•
Never lift the battery by the terminals.
•
Ensure positive and negative battery cables are of an equal length and type.
•
Ensure cables are appropriate for the size of charge or discharge load.
•
Do not overload battery terminals with connection lugs. As a general rule of thumb, we don’t
recommend any more that 4 connection lugs per terminal. If you need more, we recommend
using a quality Busbar.
•
Do not connect more than 4 batteries in series (maximum 48V for 12V
batteries) or 4
batteries in parallel.
•
When connecting batteries, do not connect batteries of different chemistry i.e., don’t
connect a Lithium to an AGM. And don’t connect old batteries to new batteries. Always try
and connect batteries of a similar age or serial number range for best performance.
Parallel Connection
Series Connection
Parallel Connections
You can parallel up to 4
OzCharge
®
Lithium batteries together. Always ensure you use appropriate size
cable and all cables (linking cables and the cables to & from the battery) must be of the same length,
size, and type. Always connect chargers or loads to the first positive and the last negative…never both
from the one battery. Also note that batteries in parallel can become unbalanced over time and we
highly recommend that you periodically charge each battery independently (to full) to restore balance
in the pack and extend the life of your batteries.
Important: All batteries must be same state of charge (we recommend fully charged) and within 100mV
of each other before connecting them in parallel or series.
Series Connections (For 12.8V batteries only)
The OzCharge Lithium Battery Management System (BMS) will accommodate up to 4 batteries in
series (max 48V). However, there are a few things to be aware of when charging Lithium in series.
1.
Each battery has its own independent BMS protection which monitors voltage and will disconnect
the battery to protect over voltage
2.
Each individual battery has no way of knowing that it is in series with another battery.
3.
It is almost impossible to equally charge, or maintain equal charge, to batteries in series with a
single charger.
To prevent uneven charging and possible charging issues (i.e. chargers cutting in and out as some
batteries hit full but others are not yet full), we HIGHLY RECOMMEND that each battery be charged
independently (e.g. 4 chargers for a 48V pack). Or even better still, simply purchase one of our
dedicated 24V, 36V, or 48V batteries. By buying a dedicated voltage battery, every cell is evenly
balanced by the BMS and you will avoid potential issues.
TIP: We recommend that batteries in series or parallel be given a periodical charge to FULL,
independently of each other, to help balance each battery. This will extend the life of your
batteries and ensure optimal capacity.
