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SMART CHARGER ALWAYS PLUGGED IN THE HANGAR?


N400YS

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Hi

 

To avoid winter battery issues, I am used to plugging ,after every flight, my battery on a smart charger : http://tecmate.com/products/pro1224v/ 

 

Some of my hangar partners are not fond to leave a charger plugged all the time because they have been told about fire accident with chargers set on fire spontaneously.

 

I thought that was only possible with old fashionned chargers but not with a charger driven by microprocessor?

 

Off course, the best place for the charger is far the aircraft and not inside....

 

What can I answer them about this issue? Did you hear about this kind of accident?

 

What are your habits about charging your battery with a smart charger?

 

Thanks

 

Olivier

 

 

 

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I have my battery minder hardwired to the battery and plugged in all the time when the plane is in the hangar. I unplug it from the battery when flying so it doesn't draw. Been doing it for about 4 years now. I also have a remote GSM switch relay which I wired to control the batteryminder and the engine and cabin preheaters. Both boxes live on the floor of the baggage compartment. Never any issues.

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Go to the battery minder website...

they design for the specific type and brand of battery that you have...

They have engineered out the usual things that cause fires... permanently installed like PTK mentioned above.

Generally speaking, it's as good as it gets without having to stand next to it to make sure it is working...

Best regards,

-a-

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I think the vast majority of battery charger fires are related to Li-ion or Ni-MH batteries found in our portable devices not lead acid type batteries in our aircraft.  

However at a minimum I would only use a charger that was UL approved or used UL specifications for it's materials.  I could not tell if the charger you referenced is UL approved or not.  

I have a friend that lost a airplane due to a hangar fire.  The origin was traced back to the wooden workbench on which his cordless drill battery charger sat.

His misfortune prompted me to relocate the battery chargers for my portable radios and drill to a safer area and not leave them plugged in continuously.  

Bill

 

 

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I have a battery tender as shown here.  

https://www.amazon.com/Deltran-Battery-Tender-021-0128-Charger/dp/B00068XCQU

 

Ive always pulled the battery and plugged in during annual.  I've never had a problem with these for sealed or unsealed batteries.  Is there a functional problem with the battery tender vs the battery mender brand?

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4 hours ago, Raptor05121 said:

I need to get a BatteryMinder. I have a new (<2yr old) Concorde RG-35AXC battery and even flying 5+ hours a week, the first blade is slow to turn over. I think my voltage regulator is shot.

If anything, they are good insurance. Never have a dead battery.

It sounds like your plane sat a long time for maintenance without a trickle charger. If it cranks weak now when fully charged, the battery minder may not help much.  The Battery Minder supposedly can revive such a battery a little bit by ultrasonically desulfating the electrodes, but don't hold out too much hope for this. You can put a cheap volt meter in a 12V outlet in the plane - it probably will read >13V at full charge. If it drops well below 12V instantly upon turning master on and cranking, it is likely on its last legs. Don't ask me how I know :(

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Remember to get a Batteryminder and not a Batterytender as Concorde will not warranty your battery.  There is a little blup on Aircraft Spruce under the Concorde batteries that says use of the Batterytender will void all warranties.

Pritch

 

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Aircraft Spruce had some issues with the Battery Minder description... They didn't seem to have the the full line from batteryminder.

I was looking for the 24041-AA-S5. Older version....

found 244CEC-AA-S5. New for last year 2016... on the battery minder website.  Good for a pair of 24V Concorde sealed batteries....

http://www.batteryminders.com/batteryminder-model-244cec1-aa-s5-24v-4-amp-concorde-aviation-battery-charger-maintainer-desulfator/

Then tried to buy it through Amazonsmile, but didn't show there either...

best regards,

-a-

 

Edited by carusoam
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How often are you flying your airplane, and have you actually had "winter battery issues", or is it just a precaution?

I'm not advocating against battery minders.  They provide real value for airplanes that go long periods of time without cranking and/or live in very extreme environments.  But... I suspect they're sometimes (often?) used when not really warranted.

I'll offer you a data point: we got 8+ years of life from our last Concorde RG-35 battery, having never used a battery minder.  The airplane is hangared in Colorado, where it's not unusual to see subzero temps during the winter (it does stay a little warmer inside the hangar, but still plenty cold).  Our airplane typically flies about once a week, but it's not unusual for it to sit for 2-3 weeks in the winter every once in a while.  During that 8+ year span, we stressed the battery significantly on one occasion, when a failure of the shower-of-sparks system at a remote airport caused us to crank the battery until nearly dead.  Even with all that time, cold, and the crank-until-depleted incident, we never had a problem with the battery itself, either with cranking or during capacity tests.  So it's very clear to me from actual data that we have no need for a battery minder on our airplane.

An airplane that regularly sits for months at a time or has a different battery (or a 24V system with two batteries) is maybe a different story - my anecdote applies only to our particular situation.  But I bring it up because there's a good chance you don't "need" a battery minder if you fly regularly, or even semi-regularly.  You may find it's much easier to just leave your battery minder unplugged and avoid the debate with your hangar mates, vs. trying to convince them the risk is low.  That's especially true with human nature being what it is.  I'd bet it doesn't matter what kind of risk analysis data you present.  My guess is your hangar mates have already decided they don't like the battery minder, and you're probably not going to convince them otherwise.  Just my $0.02.

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I think that really hot weather is harder on a battery than cold. My experience is that batteries die whenever they decide to. The problem is they are so expensive, we will do almost anything to try to squeeze extra life out of them.

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How often are you flying your airplane, and have you actually had "winter battery issues", or is it just a precaution?
I'm not advocating against battery minders.  They provide real value for airplanes that go long periods of time without cranking and/or live in very extreme environments.  But... I suspect they're sometimes (often?) used when not really warranted.
I'll offer you a data point: we got 8+ years of life from our last Concorde RG-35 battery, having never used a battery minder.  The airplane is hangared in Colorado, where it's not unusual to see subzero temps during the winter (it does stay a little warmer inside the hangar, but still plenty cold).  Our airplane typically flies about once a week, but it's not unusual for it to sit for 2-3 weeks in the winter every once in a while.  During that 8+ year span, we stressed the battery significantly on one occasion, when a failure of the shower-of-sparks system at a remote airport caused us to crank the battery until nearly dead.  Even with all that time, cold, and the crank-until-depleted incident, we never had a problem with the battery itself, either with cranking or during capacity tests.  So it's very clear to me from actual data that we have no need for a battery minder on our airplane.
An airplane that regularly sits for months at a time or has a different battery (or a 24V system with two batteries) is maybe a different story - my anecdote applies only to our particular situation.  But I bring it up because there's a good chance you don't "need" a battery minder if you fly regularly, or even semi-regularly.  You may find it's much easier to just leave your battery minder unplugged and avoid the debate with your hangar mates, vs. trying to convince them the risk is low.  That's especially true with human nature being what it is.  I'd bet it doesn't matter what kind of risk analysis data you present.  My guess is your hangar mates have already decided they don't like the battery minder, and you're probably not going to convince them otherwise.  Just my $0.02.


You are totally right Vance! I fly the same as you fly your aircraft !
She stays maximum 3 weeks without flying so as you said: no big deal!

I perhaps focus pointless on this battery issue...

And I definitely will avoid endless discussion with my hangar mates!!

Mooneyspace, wise place :-)

Thanks


Envoyé de mon iPhone en utilisant Tapatalk
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I've always found the first blade to be slower than subsequent. That may just be normal. I have a SkyTech starter so it could be a "feature" of it. I'm outside and with a sealed battery I don't have issues, even if its been 30 days. With the old wet batteries I had more issues. The sealed don't cost more but the FBO's push the wet cells because their storage shelf (before fluid is added) life for them is much longer. The sealed batteries need to be sold fresh.

Despite what the battery manufactures claim, any automotive float chargers works great. Yes, the chemistry of our batteries is different from that of automotive and an automotive charger will shut off slightly too soon to give complete charge in an aircraft battery but after decades of use I challenge anyone to find the minimal difference to have any practical effect. $35 or so on Amazon and you'll charge great.

Main thing is to use a float charger, never leave the battery on a regular charger long term because its on/off cycling eats the fixed number of life cycles off the battery.

-Robert

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The Cherokee Six I purchased 3 weeks ago had a Gill battery and it lasted exactly 2 years. It literally died on my first 2 hour flight back to Roanoke.   I have the Worst Luck!!  Today my mechanic put a Concord in and checked the alternator and starter, both are ok.  Looking to fly it soon.  

Edited by Wakeup
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I was in an Archer partnership prior to owning the J and we looked into a batteryminder for the sealed Concorde. I spoke with a knowledgable representative  at Concorde and they recommended a specific batteryminder charger for the type of battery that we had. As I recall the reasoning was that if you overcharge a sealed battery and some of the electrolyte is leaked off it cannot be replaced hence capacity will be reduced. On the flip side a sealed battery can be run down to an almost depleted state but needs recharging quickly or capacity will also be reduced if left in this condition.  My J came with a Gill but I will buy a sealed Concorde when this one gives it up.  This webinar from EAA pretty much covers it.

http://www.eaavideo.org/video.aspx?v=1496080390001

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On 1/17/2017 at 0:21 AM, Pritch said:

Remember to get a Batteryminder and not a Batterytender as Concorde will not warranty your battery.  There is a little blup on Aircraft Spruce under the Concorde batteries that says use of the Batterytender will void all warranties.

Pritch

 

Who is using a Battery Tender with their Concord batteries?  What's the difference between the two?  I don't want to ruin my new battery.  Thanks.  Troy 

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6 hours ago, Wakeup said:

Who is using a Battery Tender with their Concord batteries?  What's the difference between the two?  I don't want to ruin my new battery.  Thanks.  Troy 

I have two Concordes in my M20M and one Batteryminder connected to both of them with a Batteryminder 210-AY splitter. The ones for the Concorde end in an "S-5" part number.

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