So I am going to try my hand at reconditioning lead acid batteries...

[Checkthisout]

I work alot with Concorde batteries in the aircraft world. ( I run an aircraft maintenance company.)

Concorde also makes RE batteries... though they dont get alot of attention.

When a sealed VRLA battery fails its capacity check of 80% its rated AH capacity they recommend a "condition charge".... for a 24v battery this is 10% of its capacity in amps (ie 40A battery = 4amps) @ 34v for 16 hours. We have had good luck raising capacity 20-30% with this process.

Never have I dumped out a battery and flushed out electrolyte like described above in previous posts.

Swapped a couple T28's over to dual optima. $2600.00 Gill or Concord batteries are a painful failure.

 

[seneysolar]

IMO Sealed gills are garbage, the vented lead acids are ok but require frequent maintenance and cleaning. Concorde sealed are decent as long as they are used for their intended purposes and the charge rates are correct. On average i see customers getting 4-5 years out of them. Similar to your car i suppose. Yes certified/approved parts are expensive. I do have an optima in my truck going on 6 years.... we'll see how long it will go.

What i was going towards on my previous post was the condition charge procedure. Similar to some equalization charges but the current is controlled at a low rate and the voltage is higher but again limited. They want it ran like that for 16 hours. The manual even allows for 2 more attempts if its not successful. I doubt anyone is going this long at that high of voltage.

 

[DXHum]

It's not that "it may not work", more like it will not work. Take it from someone whom has tried all forms of reconditioning. EDTA, epsom salts, rinse wash and repeat, etc. Once they're sulfated they're dead. The Pakistanis know it which is why they replace the plates and trust me, if there was a more economical and reliable way of doing it that would be the route they would take. As someone else pointed out, the Duralast batteries aren't the greatest to begin with as they're not a real deep cycle battery. I'm all for experimentation though, so have fun!

Perhaps the Duralast are not ideal. But for $99.00, I thought they were good enough for storing power to be used during a power outage.

In mission critical stuff (my saltwater aquariums) I have a VMAX AGM Deep Cycle that will support the entire tank for 6 hours and more depending on if the heaters come on.

So what would you recommend to someone who wants to reliably store power for emergencies?

 

[DXHum]

Question: How will cold impact charging.

I've set myself up under the deck on the concrete. It is there that the work will take place.

I plan to charge outside and am wondering how the cold air (35 degrees) will impact charging?

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Question: How will cold impact charging.

I've set myself up under the deck on the concrete. It is there that the work will take place.

I plan to charge outside and am wondering how the cold air (35 degrees) will impact charging?

All lead acid batteries require temperature compensation. Higher absorption voltage when cold, lower when hot.

For FLA and normal charging, -0.03V/°C for each degree of variation from 25°C, e.g., at freezing (-25°C from 25°C), -25°C * (-0.03V/°C) = +0.75V above standard.

This does NOT apply to equalization charging in cold. Equalization charges should never exceed 16.4V, but it's sensible to apply it at higher temperatures.

 

[Checkthisout]

Question: How will cold impact charging.

I've set myself up under the deck on the concrete. It is there that the work will take place.

I plan to charge outside and am wondering how the cold air (35 degrees) will impact charging?

Just make sure the battery is charged before it gets below freezing.

Uncharged batteries freeze.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

This is the Rolls guide to SoC/SG and freezing for FLA:

 

[Zwy]

If I wanted, I could easily drive to the store and buy two new batteries. This is more about educating myself.

At least you won't be disappointed with the results because it will be a learning experience. Only 3 things belong in a lead acid battery. Lead, water and acid.

DC welder method works best, second place is long EQ charge and discharge to break sulfation off the plates.

I've recovered the batteries in the golf cart I purchased. Owner said it needed new batteries. 4 batteries recovered to over 90% capacity, 2 only 80%. I mothballed the 2 and purchased a pair of new ones from Costco to get by for a few years. Eventually it will be LFP. I used EQ charge voltage and several discharge cycles. I spent about a month and half boiling the water in them, that is why the DC welder method works better, it is much faster.

 

[Hogheavenfarm]

I did try this with two batteries, plus a Trojan 150ah one. No success with any. One of the batteries , a DEka I think, would finally take a charge, but on any load it would drop right off a cliff. On the plus side, I have a years supply of Epsom Salts now.

 

[Zwy]

I haven't begun the process. I'm waiting on my safety gear.

There are many ways to go about reconditioning a battery. And I would be interested in hearing what your procedure is for reconditioning a battery.

Start here: https://diysolarforum.com/threads/refurbish-process-for-forklift-batteries.51436/post-654855

Lastly, if there is something wrong with my process, I'd like to hear your thoughts.

The process I've selected has yielded satisfactory results for others who have tried this. And for $50.00, it was worth a chance.

 

[DXHum]

UPDATE:

So I reconditioned the Duralast Deep Cycle battery I mentioned earlier in the thread. The results weren't good.

After recondition and a full charge, I was able to run a 60 watt lightbulb and a box fan for 50 minutes. Also, now I am saddled with the job of responsibly disposing of the old acid.

Not worth it.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

UPDATE:

So I reconditioned the Duralast Deep Cycle battery I mentioned earlier in the thread. The results weren't good.

After recondition and a full charge, I was able to run a 60 watt lightbulb and a box fan for 50 minutes. Also, now I am saddled with the job of responsibly disposing of the old acid.

Not worth it.

Looks like you got about 8-10Ah out of it. If you were on a farm, broke and had a desperate need to start a tractor, it would probably work. For energy storage, that juice ain't worth the squeeze.

Respect for conducting a meaningful test after the process.

If you have a youtube channel, post something to compete with all the misinformation.

 

[Checkthisout]

UPDATE:

So I reconditioned the Duralast Deep Cycle battery I mentioned earlier in the thread. The results weren't good.

After recondition and a full charge, I was able to run a 60 watt lightbulb and a box fan for 50 minutes. Also, now I am saddled with the job of responsibly disposing of the old acid.

Not worth it.

Thank you for sharing your results. Worth a shot for learning but as you can see, generally not worth it.

Hit the acid with baking soda until bubbles stop then just dump where you don't want weeds.

 

[Zwy]

UPDATE:

So I reconditioned the Duralast Deep Cycle battery I mentioned earlier in the thread. The results weren't good.

After recondition and a full charge, I was able to run a 60 watt lightbulb and a box fan for 50 minutes. Also, now I am saddled with the job of responsibly disposing of the old acid.

Not worth it.

Recharge it a few times, it might break the sulfation off the plates.

 

[Checkthisout]

The plates are so thin in automotive batteries that it's just not worth it.

All the busted off plate and sulfation chunks get dumped back onto the underside of the plates when you turn it upside down to get the acid out.

 

[David93561]

If you’ve lost the receipt on your lead acid batteries and want the core money back, any input on who will give you the most money for them?

 

[Supervstech]

Most scrap yards will give about .02 a pound.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Most scrap yards will give about 2 a pound.

Yeah, I'm not buying this. EVERYWHERE I look shows scrap prices for lead acid batteries on the order of $0.10-0.20/lb.

I'm looking at an 83# battery that I have a hard time believing I could get $160 for when they go for about $400 new.

 

[Checkthisout]

Auto parts stores give about $15.00 a typical car battery.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Auto parts stores give about $15.00 a typical car battery.

That's a typical core charge, but I don't think they'll give you $15 for a used battery.

 

[Checkthisout]

That's a typical core charge, but I don't think they'll give you $15 for a used battery.

For store credit.

My bad for not specifying. I think its $10.00 if you want cashola. Can verify tommorrow.

They pay even more for optimas and old aircraft batteries.

 

[Supervstech]

Yeah, I'm not buying this. EVERYWHERE I look shows scrap prices for lead acid batteries on the order of $0.10-0.20/lb.

I'm looking at an 83# battery that I have a hard time believing I could get $160 for when they go for about $400 new.

Yeah, .02... phone typing sucks. I will edit.

 

[Partimewages]

And I was all ready to load and leave for Carolina!

 

[HighTechLab]

I too once though lead-acid batteries could be saved...but then I switched to Lithium when I learned better.

 

[Supervstech]

And I was all ready to load and leave for Carolina!

Any car broken down gets the window smashed, and the battery removed. Cables get cut, it is very annoying...