Just like how you can’t go without water, neither can your battery. Watering your lead acid battery is an essential maintenance step that can’t be skipped. It keeps your battery safe for use and in optimal condition. Not watering your lead acid battery at the right time can lead to serious damage, but knowing when is the right time to water your battery isn’t always easy.
- Why battery need to be watered?
Lead acid batteries consist of flat lead plates immersed in a pool of electrolyte. The electrolyte consists of water and sulfuric acid. The size of the battery plates and amount of electrolyte determines the amount of charge lead acid batteries can store or how many hours of use. Water is key part of how a lead battery functions.
During the recharging process as electricity flows through the water portion of the electrolyte, water is converted into its original elements, hydrogen and oxygen. These gasses are very flammable and the reason your RV or marine batteries must be vented outside. Gassing causes water loss, which is why lead acid batteries need to have water added periodically. Low maintenance batteries like AGM batteries, are the exception because they have the ability to compensate for water loss.( Automatic battery watering Technologies)
Having the proper level of forklift battery water is an important piece of your maintenance routine for your electric lift truck. Forklifts that use a lithium ion battery require the appropriate level of water for safe and effective charging. Too little water and you risk overheating the battery. Too much water and you risk overflow during the charge and acid dilution.
2.Do forklift batteries need distilled water?
One of the most frequent questions we hear regarding batteries is, “What kind of water do you put in a battery?” Water that is free from impurities and measuring between a 5 and 7 on the PH scale is preferred. Forklift battery water should always be clean and pure. Using water containing even small amounts of impurities, such as regular tap water, can lead to battery damage from the chemical and mineral content in the water.
Water that is dirty or filled with particulates can cause electrolyte imbalances and damage the battery. Distilled water isn’t usually needed so long as pure, clean water is used.(Battery Watering Gun)
3.Can you use tap water in a forklift battery?
If the supplement is ordinary water, the impurities contained in it will be deposited on the electrode, resulting in insufficient charging or even inability to charge, so distilled water must be used.
Adding water to repair, you must add deionized water or purified water to add water, do not add tap water, it will cause a big problem of battery self-discharge.
4.When should you top off the water in a forklift battery?
Never top off the water in the battery before the charge. The battery needs the extra space to compensate for fluid expansion when it’s charging. Check and make sure the water level in your battery is high enough to cover the lead plates inside the cells and fill to that level if necessary. But if you top off the water before charging, overflow can potentially happen. When a battery overflows, it loses some of the acid inside, and the life of the battery can be significantly shortened.
Topping off the battery after charging will help keep the battery protected as the water level decreases. This will help prevent damage to the battery until the next time the water is checked.