If you are thinking about purchasing a gel battery for your installations or for your machinery, you have surely asked yourself the following question: How to choose the right gel battery?
Do not worry, it is a fairly common question when we are faced with the decision to choose the best battery that can meet our needs, but with the information we are going to provide in this article, you will not have problems to choose the one that best suits what you are looking for and need.
The truth is that gel batteries have gained a lot of popularity in recent years and it is not for less, since their characteristics make them suitable for a wide variety of uses and applications, making it much more efficient and durable.
Let’s see in detail what gel batteries can offer you.
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Gel battery outstanding features
Deep cycle batteries
Gel batteries can be classified into two types: deep cycle and stationary. The deep cycle gel batteries are designed to withstand high and deep discharges, such as those used in electric vehicles, pallet trucks or wheelchairs. They have the capacity to discharge up to 70% or 80% of their total charge capacity without being reduced over time. Some of the reference manufacturers in this type of Gel batteries are MK, Trojan or Long.
Stationary Gel batteries are used for prolonged low intensity consumption. For example: solar installations, ups, boats, motor homes, etc. This type of battery can provide energy during a long period of time, but they do not support high discharges.
Therefore, depending on the type of use and application, it is recommended to use a type of gel battery that meets the characteristics required by the machine or installation.
Long life
They are particularly robust and resilient, as they withstand the passage of time and intensive use very well without being affected in the slightest. Therefore, they are perfect for not having to keep an eye on their condition in order to continue operating.
Maintenance free
As they are maintenance-free batteries, they can be placed in any location, especially in those with difficult access. Thanks to their size and hermetic sealing, they can be used in any type of position without altering their operation or suffering any type of leakage.
Applications and uses gel battery
These types of batteries have almost any type of application we can imagine, as they are extremely versatile and can be adapted to any type of installation, but they have become extremely popular in recent years thanks to the boom in camper vehicles and solar installations.
Caravan, camper and photovoltaic installations, in general, have requirements that make gel batteries the perfect candidate, since they usually require batteries with low maintenance, that perform well in extreme temperatures and long life to make the investment profitable, something that gel batteries more than meet.
However, it is also commonly used in electrified vehicles such as golf carts or warehouse machinery (forklifts, forklifts…).
Types of gel batteries
There is a great variety in the market of models of gel batteries, of different sizes and capacities. The first thing to consider is whether we need a 12 or 24 volt gel battery for our installation, since it will mark the range of possibilities that we could consider. For the systems of 24V the most habitual thing is to connect two batteries in series of 12V, as they have many batteries of electric wheelchairs.
Once the choice is made, we will have at our disposal gel batteries ranging from 80AH to 300AH for high demand installations, so you will have no problem finding the perfect battery.
Gel battery charging
Gel batteries are estimated to have a useful life between 500 and 1000 charges, depending on the model and characteristics, their charges are much more durable, which prolongs their useful life. In total, a gel battery can last several years thanks to the thickness of its plates and their density.
But it is important to take into account that the battery charger is compatible or can be configured for gel batteries, as it has specific parameters of charging stage voltages. If we do not select the charger correctly, it can shorten the life of the battery or cause irreparable damage.
