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Old 09-01-2012, 11:37 AM   #1
flynhigher
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Default Gel Battery

I was going to buy new batteries for the cart today.

After charging the cart runs fine until going uphill. The it acts as though the batteries are discharged.

Batteries are 3 years old. I let the water get below the plates twice this year and suspect that I may have damaged them.

I live rurally and was headed to our SAMs club for batteries. They say they have maintenance free gel ones! I can't seem to find mention of these anywhere on this site. Is this too good to be true?

I realize they are expensive but I travel a lot and the maintenance obviously gets away from me.

Cart is a 36v, run tow switch, reverse is switch on dash. Replaced wires a year ago, 2 gauge. I cleaned them again just to be sure. Key off, forward/reverse switch centered, lights off, while reconnecting cable I get a spark? Why is that?

Could I have a different issue other than batteries?

Thanks in advance,
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Old 09-01-2012, 05:56 PM   #2
chloe
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Default Re: Gel Battery

http://www.batterystuff.com/kb/artic...ry-basics.html

I found this to be very infomative. Gel batteries are ok, but if you are going to spend the extra money, go with the AGM, (glass mat) batteries. As you can see, this is where most of the development has been recently and appears to be the direction things will continue to go in.
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Old 09-01-2012, 07:26 PM   #3
flynhigher
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Default Re: Gel Battery

Denny,

Thanks for the information. Sitting there looking at the batterries they had the same warranty and gel was double the price. (literally double). I decided that the lead acid has been fine for all these years I would go with again this time and see if the prices come down a few years from now!

Thanks again,

Mike
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Old 09-01-2012, 09:36 PM   #4
simple man
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Default Re: Gel Battery

Quote:
Originally Posted by flynhigher View Post
I was going to buy new batteries for the cart today.

After charging the cart runs fine until going uphill. The it acts as though the batteries are discharged.

Batteries are 3 years old. I let the water get below the plates twice this year and suspect that I may have damaged them.

I live rurally and was headed to our SAMs club for batteries. They say they have maintenance free gel ones! I can't seem to find mention of these anywhere on this site. Is this too good to be true?

I realize they are expensive but I travel a lot and the maintenance obviously gets away from me.

Cart is a 36v, run tow switch, reverse is switch on dash. Replaced wires a year ago, 2 gauge. I cleaned them again just to be sure. Key off, forward/reverse switch centered, lights off, while reconnecting cable I get a spark? Why is that?

Could I have a different issue other than batteries?

Thanks in advance,
Always put the " run-tow " switch in " tow " before disconnecting and reconnecting any electrical cables! This helps prevent damage to the speed controller.
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Old 09-02-2012, 04:09 AM   #5
JohnnieB
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Default Re: Gel Battery

Letting the plates get exposed contributed to their demise, but I suspect there were other contributing factors.
Perhaps things like letting them sit in a partially discharged state for days at a time.

The trick is to keep them charged as fully as possible, or practical.
Not only does that reduce the rate plate sulfation occurs, the batteries don't get as deeply discharged, so they don't gas as much while charging and use less water.

When you get you new batteries, be sure to charge them fully before first use. No matter what the dealer says, they are not fully charged when you get them.

Then, you have to break them in properly to get maximum storage capacity. New batteries only have about 75% capacity until they have been "Matured".
Here is how to do it: http://www.cartsunlimited.net/Batter...n_Methods.html
While on the site, read everything with the word "Battery" in title, lots of good info.

Sounds like you've got a PDS cart, so as simple man said, be sure to flip Run/Tow switch to Tow before doing any electrical work on it.

If the battery pack has been disconnected for more than a few minutes, you will get some sparking when you reconnect it, even when the switch is in Tow.
That is because the filter capacitors in the controller bleed off their charge when the battery is disconnected.
Normally, their charge is maintained via the "Precharge Resistor" that is across the solenoid contacts.
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Old 09-02-2012, 11:38 PM   #6
flynhigher
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Default Re: Gel Battery

Simple Man!

Thanks, I will definately do this next time.
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Old 09-02-2012, 11:49 PM   #7
flynhigher
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Default Re: Gel Battery

A capacitor makes perfect since for this.

And the link has great information. Thx

I would like to tell you that the cart gets charged every single night but I suspect that you are correct about the partial charge for days. I travel a lot and the cart is used mostly by my children on our small farm. I have told them a thousand times to charge the cart every time they put it back in the garage. My son went with me to buy the batteries and I believe now that he may better understand the value of plugging it back in when he is finished, $530 worth of value. I must say after paying that for batteries, I learned something too.
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Old 09-03-2012, 04:28 AM   #8
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Default Re: Gel Battery

A new set of batteries takes a bite out of most people's budget.

Here's a way to take some of the sting out next time.
Service the batteries monthly.
Check water level. (Use distilled water only. Add water to fully charged batteries only. Do not overfill.)
Clean battery tops with baking soda solution and rinse thoroughly.
Clean connections as needed and tighten. (Max torque on battery terminal is 10 ft/lb.)
Apply corrosion inhibitor to battery terminal connections.
Put a $10.00 bill in a Mason Jar.

That way the batteries will last a long time and you'll have the money for a new set when they give up the ghost.
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