First time charging new batteries

waynefi wrote:
On the third charge cycle, these new batteries finally acted the way I expect.

Starting from 12.45 volts open circuit, they adsorbed the charger's max of 40 amps for just over a half an hour, then tapered smoothly, 28 amps at 1 hour, 10 amps at 2 hours, 6 amps at three hours, four and a half hours total time.

So either they really needed to complete charge and equalize, or the first few cycles were going got be flaky anyway.

The manager of Costco's tire and battery center says that the 3/15 sticker is a manufacture date, so I don't know why they weren't fully charged when I got them. Maybe they were never fully charged at the factory. They were made in Mexico.

I think I'll do one more equalize cycle of the VEC1093, and then let them sit on the WFCO for a few days.

I ran a test of my then new 6s when I got them home that you might find interesting, in that they acted properly right off. Now you have got yours fixed things should go well in future. First set of graphs in the link below (that thread on a different topic from this one)

This test was to run successive 50-90s so you see the progressive capacity loss after each one. In your case where you go to 100% each run, you shouldn't see this. (But getting to that 100% might mean an E run after it says FUL after the normal run--that normal "full" is more like 97%. So you could get some progressive loss in successive runs that are really only to 97%)

The 75 amps was using a VEC1093DBD 40 amper with a Vector 1092A 35 amper. As you see that is a good charging rate for a pair of 6s as long as your generator can handle the required VA supply to the charger(s) doing 75 amps (power factor correction helps with that!--these Vectors do not have pfc)

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/24849190.cfm