What is the difference between gel cell and traditional wet batteries?
Wet cells do not have special pressurized sealing vents,
as they do not work on the recombination principle.
They contain liquid electrolyte that can cause
corrosion and spill if tipped or punctured. Therefore,
they are not air transportable without special
containers. They cannot be shipped via UPS or Parcel
Post or used near sensitive electronic equipment. They
can only be installed ‘upright.”
Search Our Products Database
Wet cells lose capacity and become permanently damaged if:
-Left in a discharged condition for any length of time
(due to sulfation). This is especially true of
antimony and hybrid types.
-Continually over-discharged, due to active material
shedding. This includes specially designed deep cycle
wet cells, but is especially true of automotive types.
Deep cycle antimony wet cells have seven times less
shelf life as Our gel cells have tripled the deep
cycle life of wet cell antimony alloy deep cycle
batteries, due to our unique design.
How do gel cells recharge Are there any special precautions?
While our gel cell will accept a charge extremely well
due to its low internal resistance, any battery will
be damaged by continual under- or overcharging.
Capacity is reduced and life is shortened.
Overcharging is especially harmful to gel cells because
of their sealed design. Overcharging dries out the
electrolyte by driving the oxygen and hydrogen out of
the battery through the safety valves. Performance and
life are reduced.
If a battery is continually undercharged, a
power-robbing layer of sulfate will build up on the
positive plate, which acts as a barrier to electron
flow. Premature plate shedding can also occur.
Performance is reduced and life is shortened.
Therefore, it is critical that a charger be used that
limits voltage to no more than 14.1 volts and no less
than 13.8 volts at 68°F. Batteries used in float
service should be charged at 13.8 volts. For deep
cycle service, a maximum voltage of 14.1 should be
used. The charger must be temperature corrected to
prevent under- or overcharging due to ambient
temperature changes. (See Charging Voltage vs. Ambient
Temperature chart on page 11.)
Important Charging Instructions
The warranty is void if improperly charged. Use a good constant
potential, temperature corrected, voltage-regulated
charger. Charge gel cells to at least 13.8 volts but
no more than 14.1 volts at 68°F (20°C) Constant
current chargers should never be used on gel cell
batteries.
Can gel cells be installed in Sealed battery boxes?
NO! Never install any type of battery in a completely
sealed container. Although the normal gasses (oxygen
and hydrogen) produced in a gel cell battery will be
recombined as described above, and not escape, oxygen
and hydrogen will escape from the battery in an
overcharge condition (as is typical of any type
battery).
For safety’s sake, these potentially explosive gasses
must be allowed to vent to the atmosphere and must
never be trapped in a hermetically sealed battery box
or tightly enclosed space!
Can gel cell be used as a starting battery as well?
Gel cell will work in SLI (Starting, Lighting and
Ignition)
Applications providing the voltage is regulated between
13.8 and 14.1 volts at 68°F. Most vehicles’ regulators
are set higher than 14.1 volts. Therefore, the
charging system must be adjusted for the Battery to
recharge properly for best performance and longest
life
What do the ratings and specifications signify for this line?
All ratings are after 15 cycles and conform to BCI specifications.
CCA = Cold Cranking Amps at 0°F (—1 7.8°C)
Cold cranking amps equal the number of amps of current a new, fully
charged battery will deliver at 0°F (—17.8°C) for
thirty seconds of discharge and maintain at least 1.2
volts per cell (7.2 volts for a 12-volt battery).
CA = Cranking Amps at 32°F (0°C)
Same as above tested at 32°F (0°C). (Note: All cranking ratings are
guidelines. Gel batteries are designed for cycling
foremost.)
RC = Reserve Capacity at 80°F (27°C)
The reserve capacity is the time in minutes that a new, fully charged
battery can be continuously discharged at 25 amps of
current and maintains at least 1.75 volts per cell
(10.5 volts for a 12-volt battery).
Minutes discharged at 50, 25, 15, 8 and 5 Amps
Minutes discharged is the time in minutes that a new, fully charged
battery will deliver at various amps of current and
maintain at least 1.75 volts per cell. These are
nominal or average ratings.
Ampere Hour Capacity at 20, 6, 3 and 1 Hour Rates
Ampere hour capacity is a unit of measure that is calculated by
multiplying the current in amperes (amps) by the time
in hours of discharge to 1.75 volts per cell. (These
are nominal or average ratings.)
EXAMPLE
10 amps for 20 hr. (10 x 20) = 200 Ah © 20 hr. rate
8 amps for3 hr. (8 x3) = 24 Ah @3 hr. rate
30 amps for 1 hr. (30 xl) = 30 Ah @1 hr. rate
Therefore, if you have an application that requires
a draw of 17 amps for 3 hours, you would need
A 51 Ah battery (© 3 hr. rate).... (17 x3= 51).
However, the 51 amp hours delivered is 1O0% of the
capacity of this 51 Ah battery.
Most system designs will specify a battery that will
deliver a minimum of twice the power required. This
means the battery will discharge to 50% of its
capacity. Using a 50% depth of discharge (versus 80%
or 100%) will dramatically extend the life of any
battery. Therefore, when helping to specify a battery
for a system, choose a battery with twice the capacity
required for best performance. If 50 Ah is required,
specify at least a 100 Ah battery.
Introduction
Sealed gel technology (commonly referred to as “gel cell” technology)
was developed several years ago. Over the years, the
gel battery has evolved and developed into the battery
of choice for discriminating system designers,
application engineers and sophisticated users.
In 1991, East Penn began building gel cell batteries
using tried and true technology backed by more than 50
years experience. East Penn’s unique computer-aided
manufacturing expertise and vertical integration have
created a product that is recognized as the highest
quality, longest lived gel battery available from any
source.
Applications
Gel cells can be used in virtually any flooded electrolyte wet cell
application (in conjunction with well-regulated
charging), as well as applications where traditional
wet cells cannot be used. Because of their unique
features and benefits, gel cells are particularly well
suited for:
Deep Cycle, Deep Discharge Applications
- Marine Trolling
- Electronics
- Electric Vehicles
- Wheelchairs
- Portable Power
- Floor Scrubbers
- Personnel Carriers
- Marine House Power
- Commercial Deep Cycle Applications
- Standby and Emergency Backup Applications
- UPS (Uninterrupted Power Systems)
- Emergency Lighting
- Computer Backup
- Cable TV
- Telephone Switching
- Unusual and Demanding Applications
What is a gel cell?
A gel cell is a lead-acid electric storage battery that:
-is pressurized and sealed using special valves, and therefore
should never be opened.
-is completely maintenance-f ree*.
-uses a thixotropic gelled electrolyte.
-uses the “recombination” technique to replace oxygen and hydrogen
normally lost in a wet cell (particularly in deep cycle
applications).
- RVs
- Sailboats
- Golf Cars
- Race Cars
- Off-road Vehicles
- Marine Starting
- Air-transported Equipment
- Wet Environments
Diesel & ICE. Starting
Is non-spillable, and therefore can be operated in virtually any
position. However, installation upside-down is not recommended.
Connections must be retorqued and the batteries should
be cleaned periodically
How does a gel cell work?
A gel cell is a “recombinant” battery. This means that the oxygen that
is normally produced on the positive plate in all
lead-acid batteries recombines with the hydrogen given
off by the negative plate. The “recombination” of
hydrogen and oxygen produces water (H which replaces
the moisture in the battery. Therefore, the battery is
maintenance-free, as it never needs watering.
The oxygen is trapped in the cell by special pressurized
sealing vents. It travels to the negative plate
through tiny fissures or cracks in the gelled
electrolyte.
The sealing vent is critical to the performance of the
gel cell. The cell must maintain a positive internal
pressure. Otherwise the recombination of the gasses
will not take place, and the cell will dry out and not
perform.
In addition, the valve must safely release any excess
pressure that may be produced during overcharging.
Otherwise the cell would be irreparably damaged.
It’s important to note that a gel cell must never be
opened once it leaves the factory. If opened, the cell
loses its pressure, and the outside air will “poison”
the plates and cause an imbalance that destroys the
recombination chemistry.
Hence the name: Sealed Valve Regulated (SVR) Battery.
What is the difference between gel cell and “starved
electrolyte” batteries?
Both are recombinant batteries; both are sealed valve
regulated.
The major difference is that the “starved” or “absorbed
electrolyte” battery contains an amount of liquid
electrolyte added at the factory that soaks into the
special separators. Therefore, it is non-spillable
because the entire liquid electrolyte is trapped in
the sponge-like separator material. There is no “free”
electrolyte to spill if tipped or punctured.
Because of this “acid-starved” condition, this type of
battery does not normally perform well in heavy, deep
discharge applications. The gel cell has more
electrolytes available; therefore it is better suited
for deep discharge applications and can accept
occasional overcharging.
