Flanagan Transformers - Choosing the right battery charger

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Choosing the right battery charger

Selecting a battery charger with appropriate output current

It is important to select a battery charger with a current output suited to the battery you will be charging.

As a general rule to follow the equation below should be used as a guide to determine charge current required. This applies to both sealed and unsealed lead acid batteries:-

Charge current = Capacity of battery (Ah) / 10

Use the formula (Ah) divided by 10 to calculate the required charge rate for a SLA battery, this is based on a charge time of 14 hours.

The maximum charge rate for a SLA battery should be no more than (Ah)/5.

Sealed lead acid batteries should not be discharged below 11V, as this can lead to permanent damage.

The Ah or 'Ampere Hour' rating should be stated on the battery.

Charging current for standard car batteries

The charge current for a standard car battery (flooded type) should be around 5-20 Amps depending on the size. Car batteries can generally tolerate a high charging rate than SLA batteries.

Using a charger with a lower capacity than is required will not damage a battery, it will however take longer to charge.

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