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duncan h

  • Posts: 1875
leisure battery
« on: April 03, 2016, 11:06:13 pm »
what size or make/model leisure battery do you use.
I use my vans duel system for the last few years. Just got 2 new 85amp 800a cca
My friend has  a new set up. Single small battery and a leisure battery 75 amp 600 a
his electric reel is faster than mine. Always had a sluggish motor. Van batteries discharge quicker than leisure batteries. I am going to add
 a 3rd battery. A leisure  battery. I wandered what you guys use. It doesn't matter for just a pump. They don't use much juice but electric reels do

EandM

  • Posts: 2191
Re: leisure battery
« Reply #1 on: April 04, 2016, 09:46:48 am »
I'm using a single, small 33ah, AGM, Golf Cart battery - runs the pump for around 9-10 hours then lifts out and recharges on a constant voltage power supply in around 5 hours.
I've tried larger capacity batteries in the past but it occurred that as a one man  operator, battery life only has to be more than one day.

Perfect Windows

  • Posts: 4268
Re: leisure battery
« Reply #2 on: April 04, 2016, 10:24:34 am »
what size or make/model leisure battery do you use.
I use my vans duel system for the last few years. Just got 2 new 85amp 800a cca
My friend has  a new set up. Single small battery and a leisure battery 75 amp 600 a
his electric reel is faster than mine. Always had a sluggish motor. Van batteries discharge quicker than leisure batteries. I am going to add
 a 3rd battery. A leisure  battery. I wandered what you guys use. It doesn't matter for just a pump. They don't use much juice but electric reels do

We worked a two man setup with a Halfords 110 or 115Ah leisure battery (can't remember) on a split relay charger for a couple of years.  Never a problem bar two days very local and very compact work when it would just make it through the second day (fortunately followed by our longest drive).  However, it's all individual and it's all based on amp hours.  There's nothing difficult about amp hours.  Draw two amps for an hour and you've drawn two amp hours.  Same as if you draw one amp for two hours.  Or eight amps for a quarter of an hour.  So, your reel might well draw more current but if it's for thirty seconds, you might not be hitting your battery as much as running your pump for hour after hour.

The simplest way to keep track is to keep your controller on its BAT setting so it shows the voltage it's receiving all the time.  Get a feel for what it generally shows after a decent drive and what it normally shows after a clean or after a full day's clean.  If you look at it all the time you'll get a feel for what's happening.

So, one problem I hit recently was that one of my pumps suddenly started drawing much more power than it should.   I noticed it because the voltage at the end of cleans was showing much lower than I normally saw.  One of our franchisees had a problem whereby it wasn't increasing after a drive; we eventually diagnosed a blown charge relay.  It's a really good way to see problems developing.

So the Halfords batteries stand up to it and if you keep an eye out for the voltage fluctuations, you shouldn't have a problem.  Ref the Halford batteries, we buy from a busy shop so the stock should be fresh.  You probably don't want a battery that's been in storage for a year or two.

Vin


slap bash

  • Posts: 1366
Re: leisure battery
« Reply #3 on: April 04, 2016, 11:57:17 am »
I have had a few batteries from  various place off the internet and when you have a problem you get not joy from them. Trying to get you to send the faulty one back then saying because your a window cleaner there is no returns.  So bought the last from Halfords and its been the best so far.  If I do have a problem the are not far from me so can go in and get a new one under guarantee.