Interstate Batteries CHG Faq

CHARGER (CHG) FAQ's SLA & SLI
1. What is the difference between charging in Series and charging in Parallel?
a. Charging in series you add the Voltage of each battery in the connection, but the
capacity does not change. Ex: for 4V 3AH batteries connected in in series = 16V 3AH.
Charging in parallel you add the Capacity of each battery to find the total capacity.
Voltage does not change. Ex: for 4V 3AH batteries connected in parallel = 4V 12AH
2.
How long does it take to charge an SLA battery?
a.
Depending on the state of charge, this time frame will vary. You can approximate how long
your lead acid battery will charge by dividing 2 numbers:
(Battery Capacity) / (Charger Current) = Hours; (Amp Hours) / (Amps) = Hours
Example: If you have a 30Ah battery and a 4 Amp charger, you would divide 30Ah by 4;
(30 Ah) divided by (4 Amps) = 7.5 hours. So the estimated time for a 30 Amp-Hour battery
using a 4 amp charger would be 7.5 hours.
3. Do we test our chargers before adding to our product line?
a. Interstate Batteries® tests all of our chargers in our Tech Services department in Dallas
before adding any charger/product. This will ensure that the chargers we are bringing
on meet all standards and QA testing. If the sample chargers do not pass and meet all
specs, we do not bring them into the product line to be offered.
4. Are our chargers UL rated? What is UL rated?
a. Yes, our chargers are UL rated. The UL is a nationally recognized test lab that assesses
electrical and other items for safety from fires and injury. Building inspectors and most
cities require electrical products to have the UL listed label
5. What is the difference between Manual and Auto chargers?
a. Manual chargers you have to turn off yourself which causes a high risk of forgetting
which will damage the charger and battery. An Automatic charger will shut off when
fully charged.
6. Can I charge batteries with different voltages on a single charger such as a 12V or a 6V charger?
a. You never want to use a charger on a single battery unless the nominal output voltage
of the charger matches the nominal battery voltage. Example: only use a 12V charger
with a 12V battery and a 6V charger with a 6V battery. If you do not, you could damage
the charger, battery and possibly explode
7. Does it tell me if/when my SLA is charged or not?
a. With the SLA batteries being made up of cell, each cell ir approximately 2V each. A fully
charged SLA battery cell is about 2.15V and fully discharged is 1.9V. If the 12V SLA
battery is 12.9V or more it is fully charged; same as below 11.4V is discharged