Batteries can be very confusing?

Solar storage Batteries can be very confusing?

There are so many different types and brands of batteries on the market today; it’s no wondering the general public get confused. What is a Gel battery? What is an AGM battery? What is a free flow lead acid battery, the list goes on and on. Manufacturers of batteries are always bringing out a new product, confusing things even more. Consumers who are now building banks of batteries to store solar power are probably amongst the most confused at the moment, not knowing and understanding which batteries are the best to use at a

Typical bank of solar storage batteries

reasonable price.

In my opinion one of the best batteries for use in solar power storage is the Trojan battery from the USA. These batteries are awesome, and not too much more expensive than normal lead acid batteries. Trojan have developed batteries to be used in heavy industry ensuring a maximum battery life, All that is required is that you add distilled water to the battery cells at regular periods and do not let the levels dip below the battery cell tops.

Trojan are true deep cycle batteries, which is what you want in solar battery storage. The Trojan batteries are designed to give you 1.500 cycles at an 80% depth of discharge. These batteries also stand up to high and low temperatures and therefore are suitable for remote locations and wilderness conditions. These batteries are designed to optimum performance in conditions where they may operate in a partial state of charge, given the fluctuations that occur when pursuing storage from renewable energy applications in different levels of sun light that may be available to the user.

In many solar battery banks Trojan recommend that you use deep cycle flooded batteries rather than AGM batteries, primarily because of the price. Also because Trojan use wide plates in the battery construction, then the period that the batteries have to be topped up is much further apart, with minimum battery servicing required.

Trojan batteries have duel container protection

The industrial line of Trojan batteries can be purchased in the UK from www.batteriesontheweb.co.uk. They are made up of 2 volt cells that are bundled together or stand alone and contained in a second container to supply high capacity in 2 volt, 4 volt or 6 volt solutions. The battery casings are made from very tough polyethylene material and are extremely tough protecting the battery against most type of damage and acid leaks..

One thing to remember though is that these batteries are extremely heavy and information about them for solar storage use can be found on their website…http://www.trojanbatteryre.com/Markets/Renewable_Energy_Residential.html  

There are many different brands of this type of battery on the market and the best advice I can give is to have a look at the products and the price and come to your own conclusion. All in can say is that Trojan batteries are a world leader and have a great deal of experience in setting up different sizes of solar power banks of storage batteries all over the world. This information can be seen on their website and goes into great detail of the requirements of the individual communities, including whole island situations and smaller village situations in countries as far away as Africa and South America.

A typical trojan battery

Other company’s products can use AGM batteries. These batteries also come in to the deep discharge category and are also suitable for the job of solar energy storage, but a trend that is slightly worrying me, is the use of so called leisure batteries for the electricity storage purpose.

These batteries have been developed for leisure vehicle usage. These batteries are usually 110 amp leisure batteries and are very popular. I do know that some of my customers are buying these batteries for the purpose of solar storage, but in my opinion they are not the best batteries for the job. You should be looking at deep cycle batteries in free flow lead acid or AGM batteries. These will give you a better battery life span and although the cost of these batteries is much higher they will pay for themselves in the long run by perhaps doubling their life span when compared to the 110 amp leisure battery.

Disclaimer

Please note these are the words and opinion of the author (Eric Roberts) only. Neither the author nor the website can be held responsible for any errors or omissions. You should seek professional assistance if in doubt about your choice of battery. The article contains a link to Batteriesontheweb where you can buy all of the products mentioned.

Which Caravan Battery

Which Caravan Battery is best for me ?

Over the years we have had many customers call in at our West Yorkshire depot here in Halifax, looking to replace their battery, for the caravan. We have all sorts of people and types of people who share in the outdoor life and enjoy caravaning, either for their holidays or just a weekend away. These days caravan

A VW Camper preparing for the holiday season

owners can choose a choice of power supplies, they can use gas, mains electric or the 12 volt battery.

We very often have customers attending with a car battery, and say that they have used it for four or five years without any problems. In this case I try to match the old battery as best that I can, because I know that they are happy with that car battery and it is no use confusing the issue. Others come to us with a leisure battery and want to upgrade to a larger size amps. We have no problem with that as long as the leisure battery fits into their battery compartment. The usual upgrade is from a 85 1mp battery to an 110 amp battery. I think this is because that the price has dropped to an acceptable level for people to afford, due to competition from the internet.

 12 volt Car Batteries

In general the two types of caravan batteries are of different construction internally. They certainly look the same, indeed not too long ago narrow boat owners used a bank of 644 truck batteries to power their boats, both as a starter battery and a storage battery for their electricity needs. But the main difference is inside the battery in the lead alloy plates. The car battery is used mainly for starting your car, and so the plates are perforated with small holes. This gives the battery a larger surface area to give the battery a high boost when starting a car. As I have said though some people do use car batteries and have done for years, so why change?  Car batteries give out a high current of around 200 amps over a short time period as you start the engine. This drains the battery to a low level of charge especially in cold winter weather, but this huge power loss is replaced immediately by the cars alternator and so the battery never becomes fully discharged. It is known as having a shallow cycle of discharge and charge and the car battery is so designed for that purpose.

12 volt flooded lead acid leisure batteries

When we start to talk about the leisure battery we have some sub categories to look at. The first one is the battery that we all know as a leisure battery because it tells us on the label? It is as simple as that. Over the past ten years the leisure industry has grown at a very fast rate. We can all see the large number of caravans and camper vans on their way to a holiday destination, whenever we are traveling. This means that the

A typical 12 volt car battery often used by some caravan owners

industries that serve these vehicles are also busy keeping up with the demand.

The battery industry is no different. Manufacturers such as Johnson Controls have come up with better storage cells inside the leisure battery as compared with the humble car batteries. The cells in the leisure battery are now much thicker and so will hold more storage charge. These batteries are now used in the majority of these vehicles used for holiday purposes. The 110 amp leisure battery is a prime example, although the 115 amp battery is now becoming more popular because of the electric caravan movers now in use.

The leisure battery does not have to do such a job as the car battery, (but just to confuse matters I know that some 4X4 owners are now fitting 110 amp leisure batteries to their vehicle, as a starter battery and to operate things like winches and they have proved to be very successful). The leisure battery is designed to supply a much lower current to power the light s and other electrical equipment, including the TV and water pumps. This type of battery has a larger and deeper cycle than the humble car battery. In simple terms the battery will drain more and then charge back up again using bigger cycles. If a car battery is discharged below 80% then the solution that covers the cells will break down and fall to the base of the battery, causing it to short out and then battery will have to be replaced, it will not recover.

12 volt AGM sealed lead acid batteries

These are the next step up to the flooded lead acid batteries. They are probably the best choice battery to use. The batteries are sealed and can even be used on their sides, it will make no difference. These batteries are also a true deep cycle battery. They will take a heavy discharge and totally recover when charged. These are the batteries that I would recommend. The only drawback is the price; they are much more expensive than a standard leisure battery. But will probably last five or six years, perhaps twice longer than the free flow lead acid leisure battery. The AGM battery is also more suitable to be used with solar panels, something that is becoming more popular amongst caravan enthusiasts all over the world.

A powerful deep cycle Trojan battery the battery of my choice.

I hope this information helps

Eric Roberts

Hi I would like to introduce myself. I have worked in the Garage and tyre and I am MD for online battery company www.batteriesontheweb.co.uk. I have worked for a couple for national tyre companies in my younger days, before starting my first business. I now own a garage and MOT testing centre, here in the UK called Pellon Tyre and Auto-centre, and I am a keen blogger about anything to do with cars and their related products that will help my business. We are members of Point-S and Motor-Codes and are also a Unipart Car Care Centre and of course Tyre-safe.

Good Housekeeping will help you maintain Good Battery Life

How to help maintain Good Battery Life

One of the up and coming trends these days is that people are starting to build battery banks for the storage of power from their solar panels and wind turbines. But in my opinion it does not just start there, a good system of maintenance is essential to keep your batteries in good condition.

We have noticed that one of the recent trends is for people to buy Cheap Leisure Batteries for this purpose and one of the reasons is because the internet has driven down the prices of these batteries and they being used more and more for battery storage and also for the battery banks that are used on canal boats and other river craft.

A few years ago the main batteries used these boats were in reality Truck Batteries. The change came when companies like Johnson Controls started to make similar size batteries that came with thicker plates, for increased storage capacity. These batteries were really Starter Batteries, but will now double up as storage batteries. The most popular one is  110 amp Leisure Battery, that is marketed by Numax and a couple of other battery companies.

These batteries sort of double up as a starter and storage battery, but must not be mistaken for a genuine storage battery, which is an AGM (Absorbed Glass Matting) that is a deep cycle battery. These batteries now cost about twice the price as a Leisure Battery, but are solely made for the storage of electricity. These are in fact the correct batteries for the job of the energy storing of solar power, but they are more expensive and do not need as much looking after as the 12 volt lead acid batteries that are now more commonly used. One important thing to remember is that you must not dis-charge your leisure below 80%, because this will damage your batteries. AGM batteries can be totally discharged and will make a full recovery, this is one of the reasons that they cost more money, they have much more plate capacity and storage than a lead-acid battery.

A couple of battery facts

The leisure battery is a flooded lead-acid battery and does require some looking after to keep them in tip-top condition. The main ones now come in a sealed casing with a blow off valve that will go off if the battery gets overheated for some reason, letting the built up pressure escape. Some leisure batteries especially the smaller 75 amp Leisure Batteries do have screw tops similar to some car batteries; these must be looked after as follows.

Adding Water to the battery

If you have a screw top battery or batteries, it is important to check the fluid levels (electrolyte) on a regular basis. This is because the battery gives off some gasses while in operation (oxygen and hydrogen), this depletes the amount of liquid in the battery and will need topping up with distilled water. You can buy this at your local auto store, or use the water that is produced from a certain type of electric dryer. The electrolyte Car batteries, but most car batteries are now sealed similar to the sealed leisure batteries.

Typical 110 amp leisure battery now in common use

needs to cover the tops of the plates, there is usually a marker to guide you to the correct level. Older people amongst us will remember having to do this with their

In hot weather the batteries with screw caps also loose the liquid due to evaporation, but here in the UK the effects of weather are minimal. It is also a good idea to be methodical and make a note of when you had to top the battery up, this is because it is the first sign of a battery cell problem if the cell keeps on needing fresh water.

Keep you battery bank clean and dirt free

This applies to the Battery terminals; we have all seen the corrosion that can take place wherever battery acid is present, and this is no different on a battery bank. It is important to watch out for this and a good battery terminals.

battery bank for solar storage

preventative measure is to smear the terminals with petroleum jelly. A good trade name for this in the UK is (Vaseline), this will protest the battery terminals from corroding and develop the nasty white powder that forms around

Also inspect your connecting wires, a corroded or terminal could form a high resistance on a system that is connected in series and will prevent the batteries from charging and dis-charging correctly and creating an imbalance in the battery bank, with a possibility of reducing the battery banks performance and lowering the life of the batteries in the entire bank.

To conclude the article you are better of using AGM Batteries for any type of storage in a bank or indeed in two’s or three’s .and use a reputable make ,such as Trojan batteries that are on sale on www.batteriesontheweb.co.uk  and they will last you up to four times longer than a leisure battery. I also know though that people do use free flow lead acid batteries that are on sale as leisure batteries, but do not let them drain completely and look after your batteries no matter what type they are and they will last longer.