Forum Discussion

3_tons's avatar
3_tons
Explorer III
Jan 16, 2014

Battery Experts, Reconditioning vs Equalization??

I Finally received my new B&D VEC 1093DBD charger yesterday but have found the user manual to be a bit Spartan, particularly with regards to how 'Reconditioning' (a pulsation mode - per manual, "lead sulfate, an insulator, begins to build-up on plates"), differs in objective from 'Equalization' (per manual, "voltage rises, but does not go over 15.3v to 16.2v, depending on ambient temp."), but without any additional user manual clarification. Though the two methods/strategies differ widely (pulsation vs higher voltage - equalization stirring of chemical soup), it seems to me, that with either methodology the objective of removing sulfate from the plates is the same...Just more bells and whistles??

3 tons
  • NinerBikes's avatar
    NinerBikes
    Explorer
    Jan 31, 2014
    MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
    Hee hee hee, I love the "batteries versus casino or track remark". My total "activity" in casinos can be measured with less than 10 fingers. Sadly I know folks with battery banks worth more than everything I own including the clothes on my back.

    I love declarative statements that attempt to include a few hundred million other people as being "The (correct) Only Way We Should Think". Buy this, do that. It is what makes forums entertaining.


    The only time I go to a casino is for the banquet meals or to see a show. Everything else is somewhere between point A and B, A being the vehicle.
  • MEXICOWANDERER's avatar
    MEXICOWANDERER
    Explorer
    Jan 30, 2014
    Hee hee hee, I love the "batteries versus casino or track remark". My total "activity" in casinos can be measured with less than 10 fingers. Sadly I know folks with battery banks worth more than everything I own including the clothes on my back.

    I love declarative statements that attempt to include a few hundred million other people as being "The (correct) Only Way We Should Think". Buy this, do that. It is what makes forums entertaining.
  • BFL13's avatar
    BFL13
    Explorer II
    Jan 30, 2014
    12 hrs and down to 12.73 seems a bit soon to me to be that low. I would expect more like 13.2 next day and 12.x the day after that. Be prepared to see the SG in the "fair" zone, and the need to do some "recovery." It takes a while to bring them up to good shape but you can still use them. In fact using them is the best way to bring them back up!

    EDIT I see in a note on testing the T-1275s that 1 hr 15 min after stopping the charge with batts at 14.94, the voltage had fallen to 13.43/13.40 Then next day voltage was 12.93/12.90. It falls more each day of course, but very slowly after reaching its real voltage at 12.7ish in a couple days.
  • NinerBikes's avatar
    NinerBikes
    Explorer
    Jan 30, 2014
    BFL13 wrote:
    NinerBikes wrote:
    BFL13 wrote:
    When "recovering" beat up batteries with my VEC1093DBD, I have found that Equalizing (raises voltage) works up to a point, then SG stops rising. I then run a few Reconditioning cycles (voltage does not rise--some pulsing thing happens for 24 hrs a go) and then run another Equalize. This time the SG gets up a bit higher than last time.

    I have done this many times now on various beat up batteries and am convinced that the Reconditioning "loosens up" things so the recovery using Equalize can advance some more. YMMV.


    How deep a discharge or SOC do you go to first before doing this Reconditioning /Equalizing routine a few times to tune your battery up?


    You get the batteries to "full" first before doing R or E. How far down they were before being brought to full doesn't matter I suppose, but in general the true deep cycle battery likes a good workout every so often by being deep cycled as with a 50-90 when camping.

    After camping, then at home I recharge to full then do an E. If at home for a month on Float I do an E just to stir them up since my float charger is just a fixed voltage type.

    If the batts are beat up and the SG does not come back with an E then I use the alternating R/E trick like I did with those T-1275s last year. Now they are in good shape I don't use the R, just the E as described above.


    12 hours after a good 14.4V charge, I am sitting at 12.73 V on battery 1 overnight. Hopefully, my glass hydrometer arrives tomorrow, so I 'll know more about the SG soon enough. I picked the 2 out of the 4 batteries with the highest voltage still in them.
  • BFL13's avatar
    BFL13
    Explorer II
    Jan 30, 2014
    NinerBikes wrote:
    BFL13 wrote:
    When "recovering" beat up batteries with my VEC1093DBD, I have found that Equalizing (raises voltage) works up to a point, then SG stops rising. I then run a few Reconditioning cycles (voltage does not rise--some pulsing thing happens for 24 hrs a go) and then run another Equalize. This time the SG gets up a bit higher than last time.

    I have done this many times now on various beat up batteries and am convinced that the Reconditioning "loosens up" things so the recovery using Equalize can advance some more. YMMV.


    How deep a discharge or SOC do you go to first before doing this Reconditioning /Equalizing routine a few times to tune your battery up?


    You get the batteries to "full" first before doing R or E. How far down they were before being brought to full doesn't matter I suppose, but in general the true deep cycle battery likes a good workout every so often by being deep cycled as with a 50-90 when camping.

    After camping, then at home I recharge to full then do an E. If at home for a month on Float I do an E just to stir them up since my float charger is just a fixed voltage type.

    If the batts are beat up and the SG does not come back with an E then I use the alternating R/E trick like I did with those T-1275s last year. Now they are in good shape I don't use the R, just the E as described above.
  • NinerBikes's avatar
    NinerBikes
    Explorer
    Jan 30, 2014
    BFL13 wrote:
    When "recovering" beat up batteries with my VEC1093DBD, I have found that Equalizing (raises voltage) works up to a point, then SG stops rising. I then run a few Reconditioning cycles (voltage does not rise--some pulsing thing happens for 24 hrs a go) and then run another Equalize. This time the SG gets up a bit higher than last time.

    I have done this many times now on various beat up batteries and am convinced that the Reconditioning "loosens up" things so the recovery using Equalize can advance some more. YMMV.


    How deep a discharge or SOC do you go to first before doing this Reconditioning /Equalizing routine a few times to tune your battery up?
  • NinerBikes's avatar
    NinerBikes
    Explorer
    Jan 30, 2014
    goldwinghauler wrote:
    If most people added up their total batteries I assume most would have at least 7 or so. If not most of their hard earned $$$ was probably lost at the track or casino. Or they are still in diapers!


    You also counting laptops, Chromebooks, Smart Phones, GPS units, digital cameras, and Flash lights for mountain bikes, helmets, guns and hand held?
  • BFL13's avatar
    BFL13
    Explorer II
    Jan 18, 2014
    When "recovering" beat up batteries with my VEC1093DBD, I have found that Equalizing (raises voltage) works up to a point, then SG stops rising. I then run a few Reconditioning cycles (voltage does not rise--some pulsing thing happens for 24 hrs a go) and then run another Equalize. This time the SG gets up a bit higher than last time.

    I have done this many times now on various beat up batteries and am convinced that the Reconditioning "loosens up" things so the recovery using Equalize can advance some more. YMMV.
  • goldwinghauler's avatar
    goldwinghauler
    Explorer
    Jan 18, 2014
    If most people added up their total batteries I assume most would have at least 7 or so. If not most of their hard earned $$$ was probably lost at the track or casino. Or they are still in diapers!

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