MAINTENANCE & FLEET MANAGEMENT

Recommendations

• Make sure that you have taken temperature correction of electrolyte into consideration when calculating how much electrical energy your operation needs for each truck, shift and day.
• Make sure that you have the correct size charger, and the correct control profile for recharging that battery fully after each charge cycle.
• Make sure your preventative management program takes into consideration temperature correction and make adjustments, especially in the first few months of operation. Never assume that the plan was perfect out of the box. Always follow-up and follow-through with monitoring and adjustments.
• Modern chargers now have access to modules that attach to the battery and will assist in guaranteeing the necessary full state of charge.
• It is wise to raise the lift interrupt on the equipment from the 80% DOD point to the 70% point to add additional protection for the battery and lift truck components. Chemistry and voltages on charge and under load are tricky. Raising the lift interrupt point is crucial!
• Again, it is not uncommon to see newer batteries never receive a full charge once they've been placed into service.
• Keep an eye out for the effects of heavy over-discharging, such as wavy, coiled DC cables.

Please feel free to contact Black Box Battery for additional information and free on-site inspection and recommendations.

Many customers will invest heavily in the latest technology chargers, heaviest batteries, easy-to-use water systems, data collection modules and then leave it all to its own devices until things go wrong. Typically things will go sideways without a plan. Unfortunately, most companies will leave their multiple million-dollar investment to the new kid or the janitor to take care of. Or everyone has to take care of it, which means no one is (which is usually a bad idea!)

If left long enough, the damage will be done and difficult to correct without spending a lot of unexpected money.

• In medium to heavy applications, batteries should be professionally inspected by a battery expert on a quarterly basis.
• For lighter applications, twice a year is recommended.

Many battery manufacturers offer a full five-year replacement warranty. Be sure to read the details of the warranty card to discover what the warranty says, which is often "if any cell fails to produce a minimum capacity of 80% due to a defect in parts and labour, the manufacturer, at their discretion, will repair or replace the cell at no charge."

In reality what we really see without proper inspections and preventive management is:

95% of the time where a battery is failing, a cell has gone well past 75% capacity and is now completely dead - shorted and dried out. and often smelling or even smoking.

This will drag the rest of the battery down by over-discharging and over-charging. All of this repetitive cycling creates extreme heat in the battery which leads to the destruction of the battery. When this goes on for months, the damage is done.

Lift truck operators will never notice the slow degradation of capacity from a failing cell until it's much too late. If you note hot temperatures on a battery or batteries or cables and connectors you have big problems. Excessive water loss or excessive watering demands also means problems.

The best approach is to identify a weakening cell before it does extreme damage to the battery.

A good capacity number to look for would be 75% of its original rated capacity.

This can be done by taking detailed specific gravity and open circuit, on charge, and under load voltage readings at full charge on a regular basis.

If those readings cannot be improved by charging or adding acid, then that cell will be replaced at no charge under warranty!

This is the main reason why a seasoned professional should preemptively inspect batteries.

Checking chargers setup on a regular basis for voltage, gassing points for cold storage, opportunity charging applications, and aging batteries will all help in maximizing the battery's life.

Again, the best forklift, batteries, chargers and accessories will mean nothing if they are not properly and regularly managed by a professional.

New batteries are the most expensive way to fuel your fleet. Repairing batteries is less expensive but still very costly. Maintaining and managing your fleet is the most economical way to procure the fuel for your business!

New replacement batteries range between $4,000 and $20,000 a piece.

Battery and prices have increased by over 35% in the last 4 years. This price trend will probably never change.

Do not leave this to chance, make a reliable, proven plan with a budget for maintaining your equipment with Black Box Battery.

Please call us for a free consultation.