Battery tips

[BlackBedford]

G'day

Batteries are expensive!
I try to avoid buying them and I have 3 tools to help me.

The first is a battery load tester


Load testing: it takes the current from the battery and discards it as waste heat and determines how long your battery can DISCHARGE at the correct level before failing the test. Batteries that have been around a few years typically fail the load test after a short draw, whereas newer batteries last longer.
This tool is very handy when looking for a battery.

The second one is acid tester or hygrometer


The battery itself is a circuit from pole to pole and contains a number of CELLS that have acid and lead plates. Each cell has the POTENTIAL to store 100% power minus the age of the battery (chemical breakdown), so we need to measure that potential, and you do it with an acid tester (hygrometer).
If you charge this battery for say eight to ten hours then test each cell, they should all pass in the green, but if one cell is red, it is not allowing the charge to flow through the battery properly and you can charge this damn thing forever and it might start your van once or twice, but never charge properly in normal operation and leave you stranded.


The third one is a Megapulse Battery Conditioner (also known as a desulphator)


MegaPulse technology is a patented process that suppresses sulfating build-up on battery plates, this is a common cause of lead-acid battery failure. Although there is enough reactive material in batteries to last for many years, often they don’t because of sulfating build-up.
I have found that if you find a battery that is a quality brand name and it looks in good condition , then running the Megapulse for a week generally recovers the battery. I have recovered well over 100 batteries since I bought it.

And a last tip is when looking for a battery I have found that any place offering free battery tests will have a pallet load of batteries and 1 in 4 batteries will test OK or can be recovered with the Megapulse.

[soakes]

Thanks for the information about the MegaPulse.  It sounds worth checking in to.  I have lots of batteries that are on the verge of being useless.

- soakes

[BlackBedford]

Thanks for the information about the MegaPulse.  It sounds worth checking in to.  I have lots of batteries that are on the verge of being useless.

- soakes

Silicon Chip magazine have also designed a zapper. You can get a kit here:
http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=KC5479&keywords=zapper&form=KEYWORD

[tiwaz_nz]

does the megapluse mount in the van or out the van when charging the battery ?

[BlackBedford]

does the megapluse mount in the van or out the van when charging the battery ?

I think it is meant to mount in the van and work when the van is sitting. I use it in the shed to rejuvenate batteries I have found.

[petrolhead]

Linox do a battery conditioner that I thought was a scam, you put a few drops in each compartment and charge it up, well it worked and that cactus battery that wouldn't hold a charge lasted another two years

[John Abbott]

Hi Clint.... Can you remember where you got that Linox product from? Sounds interesting

[hotrod]

bought some from autobarn about 6 months ago

[Marishka]

anyone know how to zap cordless drill betteries back into good ones?
 ive heard its possible but never found the right info.
ive also thought about replacing all the single cells in the pack but also never found anywhere to get them from?
 

[petrolhead]

Typo the stuff is called "Inox" and what it does is de-sulfates the battery