What is a Gel battery?
A gel battery is a lead-acid electric storage battery that:
- Old technology that has been in use since the early 1950’s.
- Uses various plate thicknesses relative to application and cost requirements.
- Is sealed using special pressure valves and should never is opened.
- Typically uses Calcium/Calcium metal alloys.
- With proper charge management, is typically maintenance-free.
- Uses various degrees of gelled electrolyte (“true” Gel versus “semi” Gel) depending upon manufacturer.
- (***) Acid to active material ratios along with acid specific gravities may vary according to application and market costing requirements. User/integrator should note and verify!
- Uses a recombination reaction to prevent the escape of hydrogen and oxygen gases normally lost in a flooded lead-acid battery (particularly in deep cycle applications).
- Is non-spill
*** Available amounts of usable amp hours CAN BE ADJUSTED BY AS MUCH AS 30% by adjusting the acid and active material densities. Buyers should be aware that increasing acid specific gravities and acid to active material ratios would severely reduce the batteries life cycle expectancy as well as increase the available usable power per discharge cycle. Otherwise a 75 amp hour battery can be made to deliver 100 amp hours by increasing the acid to active material ratio and the specific gravity of the acid. Both of these adjustments will severely reduce the life of the battery. Therefore, if you are quoted an unbelievable price on a 100AH battery given the current market pricing, you may now know why! Adjusting acid specific gravities and acid to active material ratios may make sense to a particular user who wishes to increase cold weather performance but the user should again beware that life will be negatively affected.
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