<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" ><tr><td valign="top" style="font: inherit;"><DIV>All batteries have a maximum charge rate and that rate decreases as the batteries get charged. Rapid charging shows up as swelling of the positive plate. Also the rapid charging will cause the plates both to flake off material and this falls to the bottom of the case eventually shorting the plates For good life the battery should not be charged any faster than C/10 or for a T105 about 20 amps. also rapid charging causes a lot of heat and again can effect cases and plates. The rapid charging at the end of cycle is hard on plates. After damage has started on a set of plates it seem to go down hill rapidly. Note that rapid discharge does not have the same effect. But solar batteries can not be charged rapidly and have good life. The depth of discharge also effects battery life, </DIV>
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<DIV>Thes batteries should have a charge controller, </DIV>
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<DIV>I have a hermit that has lived on 8 Trojan T105s for over 5 years and when I tested them last summer they were still very capable. They had about 70% of what they had when new. <BR><BR>--- On <B>Fri, 10/22/10, Kirk <SPAN>Herander</SPAN>, VSE <I><kirk@vtsolar.com></I></B> wrote:<BR></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="BORDER-LEFT: rgb(16,16,255) 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px"><BR>From: Kirk Herander, VSE <kirk@vtsolar.com><BR>Subject: [RE-wrenches] Battery cell shorting<BR>To: "'RE-wrenches'" <re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org><BR>Date: Friday, October 22, 2010, 2:39 PM<BR><BR>
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<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt">Hello,</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
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<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt">I have an off-grid battery / generator / SW4024 system which has destroyed -3- sets of batteries in the last five years. By destroyed I mean multiple batteries having shorted cells, with electrolyte literally steaming out of them and bulging badly. The last two sets were Rolls T12-250\u2019s. The first set was Trojan T105\u2019s. This system has no solar, and I would not be surprised if the generator ran 10-12 hours a day charging the batteries, for the residents don\u2019t believe in energy efficiency. I could see the batteries cycling to the point of being useless after a couple years, but the scary thing is the condition I\u2019ve witnessed multiple times now. Any ideas as to why this has happened repeatedly across different brands of batteries? Thanks.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt"> </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt">Kirk Herander</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt">Vermont</SPAN></FONT><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt"> Solar Engineering</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt">802.863.1202</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt">NABCEP(tm) Certified Solar Installer</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt">NYSERDA-eligible Installer</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=yiv525035206MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt">VT Solar Incentive Program Partner</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
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