Charging and Battery Life

kgreen_98

I was just wondering if the 120 connection when connected, does it charge the 12v battery? And how long will the battery last during a full charge?

Thanks

Kenny

rkj__

Unless you have disconnected the battery via a cutoff switch, or removing the inline fuse, plugging into 120V AC will charge the battery.

How long the battery lasts depends on how it is used.  Stock sized batteries provide around 75-80 amp hours.  You can discharge about 50% of that without doing damage to the battery.  To understand how long you can run certain devices, you need to know their draw.  This chart is helpful.

Frost772

Question. I'm in S FL awaiting Irma (on the east coast, we got lucky), however we still expect to loose power. My battery reads 12.3. Is that fully charged. I want to make sure I can listen to the radio and charge phones, when needed. 

Verna

No. Your battery should be fully charged at around 12.8. Depending on the size of your battery, 12.8 should charge your small accessories for two or three days. If you can, plug your 30 amp T@B power cord into an adapter that will fit into a household outlet and use this to charge your battery through the onboard converter. Charge for as long as you are safe from the storm. Then disconnect the power cord to keep power surges from going into the T@B's converter. After a couple of hours, hopefully your battery will settle to around 12.8.   I keep three or four of those battery packs that transfer their charge to your accesssories. This would keep you in power for s couple of additional days. Good luck, and stay safe. 

Verna

Please do not allow your batter to go below 12.1, as that is the 50% mark. Going any lower can permanently damage your battery.  This T@B owner needs to quickly take action today before Irma gets there tomorrow. 

ColoradoJon

Well... going below 50% doesn't technically cause permanent damage, it just shortens battery life.  Using your battery shortens battery life.  You just get more bang for your buck if you don't discharge below 50%.

Below 20%... now that can cause permanent battery damage and premature failure!

RedDoorGals

We purchased a used 2014 320CS-S clamshell with built-in solar panels and two in-sequence 12V batteries.  How can I test the batteries to see if they are in good condition yet? They charge, in the full sun, to 12.6, even 12.8; but I have no comparison to know if they are holding charge for a normal or sub-normal duration.  Do I use a voltmeter? (we did check the water levels and they were fractions of an inch below full; so we filled them both with distilled water). Thanks all

ScottG

@RedDoorGals, battery health usually declines quite slowly under normal use. Therefore, specifically defining "good condition" can be difficult.

A voltmeter--preferably one you can attach directly to the battery--is a must. Ideally, the voltage should be measured when the battery is disconnected, as a battery under load will show a deceptively reduced voltage.

I find that a fully charged, disconnected battery in decent condition will hold a voltage >12.6V for several weeks. As it's health declines, it's ability to hold that charge is reduced. Because of the variables involved, I would not necessarily assume your solar panel is always charging your battery fully. A good stand-alone smart charger might also be a good investment.

Similarly, a ailing battery will lose it's charge under load even more quickly. There are machines to test this but most of us don't have a reliable one kicking around the garage.

Eventually, you just develop a sense of what is right and what is not. There's expensive gadgetry you can buy to monitor every aspect of your power use. If you like that sort of thing and really need to have such detailed info, there are other threads here you can peruse.

These are just my anecdotal reports based on a moderate level of experience with automotive and deep-cycle batteries of different types. Others may have additional insights to offer!