Paul's how NOT to convert a Metro

[Oer Al]

Originally Posted by vpoppv

The baffling mystery of lead/acid continues: every day I seem to have a slightly higher voltage when I get home. I'm up to 74.2 v as of today.

That is not that strange: the batteries are regaining some of their capacity because they are being used regularly after having been in storage for who knows how long. Some of the lead sulfate which was clogging up the plates has fallen off, increasing the available active plate area and with that the capacity.

Reading this thread from the beginning and only still being halfway I don't know if this will come up but... have you considered adding a battery rejuvinator/desulfator to your batteries? Those things are easy to build and seem to work - especially on older, partly sulfated batteries. Like yours...

There's plenty of schematics for these things on the intertubes. Not having built one myself I can not verify the claims of efficacy but since the operating principle - high-current pulse to dislodge lead sulfate from plate - seems plausible I'd consider making one if I have the need. You can scrounge most of the required parts from discarded electronics. Dead computer power supplies are a good source for the required ferrite cores.

[vpoppv]

Originally Posted by Oer Al

That is not that strange: the batteries are regaining some of their capacity because they are being used regularly after having been in storage for who knows how long. Some of the lead sulfate which was clogging up the plates has fallen off, increasing the available active plate area and with that the capacity.

Reading this thread from the beginning and only still being halfway I don't know if this will come up but... have you considered adding a battery rejuvinator/desulfator to your batteries? Those things are easy to build and seem to work - especially on older, partly sulfated batteries. Like yours...

There's plenty of schematics for these things on the intertubes. Not having built one myself I can not verify the claims of efficacy but since the operating principle - high-current pulse to dislodge lead sulfate from plate - seems plausible I'd consider making one if I have the need. You can scrounge most of the required parts from discarded electronics. Dead computer power supplies are a good source for the required ferrite cores.

Hey, thanks for reading this long and boring thread!! If there is one thing I have learned about lead/acid batteries it's that I still have a LOT to learn. They are really fascinating to me. Each battery seems to have its own personality. I knew that my biggest challenge in my super-cheap conversion would be the used batteries; that's why on of my biggest expenses was for new battery chargers. I figured that would help the most, and I think it was a very wise decision in retrospect. I am extremely happy with the chargers. Also, I've looked into desulfators a little and decided to buy one ready made rather than building my own. I got a WizBang from eBay, and I am having great luck with it:

Everstart Enersys Exide Battery Desulfator 6V or 12V - eBay (item 330436558588 end time Jun-22-10 16:35:02 PDT)

I think it's really fun to make my car go on people's discarded junk!

[Oer Al]

Originally Posted by vpoppv

Everstart Enersys Exide Battery Desulfator 6V or 12V - eBay (item 330436558588 end time Jun-22-10 16:35:02 PDT)

Ah, I see. That (somewhat overpriced IMnsHO) product would help some with regaining lost capacity on marginal batteries. You do only have one or two though while you seem to have loads of batteries. According to many of the sites I checked on DIY battery rejuvination the best results seem to be achieved by having one of these gizmos permanently attached to each and every battery... Not a commercial and thus somewhat expensive gizmo but one of the homebuilt variety which only draws power while the battery is being charged (either by being switchable or automatic). It should sit as close to the battery as feasible and be connected to it with some substantial wiring to keep it as effective as possible. Those things produce very short pulses which are easily lost in high-impedance (longer and/or thinner) cables. If you have an oscilloscope (or access to one) you can use it to see whether those pulses arrive at their destination or get lost on the way.

As I have not built one of these things yet I am really just making this up of course - the proof is in the pudding. Maybe I should stop typing and start building? That should be building a 'diesel'-powered Ural with sidecar of course as it is that which brought me to this forum in the first place...

[vpoppv]

Originally Posted by Oer Al

Maybe I should stop typing and start building? That should be building a 'diesel'-powered Ural with sidecar of course as it is that which brought me to this forum in the first place...

Yes, you should!

You are right about the desulfators of course. I SHOULD have one for each. And I really SHOULD make them. But, if you read through my thread, you can tell I am lazy. Here's how I see it: I can't BUY a desulfator for each battery, bacause I am too cheap. And at $30 each, while the battery cores are only $7, doesn't make sense economically. But I have already had to replace a lot of the batteries in my pack, and I think I probably would end up having to replace batteries faster than how quickly a desulfator works. So for now I am happy with just moving the desulfator to the weakest battery and hoping. While not ideal, it seems OK for now. I might have to rethink that if my battery supplies start to dry up.....

[sjr]

i didnt read everything, just wondering the cost per mile the electricity costs thanks Scott

[vpoppv]

Originally Posted by sjr

i didnt read everything, just wondering the cost per mile the electricity costs thanks Scott

That is an excellent question. I really have no idea. It can't be much though, because I started charging my car every day about the time that I purchased a Sunfrost full size refrigerator and freezer (as opposed to just running the one fridge/freezer combo) and my electric bill was still a bit less every month. I need one of those Kill-a-watt things to be able to properly answer the question though.....

[vpoppv]

I am very excited about trying out a new product! I was commenting on a forum about battery rejuvenation when a gentleman from a Korean company that refurbishes batteries stepped forward and asked for volunteers to test their product. This was last weekend. A package was sent Express Mail International to me containing 10 boxes of the product. There are two bottles in each box. Here is their website:

snp-energy

My understanding is that this is a chemical desulfating additive. I have to say that so far I am VERY impressed even though I haven't tested anything. Communication has been excellent. Thorough instructions and MSDS data sheet has been sent. Shipping was FAST from Korea. Everything was free. So, I might be a little biased because:
a) I already have belief in the ability of desulfators both chemical and electronic.
b) How generously/kindly I have been treated

One of the reasons this will be a difficult challenge for this product is that I have gotten pretty good at weeding out batteries for use and those that I consider "cores". I will be using the product on batteries that couldn't be revived through charging and electronic desulfating. Also, I have started a blog:

Electric Cars for the Poor

[jusnicho]

[will88]

man i read the whole thread in the coarse of 3 days and i got to say bravo man bravo u have join the league of ev hero's good job keep the post coming cuz i love this thread
::: will barnett

[vpoppv]

Originally Posted by will88

man i read the whole thread in the coarse of 3 days and i got to say bravo man bravo u have join the league of ev hero's good job keep the post coming cuz i love this thread
::: will barnett

Wow, that's a great compliment, thank you! I've pretty much spent all my time thinking about EV's lately, so hopefully I'll have more interesting stories to tell....