Quote:
Originally Posted by dale@thecoys.net
Fact: Not charging the LiIon batteries for a long time (months) is not good, because the batteries may discharge below the point where they can be recharged by the system
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If the batteries are left on the Seg, that's certainly true. If you remove them from the machine so they have no load on them, they self discharge very slowly - I have read that it may be as little as 3 to 5% per month, but I don't know that for a fact
Hard to second guess Macman's charging protocol - 11 years from a pair of Seg batteries is quite good, so he's doing something right
I have three older spare batteries (one 2006, one 2007 and one 2008) which are all in good shape and give around 20 miles of range - Judged by half full indications on the InfoKey after about a 10 mile glide. I carry one or two of them with us every time we leave home on a trip where we will use the Segs - Would hate to have an adventure ruined by a bad battery and not having a spare
I check them with a voltmeter periodically and have been putting them on a Seg and charging them every 4 or 5 months . . . . gradually extending the interval and never letting the measured voltage get below 75. So far, it's never gone below 76.5
I bought newer batteries when I found good deals on them and currently have three 2014's and one 2013 on the Segs which are used fairly regularly
We have two Lithium powered cars and the manufacturer recommends a 30% state of charge for long term storage and we actually stored one of them for a year that way. The only problem we found was with the 12 volt battery. The onboard computer puts a load on it and if don't either disconnect it or put a trickle charger on it, it will go dead in a few months
I do realize the battery chemistry is different between the Segs and the cars, so what's best for one may not be best for the other
It will be interesting to find out what cures Macman's current problem. I've often wondered what the 'end' looks like for well cared for Seg batteries, especially because I own a few older examples
Don