Is it okay to equalize maintainence free batteries?
Just wondering if it could possibly hurt a maintenance free battery? Thanks for all responses. Gary
Forum Discussion
1. Only attempt to equalize wet cell deep cycle batteries. Never equalize gel batteries or maintenance free wet cell batteries.
2. The batteries should be fully charged and near ambient temperature before beginning an equalize charging cycle.
3. There should be a sufficient amount of electrolyte in each cell to cover the plates, but do not top-off each cell until after equalizing. Since there is some heating of the cells during equalize and some electrolyte will be displaced by the increased bubbling action within the cells, the electrolyte will expand and could overflow the cells if they were topped-off before equalizing. This would not only make a mess, but force you to terminate the equalize cycle too early to gain maximum benefit and would result in diluted electrolyte when water is added to replace the missing electrolyte.
2. The batteries should be fully charged and near ambient temperature before beginning an equalize charging cycle.
3. There should be a sufficient amount of electrolyte in each cell to cover the plates, but do not top-off each cell until after equalizing. Since there is some heating of the cells during equalize and some electrolyte will be displaced by the increased bubbling action within the cells, the electrolyte will expand and could overflow the cells if they were topped-off before equalizing. This would not only make a mess, but force you to terminate the equalize cycle too early to gain maximum benefit and would result in diluted electrolyte when water is added to replace the missing electrolyte.
