Finishing voltage seems low for 48 volt charger

bigstik40

I'm watching a Yamaha golf cart for a friend and charging his batteries (48 volt) every 3-4 weeks. I just performed the first charging for him and was surprised that his charger shut off after less than 10 min. of charging. I did check the terminal voltage before charging and got exactly 50 volts which indicated 81 % or so charged. I reinitiated charging a few times and got the same but shorter results.

I was not satisfied with trusting his charger, so I borrowed another charger and got the same results with that one. Still not satisfied, I checked the pack voltage at the time the charger kicked off and measured 56 volts . I got exactly the same result with the borrowed charger.

With further research, I see that the finishing voltage for deep cycle wet cells could be in the range of 59-61 volts. Also, with research, I see that 56 volts could be the finishing voltage for gel cells. His batteries are 8 volt Powerwise wet cell batteries and are under 2 years old.

I am not familiar with the Yamaha charger (I have EZGO ), so was wondering if anyone here could shed any light on why such a low finishing voltage for the Yamaha charger. FWIW: I think his batteries are being undercharged.

Thanks for any help - RAY

BGW

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Volt_Ampere

You will never see voltages that high with FLA batteries in a golf cart. Around 51V or so is max for a 48V pack.

bigstik40

Yes, I agree with that, but I'm asking about voltages during the actual charging process and the voltage at which the charger kicks off and terminates charging. RAY

Golf cart guy

ON Charge voltage near the end of the charge cycle, with a good set of batteries would be in the 61-65 volt range. Standing voltage will give you some idea if the batteries are charged but may not give the real story. You can achieve that 50-52 volt resting voltage, but not have a fully charged battery pack.
Chargers that don't put out a lot of amps have had issues of not being able to charge a deep cycle battery to full capacity, but youll still see that 50-52 volt resting voltage.

bigstik40

Thanks guys, for the inputs to my question. I guess I will just continue to periodically charge (undercharge) his batteries and advise him of a potential charger problem when he returns.

Too bad the Golf Car manufacturers can't provide a better OEM charger to help customers protect their very sizeable investment in batteries.

Thanks again - RAY