Battery charging?

[Bryan Williams]

Got given a new 12v motorcycle battery with acid.
Instructions say initial charge 0.4.
I take it I would need a special charger ?

 

[Bryan Williams]

View attachment 139527 Got given a new 12v motorcycle battery with acid.
Instructions say initial charge 0.4.
I take it I would need a special charger ?

this is the spec. Can I wire a bulb in series to take the amps down on a car charger?

 

[Seadog]

I've never given it a thought in the past. Just pop it on a charger and see what happens.

 

[mrdom]

you could get a cheap trickle charger maybe, something like this if you were really concerned

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Silverline...524590557&sr=8-2&keywords=12v+trickle+charger

But i doubt anyone generally does that. My experience of lead acid batteries is leaving them uncharged will kill them, being a bit less than gentle charging them isn't usually such an issue unless you go nuts and they start venting. They get quite a few amps when you're charging them up once they're in the vehicle after all.

If you're using an appropriate charger i'd be very surprised if you had any issues.

...or if you want to get all OCD get a bench power supply and control the voltage/current manually.

 

[Ruffian]

Is the acid supplied separate?

If so put acid in and leave for 12+hours.
(Sometimes 24hrs)

Chemical reaction and witchcraft happen,
Then 12+volts.

 

[pedrobedro]

The last new one I had only needed 2 hours to gain charge after the acid was installed

 

[Robotstar5]

I normally plug then in to a smart charger and leave it to get on with it.

 

[Ruffian]

The last new one I had only needed 2 hours to gain charge after the acid was installed

Yep will get voltage quickly but if used too soon can actually long term affect the life of the battery. Hence why they recommend leaving for some time to settle

 

[hotponyshoes]

I expect the 0.4 charge rate is just 10% of the batts capacity. If so (the battery will be about 4ah rated) then that' just the standard 'ideal charging rate for any wet led acid battery.

In which case just wack it on any 12v charger on the lowest setting and let it run.

On most cars/bikes it will be other factors (heat cycles/vibration/improper storage) that kill the battery long before you will by not charging it at the ideal rate

 

[Matrixx]

Your bike alternator will feed it whatever it draws, no current limiting.

 

[Bryan Williams]

Its new but been sitting in a garage for a while , don't know how long, got it given.
It's got the acid with it,I haven't put it in yet.
Instructions say intitial charge 0.4
The capacity is 4.
My old britax charger put out 4 , bu t my new one puts out 6a.
I'm only going to use the battery to run some led stripes while camping instead of the solar rubbish the missus keeps buying, just don't want to cook it on the first charge.
A workmate said he had a small charger that put out 1.5 , came with some rechargable batteries.
It's got crocodile clips.
Worth a try?

 

[Ashley Burton]

Probably lower ah would be safer for the first charge. Plate damage is what normally kill batteries!

 

[Bryan Williams]

So If I stuck a bulb in line on my mates little charger and checked it on a meter you reckon itsi do it?

 

[Ruffian]

Put the acid in and measure the voltage tomorrow morning.

Should be 12v,
As for charging, if I remember correctly should be a maximum of 10% of the battery,

Aldi do cheap maintenance chargers for about 14/15 £ for a smart charger

 

[dannyp]

last bike battery i put on the quad, acid went in new battery, old battery got slung out the slot, new one went in, wouldn't quite start on itself so pull started it and drove it about, all fine.

usally i just charge them for a bit on normal charger

 

[pedrobedro]

Yep will get voltage quickly but if used too soon can actually long term affect the life of the battery. Hence why they recommend leaving for some time to settle

Why, there is no memory effect in lead acid batteries ? There was no recommendation that it should be left and the reading was 12.65v so it was well up. Anything below 12.5v is not enough.

 

[Ruffian]

Why, there is no memory effect in lead acid batteries ? There was no recommendation that it should be left and the reading was 12.65v so it was well up. Anything below 12.5v is not enough.

Would have thought wold just be saving it from loading the battery too soon. Like they also say "don't use a battery whilst is being charged"

All I know is on the battery's I have bough on my bikes, instructions say to leave for a decent amount of time. (Must be a reason for it)

 

[Matrixx]

Its a good idea to let it chemically stabilise, but after that it will only draw what current it needs you would only over charge it if you have the voltage set to high.

 

[Bryan Williams]

Mate brought this in , would this be any better?

 

[Bryan Williams]

Mate brought this in , would this be any better?View attachment 139578

So are these milliamps?