MEGAPULSE BATTERY REVIVAL

• Index:
  • Animation describing battery revival with Megapulse
    
    
  • What can and cannot be achieved
  • Avoiding disappointment
  • How to revive a battery
  • Summary of important battery voltages

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What can be achieved

• The sulphation surrounding the battery plates can be eliminated by attaching Megapulse.   However, nothing can be done about any sludge that has accumulated at the bottom of the battery.   Sludge represents lost Ah.   Therefore after reviving, the battery will have the original capacity less any lost due to sludge.
  
  
• However the current capacity should be restored to near that of the original battery.   What this means is that a revived battery will work well - for example engines will crank just fine - but the battery will run down more quickly depending on how much sludge exists in the bottom of the battery.
  
  
• Special note: for golf cars, forklifts and electric vehicles
  
  
• Warning: with old batteries, there can be other problems that Megapulse cannot fix, such as warped and damaged plates that may be on the point of failing.   Failure shortly after desulphation can be triggered by the increased current capability of the battery.   After deteriorating for a long time, the plates have become frail, and cannot sustain the high current for long.   This is why Megapulse should be fitted to a good battery to prevent this deterioration in the first place.
  
  
  
• Example of reviving a sulphated 12v battery containing sludge:
  
  
  
  
• Note how by using a voltmeter a shorted cell can be detected - more information on this in the 'Preliminary checks' section below.   Battery A rejected: due to shorted cell, not a suitable candidate for reviving.
  
  
• To avoid the loss of power due to sludge and gain the full benefit of Megapulse over the long term, always fit to a new battery.   This way, Megapulse helps prevent sludge formation, keeping the battery working not just at full power but at full capacity too.

Avoiding disappointment

• Not all batteries can be revived with Megapulse.   This is because sulphation, while significant, is not the only cause of battery failure.   Other defects, such as shorting cells, sludge and battery plate collapse cannot be fixed.
  
  
• In particular, it has been found that the small sealed lead-acid batteries similar to that shown on the left generally cannot be revived, once the performance has seriously deteriorated.   (The solution with these types of battery is to fit Megapulse when new to prevent the deterioration in the first place.)
  
  Click here for more details
  
  
• 84% of batteries that are replaced are not dead but simply paralyzed by sulphation (Battery Council International statistic).   It therefore stands to reason that there is an 84% chance that battery revival will be successful, provided the batteries are in otherwise reasonably good condition.
  
  
• It also follows that where a number of batteries are revived at the same time, it is not unreasonable to expect an 84% success rate.   These facts should be borne in mind when considering using Megapulse for battery revival.
  
  
• Many users have had spectacular success with battery revival.   However, when this is not the case, all is not lost.   The investment in Megapulse will serve the new replacement batteries giving them a longer useful life without the normal degradation due to sulphation.

How to revive a battery

• Preliminary checks:
  • Check that battery is in reasonable physical condition (no cracks in case, loose terminals, etc)
  • Check level of electrolyte - add distilled water if necessary     (do not add sulphuric acid or tap water)
    
  • Check open-circuit voltage on battery > min OK voltage (see table below).
    If the battery has recently been used or charged, wait 4-8 hours before measuring the voltage.
  • If < min OK voltage, try charging for 24 hours.   Then check open-circuit voltage as above.
    If still < min OK voltage, one or more cells probably short circuit - no resuscitation possible
  • Check the voltage of each battery in a battery bank, not just the total bank value.   Even better, check the voltage of each 2v cell if possible, which should be above 1.88v.
    At and above 24v, there is a grey area where the battery may or may not have a dead cell - see below.
  • Problems with sealed (VRLA) batteries caused by overcharging - see notes below.
  
  

  Battery voltage	Min OK voltage (20°C)
  2v	1.93v
  6v	5.8v
  8v	7.7v
  12v	11.6v
  24v	23.2 - 23.5v
  36v	34.8 - 36.3v
  48v	46.4 - 49.2v

  
  
• Procedure:
  • Mode = LO   (Usually default start-up mode.   Some 36/48v models default to HI mode and must be set LO)
  • Connect to battery
  • Connect charger to battery (set amps < battery Ah/10) - take care not to overcharge:  max 2.30v / cell
  • Keep the battery on charge all the time - very important!
  • Allow 2 - 8 weeks (depends on Ah size of battery and degree of sulphation)
  
  
• Test procedure every 5 days or so:
  • Non-sealed batteries:
    • Use a hydrometer to test the acidity of the electrolyte
      - Watch the SG value increase as the battery is resuscitated!
    • Top up the electrolyte with distilled water as necessary.   Never top up with acid!
    
    
  • All batteries:
    • Check that Megapulse is indicating the battery state as:
      regular short flashes - green LED   battery tests OK
      regular short flashes - red LED        battery problem   (e.g. water level low)
  
  
• Notes:
  • Important:   Keep the battery on charge all the time.   As the battery desulphates, the battery will store more and more charge, which it can get only from the charger.
    
    
  • Notes on charging batteries
    
    
  • Problems with sealed (VRLA) batteries
    
    
    Download the document explaining the battery revival procedure

Summary of important battery voltages

• The following tables summarize all the important voltages when dealing with lead-acid batteries.

Lead-antimony lead-acid battery


Hybrid lead-acid battery


Lead-calcium / silver calcium lead-acid battery


VRLA lead-acid battery


AGM lead-acid battery

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