Marine Battery, Know Your Charger

English: 12V 7.0Ah Lead-acid Battery. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Battery Charger Voltage
on August 8th, 2012 at 3:00 pm

Because 12-volt gel batteries cannot tolerate a charge voltage above around 14.1 volts, multi-stage chargers generally limit charging voltage to that level. This makes the charger safe for gel batteries but slower to charge wet-cell batteries. Weekend boaters won’t notice the difference, but for those needing to recharge only wet-cell batteries in the shortest time possible, battery chargers with a higher output voltage–typically around 14.4 volts–are available.

Read more at ODU Fishing News.

For those who do not know the difference on marine batteries, here is something that we didn’t know.

Battery Types: Flooded versus AGM and Gel
On the kinds of batteries we may use on board:
The most common kind of battery in Marine use today is the lead acid battery. Using an electrolyte consisting of sulphuric acid, these cells can store impressive amounts of electrical energy in a relatively small space. This energy is stored in chemical form within lead grids mounted inside the battery. The reliance on lead grids and paste explains the great heft of lead-acid batteries.

The battery universe is further divided along the lines of battery construction. Currently, there are three common lead-acid battery technologies: Flooded, Gel, and AGM.

Flooded or Wet Cells are the most common lead-acid battery-type in use today. They offer the most size and design options and are built for many different uses. In the marine business, they usually are not sealed so the user can replenish any electrolyte the battery vented while charging the battery. Typically, the cells can be access via small ~1/2″ holes in the top casing of the battery.

The plastic container used for flooded cells will have one or more cells molded into it. Each cell will feature a grid of lead plates along with an electrolyte based on sulphuric acid. Since the grid is not supported except at the edges, flooded lead-acid batteries are mechanically the weakest batteries.

Since the container is not sealed, great care has to be taken to ensure that the electrolyte does not come into contact with you (burns!) or seawater (chlorine gas!). The water needs of flooded cells can be reduced via the use of Hydrocaps, which facilitate the recombination of Oxygen and Hydrogen during the charging process.
Gel Cells use a thickening agent like fumed silica to immobilize the electrolyte. Thus, if the battery container cracks or is breached, the cell will continue to function. Furthermore, the thickening agent prevents stratification by preventing the movement of electrolyte.

As Gel cells are sealed and cannot be re-filled with electrolyte, controlling the rate of charge is very important or the battery will be ruined in short order. Furthermore, gel cells use slightly lower charging voltages than flooded cells and thus the set-points for charging equipment have to be adjusted.
Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) batteries are the latest step in the evolution of lead-acid batteries. Instead of using a gel, an AGM uses a fiberglass like separator to hold the electrolyte in place. The physical bond between the separator fibers, the lead plates, and the container make AGMs spill-proof and the most vibration and impact resistant lead-acid batteries available today. Even better, AGMs use almost the same voltage set-points as flooded cells and thus can be used as drop-in replacements for flooded cells.

Basically, an AGM can do anything a Gel-cell can, only better. However, since they are also sealed, charging has to be controlled carefully or they too can be ruined in short order.
Gel and Absorbed Glass Mat batteries are relative newcomers but are rapdily gaining acceptance. There are some very compelling reasons to use VRLAs:

Read more at Vonwentzel.