Learn what 8 things can dramatically shorten the life of your forklift battery. Battery life expectancy is determined by usage, duty cycle, maintenance, recharging, watering, etc. Every application is different and to help increase your batteries life expectancy a proper planned maintenance program is a key factor. Here are areas of concern for a battery […]
What Degrades the Life of a Forklift Battery? Read More »
There are no doubt many advantages to the “corporate purchasing contract” for large companies, but on a local level it is clear that having a distant corporate headquarters dictate the purchase of certain specifications of material handling equipment is often an uneconomical approach. When a policy tells a manager he can’t work with a local
Breaking Through the Corporate Purchasing Barrier Read More »
Whether you are a lift truck dealer or a material handling fleet operator, you have a vested interest in turning your battery and charger matters over to a specialist. Batteries are silent, long-running power packages, but they are subject to wear, require specialized maintenance, and, improperly specified, can be the limiting factor in successful use
How Your Battery Shop Saves You Money Read More »
Communications between lift truck dealers and buyers is part sales pitch and part customer service. But be sure that your first-time electric lift truck owner is brought up to speed on the operational details of living with a battery-powered vehicle. That buyer may not realize that the battery in his new truck is not just
Advice to First Time Electric Truck Owners Read More »
Last month I introduced the Horizon advanced lead-acid battery, and as you may recall, one of its strong points (especially for consumer highway vehicles) was its phenomenally rapid recharge cycle: less than 30 minutes. This is fast turn-around for an electric vehicle power pack, but there may soon be a faster way: Use a fuel
The Fuel Cell: Advanced Vehicle Power Read More »
Lift truck batteries are heavy. If one drops from any height, it will hit the ground hard. Is it possible that a battery that has tipped over, or fallen a foot or two, can be returned to service? Often the answer is yes. There have been examples of electric forklifts that have gone over the
When a Battery Falls or is Tipped Over Read More »
Let’s take a look at some common questions electric lift truck owners and dealers ask about the battery charger: 1. “I have an older charger that makes a very loud buzzing sound. Is this easy to fix?”If the sound comes from the A.C. contactor, the repair can be as simple as either cleaning the dirt and
Q&A: Battery Chargers Read More »
The critical part of a battery’s life cycle is the time it spends on charge. During charging, a battery is exposed to the most vigorous workout that the active material in the plates receive, and it is during this time that the battery experiences the most wear. Abnormal charging conditions expose the battery to accelerated
Proper Battery Charging Read More »
The battery charger is often the most neglected component of an electric lift truck system. Operators and equipment dealers alike tend to ignore the fact that the battery charger can be the source of short and long term problems unless it is properly sized, adjusted and operated. The consequences of improper charger operation can be
Sizing Up a Battery Charger Read More »
Chargers for electric lift truck batteries range from the fairly simple to quite complex, but their purpose is the same: charge a battery of a specific size in an 8-hour shift. The 8-hour charging cycle is a universal standard, but many chargers will accommodate a larger ampere-hour capacity than their nominal rating if allowed to
Battery Charger Control Basics Read More »
