Are my lead acid batteries damaged?
The two lead acid batteries in my truck camper were down to 11.7 volts when I returned from a two months travel. The AC power to the camper went out (GFI tripped by the gardner) sometime during my ...
Forum Discussion
RichieC wrote:
The two lead acid batteries in my truck camper were down to 11.7 volts when I returned from a two months travel.
The AC power to the camper went out (GFI tripped by the gardner) sometime during my absence.
So no charge.
The batteries are 2008 - five years old.
Do you think that they are compromised for sure and should be replaced?
Or wait and see. . .maybe I can get another couple of years out of them?
Rich,
I'd recharge them and wait and see. 11.7 isn't that bad. If they got there slowly and didn't sit there real long, they are probably no worse off than any other five year old batteries.
You say batteries.....
Are they 12s in parallel or 6s in series?
If they are 12s, break them apart and recharge them separately. Yes, there is a reason for this. Lead/Acid batteries do not play well together and the one with the lower internal resistance will increase its density before the other can draw on the charger enough and only one will come up to full density.
Matt
