Battery revival ?

[makeitfit]

I seem to have neglected the battery on the Black Pearl I had been charging it every few months but forgotall about it for over 6 or 7 months I reckon :doh
The little indicator "light" thing is just black and so rechargable according to the battery instructions :nenau
Any thoughts guys? Can this be brought back from the dead ?

 

[R1cho]

mine was stood for a year not charged once before i got it, charged it overnight and its still good now over a year later

 

[makeitfit]

Ah but this is so low my charger won't start charging
I seem to recall you have tp put an extra battery on it somehow ?

 

[puddle hoppers inc.]

yes! but try a slow cycle charger, like a caravan one to bring it truly back
that said it is luck of the draw!!

 

[R1cho]

try jump starting it

 

[exosteve]

buy a new one:augie

 

[makeitfit]

buy a new one:augie

That's the gay way out :lol

 

[R1cho]

if you use jump leads it will trickle charge the battery

 

[Fez_uk]

you need a pulse charger. Likely there is build up on the elements

 

[makeitfit]

you need a pulse charger. Likely there is build up on the elements

Yes, just been goooogling it :lol
At the mo I'm switching my charger on and off, the novelty is wearing thin

 

[R1cho]

jump leads off the trol to the pearl, slow charge,

 

[makeitfit]

jump leads off the trol to the pearl, slow charge,

Going to take one of the trol's batteries off tomorrow and give it a whirl :thumbs

 

[R1cho]

Going to take one of the trol's batteries off tomorrow and give it a whirl :thumbs

noooo jump leads of trol while engine is running that way the trol keeps charging the slave battery and trickle charges the dead one

 

[solarman216]

I seem to have neglected the battery on the Black Pearl I had been charging it every few months but forgotall about it for over 6 or 7 months I reckon :doh
The little indicator "light" thing is just black and so rechargable according to the battery instructions :nenau
Any thoughts guys? Can this be brought back from the dead ?

it is dead, never to be again, if it was a traction battery with thick plates then maybe, but a start battery with thin plates no hope, they will be sulphated and to de sulphate them they will fall apart, Rick

 

[makeitfit]

it is dead, never to be again, if it was a traction battery with thick plates then maybe, but a start battery with thin plates no hope, they will be sulphated and to de sulphate them they will fall apart, Rick

I had a funny feeling you'd say that :lol
Thanks Rick

 

[kitchenman]

I have a couple of 1.5w watt solar chargers I got from Maplin,
http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/solar-powered-12v-15w-battery-auto-trickle-charger-l58bf
seem to help , they are permanently on my old van, battery still AOK after 3 years out of use since I got the Mav
What do you think of them Rick?

 

[macabethiel]

What sort of battery charger have you got ?

I had a funny feeling you'd say that :lol
Thanks Rick

It sound crazy but very few battery chargers sold today will charge a battery that is completely flat.
With the exception of the CTEK type of design (pulse charge) or if you have a 30 year old trickle charger with an amp meter fitted your are going to have problems.

Most chargers sold by Halfords as an example have a disclaimer in the instructions saying they are not suitable for a flat batter.

I managed to bring an old battery back from the dead but it took 2 days before the charger started to get it taking charge.
As previously posted if sulphanation is bad you might as well buy a new one.

Our old Mercedes has issues as we only use it in the summer so as well as leaving it on charge all through winter I bought an AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat Technology) battery on e-bay and they do hold charge for much longer. Cost around £20 more than the original battery.

 

[rustic]

This is what I know...
I have several battery chargers. 2 Numax 10 amp multi stage chargers on the boat, and a Ring 8 amp multi stage charger at home. Plus the old fashioned type.

Was the battery still connected when you left it in black Pearl ? if so, there might be a slight drain, radio, nats etc, in addition to natural wastage.

If I leave my Mav at home in the garage, for say three weeks, eg if on holiday, I now disconnect it.

A slow discharge like this will wreck a battery, and if left with a 50% charge or less for any great time ie a week or more, then considerable damage from sulphation will occur.:doh

So, modern battery chargers require that the battery terminal voltage is greater than say 10.5 volts, ( some are different) before they kick in, so if you have an old fashioned transformer with a rectifier type, then this can be connected to start an initial charge to get the voltage up to say 11 or 12 volts before you connect one of the smart chargers.

For the charger you would need one of the multi stage chargers that pulses the battery, which will give the greatest chance of some recovery.

Connecting jump leads directly to a good battery, could have a high current drain from the good battery to the duff battery, I'm not sure what damage you could do to either battery, but there could be lots of gassing, and a spark might cause ignition of the gas

First if you were using this method, I would try some resistance between the batteries, to limit the current, say a few old headlight bulbs paralleled up in line with the jump leads.
1 bulb will limit the current to 5 amps, so three, would limit the current to 15 amps, then after a while test the open circuit terminal voltage on the duff battery, then charge with a multi stage charger.

So what is my technical recommendation?
You have completely f*****d the battery, buy a new one:bow
:lol:lol

Well you might get some charge back on the battery, but it would be temporary.
If you have filler caps on there, remove them, if the caps on say any cells have black residue, then time for a new battery anyway. Also any smell of bad eggs is an indication of a failed cell.


CAUTION...
WEAR SAFETY SPECS... during any of this investigation.:thumb2


Rustic

 

[briggie]

question is ..... even if you do manage to get some charge in it ..... would you trust it ? ....... I wouldn't ..... I agree with rick / rustic get a new one , at least it will be under warranty .:thumb2

 

[rustic]

question is ..... even if you do manage to get some charge in it ..... would you trust it ? ....... I wouldn't ..... I agree with rick / rustic get a new one , at least it will be under warranty .:thumb2

Regarding warranty, they are not worth the paper they are written on.
Whether you have a three year or four year warranty, the only thing that is covered is a manufacturing fault, broken plate, causing a short in a cell, or a broken internal connection.

If you read the small print, they won't cover sulphation, over charging, under charging, batteries used in the wrong application, abuse.

BUT last year I took a battery back, still in the Mav, and he agreed it was faulty, after I challenged his voltage readings, and method he used, and he went straight inside, and brought me a brand new battery FOC.


Result.. :thumb2