Trojan T-105 battery charging tips

[tommyleyland]

Hey, I'm asking about best practices when using / charging Trojan 6v batteries. I've heard the can be discharged to 30% safely but it's best practice to not let it fall below 50%.

 

I've got a Sterling charger and now keep my batteries above 50% and regularly charge to 100% based on Smartguage readings.

 

Also, just as a quick question, from a quick power audit with help from the members of this forum, I'm using about 40amps a day maximum, do you know how long these batteries would last until needing a recharge?

 

Thanks

[Robbo]

Remember to set the bulk and float of 14.8v and 13.2v on a 12v system as these are different than for leisure batteries

Also, just as a quick question, from a quick power audit with help from the members of this forum, I'm using about 40amps a day maximum, do you know how long these batteries would last until needing a recharge?

Thanks

This depends on how large your battery bank is, but no battery likes to be discharged for long so ideally you should look to charge your batteries fully daily, but as this is not cost effective if using a generator or engine to charge so I would work between 50-80% and then a full charge weekly and a equalising charge monthly. Edited December 18, 2015 by Robbo

[Loafer]

I agree with Robbo. You could also simply 'time' things, rather than guess at percentages. So Robbo's blurb above could read 'work between 2 hrs a day (or 4 hrs every 2 days), then a 6-hr charge once a week, and an 8-hr charge once a month (this one finishing at 15.5V for an hour)

 

ETA the monthly 8hr charge would replace one of your weekly 6hr ones.

 

That's assuming 450Ah. And never let them below 12.2V with an hour's open circuit, or about 11.9 with average load on, unless emergency.

Edited December 18, 2015 by Loafer

[Graham.m]

Hey, I'm asking about best practices when using / charging Trojan 6v batteries. I've heard the can be discharged to 30% safely but it's best practice to not let it fall below 50%.

 

I've got a Sterling charger and now keep my batteries above 50% and regularly charge to 100% based on Smartguage readings.

 

Also, just as a quick question, from a quick power audit with help from the members of this forum, I'm using about 40amps a day maximum, do you know how long these batteries would last until needing a recharge?

 

Thanks

 

Tommy,

 

Assuming you have two T105s, if you have more tell me

 

If you are using 40Ahs a day that is a mean of 1.666Amps/hour, at that level of use you are nearing the 100 hour rate. At the 100 hour rate you have 125Ahs to DoD of 50%. that will give you approx 75 hours of battery say 3 days.

 

I would suggest that you recharge the batteries every three day and charge them fully 100% SoC.

 

You could recharge fully every second day 80/250 is a DoD of 32% but do it fully charge them when you start finish it

 

I believe giving the a little burst each day will be a way to encourage sulphation which will shorten the battery's lives slowly but surely. So fully recharge

Edited December 18, 2015 by Graham.m

[Loafer]

 

Tommy,

 

If you are using 40Ahs a day that is a mean of 1.666Amps/hour, at that level of use you are under the 100 hour rate. At the 100 hour rate you have 125Ahs to DoD of 50%. that will give you approx 75 hours of battery say 3 days.

 

I would suggest that you recharge the batteries every three day and charge them fully 100% SoC.

 

You could recharge fully every second day 80/250 is a DoD of 32% but do it fully charge them when you start finish it

 

I believe giving the a little burst each day will be a way to encourage sulphation which will shorten the battery's lives slowly but sirely. So fully recharge

 

Don't get yer banter, old boy...

[WotEver]

Same sentence with punctuation and an added word: "... but do it fully. Charge them (fully). When you start, finish it."

[MtB]

 

 

If you are using 40Ahs a day that is a mean of 1.666Amps/hour, at that level of use you are nearing the 100 hour rate. At the 100 hour rate you have 125Ahs to DoD of 50%. that will give you approx 75 hours of battery say 3 days.

 

 

 

No it isn't. Do try to get the units right, it just leads to confusion in people less able than you.

 

I suggest you mean 1.666 AmpHours/hour.

[nicknorman]

 

If you are using 40Ahs a day that is a mean of 1.666Amps/hour

 

<unit police>

Hmm, I wonder what an Amp/hour is? Could it be a rate of change of current or could it in fact just be a plain old amp?

</unit police>

 

Edit: unit police beaten by other unit police - outrageous!

Edited December 18, 2015 by nicknorman

[Graham.m]

 

 

 

No it isn't. Do try to get the units right, it just leads to confusion in people less able than you.

 

I suggest you mean 1.666 AmpHours/hour.

 

No it is 1.6666 Amps per hour Amp/hour Not Ahs. It is a mean current used

 

Same sentence with punctuation and an added word: "... but do it fully. Charge them (fully). When you start, finish it."

lol lol

Edited December 18, 2015 by Graham.m

[nicknorman]

ANYWAY you haven't told us how many T105s you have so we can't really answer. I would just caution against leaving it in increasing states of discharge over several days, since sulphation is a function of the degree of discharge or failure to fully recharge, and the time spent in that state. So if you are going to leave the batteries in a state of discharge for several days, I think you should expect to have to equalise a bit more often.

No it is 1.6666 Amps per hour Amp/hour Not Ahs. It is a mean current used

 

The correct unit for a mean current is amps, not amps/hr. Basic physics 101.

[ditchcrawler]

but surly they are not constantly discharging at 100hr rate but some at 20 and maybe some at 40 and even a bit at 5, the rest of the time doing nothing.

[nicknorman]

but surly they are not constantly discharging at 100hr rate but some at 20 and maybe some at 40 and even a bit at 5, the rest of the time doing nothing.

Yes, however it doesn't really make any difference. Discharging for 30 mins at the 10hr rate and then resting for 30 mins, leaves the same charge in the battery as discharging at the 20 hr rate for 1hr.

[tommyleyland]

Sorry yes I have ordered 2 Trojan batteries. Do I have to manually set the charger as it usually automatically sets itself to the battery type.

 

I use a laptop charger at 5 amps at maybe 4-6 hours a day max and normal water pump and some led lights that use basically hardly anything.

We might be getting a 12v tv which is about 2-3 amps per hour.

 

I'm happy with charging to 100% every 2-3 days and making sure it doesn't fall below 50% or 12.2v

[ditchcrawler]

Yes, however it doesn't really make any difference. Discharging for 30 mins at the 10hr rate and then resting for 30 mins, leaves the same charge in the battery as discharging at the 20 hr rate for 1hr.

Ta

[Graham.m]

but surly they are not constantly discharging at 100hr rate but some at 20 and maybe some at 40 and even a bit at 5, the rest of the time doing nothing.

 

 

Thats the problem if it was a nice gentle discharge at a continuous 1.666 Ahs the chance of sulphation would be reduce. However the overall effect on the battery not far off ( educated guess) about a 75 hour rate

[nicknorman]

Thats the problem if it was a nice gentle discharge at a continuous 1.666 Ahs the chance of sulphation would be reduce. However the overall effect on the battery not far off ( educated guess) about a 75 hour rate

I wonder if you are deliberately using the wrong units just to confuse? Not very helpful if you are.

Edited December 18, 2015 by nicknorman

[Graham.m]

Do I have to manually set the charger as it usually automatically sets itself to the battery type.

 

 

 

Tommy,

 

Please check the Sterling Chargers manual, my memory is say you have to set them to the battery type etc.

[matty40s]

 

Tommy,

 

Please check the Sterling Chargers manual, my memory is say you have to set them to the battery type etc.

There not only seems to be wrong figures and units of measure, but your English is falling apart too.

Have you been at the Christmas sherry?

[by'eck]

 

 

Thats the problem if it was a nice gentle discharge at a continuous 1.666 Ahs the chance of sulphation would be reduce. However the overall effect on the battery not far off ( educated guess) about a 75 hour rate

 

Best add me to your ignore list as well - you are talking complete b***x both technically and grammatically and certainly not for the first time!

[Dinz]

Electro-chemical reaction with inductive loads & resistive [joints etc].& figures given to 3 decimal places!

What a load of 'Engineers' talked on here sometimes.

End.

[WotEver]

????

[Sea Dog]

Aw, bless!

[tommyleyland]

Not sure what's happening here... It's not confusing me at all, there just seems to be arguing over nothing...

[WotEver]

Tommy, it's basically because if someone purports to be an engineer, particularly if they suggest that they are an 'expert' in electrics then they shouldn't make schoolboy errors such as 'amps per hour'. A consumption of 6 amps continuous (or mean) over a period of an hour is 6 Amphours, abbreviated 6Ah. It is never 6A per hour, nor is it 6Ah per hour - that's the same as saying 60 miles per hour per hour, which is nonsense.

 

Edit to add that in the specific example that was used, 40Ah equates to a mean consumption of 1.666A.

Edited December 18, 2015 by WotEver

[Sea Dog]

- that's the same as saying 60 miles per hour per hour, which is nonsense.

Actually, it's acceleration.... but your point is a good one!

 

(Now that may well be one more for the engineers, and possibly others who understand calculus)