battery and you would find that left this way, it would probably be still good as new in ten years time. Years ago multi stage chargers were expensive and not very common, but there are some pretty decent ones around now for a lot less money. Check out the Projecta range for a start. I saw 6 stage projecta, programmable for different battery types, 4000ma, for a shade over 100 bucks at auto store.
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434610