Two questions. 1. does it need a charger regulator to avoid overcharging? 2. Does reverse discharge happen to the charged battery? Thanks in advance.
1509654
I highly recommend using a charge controller with any solar panel to eliminate problems that you are speaking of. After I started using a charge controller I have not had any problems at all. Even on a 5 watt panel I would use a charge controller.
1509655
In using a couple of these panels I have found no need to use a regulator when charging ordinary lead-acid batteries. I have not tried them on gel cells or left them unattended on small motorcycle type batteries. The panels appear to be diode protected and they don't appear to create any load on the battery during the night or when the panels are shaded from the sun. These descriptions are based on actual experience using the panels, including maintaining an RV 12-volt system 24/7, and not from the tech manual. So from a practical end-user standpoint, they seem very functional and reliable. In using a couple of these panels I have found no need to use a regulator when charging ordinary lead-acid batteries. I have not tried them on gel cells or left them unattended on small motorcycle type batteries. The panels appear to be diode protected and they don't appear to create any load on the battery during the night or when the panels are shaded from the sun. These descriptions are based on actual experience using the panels, including maintaining an RV 12-volt system 24/7, and not from the tech manual. So from a practical end-user standpoint, they seem very functional and reliable.
1509656
No regulator needed. I had it on the Explorer for one month with no issues. If you check it with a voltmeter under no load conditions it puts out about 14V at low current. No danger of overcharge. Also no reverse discharging. Current is only flowing in one direction. Hope this helps.
1509657
I couldn't even get it to charge the battery at all. It was a total.waste of money
1509658
No it does not reverse charge it is meant to be left alone on vehicles you really don't use often
1716169
The charging unit does not appear to charge anymore (it's about a month old and maybe a week or two in use). I will try a third 9v battery to see if we can get it to charge later on today. However moments ago I tested for any voltage and expected to see none; to my surprise the charging unit appears to be allowing 22 - 23 volts through. Does anyone know if this charger is prone to problems? As soon as I locate the batteries that were delivered with this unit I will use them to test on this charger.If anyone has any info please email me at springfieldcomputers A T yahoo D O T com. Thanks The charging unit does not appear to charge anymore (it's about a month old and maybe a week or two in use). I will try a third 9v battery to see if we can get it to charge later on today. However moments ago I tested for any voltage and expected to see none; to my surprise the charging unit appears to be allowing 22 - 23 volts through. Does anyone know if this charger is prone to problems? As soon as I locate the batteries that were delivered with this unit I will use them to test on this charger.If anyone has any info please email me at springfieldcomputers A T yahoo D O T... » Read More The charging unit does not appear to charge anymore (it's about a month old and maybe a week or two in use). I will try a third 9v battery to see if we can get it to charge later on today. However moments ago I tested for any voltage and expected to see none; to my surprise the charging unit appears to be allowing 22 - 23 volts through. Does anyone know if this charger is prone to problems? As soon as I locate the batteries that were delivered with this unit I will use them to test on this charger.If anyone has any info please email me at springfieldcomputers A T yahoo D O T com. Thanks « Show Less
1489833
Lordy no. I plug in the charger with battery in , out , half in. Pull them out early. Short charge etc. overload and over discharge, it handles it fine. My battery life is shorter than some but it's a tool.
2130875
it is a balance charger but if you have a cell that became discharged below minimal voltage then its not going to fix that. However if the battery just got discharged unevenly somehow, it may recharge it to full capacity. I am guessing that the battery developed a short and is probably defective, but trying another charger may fix it (if it was not discharged too far). Just be extra careful when trying to charge that battery and monitor it. Hope this helps you to decide what to do! It is a good little charger for the money!
470408
Sorry if this sounds stupid but is the battery fully charged ? Mine did the same thing when I first took it out of the box. When the battery is dead it takes four hrs on the provided charger to bring it up to full charge. If the battery gets warm to the touch take it off the charger for sure. The tank should run for 30 min or so before it needs recharging. Other than that check for loose plugs going to the receiver and battery. to tell you the truth it sounds just like the way it went for me when I took mine straight out of the box and tried to run it on the uncharged battery. Sorry but that's about all i've got . Just the obvious. Good luck.
1011371
if you can smell the battery it probably is bad or your overcharging it.. How long you should charge your battery is totally dependant upon how many milliamps or mA it has. If it has 1400mA it will charge much faster than a battery with 2800mA. Now look at your converter, you will notice several things on the sticker that will be affixed to it. We are looking for the output rating on it specifically. It usually says something like "OUTPUT: DC 8.4v 300mA" but changes from brand to brand and model to model. See that 300mA on the charge? That's how many mA its charges per hour so if you have a 1500mA battery and a 300mA charger its just simple math from this point.So it will take 5 hours total to charge a completely dead/new battery to its full capacity. You simply divide the mA on the charge to the mA of your battery and you will get the time it should take to fully charge a completely drained battery. This does mean to set it and forget it though. In most cases your battery has already been charged once even if still new for quality control purposes so you really need to keep an eye on your battery still.
1638105
I believe the charging circuit monitors the voltage and as the voltage reaches the maximum for that type battery the charging stops. The lights turn from red (Charging) to green when fully charged. It is recommended to take the batteries out once charged and use them. If its not a device I have to have I just take the dead batteries out and charge them and put them back in. They charge quite rapidly. If the battery is bad it won't charge them. I love it, especially the dual usb chargers on the front. I can quick charge my phone with the 2 amp or leave it on all night with the 1 amp. Per your question no, I don't believe it will overcharge a battery. I believe the charging circuit monitors the voltage and as the voltage reaches the maximum for that type battery the charging stops. The lights turn from red (Charging) to green when fully charged. It is recommended to take the batteries out once charged and use them. If its not a device I have to have I just take the dead batteries out and charge them and put them back in. They charge quite rapidly. If the battery is bad it won't charge them. I love it, especially the dual usb chargers on the front. I can quick charge my phone with the 2 amp or leave it on all night with the 1 amp. Per... » Read More I believe the charging circuit monitors the voltage and as the voltage reaches the maximum for that type battery the charging stops. The lights turn from red (Charging) to green when fully charged. It is recommended to take the batteries out once charged and use them. If its not a device I have to have I just take the dead batteries out and charge them and put them back in. They charge quite rapidly. If the battery is bad it won't charge them. I love it, especially the dual usb chargers on the front. I can quick charge my phone with the 2 amp or leave it on all night with the 1 amp. Per your question no, I don't believe it will overcharge a battery. « Show Less
1190739
It does have an overcharge safety, but I'd never advise leaving these types of batteries in any charger for more time that it takes to charge them, let alone days or weeks. You're just asking for trouble in that scenario.
1934944
My red indicator light never has gone off. I am not actually sure of this, but I simply leave the charger plugged in (AC mode) in the evening, then take it out of the charger next morning. I don't see any indication of overcharging or battery memory developing.
146067
Yes. While they seem to be somewhat tolerate to overcharging you can ruin them. I've left them for 12hr and had no problem. But when I forgot about one and left it for a day. It was ruined. It just wouldn't hold a long term charge anymore. I had used it quite a bit so it may it was just its time to die but all the others I've had have lasted a very long time.
2256708
You probably do not want to have this plugged in all the time because that will "overcharge" the battery and damage it, so you only want to take it to it's "full" level and stop. If you want to have it charged every day to be "freshly charged", after an initial charge you could leave it plugged into a timer that comes on for 20 minutes a day, that wouldn't "overcharge" it and yet would give it a brief charge.As far as current used, the charger probably delivers 1/2 Amp at 12V which means at 120V house power it only draws 0.05 Amps. So you will hardly see that on your power bill. You probably do not want to have this plugged in all the time because that will "overcharge" the battery and damage it, so you only want to take it to it's "full" level and stop. If you want to have it charged every day to be "freshly charged", after an initial charge you could leave it plugged into a timer that comes on for 20 minutes a day, that wouldn't "overcharge" it and yet would give it a brief charge.As far as current used, the charger probably delivers 1/2 Amp at 12V which means at 120V house power it only draws 0.05 Amps. So you will... » Read More You probably do not want to have this plugged in all the time because that will "overcharge" the battery and damage it, so you only want to take it to it's "full" level and stop. If you want to have it charged every day to be "freshly charged", after an initial charge you could leave it plugged into a timer that comes on for 20 minutes a day, that wouldn't "overcharge" it and yet would give it a brief charge.As far as current used, the charger probably delivers 1/2 Amp at 12V which means at 120V house power it only draws 0.05 Amps. So you will hardly see that on your power bill. « Show Less
2269893
I left mine on charge for several days. The light never turned green. The light on the charger went out, and now nothing works. Evidently, at these prices they do not include technology to stop the charger from over charging the battery. I will be attempting to return mine forthwith.
540669
Hi Emerson, No, I haven't had that happen to me yet and I left it on there for 2 days. I forget it's on there. So, In my opinion, It will not overcharge the battery.
1438506
I bought an extra batt from Amazon as well and both batteries, the one that came with the phone (tmob s3) and the recently purchased one work ok. I think the newer battery is flaky. It only shows about 80% after charging overnight. Doesn't say that there's circuitry in the charger to prevent overcharging, but it does take a looong time to charge. IMO the slow charging cycle extends the life of the battery. There's a battery charge indicator light that shows RED when charging and BLUE when the battery is fully charged. Hope that helps.
317968
How do I find out what is wrong with this battery? I did not know that you aren't supposed to use the regular battery tenders on these kind of batteries and I left it charging for a couple of days and now it is beyond dead. So if the tender didn't kill it, apparently (also read just now in the questions section) if it drops below 8% charge it is no longer anything but a paperweight? So tell me now if I should just go out and buy a new battery after wasting my money on the 1 ride I got out of this battery.
1909337
The unit doesn't indicate whether it charges and then reverts to trickle and I haven't checked with test equipment to determine if this is the case. I can say that the instructions indicate that it is ok to keep it on continuous charge. There is a built in fan to cool the charging circuit. I suspect, but cannot confirm, that it does revert to trickle after a charge. My unit is 2 years old and works fine.
852854
I would suspect it does not have overcharge or float mode to protect from overcharging. There are several out there that are made specifically for maintaining a full charged 12 Volt wet cell battery for around $10 to $15. I use one by Cen-Tech for an old Jeep I have to keep the battery charged.