The Trickle Charge of a Battery

We have a set of rechargeable batteries that have just finished charging. If the batteries are on a simple or time-based charger, they will remain in the same state and continue to try to charge. The charger knows no better than to just keep charging. In this way they get hot and sometimes burn up if left on too long. This happens all the time.

A “smart” or “intelligent” charger the fully after the batteries have charged will switched over from full mode to “trickle charge”. This is a great feature on a charger because it will not allow the batteries to burn up.

A “trickle charge” is a maintenance charge that compensates for the battery’s self-discharge. Self-discharge is a natural occurrence. It is what batteries do when they are not on a charger. Self-discharge is the capacity decrease in the battery, usually during storage, due to internal loss between the positive and negative cell plates.

If batteries are being used regularly the self-discharge is negligible and not noticeable. Batteries can sit on a smart charger in “trickle charge” mode for quite a while and remain safe. It is good to take any full battery off the charger when it is full. But with smart or intelligent chargers, there is much less danger of burning up the batteries and destroying the whole charging system if they sit there for awhile.

If the batteries are put in storage for several weeks, self-discharge can take place. This can be remedied by putting the batteries on the charger. In a short time the batteries will be filled up again.

A charger with a “trickle charge mode” will give excellent performance and help protect your batteries. Your portable power is a very important investment.

POWER YOUR ROAD!