I have recently bought a bait boat that takes a Sealed Lead Acid battery (6V, 12 Mah). Unfortunately, it came without a charger, so I bought one from Amazon (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08P7JCRT3/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and the instructions state that it can also charge lead-acid batteries. However, it seems that the battery has inverse polarity (battery has tamiya male with red - and black + while the charger has the same tamiya male with red + and black -). Is this a common occurrence with bait boat batteries - this is the first one I got, or do I have a broken connector for the charger?
I have also connected the battery using the crocodile clips provided to the matching positive and negative from a tamiya connector, but that returned an error on the charger saying "Disconnect battery now". I tried multiple Amps, Voltage parameters, but still showing the same error.
Has anyone else faced the same problem? Cheers!
I have also connected the battery using the crocodile clips provided to the matching positive and negative from a tamiya connector, but that returned an error on the charger saying "Disconnect battery now". I tried multiple Amps, Voltage parameters, but still showing the same error.
Has anyone else faced the same problem? Cheers!
In reply to Post #1
The way I would approach it is assume nothing and work through as follows.
1. Make absolutely sure you are connecting with the right polarity.
Have you checked through to the battery to make sure the previous owner hasn't interchanged the wires at some point?
2. Make sure you are setting up your charger correctly for your battery. Have you checked on the battery that it's definitely 6v? ( presumably you know the capacity would be 12ah and not 12 Mah as you stated)
3. Make sure the battery is serviceable and not completely dead. Have you a multimeter? If so check the battery voltage before charging.
4. If your battery is very flat then perhaps your charger may not start to charge. If you have access to simpler charger ideally 6v or failing that a 12v then you could try charging with that, preferably directly to the battery. If you need to use a 12 v charger as a trial to supply a small charge then you would need something like a 12v sidelight or indicator bulb in series to drop the voltage across the battery.
5. Try charging a known good battery to prove your charger and setup.
The way I would approach it is assume nothing and work through as follows.
1. Make absolutely sure you are connecting with the right polarity.
Have you checked through to the battery to make sure the previous owner hasn't interchanged the wires at some point?
2. Make sure you are setting up your charger correctly for your battery. Have you checked on the battery that it's definitely 6v? ( presumably you know the capacity would be 12ah and not 12 Mah as you stated)
3. Make sure the battery is serviceable and not completely dead. Have you a multimeter? If so check the battery voltage before charging.
4. If your battery is very flat then perhaps your charger may not start to charge. If you have access to simpler charger ideally 6v or failing that a 12v then you could try charging with that, preferably directly to the battery. If you need to use a 12 v charger as a trial to supply a small charge then you would need something like a 12v sidelight or indicator bulb in series to drop the voltage across the battery.
5. Try charging a known good battery to prove your charger and setup.
In reply to Post #2
Thanks a lot for your reply! So I did some troubleshooting and came up with the next answers:
1. Yes, that is how the boat wiring polarity is as well (red from battery goes to red at boat, same with black wire). The model is a Jabo II, maybe this is how they are supposed to be?
2. Yes, I have set it to 6V, 7.2V as well or even 4V, but still no success.
3. I have a multimeter (setting at 20V) and the battery seems to only have 0.5V - I guess this is the main issue why the battery is not charging. I have ordered a similar battery from eBay - cannot wait to receive it.
Unfortunately I do not have another battery at hand to check, but I will check with my new one. Will post back with the results.
Thanks a lot for your reply! So I did some troubleshooting and came up with the next answers:
1. Yes, that is how the boat wiring polarity is as well (red from battery goes to red at boat, same with black wire). The model is a Jabo II, maybe this is how they are supposed to be?
2. Yes, I have set it to 6V, 7.2V as well or even 4V, but still no success.
3. I have a multimeter (setting at 20V) and the battery seems to only have 0.5V - I guess this is the main issue why the battery is not charging. I have ordered a similar battery from eBay - cannot wait to receive it.
Unfortunately I do not have another battery at hand to check, but I will check with my new one. Will post back with the results.
In reply to Post #3
I wouldn't bother to look any further than your battery voltage of 0.5. Your charger will refuse to have anything to do with your battery as it stands.
Edit. Couldn't say if your wiring is right for that boat but you probably would see signs of modifications, I'm sure you will be able to sort it to suit your needs anyway.
One important point.
When you are up and running, for good battery life it's best not to discharge your new battery lower than 50% which will equate to roughly 6.1 volts for a wet lead acid one. Gel or AGM very slightly more.
I wouldn't bother to look any further than your battery voltage of 0.5. Your charger will refuse to have anything to do with your battery as it stands.
Edit. Couldn't say if your wiring is right for that boat but you probably would see signs of modifications, I'm sure you will be able to sort it to suit your needs anyway.
One important point.
When you are up and running, for good battery life it's best not to discharge your new battery lower than 50% which will equate to roughly 6.1 volts for a wet lead acid one. Gel or AGM very slightly more.
In reply to Post #4
New battery (sealed lead acid same specs 6V, 12Ah), new life
. The charger works, and the bait boat works as well. The only different thing was the tamyia connector which had replaced male square and round plastic shapes between the boat and the battery, so I just swapped the connectors from left to right, also keeping the polarity as it should be (+ve with +ve and -ve with -ve i.e. black vs red cables). Now all works as expected, thanks a lot for your help again!
With regards to battery charging, what is the best practice? You mentioned 6.1V - I though the battery itself will have around 6V in total? How low should I leave the battery to drain for a safe charge which will also extend the life of my new battery? Cheers!
New battery (sealed lead acid same specs 6V, 12Ah), new life
. The charger works, and the bait boat works as well. The only different thing was the tamyia connector which had replaced male square and round plastic shapes between the boat and the battery, so I just swapped the connectors from left to right, also keeping the polarity as it should be (+ve with +ve and -ve with -ve i.e. black vs red cables). Now all works as expected, thanks a lot for your help again!With regards to battery charging, what is the best practice? You mentioned 6.1V - I though the battery itself will have around 6V in total? How low should I leave the battery to drain for a safe charge which will also extend the life of my new battery? Cheers!
In reply to Post #5
Good to hear you're sorted.
Once your battery is fully charged the charging current should drop to zero possibly your charger may say full?
Disconnect when fully charged.
A fully charged “6 volt “ battery should show between 6.3 and 6.4 volts after being stood for a few hours.
If you charge and immediately measure it will show a higher “ surface charge” so you need to wait a few hours to get a true reading.
Your battery will drop to around 6.1 volts when discharged to 50% SOC (.state of charge)
This is a good threshold to stop as beyond this, damage will start to occur.
Put another way, if you only use a maximum of 6Ah before recharging it's much better for your battery life.
Always recharge ASAP after use even if it has only been used a small amount.
Good to hear you're sorted.
Once your battery is fully charged the charging current should drop to zero possibly your charger may say full?
Disconnect when fully charged.
A fully charged “6 volt “ battery should show between 6.3 and 6.4 volts after being stood for a few hours.
If you charge and immediately measure it will show a higher “ surface charge” so you need to wait a few hours to get a true reading.
Your battery will drop to around 6.1 volts when discharged to 50% SOC (.state of charge)
This is a good threshold to stop as beyond this, damage will start to occur.
Put another way, if you only use a maximum of 6Ah before recharging it's much better for your battery life.
Always recharge ASAP after use even if it has only been used a small amount.