blackrose

Yes, you could be wrong. I actually changed the pump from a 25psi to a 40psi cut out model and not because I like a powerful shower, but because I like a shower. I did it in order to get my gas water heater to run the shower. Since you brought it up I seem to recall you said what I was doing wouldn't work because the flow rate on the new pump was the same as the old one and what I needed a higher flow rate pump. I'm afraid that advice was wrong too. It works fine.

How do you find the software/firmware version using the Fogstar app?

2nd best is power tool rust removal and epoxy, which is hard, dirty work but more practical.

Interestingly this doesn't just happen to amateurs/DIYers like me. I heard from a friend today who works on boats and is well respected in the industry. I'd told him about my battery explosion yesterday and today he sent me a message to say he just checked a new start battery he'd installed in his own boat a couple of months ago and discovered he'd also forgotten to take the transit bung out! Fortunately he hadn't run the engine very much during that time, but when he removed the bung it did release some pressure. So that made me feel slightly less of an idiot.

Ah, I see. This is starting to sound like another conspiracy theory... I'll leave it there.

Your thought processes don't seem to follow any logical pattern. I was talking about being unsure of something during installation and the supplier saying I could have called them. The battery only blew after it was incorrectly installed and then used.

I think it's possible to produce similar poor AI review of any brand of batteries? https://www.google.com/search?q=do+trojan+batteries+have+problems&oq=do+trojan+batteries+have+prob&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqBwgBECEYoAEyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRigATIHCAIQIRiPAjIHCAMQIRiPAtIBCDExNjFqMGo5qAIOsAIB8QWMApOPlncPj_EFjAKTj5Z3D48&client=ms-android-xiaomi-rvo3&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8&chrome_dse_attribution=1 I guess if have dunked my head in the river and gone to a hospital if necessary. What would you do?

Ok. So what brand of battery should I be looking at if I want something better?

I'm pretty demanding when it comes to my rights as a consumer and if I thought there was any chance of a successful warranty claim I'd be on it. But I don't think there is so I won't bother. On the other hand I do think the supplier has some responsibility to adequately inform customers about critical installation requirements and a piece of paper in the box with no diagram doesn't do that. However I'm sure they'd say that if I was unsure about anything they were on the other end of a phone.

Thanks Nick. 🙏

I think you've misunderstood my post. My point was that if the batteries were properly installed the supplier can't blame the customer. Anyway, this thread is going off on a tangent and I'm not really interested.

Yes I take the blame for not installing them as instructed, but the instructions weren't completely clear to me hence my mistake.

So when the 99% of customers who do remove the bungs find their substandard batteries rip themselves apart how does the supplier blame the customer?

Ok, maybe time for a new box.

Hancook. I haven't tried to remove the bungs since I got the batteries out today. I'm sure the bungs will come out but they are very tight.

Anyway, I'm not really in the mood to discuss the relative merits of Sterling equipment. Perhaps the battery boilers are getting a bit old now so I should get rid of them as they're not really required. I started the cleanup today after work but to be honest it's a bit overwhelming. Every cable, fuse holder, busbar and connection needs to be cleaned. I got the blown battery out and gingerly removed the starter battery worrying it might explode in my face. Then I got the Fogstars out and relocated/reconnected them temporarily a couple of feet away with some new 70mm2 cables I made up. The plywood box needs to come out so that I can clean it and clean the uxter plate underneath, but at least I can take my time as the domestic system is working.

There was a warning, but it was on a piece of paper in the box rather than a sticker on the battery, and there was no picture or diagram to tell me exactly what they were referring to. Maybe that's what you mean by not durable, I haven't heard that word used in that way before. Transit bung not removed. I've had Sterling gear for 20 years and in my experience it's all good quality. There are certainly better products on the market these days but the Sterling equipment I've used is fine.

No they were both reset to sealed LA prior to installation of the new batteries. I've never had a problem with the Sterling alternator regulators before and I'm sorry but my memory of those discussions informs me that they were only called "battery boilers" by those who didn't know what they were talking about.

As Nick said previously, non- removal of the transit bung plus external alternator regulator sensing the wrong battery may be the combined causes. The start battery bulged but didn't blow as it was sensed correctly.

Yes it was a reputable seller. The batteries were fine. It's definitely my mistake for not taking the transit bungs out as instructed. However, they should have had stickers on the batteries below the transit bungs to show me where they were. I looked at them again this afternoon and as I said earlier there are no screwdriver slots. I tried removing one with a pair of needle nose pliers but it wouldn't come out so I convinced myself it was part of the battery and transit bungs meant terminal covers. I've mainly had open LA batteries before with no transit bungs.

Yes but I also neglected to remove the transit bung from that one too. Ok but I think I'd rather not mess with the starter/BT side of the system. It's always been good and I've never had a problem with it. I might be wrong but combining alternators sounds like one side of the system will take priority.

Ok but do you call your starter battery "a lead acid battery in an engine starter system"? Do you call your domestic batteries"lead acid batteries in a domestic system"? No, unless you wish to specifically talk about the battery chemistry, like most people you simply refer to the batteries by their function rather than their chemistry. Ok buffer battery it is from now on. Not that I have a buffer battery anymore... Yes

It doesn't, it's just a name. One which seems to be causing some confusion. What name would you suggest instead? Yes. The reason I have separate starter and hybrid batteries is because my start battery is charged from a separate alternator and the charge is split between the start and BT batteries. I didn't want to change that configuration as it works well.

Because it's being used as a hybrid battery between the alternator and B2B charger/Li batteries. I thought I'd already explained this? I'm naming it by it's function rather than it's chemistry, otherwise how would one differentiate it from the start battery for example? It was the hybrid battery that exploded, but I had also installed an identical new starter battery at the same time which I'd also neglected to remove the transit bung from. That start battery looks like it's bulging and I'm certainly not going to risk using it now. Thanks. It was mentioned in a note in the box but there were no stickers on the batteries. I will find out by doing some continuity tests on suspect thin red cables with ring terminals on the domestic bank.

Ah ok, yes maybe. How to blow £160 in 15 mins. I changed the open LA start battery to a new sealed unit at the same time precisely because whenever I topped that one up it overflowed when charged and I didn't want any more acid spills. Ah the irony...