life expectancy of sealed batteries [RE-wrenches]

Jeff Yago jryago at netscape.com
Mon Jan 7 05:11:46 PST 2008



All of the vetted systems experienced battery failure in 4 to 5 
years. All of the sealed systems are using the original batteries.

William Miller
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Just wondering if the failed vented battery systems you describe failed due to lack of proper watering by homeowners which was not an issue for the Gel batteries you are comparing?  

Not sure what batteries you were using but we have many off-grid systems with L-16 batteries that easily lasted 8 years or longer. Most of these had battery "rooms" and it was easy for the homeowner to check and water the batteries every few months. The batteries that lasted less than 8 years were installed in battery boxes and had a very high amount of corrosion due to the higher gas concentrations in a confined box and it was harder for homeowner to service.   We found T-105 batteries usually made it 4 years in off-grid applications.

While I too would like to have a better way to compare realistic battery life, I think we need to also consider if the homeowner provided regular watering, if there was high corrosion on terminals and cables, and if the batteries were on grid or off-grid when trying to compare battery life from one type to another.

As for sealed batteries, I have found that many grid-tie backup power systems are programmed so the batteries almost never get deep cycled during their lifetime and rarely provide backup power for any length of time.  Many of these systems also include a generator, so when the power goes out, the generator is usually started fairly quickly and the batteries never really get loaded. I may be wrong, but we never consider sealed batteries in any off-grid system which gets heavy cycling each day, unless the system is at a "un-manned" location and never receives any maintenance.

Comments?


Jeff Yago



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