How to Charge an AGM Battery

Charging an AGM battery could be described as an art that people has to master to get it right. This is because an AGM battery comes with some unique characteristics that must be put into consideration before the charging, in order to ensure a longer service life.


 

What’s An AGM Battery?

Before we proceed further to explain how to charge an AGM battery, it would be good for you to know what an AGM battery is first. These are batteries that come handy in a lot of applications, including storing of renewable energy for future use, powering of cars, backing up the power of the UPS and powering of numerous electronic devices.

 

This sort of battery suffers from premature aging when it is not properly charged; making it to die faster than the manufacturer’s designed it to.

 

The cells may preheat when it is not properly charged, and when this dies, the AGM battery may get damaged and die off within a few hours.

AGM batteries come with limited charge current. A VRLA battery has a maximum charge current of 0.3CA, and that means 0.3 times the battery’s capacity.

These batteries are made of 6 connected cells of 2V each, making up the nominal AGM battery voltage of 12V.

Also, when charging an AGM battery, there must be a compensation of the charge temperature, if the environmental temperature is different from the normal 25ºC. To get the charging of an AGM battery right, the following tips must be adhered to.

 

What’s An AGM Battery?

Before we proceed further to explain how to charge an AGM battery, it would be good for you to know what an AGM battery is first.

These are batteries that come handy in a lot of applications, including storing of renewable energy for future use, powering of cars, backing up the power of the UPS and powering of numerous electronic devices.

This sort of battery suffers from premature aging when it is not properly charged; making it to die faster than the manufacturer’s designed it to. The cells may preheat when it is not properly charged, and when this dies, the AGM battery may get damaged and die off within a few hours.

AGM batteries come with limited charge current. A VRLA battery has a maximum charge current of 0.3CA, and that means 0.3 times the battery’s capacity.

These batteries are made of 6 connected cells of 2V each, making up the nominal AGM battery voltage of 12V.

Also, when charging an AGM battery, there must be a compensation of the charge temperature, if the environmental temperature is different from the normal 25ºC. To get the charging of an AGM battery right, the following tips must be adhered to.

 

  1. Get the Rightful Charger

Whether you want to charge an AGM battery that is down or super start AGM battery charging, you can’t achieve much without the recommended charger. The charger is not a one-size-fits-all thing, so you have to pick the exact one that is recommended for the battery.

While some of the chargers are meant to deliver moderate amounts of power, others offer a huge amount of power. When it comes to capacity, larger batteries go with larger chargers, and vice versa.

In learning how to charge an AGM battery, you must understand that the right charger for AGM battery could be the thing that makes the whole difference in charging an AGM battery.

 

      2. Know How Different Batteries Are Affected By Charges

Charging an AGM battery is not like charging your laptop battery. AGM batteries are made of lead acid and not lithium, and this makes the procedure of charging AGM batteries a bit unique.

Now, while you can charge the lithium battery partially for some time and it won’t harm the battery, same cannot be said of the lead AGM battery. For the latter, they must be fully charged and even overcharged a little bit for a top up.

This is achieved with the smart AGM chargers, and that is why you must go for them. If you fail to fully charge or overcharge AGM batteries, and always give them a partial charge, they will lose their ability to get fully charged after some time.

 

3. Adhere To the Right Temperature Range

Whether you want to super start AGM battery charging or to give it a normal charge, a certain temperature range is necessary. The advice is for you not to charge them when the temperature is not within the normal range. You should never charge lead batteries in temperatures above 104 degrees Fahrenheit and 40 degrees Celsius.

AGM battery charging is also affected by cold weather. So, when the temperature drops to 32 degrees Fahrenheit or 0 degrees Celsius, you shouldn’t charge the battery.

When you are charging, you have to ensure that the temperature lies within 0 and 40 degree Celsius. This helps the battery to live out its designed lifetime.

 

4. Its Normal for the Battery to Warm Up

If you go through an AGM battery discharge chart, you will see that the cells feeling warm is not a problem. It is a normal occurrence in lead acid batteries. When your AGM batteries are warm, it is still fine to use them, but this is not applicable to the lithium AAA and AA batteries.

However, do not use an AGM battery that is very hot. Use only when it is warm. When charging the AGM battery and it gets warm, you can disconnect and allow it to cool, before you continue charging. That’s how to charge an AGM battery and avoid damaging it.

 

5. Steps To Charge Your AGM Battery

You have to start by linking the battery with the battery charger for a simple charge. When you must have connected the recommended AGM charger to the battery, you should go ahead and turn on the charger.

When this is done, the charger charges the excellent battery, which in turn transfers the charges to the discharge battery.

This process continues until the discharge battery is fully charged. In learning how to charge an AGM battery, one thing you should know is that it is not good to overcharge the discharge battery.

That is why you should make use of the AGM battery discharge chart.

Allow the battery for up to one hour and check the status. If the battery gets warm, keep charging until it’s properly charged. However, if it gets too hot, then there is a problem, and you should disconnect.

Note that this is not the same when you want to revive an AGM battery. That one involves a more complex process.

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