Edison Batteries
Hi Folks, Has anyone considered using Edison Batteries? (Nickle Iron). http://ironedison.com/ and http://www.zappworks.com/index.htm A FAC page here: http://ironedison.com/technical-...
Forum Discussion
Edison cells are not only long-lived, but very tolerant of abuse.
For RV use, besides the size and weight (and these are better than they traditionally were), the main drawbacks I can see are the high charging voltage (which might be too high for some 12V appliances and would at the least be rough on incandescent lights) and the comparatively low charge and discharge rates. Well, the cost here is also a difficulty, but I suspect a good bit of that is due to the differences in scale of manufacture and the "boutique" nature of Edison cells. Nickel is considerably more expensive as a commodity than lead ($4/lb vs $1/lb, very roughly), so unless the commodity markets change dramatically they will likely be somewhat more expensive in any case. (Iron, on the other hand, is very inexpensive comparatively speaking -- a few cents per pound.)
For RV use, besides the size and weight (and these are better than they traditionally were), the main drawbacks I can see are the high charging voltage (which might be too high for some 12V appliances and would at the least be rough on incandescent lights) and the comparatively low charge and discharge rates. Well, the cost here is also a difficulty, but I suspect a good bit of that is due to the differences in scale of manufacture and the "boutique" nature of Edison cells. Nickel is considerably more expensive as a commodity than lead ($4/lb vs $1/lb, very roughly), so unless the commodity markets change dramatically they will likely be somewhat more expensive in any case. (Iron, on the other hand, is very inexpensive comparatively speaking -- a few cents per pound.)
