Good info Spruce but surely that doesn't mean you can only recharge it 80 times?
I bought one of these Halfords batteries but I must have charged it more than 80 times.
I charge mine every night without fail and I've had it several months now.
Or does it mean you can completely discharge it 80 times?
Wikipedia says;
A charge cycle is the process of charging a rechargeable battery and discharging it as required into a load. The term is typically used to specify a battery's expected life, as the number of charge cycles affects life more than the mere passage of time. Discharging the battery fully before recharging may be called "deep discharge"; partially discharging then recharging may be called "shallow discharge".
In general, number of cycles for a rechargeable battery indicates how many times it can undergo the process of complete charging and discharging until failure or it starting to lose capacity.
If you only use 25% of your batteries capacity then you can expect to get more cycles than 80.
However, if batteries use the same test standard, then there is a big difference between 80 and 200 cycles.
I mentioned this as there are a few cleaners who have had longevity issues with Halfords batteries. This new battery classification is new as this is the first time I've seen it on their website. I was in Halfords the other day and noticed that their batteries were displayed in racks under 3 classes. I don't go into Halfords often but that captured my attention.
The need for a standard has arisen because manufacturers have previously been known to manipulate the number of discharge cycles by testing them after only discharging the battery by a small percentage, say 10 amps from a 115 amp battery. They then stipulate their testing procedures in the small print that buyers never read. Higher discharge charge cycles make their battery look better than it actually is. (Like fuel consumption figures for new cars!)
At one time we used to ignore these charging cycles when looking for batteries as they were deceiving. A good test was comparing weights. Heavier leisure batteries were seen as better quality as they had more lead in them.
Now I'm not saying that Numax's figures of 500 cycles are not manipulated. I can't recall seeing those cycles that high before tbh. But our experience is that every Numax battery we have had has given superb service.
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