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Publication No. US-MP-OM-001
March
2017
17.3 Equalizing Charge
Under NORMAL conditions an equalizing charge is NOT required. An equalizing
charge is a special charge given to a battery when nonuniformity in voltage has
developed between cells. It is given to restore all cells to a fully charged condition.
Nonuniformity of cells may result from:
•
low float voltage due to improper adjustment of the charger.
•
a panel voltmeter that reads high, resulting in a low charger output voltage.
•
selection of too low a float voltage.
•
variations in cell temperatures in the series at a given time, due to environmental
conditions or module arrangement. The maximum cell-to-cell temperature difference
is 5˚F (3˚C). If cell temperature is the problem, review the location instructions in
Section 5.0 to ensure proper location of the battery system.
An equalizing charge should be given when:
•
the float voltage of any cell is less than 2.17 volts per cell.
Do
NOT
equalize
mP Series
cells if they are within the following voltage limits:
NEW
±0.09 volts of the nominal value, as determined in Section 17.2.1,
Procedure No.1.
AFTER
±0.05 volts of the nominal value, as determined in Section 17.2.1,
oNE YEAR
Procedure No.1.