batteries?

[scumfrog]

I store my cart in a little tin shed that gets extremely hot in summer with now air flow. Any negative effects on my new batteries? Should I find a different home for it?

[jakesnake27]

Do you charge it in there? If so, you definitely need to get an exhaust fan for air flow...

[LVCJ]

Extremes in temperature, either hot or cold, can have ill effects on batteries.

[scumfrog]

Thanks guys. I would be charging it in there. Looks like I either get some air flow in there or find a different spot to park it.

I also live where it gets extremely cold. Should I pull batteries in winter and store somewhere warm?

[teecro]

Originally Posted by scumfrog

Thanks guys. I would be charging it in there. Looks like I either get some air flow in there or find a different spot to park it.

I also live where it gets extremely cold. Should I pull batteries in winter and store somewhere warm?

Batteries should never be exposed to freezing temps when they are in depleted conditions. If they are kept plugged into a float charger they will tolerate the cold much better....

[joesam]

I have winter-stored my batteries in the cart outside for more than a dozen years - sometimes temps hit 30 below. Cold is actually good for golf cart batteries (vs hot) AS LONG AS they are fully, fully charged or on a battery maintainer. Not a trickle charger....but a real maintainer.

[scumfrog]

Would you suggest maybe once a month plugging your charger in for the day or going the maintaier rout?

[Sergio]

You really need to check the batteries every month, if you loose power at the storage location, it does not matter what kind of charger you are using.

Batteries self discharge at an extremely low rate in cold temperatures, around 2% a week.

Batteries protected from wind chill will freeze at (from Trojan battery site):

-92.0F at 100% charge
-71.3F at 92% charge
-62.0F at 85% charge
-16.0F at 62% charge

You need to eliminate any parasitic load:

If you have a DC-DC converter with a trigger wire, or you don't know what kind of converter you have, disconnect the converter positive power wire from the battery pack.

If You have a Sepex cart, put it on Tow mode.

You need to check the water in the batteries after a full charge and fill them all to the proper level.

This needs to be done ahead of time so you can get at least 3 to 5 discharge/charge cycles in order to properly mix the water with the electrolyte.

Water is lighter than sulfuric acid and it will float until properly mixed.

The club car OBC meets all the criteria from the Battery Council International for battery storage and is by far the best way to keep your batteries in storage.

You should check the batteries voltage while in storage about once a month.

If the pack voltage is below: 49.8v for a 48v system or 37.3v for a 36v system:

Unplug the DC cord from the cart, wait 30 seconds and plug it again.

This will start a new charge cycle and bring the batteries back to full charge. Make sure you see the charging cycle start to verify everything is working.

If the pack voltage is above the values indicated above:

Unplug the DC cord from the cart, wait 5 seconds and plug it again.

Observe that the charger starts, the meter goes to 15amps and then drops to zero. This will ensure the charging system is still working properly.

Make sure you find a safe place to keep the charger in the storage area as it gets hot during operation.

[joesam]

I only started using a maintainer about 2 years ago (I'm getting old & lazy) - prior to that it was the OEM charger with (approx) monthly cycling - and I got HUGE years of service out of my first pack. I also made sure after adding water near the end of the golf season, to run/charge the cart for at least a half dozen rounds before storing; so the electrolyte was well mixed.

As a final step to limit corrosion during cold storage - I also flood the battery compartment with a couple pails of warm water/baking soda/soft brush - and then a number of pails of clean water. Hi-pressure washing in the battery compartment is a bad idea - it can drive water into some electrical components and cause real trouble.