epsom salts for rejuvinating dead FLA batteries

[almac]

does this work?

[Sunking]

= Dead Battery. Anything other than distilled water = dead battery. Every bit of Free Sun used on a battery will be a Boat Anchor soon.

But hey kick a dead horse, he will not care what you do to him.

[SunEagle]

does this work?

Great to treat your sore feet.

As Sunking states, a dead battery might be "revived" for a short time by using distilled water. All other items would be a waste of money and your time.

[almac]

Great to treat your sore feet.

As Sunking states, a dead battery might be "revived" for a short time by using distilled water. All other items would be a waste of money and your time.

so this doesnt work at all, or just not for very long?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_36W26K77fk

[inetdog]

so this doesnt work at all, or just not for very long?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_36W26K77fk

Not very long. You are actually changing the cell chemistry by doing this and the long term effects on the plates will be bad.

[almac]

Not very long. You are actually changing the cell chemistry by doing this and the long term effects on the plates will be bad.

here is more about this on another chemistry forum. apparently this will allow current to flow again thru the battery dissolving the sulfate crystals. but then the epsom salt solution has to be drained out and sulfuric acid electrolyte added.

http://www.chemicalforums.com/index.php?topic=68057.0

[Willy T]

I see the Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid aka EDTA touted around the Internet as a battery rejuvenation. It all seems like a lot of work for a unknown outcome and it's dangerous fooling with electrolyte without the proper equipment.

http://leadacidbatterydesulfation.yuku.com/topic/1048/EDTA-wpulsing

[almac]

I see the Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid aka EDTA touted around the Internet as a battery rejuvenation. It all seems like a lot of work for a unknown outcome and it's dangerous fooling with electrolyte without the proper equipment.

http://leadacidbatterydesulfation.yu.../EDTA-wpulsing

had a look at that thread, they were attempting rejuvination of batteries with shorted/dead cells. the 1st link is about removing crystal leadsulfate by dissolving during electrolysis . when you are talking $10,000 i think its well worth fooling around with.

[Sunking]

had a look at that thread, they were attempting rejuvination of batteries with shorted/dead cells. the 1st link is about removing crystal leadsulfate by dissolving during electrolysis . when you are talking $10,000 i think its well worth fooling around with.

You canno thurt a dead horse, but you are still out $10K, plus disposal cost.

[almac]

You canno thurt a dead horse, but you are still out $10K, plus disposal cost.

a LA battery is not a dead horse. here is a horse forum http://www.horseforum.com/

[Bala]

Still find it hard to believe you have not had the mains power reconnected. I would have put all my energy into getting that sorted rather than continuing with stand alone

[almac]

Still find it hard to believe you have not had the mains power reconnected. I would have put all my energy into getting that sorted rather than continuing with stand alone

hi bala, i can understand that you really miss the grid since you have been in isolation for many years. and miss suburbia as you mentioned b4 , little things like hearing dogs bark, and you would miss much more i think, this solar gig is like a new hobby for me, im enjoying it. although it was not choice that got me to take it up, but rather the lack of service from ausgrid, and the way they shirk their responsibility for the damage they caused to my house. i havnt finished with ausgrid. but if i can do this stand alone cheap i will never need grid again. batteries are the only ongoing expense. so here i am discussing ways to recondition them. here is a copy and paste from a chemistry discussion forum link provided here. sounds reasonable to me

http://www.chemicalforums.com/index.php?topic=68057.0

Actually, we have a thread on this topic, that does explain it more clearly: http://www.chemicalforums.com/index.php?topic=67944.0 Briefly, a completely discharged lead-acid storage battery has the sulfate making up the plates. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_ac...tery#Discharge with almost no acid in the solution. The magnesium sulfate is a good, cheap, reasonably pure (USP grade, which does not mean a pure reagent, but is close enough for this application) conductive electrolyte. Now the discharged battery will conduct again, and a trickle charge will recharge the battery, converting the plates and creating sulfuric acid in the electrolyte. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_acid_battery#Charging And yes, you should now dump out the mixed magnesium sulfate-sulfuric acid electrolyte and replace it with the proper sulfuric acid electrolyte. You don't want the battery to be more conductive then normal, that will enhance auto-electrolysis, a side effect of the battery -- the battery will lose water, and generate hydrogen and oxygen. And you don't want hydrogen close to a battery, an alternator, an engine full of fuel, your groceries, ... you, etc.
Briefly, many things can go wrong with the lead acid storage batter. Certainly, excessive charging and discharging can buildup sulfate on the plates. They're also prone to flaking off of material, due to shock and vibration, freezing of the discharged battery warping the plates, and shorting out of individual cells by buildup. This magnesium sulfate trick seems like a good way to bring the battery back, but the conductive salts should be flushed out, and the electrolyte replaced, before we reuse the battery -- that's the bottom line.

[inetdog]

Actually, we have a thread on this topic, that does explain it more clearly: http://www.chemicalforums.com/index.php?topic=67944.0 Briefly, a completely discharged lead-acid storage battery has the sulfate making up the plates. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_ac...tery#Discharge with almost no acid in the solution. The magnesium sulfate is a good, cheap, reasonably pure (USP grade, which does not mean a pure reagent, but is close enough for this application) conductive electrolyte. Now the discharged battery will conduct again, and a trickle charge will recharge the battery, converting the plates and creating sulfuric acid in the electrolyte. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_acid_battery#Charging And yes, you should now dump out the mixed magnesium sulfate-sulfuric acid electrolyte and replace it with the proper sulfuric acid electrolyte.

This will only work at the expense of decreasing the thickness of the lead plate and increasing the thickness of the lead oxide plate.
I cannot predict the effect on the battery, but it will depend a lot on the original thickness of the plates. An RE battery would be more likely to survive the treatment, but with less durable plates, than a thin plate cranking battery.

Also, once you add the fresh electrolyte at the proper SG, you should not need to do much if any charging to the battery, since it will be in a modification of its original 100% SOC state. You may need to run through several discharge/charge cycles to reform the fresh plate.

I cannot recommend this, since I have not heard from anyone that I trust to evaluate all of the factors involved.

This might be a viable SHTF scenario option.

[almac]

This will only work at the expense of decreasing the thickness of the lead plate and increasing the thickness of the lead oxide plate.
I cannot predict the effect on the battery, but it will depend a lot on the original thickness of the plates. An RE battery would be more likely to survive the treatment, but with less durable plates, than a thin plate cranking battery.

Also, once you add the fresh electrolyte at the proper SG, you should not need to do much if any charging to the battery, since it will be in a modification of its original 100% SOC state. You may need to run through several discharge/charge cycles to reform the fresh plate.

I cannot recommend this, since I have not heard from anyone that I trust to evaluate all of the factors involved.

This might be a viable SHTF scenario option.

what is SHTF

[SunEagle]

what is SHTF

I am surprised that wasn't mentioned in any of those battery videos focused towards "prepers".

S = fertilizer, H = hit, T = the, F= fan.

Or another way to say it; the defecation hitting the rotary oscillator.