Hi,
Someone recently told me it’s not recommended to charge batteries with the charger running off the genny.
Is that right?
If so, what’s the worst it could do… fry the charger or battery, shorten their lifes, or give an incomplete charge?
(Hitachi 14v Nicad and NiMh)
Thks.
Replies
Depends on the voltage regulation of the generator and the type of charger.
Well regulated gen set -- no difference for any given charger than off the grid.
Voltage and charge algorithm controlled battery charger (something other than a transformer and 2 diodes) it wont matter if it is plugged into grid or gen-set.
Plain vanilla transformer and 2 diodes charger off badly regulated genset = either low charge or overcharge; undercharge leads to less battery life, but probably not by much.
Overcharge can = destroyed battery.
I'm going to say that the chargers are electronic devices, and generator voltage can spike and dropout when inductive loads such as electric motors are used. This could damage the electronics and ruin the charger. Other than that, the charger will properly charge the batteries.
Ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Some risk of damaging the charger, or damaging on-board electronics with Li-Ion batteries.
Don't leave the battery charging after it's done -- remove it right away.
If you're really worried you could buy a small UPS-type power conditioner to run off the genset and plug your chargers into that.
i use a small $10 harbor freight 12v to 110/120v converter one piece that plugs into the cig lighter then plug my charger into that... has worked well for years...
but on an off note... i find most of my power tools run better off my genset than off the maze of cords found on most construction sites... i know my welder sure welds better off my 5kw kabota genset than it does being just plugged in to the grid power... and my ranger8 welder/genset on the same setting burns even better... so sometimes closer to the power source can be better...
p
welds better off my 5kw kabota genset than it does being just plugged in to the grid power
Ya just using a small wirefeed with the kabota?
My 280A buzz box can trip off my datsun engine driven 10kW gen set on overcurrent.
no i usually use an air products 225amp 220v stick welder... i've used a old craftsman 225 on it also... and i have a 110v buzz box that works well too... unless i was on a very long bead ie.... whole 3/16" rod it's rare to trip the breaker... 1/8" rods never do...
think i've had that kabota for 15yrs... it has never let me down... once running for over 3 weeks 24/7 when power was out at my parents house... put mobil one for air cooled engines and you could feel the reduction in heat generated by it... sold me on mobil one
p
If your battery being charged had come up to full charge and was in the trickle mode, a bump from the genny could possibly cause the charger to reset and start a new high current charge cycle when it wasn't needed. If the charger is a real smart one, it should test the battery before doing the high speed charge. Either way, I wouldn't really worry much about it and taking a battery out as soon as it is charged is a worthwile thought.
Not sure about the generator end of it, but a note about charger safety.
Last weekend I put 3 AA NiMH in a (supposedly fairly high-end) charger that I've been using for a few years. These were batteries I had set aside because they were questionable, and I figured I'd give them one last chance.
Hour or two later I walked down into my basement office, noticed a pungent smell. Finally looked over at the charger to see a small wisp of smoke coming out of it.
Not sure what would have happened if I'd just put them in and left for the day.
I'm thinking I should set up an area in the garage on a non-flammable surface, with a countdown timer (I think I have an old 1 hour darkroom timer around) to avoid leaving chargers sitting running for long periods unattended.
Don
It depends on the generator. A pricey Honda Inverter Gen. is cleaner than most grid power. I know some however, who have fried their chargers with low end generators.
Hi to all.
Thanks for the interesting replies,
It's a smart charger, so full speed ahead.
Cheers
I ran my charger off the generator and ended up frying a diode so had to replace the charger.
I don't know if the batteries themselves were affected although with an overnight charge, and then sitting around for a week or so, when I went to use them yesterday they were flat (or nearly so).