Serviceable and maintenance-free battery. What to choose?

The battery stores and stores energy that can be used like electricity. It is impossible to deliver a car without it. If this element fails, most often it needs to be replaced. Charging only helps to postpone the purchase of a new device for a short while, and here car owners have a question - what type of battery to choose?

Serviced battery

This name of the battery is because you can actually unscrew the plugs from the cans and see what is inside, as well as check the level and condition of the electrolyte, density, condition of lead plates, the presence of sulfate crystals, boiling during charging. This is a rather significant plus - you can control the battery and make the right decision in a timely manner.

Maintenance-free battery

This battery is maintenance-free. The device does not have unscrewed plugs - it will not be possible to examine its "insides". It is a sealed design with six cans, each containing a plate and filled with electrolyte - all of which are in a completely sealed space. When heated and then boiled, the electrochemical liquid goes up in the form of vapor. However, it does not come out of the sealed housing, but condenses on the walls and falls back down.

There are several different types of batteries of this type, for example:

• with liquid electrolyte - have sealed holes into which distilled water is topped up;
• gel - with thickened, dried silica gel, permeated with microcracks, which do not allow electrolyte vapors to escape;
• AGM - with absorbed electrolyte, emitting almost no gases during operation, developing high discharge currents and requiring no maintenance during the entire service life;
• EFB - improved acid batteries with a thin layer of hygroscopic fiber applied to the positive plate, which prevents the active mass from shedding.

What's better?

Give an unambiguous answer about which accumulator battery better hard enough. The calmness and safety of not only the car, but also nervous system its owner. Studying the assortment of the store, you need to clearly understand what you expect from the new device, as well as know what characteristics of the battery are needed in your particular case.

Of the clear advantages maintenance-free batteries it can be noted that they do not require constant verification and control. In such models, the electrolyte boils away significantly less than in the service ones. They also have a longer lifespan and deliver more starting current when the vehicle is started.

The advantages of maintenance-free batteries include their low self-discharge rate. Any battery is discharged during long storage. However, these batteries lose only up to 2% of charge monthly, and serviced ones lose up to 20% of charge over the same period of time. Therefore, the installation of the former excludes the possibility that the car will suddenly become unusable due to a frozen or discharged battery.

The charging process of this battery has one important feature that must be taken into account when purchasing it. It is necessary to use only a special charger, which excludes manual adjustment of the current power. The use of a conventional device is fraught with the squeezing out of the boiling electrolyte from the battery with an incorrectly set current through the emergency valve. Subsequently, this affects the density of the liquid in the battery and shortens its life.

For all the advantages of maintenance-free batteries, maintenance-free batteries are still in production. Quite high demand for them is largely due to their low price, compared to models without service. Also, quality work maintenance-free batteries requires good automotive electrical equipment, which is difficult to achieve, for example, in cars domestic production... Short circuit or overcharging is not allowed, the device must be charged at a constant, even voltage, without surges, in a strict range: from 13.9 to 14.4 Volts. When discharging, you cannot use a conventional charger - to replenish the energy of such a battery, a special charge is required that holds d.C. at the terminals.

Maintenance of the battery is necessary if, as a result of use, the performance of the battery has decreased (the starter turns too slowly, the car does not start, etc.). The main reason is the deviation of the battery from the operating parameters. The service includes:

• topping up with distilled water (electrolyte);
• cleaning the body from white plaque and dirt;
• recharging with a charger.

High-quality battery maintenance reduces the likelihood of its rapid failure and increases the reliability of starting the engine in the cold season.

Thus, there is no definite answer which battery is better - each type of device has its own disadvantages and advantages. For car enthusiasts, owners of new vehicle with modern electronics, the best option are maintenance-free products, and experienced car owners can select and service models.

Whichever device you prefer, you should only purchase it from reliable car dealerships that provide checks and warranty coupons. This will save you from high costs for repairing or replacing the battery in the event of a breakdown: an examination in the service center will determine the factory defect and become the basis for a free battery replacement.

Proper use of maintenance-free car batteries

Automotive battery technology has advanced significantly over the past couple of decades. If earlier in the battery it was necessary to constantly check the electrolyte level, then modern models require much less attention to themselves. Manufacturers call these batteries maintenance-free, stating that they do not need constant monitoring of electrolyte levels. But the word unattended can be misleading for a car enthusiast. After all, these batteries still need maintenance, which we will discuss in this article.

The concept of a maintenance-free battery has come into use since its inception. car batteries type Ca / Ca. In such models, the positive and negative electrode grids are made from a lead-calcium alloy. The so-called serviced models that were produced before had lead-antimony grilles. Old car batteries had a high antimony content and were very high consumption water. Now they are no longer produced, and they were replaced by models with a lower antimony content. They are also called low-antimony. The antimony content in the plates is less than 6 percent. In them, the control over the electrolyte level should be periodic, since distilled water is constantly leaving it. Why? To do this, you need to consider the processes occurring in the battery.

When the battery is discharged, lead dioxide is reduced with sulfuric acid at the anode inside the car battery. At the same time, lead is oxidized at the cathode. In the process of charging the battery, the process goes in the opposite direction. Antimony was added to lead plates in order to improve their strength characteristics. It is not possible to use pure lead electrodes due to its low strength. But adding antimony also brings a problem. Antimony acts as a catalyst for the hydrolysis of water from the electrolyte. Hydrolysis is the decomposition of water into hydrogen and oxygen under the action of an electric current. Outwardly, it looks like a boil. Therefore, such an expression arose as "boiling away" of water from the electrolyte.

To solve this problem, manufacturers began to add calcium to the electrode grids. This solution turned out to be very successful in terms of reducing water consumption.

With the advent of the calcium type of car batteries, the concept of maintenance-free emerged. And the very absence of the need for maintenance concerns only adding water to the battery.

Models without openings for access to banks began to appear in the product lines of battery manufacturers. To check the state of charge of the battery on such batteries, you can often find a hydrometer or "eye". The hydrometer is designed to monitor the state of the battery charge. The images below show a maintenance-free and serviceable battery.

It is worth noting another category of maintenance-free batteries - gel batteries. The electrolyte is bound. It can be a fiberglass impregnation or a gel state. In most cases, these models are built in maintenance-free housings and do not need to be refilled with water. Although in some cases distilled water is added to AGM batteries. For example, for.

Maintenance of maintenance-free batteries

Despite their name, maintenance-free batteries do require maintenance. Moreover, in some cases, unattended execution, as they say, "comes out sideways."

Below are the main disadvantages of maintenance-free car batteries:

• Control of the electrolyte level is difficult;
• It is impossible to control the density of the electrolyte;
• They require flawless operation of the vehicle's electrical network and stability of the output characteristics.

Regarding electrolyte levels, some models of maintenance-free car batteries have minimum and maximum marks. For more information on what is, read the article at the link.

This makes it easier to control the electrolyte level. But on the other hand, what does knowing the electrolyte level give you? And if it is less than necessary? You can't top up anyway. Of course, the water consumption is insignificant. And the caps of the maintenance-free batteries are specially designed to ensure the recirculation of the electrolyte. But distilled water still goes away, but topping up will no longer work. And if the level has dropped to bare plates, then the battery life will begin to rapidly decrease. If you use the battery in this way, then it will be needed very soon or it will go to the landfill.

Another problem with maintenance-free car batteries is the inability to measure electrolyte density. And this characteristic is very important and gives an objective assessment of the state of the battery.

At least just measure the density after charging the battery for control. Indeed, without this, it is extremely difficult to understand the degree of charge and the voltage here cannot be an objective indicator. To assess the state of charge of a battery, manufacturers integrate a hydrometer into maintenance-free car batteries. Car enthusiasts often call it the "peephole".

The hydrometer is installed in one of the central banks of the car battery and monitors the density. Its action is based on the fact that the float rises with increasing density (charge) and falls when the density decreases (discharge). For the convenience of control, the corresponding color indication is made. But here, too, not everything is so cloudless.

Problems when using a hydrometer:

• According to the reviews of the owners of maintenance-free car batteries, such hydrometers often fail, regardless of the model and manufacturer. And such a hydrometer begins to show data that is divorced from reality;
• Experts also say that information on the battery charge by the hydrometer is given only when 65 percent of the battery capacity is reached. And when it reaches 100 percent, it will not be possible to find out, since the float does not give exact values;
• The hydrometer measures the density in only one of the jars and what is happening in the others is unknown. It turns out that charge control is performed only for one bank.

Now about charging maintenance-free car batteries. It is necessary to do it periodically for a number of reasons. The main thing is that when using a battery, including maintenance-free, on a car, it does not fully charge. In addition, due to a malfunction, it may happen that. In this case, the car must be shown to a car electrician.

At the moment of starting the engine, the battery gives off a powerful current and is discharged. It takes a long distance to replenish the charge. In this case, the revolutions crankshaft must exceed 2000 rpm. Then the generator generates a sufficient amount of electricity both for consumers in the network and for charging the battery. When driving in urban conditions, such a mode is difficult and constant car battery exposed to short-term surface charge.

That is, in the process of such recharging, only the surface layers of the electrodes work. In order for the charge to penetrate the entire depth of the electrodes, a small current and a long charging time (up to a day) are required. It is unrealistic to provide such conditions in the car's on-board network. Therefore, periodically (preferably every 3-4 months) you need to put the battery to be charged from the mains charger. How to set the charging mode is described below.

How do I charge a maintenance-free battery?

In the vast majority of cars, the voltage regulator in the on-board network sets a limit of 14.4-14.8 volts. The choice of this value is not accidental, since at large values, active hydrolysis of water begins and its consumption increases. When charging from a mains charger, you should also avoid exceeding this value. In practice, you need to keep the voltage on the battery no more than 15.5 volts. More details can be found in the article at the link.

As for the charger, it is better to use a charger with automatic control... Then the charging process is provided by special software embedded in charger... In this case, the algorithm will give commands to change the current or voltage, focusing on the electrical characteristics of the battery.

All you have to do is connect the "crocodiles" of the charger to the battery terminals observing the polarity and plug the device into the network. Additionally, you can read about.

Do not forget that when charging the battery, chemical reactions take place in it and harmful substances are released. Therefore, charge the battery in a well-ventilated area.

If you will be using a charger with manual current and voltage adjustment, we advise you to follow the following chart for charging a maintenance-free battery. After connecting the charger to the battery, set the current in the amount of 0.1 of the battery capacity. That is, with a capacity of 55 Ah, this value will be 5.5 amperes. After that, set the voltage to 14.5 volts and turn on the charger. More about what is.

Watch the parameters while charging. During charging, the voltage will gradually rise and the current will decrease. When the battery voltage rises to 14.4 volts, the current should drop to about 200 mA, which corresponds to the self-discharge current of the battery. The charging process is now complete.

These batteries are of various types: Liquid, Gel and AGM. To begin with, these are all acid batteries and the principle of their operation does not differ from each other.

The 12-volt battery consists of six cells, in which there are electrode blocks, consisting of positive and negative plates (grids) with an active mass applied to them and separated by a separator, all of which is filled with electrolyte. The process of formation (production) of electricity occurs during chemical interaction between the active mass applied to the lattice and the electrolyte.

The main fundamental difference between conventional liquid, Gel (GEL) and VRLA or SLA batteries created using AGM technology is the physical state of the electrolyte:

• Conventional batteries have a liquid electrolyte.
• Gel (GEL) - a thickened electrolyte to a non-flowing state with the help of special additives.
• VRLA or SLA, produced by AGM technology - the electrolyte is absorbed (absorbed) into the separator.

Electrode grids holding the active mass are doped with antimony and arsenic. The additives improve the processability of casting, increase the hardness and corrosion resistance of the electrodes. At the same time, antimony promotes increased consumption water and a decrease in the EMF of the battery during operation.

Further development led to a decrease in the proportion of antimony in the composition of the alloy from which the gratings are cast. This has led to the emergence of low maintenance batteries (low antimony technologies), and the battery life has also increased. Then calcium displaced the antimony from the negative plates. "Hybrid" batteries have appeared, and they need topping up even less often.

The use of calcium in positive and negative plates (calcium technology) has resulted in batteries that theoretically do not require topping up throughout their entire service life. However, such batteries fail from deep discharges. To increase the resistance, silver was added to the lead-calcium alloy of the positive plates. The use of labyrinth covers and plugs that condense the remaining evaporation of water and return it back to the battery, has led to the emergence of completely maintenance-free batteries throughout their life.

Gel batteries appeared with the beginning of space exploration. The gel resulting from the addition of silicon dioxide to sulfuric acid makes it possible to achieve complete tightness of the battery, since all gas evolution occurs inside the pores in the gel mass. Such batteries have no equal in terms of resistance to deep discharges, they are much more durable than traditional ones. But gel batteries did not get widespread among motorists due to very high requirements for onboard electrical equipment and due to a sharp drop in starting current in the cold.

Most modern technology (AGM) reverted to liquid acid, but now the electrolyte is trapped in the pores of an ultrafine glass fiber separator. This design allows not only to seal the case, but also to maintain the battery's performance even in the event of damage to the outer shell. AGM batteries are insensitive to temperature fluctuations, very resistant to deep discharges, durable, vibration-resistant and can work even while lying on their side, but are afraid of overcharging.

FEATURES OF GEL BATTERIES

The electrolyte gel fills the space between the battery plates, but the separator is not ruled out. Gas recombination in gel batteries has an efficiency of up to 97%. The gel fixes the material of the plates more efficiently, reducing their wear in deep discharge modes, therefore, the cyclic resource of gel batteries is 2-3 times higher than that of conventional ones, so it is advisable to use them in cases where such an application (cyclic mode with deep discharge) is in demand. Gel batteries can also be operated in any position (except inverted), have a slightly lower self-discharge, therefore gel batteries are preferably used in those modes where the discharge is performed with a low current for a long time.

In a gel electrolyte, ions have the worst indicators of mobility (due to the higher density of the medium), which negatively affects the dynamic discharge and charging characteristics of gel batteries. Moreover, a temporary voltage dip can be observed with a sharp increase in load, which can lead to inadequate behavior of the equipment; therefore, care should be taken when using gel batteries in current control systems, etc. devices with switching of rapidly changing currents. Gel batteries are very sensitive to the quality of charging. Batteries with gel inside can only be used where the on-board electrical system allows very precise maintenance of the charge mode. Where there on domestic cars even with a working relay-regulator, the voltage "walks" from 13 to 16 volts! And on most foreign cars it is not much better. And if the relay-regulator fails, then the gel battery can be thrown away immediately. It is not for nothing that it says: the charge voltage is not more than 14.4 V. If it is more, then the gel melts like a jelly in the heat and cannot be restored back. And one more thing: real gel batteries, of course, can have a huge current, but only in the summer. The gel is already viscous, but in the cold it completely freezes. As a result, the characteristics drop by half or more.

The charging of gel batteries is limited to very low currents, otherwise there is a danger of "swelling" of the gel with excess gases due to the lower efficiency of recombination and limited thermal conductivity. Gel batteries are preferably powered from chargers with high quality voltage (stability, minimum ripple) in order to avoid overcharging and overheating, they do not tolerate even short-term short circuits - any short circuit (for example, when installing the battery, you accidentally closed two poles for a split second with a metal wrench) instantly disables the battery.

High vibrations cause the gel to liquefy and run off the plates. As you can see, gel batteries are "better" (if I may say so), only in terms of increased cyclic resource and lower% of self-discharge. In addition, this type of battery is the most expensive.

LEAD-ACID SEALED VALVE RECOMBINATION BATTERIES (VRLA or SLA)

• VRLA (Valve Regulated Lead Acid) in translation from English - Valve-Regulated Lead-Acid;
• SLA (Sealed Lead Acid) - Sealed Lead Acid;
• AGM (Absorbent Glass Mat) is a manufacturing technology lead acid batteriescreated by engineers at the Gates Rubber Company in the early 1970s. Porous fiberglass sorbent (AGM) is an absorbent separator used between the plates in a VRLA battery.

The peculiarity of VRLA batteries is that there is no need to add water during the entire service life and there is almost complete absence of gases (hydrogen and oxygen), which are products of electrolysis of water that is part of the electrolyte. Therefore, they are often called sealed maintenance-free. Minor maintenance is nevertheless necessary: \u200b\u200bfirst of all, visual inspection, dusting, tightening of connections and stress control.

Due to the design features and the composition of the materials of the plates, separators and electrolyte, the products of water electrolysis - hydrogen and oxygen molecules - in batteries of this type recombine, turning into water molecules and returning to the electrolyte composition.

The recombination coefficient under normal operating conditions is quite high and can reach\u003e 99%. Therefore, only a very small part of non-recombined gases accumulates inside the accumulator housing and then, when the set pressure level is exceeded, is released into the atmosphere through special valves.

Benefits:

• Vibration resistant, can be installed in any position and without the need for maintenance, high starting current.
• Maintenance-free design.
• The design is sealed and valve regulated to prevent acid leakage and terminal corrosion.
• More safe work: Correctly charging the batteries will eliminate the possibility of gas evolution and the risk of explosion.
• The sealed design allows the battery to be installed in almost any position (however, upside-down installation is not recommended).
• Confident work with low temperatures (below - 40 * C), low self-discharge (only 15 - 20% per year of downtime), complete maintenance-free and long, up to 12 - 15 years, service life.
• Increased vibration resistance increases service life.
• They provide a number of complete (70%) discharge cycles of about 500 times.

Disadvantages:

• Should not be stored in a discharged state, the voltage should not fall below 10.8 V. Extremely sensitive to overcharge voltage.
  To charge batteries made using AGM technology, it is advisable to use a special charger with appropriate charging parameters that differ from the charging of classic batteries with liquid electrolyte. AGM batteries are not as "capricious" as gel batteries, but they also require attention to the condition of the generator and relay-regulator. The fact is that there is very little electrolyte in batteries of this type, and if it boils away, then it is impossible to top up.
• High price.

Batteries manufactured using AGM technology are manufactured in spiral or flat configuration. The spiral elements have a larger surface contact area, which makes it possible to deliver high currents for a short time and charge faster. However, the downside is that the specific capacity of the battery (the ratio of electrical capacity to size) is reduced compared to a flat configuration. Both technologies are promising. Currently, the most common flat-stack AGM car batteries. SpiraCell spiral blocks are patented by Johnson Controls for the Optima series and cannot be used without permission, unlike flat blocks. Spiral batteries have higher current-transfer characteristics and lower internal resistance due to the larger working surface of the plates at the same external dimensions batteries. In simple terms, they are more powerful.

Lead-acid batteries with bound electrolyte, manufactured using AGM technology, appeared about 40 years ago - they were invented for operation in a buffer mode in stationary uninterruptible power supply systems. Such batteries are good from a safety point of view, since they practically do not emit gases formed during charging into the atmosphere. In the 90s of the last century, AGM technology took root in motorsport. First, again because of safety - now thanks to a completely sealed battery case, which prevents electrolyte leakage in an accident. And secondly, due to their compactness - due to the low resistance of separators impregnated with electrolyte, they give out a high starting current with a lower capacity, that is, with a smaller number of plates in the package. AGM batteries appeared on conventional cars more than ten years ago. At the moment, AGM car starter batteries are used as a power source for the "Start-Stop" system, which is equipped with a number of car models of leading manufacturers due to the ability to quickly give and receive a large number of energy, the ability to painlessly withstand deep discharges (with periodic discharges more than 50% AGM - the battery will last four times longer than usual) and not degrade with frequent discharge-charge cycles. After all, fiberglass mats, in addition to everything, mechanically hold the active mass on the plates, preventing it from crumbling. That is why on machines with the "Start-Stop" system, such a battery can work for four to five years, and not two or three years, as a normal "liquid" one.

When choosing a battery for a car, you may be faced with the fact that they are of two main types. Which battery to choose: serviceable or not? How to use unattended and what are its advantages? We will give answers to these and other questions in our article.

The maintenance-free battery is a closed-type battery, its case is completely sealed and the owner does not have access to the inside of the battery. This means that you cannot twist any elements and see what is inside. If you turn over this type of battery, the acid solution will not pour out of it.

How to find out if the battery is serviced or not

When choosing new battery for the car, pay attention to the structure of the body. How do I know which power supply is being serviced? If the surface is smooth, characterized by the presence of an indicator and several holes for exhausting gases, then you have a maintenance-free option. If, in addition to the named elements, there are plugs that can be unscrewed and you can see the inside of the battery - electrolyte, plates, then this is a serviced battery.

Maintenance-free car battery device

As you can see in the figure, a maintenance-free storage battery has the same structure as a maintenance one - plates and an acid solution (electrolyte). The device of a maintenance-free car battery is as follows:

• negative and positively charged lead lattice plates;
• banks - separate containers in which the plates are installed;
• electrolyte - acid solution;
• a case on which there are always terminals and, optionally, there are indicators or plugs.

Attention! In gel power supplies, which we will talk about in another section, spiral electrodes are allowed instead of the usual plates.

The lattice structure of the plates is impregnated with electrolyte and guarantees high-quality chemical reaction... So that the differently charged electrodes do not touch, they are separated by a separator. It does not interfere with the movement of the acidic solution, but it prevents short circuits.

The battery case is made of durable material, since its main function is to ensure the integrity of the structure. It is characterized by resistance to external and chemical influences.

The plugs on the batteries indicate their serviceability - if necessary, you can unscrew them and carry out preventive maintenance of the power supply, add water, determine the electrolyte level, etc. The difference between maintenance-free batteries is in the absence of plugs on the case.

Service-free car battery life

One of the parameters for choosing a battery is the length of use. How long does a maintenance-free car battery last? The guaranteed operation of this type of battery is 5-6 years. Proper use of a maintenance-free car battery includes the following:

• lack of undercharging and overcharging;
• the voltage when restoring the capacity using the device is no more than 14.5 volts.

It should be borne in mind that other factors also affect the battery life:

• temperature conditions;
• good condition of the electrical system of the machine;
• leakage current;
• type of ride.

Many tests and checks have shown that the battery is renowned manufacturers has a longer term of use than nouns. This is due to the manufacturing processes.

Types and characteristics of maintenance-free batteries

Serviceable and unattended power supplies can now be found on the market. The development of technologies has made it possible to manufacture products in which electrode grids are made with the addition of calcium. This approach made it possible to reduce the amount of boiled water, and, therefore, saved the car owner from the need to control the electrolyte level. Sealed lead acid battery is the main type of these batteries.

Since water losses still remained, antimony (in positive) and calcium (in negative) were added to the composition of the plates. The technology of hybrid power supplies for a car with the Ca + or Hybrid marking appeared. They have become the golden mean in terms of water consumption. Please note that hybrid batteries are also available in serviceable cases.

Gel and AGM batteries, in which the electrolyte is not in liquid form, have become a new round of technology. In AGM batteries, the electrolyte is located in a porous filler, which excludes water evaporation. The gel structure of the acidic solution also minimized water loss and allowed for a completely maintenance-free battery.

Pros and cons of maintenance-free batteries

Serviced and unattended power supply - each has its own advantages. At first glance, it seems that maintenance-free batteries have only advantages. For those who recently bought a car or do not want to engage in its maintenance on their own - yes. However, for those who are used to keeping an eye on the important components of the car, such power sources are unusual - you can't get inside, you don't need to top up anything. Let's take a closer look at the pros and cons of maintenance-free batteries.

Benefits of maintenance-free batteries

• They do not require increased attention and periodic inspection.
• Unpretentious in operation.
• No water loss due to the tightness of the case.
• Operation in any position - no fluid leaks out of the housing.
• Long service life of the car's maintenance-free battery.

It is worth noting that most modern cars from the factory are equipped with closed-type batteries, but this does not mean that they do not require attention. We strongly recommend that you recharge the power source periodically to prolong its life. Do not set the voltage on the charger to more than 14.5 volts. A sealed battery is not always equipped with gas relief valves, therefore we recommend charging with an automatic device that will not give excessive voltage.

Remember that a faulty car electrical system will starve the battery and cause it to fail faster.

Disadvantages of maintenance-free batteries

Despite the rather impressive number of advantages, it is worth noting some of the disadvantages of a closed-type battery.

• The inability to somehow affect the performance of the battery in case of malfunction. You will not be able to check the density of the electrolyte and the sulfation of the plates, add water.
• Somewhat more high price compared to serviced power supplies for cars.
• An automatic device is required to safely charge such a battery.

The best maintenance-free batteries

The controversy surrounding power supplies for cars continues. We present to your attention the best maintenance-free batteries according to the versions of various tests.

Lead-acid batteries

1. Bosch Silver - German technology for casting plates with the addition of silver ensures stable starting currents and long-term operation. The cost of a simple model is from 6 thousand rubles. And also on sale you can find a model with the Plus marking. It is distinguished by an even lower level of electrolyte losses due to the presence of special channels in which the liquid settles in the form of condensate. The cost of such a model is from 7 thousand rubles.
2. Varta Blue Dinamic also contains silver, however, it differs in the composite arrangement of the plates. It is characterized by minimal self-discharge rates of maintenance-free batteries. The average cost is 5 thousand rubles.
3. Multu Silver Evolution. The starting current is 420 amperes with a capacity of 55 A / h. You can buy it for 4 thousand rubles.
4. Medalist distinguished itself by a long service life - up to 7 years and resistance to overcharging. Average price - 4,500 rubles.

AGM batteries

The Bosch 5951 battery has one of the best performance (the cost is about 6 thousand rubles). Resistant to long-term discharges and quickly replenishes capacity. Please note that this model does not have a control indicator on the case.

With the minimum cost (about 5, 5 thousand rubles), the Kazakhstani-made battery Kainar Bars Premium got into the rating.

One of the most expensive in the AMG battery line is the Tudor AGM. At the same time, he distinguished himself with high starting currents - 680 amperes with a capacity of 60A / h.

Optima Yellow Top battery remains the undisputed leader among gel power sources for cars for many years in a row. They issue unique characteristics starting current - 765 amperes with a capacity of 55A / h. The only drawback of this battery is the cost - about 20 thousand rubles.

In conclusion, I would like to note that serviced and maintenance-free batteries do not have significant differences. We hope our article helped you understand what a maintenance-free battery is and now you can distinguish a closed-type battery.

There are many answers to the question of which battery is better: maintained or unattended. We recommend purchasing the one that is more convenient for you.

1. Ensure normal operation during operation in closed ventilated rooms at temperatures from -40 to +45 ° С and without prejudice to performance characteristics withstand during transportation and storage in the package the temperature in the range from -50 to +50 ° С.
2. Provide seismic resistance when installed in accordance with the manufacturer's requirements. The battery must remain operational under seismic action with acceleration values \u200b\u200bof 0.9d and 0.6d - in the horizontal and vertical directions, respectively, as well as with their simultaneous action in the frequency range from 3 to 35 Hz.
3. Batteries must have a tight connection between the lid and the tank and the stopper, withstand an excess or reduced pressure compared to atmospheric pressure by 20 kPa, must have special sintered ceramic filter plugs to prevent the escape of gas, aerosols and electrolyte from the battery.
4. It is desirable that containers for low-maintenance batteries are made of transparent plastic, which will facilitate their maintenance.
5. Batteries in dry form (without electrolyte) must not be electrically conductive. The internal resistance of charged batteries must not exceed the specified values.
6. Sulfuric acid (H2SO4) must comply with the TU for purity stipulated by BS 3031 and VDE 0510, the specific gravity of acid for batteries with Plante plates is 1.20 kg / l ± 0.005 at +20 ° C and for other types 1.22 kg / l ± 0.005 at +20 ° С. The density of the electrolyte of a charged battery should be 1.24 kg / l ± 0.01 at +20 ° C.
7. Battery capacity must comply with DIN 40736 as well as IEC standard. A number of batteries of the same name should provide the ability to select the required capacity as accurately as possible.
8. Operation of batteries in a battery is carried out in a constant trickle charge mode with a voltage of 2.23 BxN + 1%, where N is the number of cells in the battery. In this case, the voltage deviation by individual elements can be +0.1 V ... - 0.05 V. It is allowed to operate a float charge of 2.23 BxN + 2%, while the battery life may be reduced by 15%.
9. Batteries must have 95% of the nominal capacity on the first cycle at 1 0, 5, 3, 1, 1/2, 1/6 - hour discharge modes and 100% capacity on the third cycle. The nominal capacity of the battery is considered to be the capacity for a 10-hour discharge to a final discharge voltage of 1.8 V per cell and an initial electrolyte density of 1.24 kg / l.
10. In order to avoid deep discharges, the batteries must not be discharged below the end-voltage values \u200b\u200bspecified in the documentation for this type of battery. Batteries must be capable of short-term discharges up to an end voltage of 1.35 V per cell without compromising their performance. Batteries must provide a short-term (1 min) discharge with a current of 1.39 A, the final voltage on the battery must not be lower than 1.45 V.
11. Self-discharge of fully charged batteries with 30-day inactivity should not exceed 3% at a temperature of +20 ° C and double with an increase in temperature for every + 10 ° C.
12. The batteries must be capable of operating in accordance with the values \u200b\u200bspecified by the manufacturer. Battery life is related to parameters such as float current, float voltage, ambient temperature, charger characteristics, quality of service.
13. During the entire service life, the occurrence of failures affecting the performance of batteries is permissible, on no more than one battery per year out of 10,000 in operation.
14. The storage of batteries without electrolyte (in their original packaging) from the date of manufacture until they are put into working condition must be at least four years.