Storage Battery Exerciser Schematic Circuit Diagram

Keeping Motorcycle or Boat Batteries Active During Winter

During the winter, motorcycle or boat batteries that won’t be in use tend to accumulate lead sludge deposits if not properly maintained. These deposits can diminish the battery’s capacity and, in severe cases, lead to complete battery failure. To prevent this issue, it’s crucial to keep the battery in an active state, even during the winter months.

Preventing Winter Battery Issues

To avoid lead sludge buildup and ensure the longevity of your motorcycle or boat battery, it’s essential to keep it active throughout the winter. This circuit does an excellent job of maintaining the battery’s health, eliminating the need for winter recharging. Instead, you only need to fully recharge it in the spring before using it again. Remember, inactivity leads to rust!

Winter Battery Maintenance for Motorcycles and Boats

When motorcycle or boat batteries sit unused for extended periods during the winter, they tend to develop lead sludge deposits. These deposits can lead to reduced battery capacity or even complete failure. To prevent these issues, it’s crucial to maintain the battery’s activity throughout the winter season.

Efficient Winter Battery Management

This circuit provides an effective solution for keeping motorcycle or boat batteries active during the winter. By doing so, you can eliminate the need for winter recharging and only focus on a full recharge in the spring when you’re ready to use the battery again. Remember, a proactive approach prevents issues caused by inactivity.

IC1.A: Managing Asymmetric Duty Cycle

IC1.A serves as an astable multivibrator with an uneven duty cycle. Its output remains in the High state for roughly 0.6 seconds, followed by a Low state for approximately 40 seconds.

IC1.B: Monitoring Battery Voltage

IC1.B functions as a comparator that continuously observes the battery voltage. It’s configured with a threshold voltage set at 11.0 V through the use of a trimpot. When the battery voltage falls below this threshold, the comparator switches to a Low state, cutting off D6. This action permits the second astable multivibrator, IC1.C, to oscillate at a rate of about 1.2 Hz. Subsequently, LED D7 starts blinking to signal that the battery requires charging. As long as the battery voltage remains above 11 V, IC1.B remains in the High state.

IC1.A, IC1.D, and Load Control

IC1.A is typically in the Low state, allowing D4 to conduct. This, in turn, results in the inverting input of IC1.D being in the Low state. Consequently, IC1.D is primarily in the High state, and transistor T1 remains cutoff. T1 only becomes conductive during the 0.6-second intervals when IC1.A switches to the High state. In this condition, T1 permits current to flow through the 12 V / 3 W lamp, which serves as the actual load for the battery. Following this, a period of darkness persists for 40 seconds. The average current consumption is approximately 5 mA. At this consumption rate, a relatively new 40-Ah battery will take roughly a year to discharge fully. However, this timeframe can vary based on the battery’s condition, and it might be necessary to recharge the battery once during the winter.