askthemechanic
ASK THE MECHANIC Q: What's the average lifespan for the batteries in my golf cart? A: With proper maintenance on deep cycle lead acid batteries, the typical lifespan is about 5 years. However, that can vary depending on how the cart is used and how they are charged. If you choose to go with a sealed AGM (advanced glass mat) battery, typical life is about the same; however, you do not have to worry about maintaining them because there is no water to fill in the cells as the batteries are sealed. They do need proper charging for the longest possible lifespan. With lithium batteries, there is no maintenance required and some manufactures offer warranties up to 10 years. These battery packs can withstand more charging cycles and have the ability to be charged quicker and be discharged lower than the lead acid or AGM style. As mentioned before, the key component to longevity is how the batteries are maintained. Q: What's the proper way to change my batteries? A: First, make sure the key is off and the cart is in maintenance mode (if available). Take a picture of the configuration of your batteries including how your wires are run. Before battery removal, I recommend using gloves and eye protection. You will need to start off by removing any battery hold down brackets. Next, disconnect and remove the connection to the main negative terminal first followed by the main positive. You can locate your main positive/negative terminals by following your charger wires to these specific batteries. From there, loosen all your terminal nuts and remove the wires inspecting the condition of each one. Get yourself a battery removal strap from your battery store of choice or auto parts stores also sell a handle for easy removal. Once all the batteries are removed, check the battery tray for any corrosion. Neutralize any battery acid on the tray with a mixture of baking soda and water or there are sprays available. Sand off any corrosion the best you can and apply a corrosion inhibiting paint. If you see your battery tray is damaged from battery acid you should look into replacing it or at least reinforcing it. 48 www.GolfCarting.com
When everything looks nice and clean, start replacing the batteries one by one, making sure they are in the configuration they were in before. When reinstalling the wires, make sure you are connecting each terminal from the previous battery positive to the next battery negative until you have your last connection being the main negative. Take caution not to touch these wires to other terminals which could cause a short. Also make sure you have any other accessory wires hooked up like a fuse panel, voltage reducer or aftermarket headlights to the battery pack. Tighten down the battery nuts (which should also be new) but not too tight to where you may snap off a terminal. I always recommend installing new wires with any new battery install. If you have a multimeter handy, check your main positive and negative to make sure you're getting a full voltage reading. Double check all your connections for tightness and turn back your maintenance mode switch to run and all should be good to go again. Q: How do I break in my new batteries properly? A: This can vary depending on the type of batteries you choose. For lead acid, in regards to having the longest life and range, you want to slowly build up a stable base charge in steps. This happens in about 10-15 cycles. After install, I recommend driving the cart maybe a half a mile, then fully charge it. The next time, drive it for a mile, then charge it, and so on for about 15 cycles getting upwards to 10 miles or so. You don't want to discharge lead acid batteries below 50% especially when they are new as the failure rate increases quite a bit until you build up a stronger level of charge. This gradual cycling process allows the plates inside the battery to absorb the electrolyte the best possible way for the best performance. AGM is recommended to use the same procedure as lead acid, whereas lithium batteries do not require a break in period as they come "primed" from the factory. Lastly, make sure your charger is set up with the correct algorithm for your brand of batteries for the longest possible life. Check with your manufacturer of your charger for information on how to check/change your charging algorithm especially when changing from one type of battery to the next.
