Recharging a run down leisure battery

Sailingsaves said:
If at rest it is 12.5 Volts, it is suffering damage.
Click to expand...

Can I ask what you mean by that? By 'rested' we mean left without charge or discharge, ideally for 24 hours, in order to measure the rested voltage. This was suggested because it's the simplest way which might be available to the OP of getting a reasonably meaningful idea of a sealed battery's state of charge. Or do you mean that if it's showing a rested 12.5V when it should be fully charged, it is damaged, which migth well be the case?

Of course, if you leave a battery showing 12.5V (i.e about 20% dischaged) to 'rest' for three months, it will suffer some self-discharge and maybe some slight erosion of its capacity, but it certainly shouldn't wreck a healthy battery.

Sailingsaves said:
12.1 volts you are looking at a flat battery.
Click to expand...
Yes, you'd be wise to consider a battery as having nothing more to give at 12.1V, and it might struggle to start an engine (but not the OP's). But it would by no means be flat.
 
Plevier said:
I try to avoid going head on with other people's ideas but I'm afraid that is just wrong (and does not remotely resemble what a CTek charger would apply to it).
Assuming this is a flooded battery, including "sealed maintenace free" but not SLA or AGM, ideally you would want to put this on charge at 14.4V with about a 10A current limit for probably about 12 hours then reduce it to 14V or 13.8V depending on settings available for another 24 hours minimum (no maximum).
If it's really really flat - not the case if it will still light bulbs visibly - you could need a lot more voltage to get it started. In tests in the lab in the battery company I worked for we used up to 18V occasionally with varying degrees of success.
The 12 hrs is approximate, would need a bit of judgement, but you want to get to where the current has dropped well down and the battery is fizzing nicely. Don't worry it takes some hours to lose significant water. Certainly it will benefit from at least 8 hours.
This is more vigorous than a normal charge.
13V will achieve nothing, it's not even a maintenance level.
The longer you leave it discharged, the more it will deteriorate.
Click to expand...

Do what he says.

He really knows his batteries better than I do.

But you still haven't told us the type of battery or manufacturer
 
Sailingsaves said:
Do what he says.

He really knows his batteries better than I do.

But you still haven't told us the type of battery or manufacturer
Click to expand...

apologies, i thought i had posted a link, but hadn't.
its this one http://www.halfords.com/camping-leisure/caravan-motorhomes/electrical-power/halfords-leisure-battery-115-ah

says... Halfords Leisure Battery 115 Ah

The Halfords Leisure Battery 115 Ah is made from a tough construction and comes fully charged and ready to fit. It is ideal to use in your caravan, motorhome or boat.
Halfords Leisure Battery 115 Ah Extra Info

Comes fully charged and ready to fit
Suitable for use in boats, motorhomes and caravans
Tough construction deep cycle battery
Startup power: 750 amps
AH value: 115
Reserve capacity : 200
Bench charge: 11.0 amps
26.40kg approximate weight
Dimensions: 346mm x 172mm x 239mm (LxDxH)
2 year guarantee

4.7/5 in 21 pages of reviews, 08% of buyers would recommend it. Its halfords own website though so negative reviews could be quietly deleted :)
 
macd said:
Can I ask what you mean by that? By 'rested' we mean left without charge or discharge, ideally for 24 hours, in order to measure the rested voltage. This was suggested because it's the simplest way which might be available to the OP of getting a reasonably meaningful idea of a sealed battery's state of charge. Or do you mean that if it's showing a rested 12.5V when it should be fully charged, it is damaged, which migth well be the case?

Of course, if you leave a battery showing 12.5V (i.e about 20% dischaged) to 'rest' for three months, it will suffer some self-discharge and maybe some slight erosion of its capacity, but it certainly shouldn't wreck a healthy battery.


Yes, you'd be wise to consider a battery as having nothing more to give at 12.1V, and it might struggle to start an engine (but not the OP's). But it would by no means be flat.
Click to expand...

Yes, when I said "rested" I too meant 24 hours of doing nothing.
I have been told by the manufacturers of my leisure battery - a Camden Boss sealed gel battery - not to discharge it below 12.5 Volts.

I said to the chap (from Camden Boss) on the 'phone: "Do what?! This was advertised as a deep cycle leisure battery". He still said that if I wanted the battery to last, do as he said. It has lasted well, it was near perfect after 5 years or so until I foolishly left it powering a tiny fan for 2 weeks and was not able to get back to it. (I found it at about 8 Volts).

It is still good (i.e. it will rest at 12.8 volts for a week and then drop to 12.7 volts for a month if I do nothing to it), but it is not as near perfect before I allowed it to do that.

We still don't know what battery the OP has (unless I've missed it - quite possible).

Some batteries are classed as half discharged at 12.5Volts and some half discharged at much lower volts.

Some are classed as flat at 12.1 volts and some not until 11.something volts.

I must say I did start off by thinking the battery was a good one when I read 110Amp hours, but at £80-odd quid, it may not be.

A Banner 120Amphour leisure battery costs £124ish and was recommended by the camping and caravan article as a good, well made battery capable of many cycles and deep discharge.

Plevier really knows his battery stuff. I am jack of all trades master of none and forget stuff just as quickly as I learn it as I have my tiny brain working on so many different things (and my brain gets older and slower every day).

I now have a battery cut off thingy set to cut off supply at 12.5 volts, and a homemade solar controller that stops charge getting to the Camden Boss at 13.8 Volts, but kicks in again if it detects the voltage drops to 12.5 volts and 2 watt meters; one for solar watts in and one for wattage out of battery.
 
Last edited:
Thanks, steve. The main information needed was that it's flooded and sealed, which I'd assumed from your mention of it in another thread.
I wouldn't put too much weight on the reviews: I doubt many buyers are asking as much from it as you do. I suspect the 'deep cycle' claim is tantamount to fraud.
 
VicS said:
Post #1 begins with the words "Brand new 115ahr leisure battery from halfords.........."
Click to expand...

I was reading a post on here the other day (possibly by Plevier who really knows his batteries) that stated many batteries are simply re-badged.

I think...

It could have been something else that was being discussed as re-badging. (It wasn't outboards, even I wouldn't forget that many of them are the same engine under a different sticker).

"Type of battery" to me means wet? gel? AGM? calcium plate thingy ones. Ot a nice 5mm lead plate with mesh inbetween to stop warping and plates suspended above case bottom so crud doesn't short a cell.
 
steve yates said:
apologies, i thought i had posted a link, but hadn't.
its this one http://www.halfords.com/camping-lei...ctrical-power/halfords-leisure-battery-115-ah

says... Halfords Leisure Battery 115 Ah

The Halfords Leisure Battery 115 Ah is made from a tough construction and comes fully charged and ready to fit. It is ideal to use in your caravan, motorhome or boat.
Halfords Leisure Battery 115 Ah Extra Info

Comes fully charged and ready to fit
Suitable for use in boats, motorhomes and caravans
Tough construction deep cycle battery
Startup power: 750 amps
AH value: 115
Reserve capacity : 200
Bench charge: 11.0 amps
26.40kg approximate weight
Dimensions: 346mm x 172mm x 239mm (LxDxH)
2 year guarantee

4.7/5 in 21 pages of reviews, 08% of buyers would recommend it. Its halfords own website though so negative reviews could be quietly deleted :)
Click to expand...

Halfords batteries have at different times been Yuasa and Varta, both good makes, but probably others too. I don't know whose they are currently and can't tell from that photo/description. It looks a pretty standard leisure battery, calling it deep cycle is preposterous but as there is no legal definition you can't do them (or Tayna, or Batt Mega, or ABS, or Alpha etc etc) for it.
It's pretty light in weight for the claimed numbers.

You might be able to lever out the top covers if necessary to top it up but be careful, they might be heat sealed not just popped in.
 
Sailingsaves said:
Yes, when I said "rested" I too meant 24 hours of doing nothing.
I have been told by the manufacturers of my leisure battery - a Camden Boss sealed gel battery - not to discharge it below 12.5 Volts.

I said to the chap (from Camden Boss) on the 'phone: "Do what?! This was advertised as a deep cycle leisure battery". He still said that if I wanted the battery to last, do as he said. It has lasted well, it was near perfect after 5 years or so until I foolishly left it powering a tiny fan for 2 weeks and was not able to get back to it. (I found it at about 8 Volts).
Click to expand...

I've never heard of Camden Boss but looking at their website they seem OK. 12 years is a very ambitious claim though. I can't tell who makes them. 12.5V won't let you take much out of it!
Note that interpolating from their data sheet, if they made a 115Ah model, it would weigh about 35kg. The Halfords one is 26.5kg. That tells you something. The amount of lead dominates the weight, the case and electrolyte are trivial.
 
Plevier said:
I've never heard of Camden Boss but looking at their website they seem OK. 12 years is a very ambitious claim though. I can't tell who makes them. 12.5V won't let you take much out of it!
Note that interpolating from their data sheet, if they made a 115Ah model, it would weigh about 35kg. The Halfords one is 26.5kg. That tells you something. The amount of lead dominates the weight, the case and electrolyte are trivial.
Click to expand...

Yep, it is a good battery with decent thickness plates hopefully.

Luckily I only need it to power things that I make (mostly LED things) and that only draw small amounts of current for a long time (but hardly ever for so long that 12.5 RESTING voltage is reached). Now I have my charging system and anti-depletion system all rigged up I hope to get it to last a lot longer than 12 years too.
 
Let us know what happened if you can; just out of interest.
Found this video interesting on 'cracking 'the sulphation off of batteries.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6x-JfckAt20

I just bought one of these second hand:
Wet cell and vented, but max charge 13.8 Volts (which is simple to do with a controller)
http://www.bannerbatterien.com/backend/datasheets/EN/010957510101.pdf
Hoping the battery lives up to its reputation. Was sold to me second hand, but as having seen no use; looks brand new - however had to top up levels when arrived, so will have to wait and see if I bought a bargain or not.
 
Last edited:
I've not flattened a leisure battery yet, but being a fair weather rider several motor bike ones would nog recover after going flat.

I tried those trickle chargers from ALDI and LIDLE which are fine if battery is not totally flat, recently my son moved house and parked some of his gear at mine, he had a Hafotds charger and i though well why not try it?

It restored all but 2 batteries from a pile of 9 destined for the tip, none had seen a charger for over 3 years, and the 2 were over 15 years old, left by previous house iwners son.

With cost of decent leisure batts i'd say that charger is wel worth its money, if current battery won't restore you will at least be ready next time to save that battery.

You might be lucky, and if not its always handy for the car :).

Alan
 
Haven't been able to get away yet, leaving tonight, via halfords, will get to plockton tue aft and spend the afternoon replacing battery and putting in new solar panel.
I have a small weather window and need to get moving to get south of ardnamurchan, so plan is to put in a new smaller battery, as the simplest and quickest solution for now. and get the halfords charger and try and recover the bigger one when I get back. As you say, if no joy at least I have it for the car.
 
Happy Dayz said:
It restored all but 2 batteries from a pile of 9 destined for the tip, none had seen a charger for over 3 years, and the 2 were over 15 years old, left by previous house iwners son.
Click to expand...

That's pretty remarkable. Have you verified with a discharge test at a sensible rate like C/10 or C/20 that those batteries are actually giving a significant proportion of their nominal capacity in Ah, not just a good OCV? (The pass mark in an industrial situation is normally 80%, and I suggest you would want to get at least 60% to use them with any confidence.)
 
Not so scientificall as your example, I settled for starting my 600cc Honda Silver wing (head light comes on with ignition), and Yamaha XVS 1100A compared to total zilch, and still going.

I know have the 7 recovered and 2 i bought as replacements to rotate, as i don't want to to own 9 chargers.

If i was pushed or so inclined i could use my £120 ACT Gold battery tester which is made for the job, but hey they work.

Trustme pushing either of those bikes is no easy job, i would not risk a battery i don't trust.

Alan
 
You have to bear in mind that starting takes of the order of 1Ah and needs only a superficial layer of active material on the plates.
It's still a good result if they had been abandoned for 3 years, but try it after leaving the headlight on for a while first.
As a first hand true example, a while back my wife's car's battery seemed fine, started every time. Then I ran a little compressor - about 10A - from it for say 10 minutes to blow up the tires. Immediately after that it wouldn't start until it had had 10 mins to recover. As she was waiting to go out I wasn't very popular! Had to order a new battery same day.
This thread is about restoring leisure batteries for domestic loads where you want some real capacity.
 
Plevier said:
That's pretty remarkable. Have you verified with a discharge test at a sensible rate like C/10 or C/20 that those batteries are actually giving a significant proportion of their nominal capacity in Ah, not just a good OCV? (The pass mark in an industrial situation is normally 80%, and I suggest you would want to get at least 60% to use them with any confidence.)
Click to expand...

I used the desulphation 'battery restorer' function on two shot 8 Yr old 140Ah Varta leisure batteries. They were fine for starting and each of the batteries was able to deliver about 30Ah (non scientific test/just daily use according to ammeter) before hitting 11.5V. Fine for a few days in the summer, but functionally shot as you imply.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top