How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post anything about batteries here. Lead acid, rechargeable, whatever.
techman
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How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by techman » Tue Sep 18, 2012 1:54 pm

By using a few scrap computer parts, any novice can restore lead acid batteries for free. And it is quite safe as well.

I used the solenoids from a dead laser printer and a hard drive motor. All you need from the motor is some loosely spinning bearings and a sort of flywheel. That is why a hard drive motor is so good.

This little device can be made by pretty much anyone. The original inventor of this device, John Bedini, gave his plans to a little school girl who made one herself and won awards with it. Hence the name simplified school girl motor.

The device (lets call it an SSG) uses high voltage pulses of radiant energy, otherwise known as back EMF to break up the lead sulfate on battery plates and return it to the acid. This restores the battery to a like new condition. As long as the battery has no physical internal or external damage, there is a huge success rate on lead acid batteries of all types.

It is not magic. If the plates are warped or badly degraded into a collection of junk on the bottom of the battery, then it is beyond restoring. But the SSG is great at restoring sulfated batteries.

Anyway, See the article below for details:

http://www.thediyworld.com/How-To-Desul ... s-Free.php

Please feel free to post your questions, comments or experiences on this forum.

Dustin
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Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2012 2:52 pm

Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by Dustin » Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:14 pm

Can this method be safely used on AGM or Deep Cycle batteries?
My Optima AGM battery has been overdrawn. It holds a 12.8 voltage but cannot produce enough current to start my engine any more. As far as I have read, I need to be careful that I do no over charge it, because it is sealed and any water loss will result in irreparable damage.
Also, as I understand, it deals with emissions from electrolysis at a certain maximum rate with platinum catalysts inside the battery, recombining the products back into water.
Will the charging from this device dry out normal flooded batteries any more than a standard charger?
As far as deep cycle marine batteries go, will it charge them the same as a starting battery?


I live in Boise, ID. In town, we have a store that recycles old electronics and carries a ton of surplus items. http://reuseum.com/ It is somewhat of a treasure chest of goodies that would make it possible to build just what I need, in case you have any advice for me. I can solder. I understand most jargon and have a roommate who understands electronics much better than I do. Easy is better. Faster and more effective is best.
I have a light aluminum mtn bike rim that spins nearly effortlessly and can use that as a starting point.
Can you give me a hand?

techman
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Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by techman » Thu Oct 25, 2012 7:09 pm

The radiant energy charger will normally cause less hydrogen emissions than a standard charger. A standard plug in charger uses brute force to push electrons into the battery, which heats up the battery and boils off the electrolyte.

A radiant energy charger uses a sort of "cold" energy which does not boil off the electrolyte. You can overcharge a battery though and cause it to boil even with radiant energy, so you need to watch the battery voltage and charge status.

A marine battery that was originally rated as a starting battery can be reconditioned to start an engine again. A deep cycle battery that was never meant to start an engine should not be used for that purpose. It was not designed to put out a huge amount of amperes at one time.

Your bike rim is a good starting point. Now find some coils and a couple small electronics and start building.

Use the schematics here: http://www.thediyworld.com/ssg-battery-restorer.html to build your circuit.

I would be happy to help further, if you have any more questions. Please come back and share your progress.

Pete1962
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Joined: Mon Dec 31, 2012 3:10 pm

Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by Pete1962 » Mon Dec 31, 2012 3:20 pm

Hello: I was interested in using your idea with the printer solenoids. When using two of them on the power coil side, should they be hooked up in parallel or series. I'm assuming parallel but the resistance is going to change, or is that where the playing around with placement that you talk about comes in to play?
Thank You Much, Pete McQuade

techman
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Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by techman » Wed Jan 02, 2013 10:17 pm

There is no easy answer to your question, but I will try to help out.

It depends on the size of the coils you use. I first hooked them up in parallel. Then I used a separate transistor for each coil later on. This gave me two power coils with full circuits and one trigger coil.

I think they would also work in series.

The best thing to do is use a scope to find the highest output and lowest current consumption.

I left the power coils in place and move the trigger coil to adjust the timing. The power coils can be adjusted with the motor stopped. Place a power coil directly in front of a magnet. The exact positioning around the wheel should not matter, as long as each power coil is centered in front of a magnet with the wheel stopped.

Then start with the trigger coil centered in front of a magnet and start the motor up. You can adjust the trigger coil in tiny increments, allowing the wheel speed to adjust fully in between movements.

busby
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Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by busby » Mon Jan 07, 2013 12:54 am

what is the best size bicycle rim to use and does it matter if the fork that holds the rim is made of steel?

busby
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Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by busby » Mon Jan 07, 2013 12:55 am

btw, the rim I have right now is about 17 inches. What's the ideal number of magnets to use and does it really matter if I have them lengthwise or widthwise when positioned on the rim?

techman
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Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by techman » Mon Jan 07, 2013 9:49 pm

The rim size is not as important as how freely the bearings spin. The wheel should spin freely for about five minutes after you give it a good solid push. You can loosen the bearings a bit by loosening the pressure on the nuts holding them together just a little.

Magnet quantity is also flexible. Just use pairs. And do not space them too close together. 8, 10, 12 or 16 work fine as long as there is a nice sized space between them. If you can place two magnets the long way between each magnet then it will be fine.

Space your magnets equally around the wheel as well.

Position the magnets with all north sides facing outwards. Position the magnets so that the maximum width of the magnet covers a coil as it passes. Below is a horrible attempt at a sketch. Imagine the Ns are the North face of a magnet on the bike rim. The Cs are the coil. You want the magnet to completely cover the coil as it passes, if possible. The best is if they both have the same width so a magnet covers the coil entirely.

N
N CCCCCCCC
N CCCCCCCC
N CCCCCCCC
N

Steel will affect the performance of the device. Aluminum is the best for some reason. If you can, mount it all on a wooden or plastic frame. Using metal forks will really mess with the magnets.

wkmiller
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Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by wkmiller » Wed Apr 24, 2013 2:50 pm

Great Information that I think I can use as I have the parts,

Do you have a more detailed schmatic on how to use a Hard Drive motor for the School Girl Charger?

As not sure how to integrate hard drive stepper motor to the circuit,
can you explain that ?

Thanks Wes

techman
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Re: How to desulfate lead acid batteries for free

Post by techman » Mon May 06, 2013 6:53 pm

I did not use the stepper motor at all. No wires used. It was only used for its very fine bearings and then I glued the magnets to the hard drive platters. That is all.

I actually had to smash the stepper motor until the magnets inside were smashed so it had less resistance. Then it turned nice and freely for me.

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