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Battery Preheat

40m

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Shoreham, VT
So as not to high jack another post I clipped this paragraph to begin this one. Thanks.

"All batteries are a controlled chemical reaction, whether charging, discharging, or even sitting still. Chemical reactions slow down with lower temperatures. Ask the resident chemical engineer for the details but some chemicals seem to be more sensitive than others. So when people tell me that any battery works less well in cold weather, I just kinda shrug. I can't change the chemical make up, so they'll need to warm the battery to maintain it's performance."

Has anyone installed a heating pad on their battery? Wattage?


 
25 years ago, maybe. Including the battery in the preheat was routine. Odyssey batteries changed that. They work incredibly well in the cold. So do EarthX batteries once you learn how to use them.
 
I'd say the easiest thing to do with them is to pull it out and take it inside to keep it warm. It would be fun to test out different wattages and insulation blankets to find a good combo.

Web
 
I'd say the easiest thing to do with them is to pull it out and take it inside to keep it warm. It would be fun to test out different wattages and insulation blankets to find a good combo.

Web


Up here in the great white north. Your car/truck will have a block heater, a battery blanket, and if your real special a little buddy in the cab. I would imagine a battery blanket tie wrapped around the box would give you all the cranking amps you would need, that an a pad heater, and engine tent and bobs your uncle
 
I've set up aircraft to have a single, lighted, AC plug on the side of the cowl. Plug in power and the light came on showing power to the engine heat system ans also to an electrical cabin heater. Either the cabin heater or a heat pad (depending on battery location) should go a long ways towards keeping the battery above -bajillionºF.

Web
 
There are two issues with temperatures and batteries: First, they don't crank as well or as long in cold temperatures. Second, when they're cold, they don't TAKE a charge well either.

So, CG issues notwithstanding, that's one of the compelling arguments for installing Atlee's underseat battery mount. With the battery in the cockpit, it stays warm during flight and thus takes a decent charge. Left in the original location in a Super Cub, the battery sits back there and is cold during flight, therefore not charging AS WELL as if it were warm.

BUT, as Stewart accurately noted, the Odyssey batteries seem to be relatively immune to cold, both in starting and charging. We had a standard battery mounted aft in a Husky. That battery was equipped with a battery warming blanket, connected as Web noted, to the engine heat (Tanis). While in maintenance, the mechanics replaced the standard battery with an Odyssey, in the same aft location. I knew they'd done so, but didn't pay much attention.

That winter, I spent several nights in sorta cold places like Fort Yukon, where overnight temps were -40 and colder. Plane cranked and started just fine after having been plugged in all night.

Next spring, I opened the battery door and realized there was no battery blanket any more. Mechanics hadn't re-installed it after the battery change.

That, if nothing else, convinced me to put an Odyssey battery in my personal plane.

But, it sure can't hurt to add a battery blanket (any auto parts store should be able to get them or order on line....they're standard) to warm your battery.

If at all possible, I much prefer the battery on the firewall, which means any time the engine is heated or running, the battery is warm. Not always possible, but..

MTV
 
Just replaced my Odyssey battery. Original was installed in 2003, never been on a charger. I’d say that’s pretty good for sure..
 
If you put a load on the battery ( lights etc....) For 30 seconds it will raise the battery temp. If my prop stops on compression I let off the button and wait 10 seconds and push start again it spins right over. Old farmers used 2 screwdrivers touching together to short the +&- terminals when a truck or tractor wouldn't chank over on a cold morning, wait 10 seconds and it would start. They called it " bootstrapping". Jumper cables make it safer

"Bootstrapping With Jumper Cables | MOTHER EARTH NEWS" https://www.motherearthnews.com/hom...bootstrapping-with-jumper-cables-zmaz83ndzale

Glenn
 
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3-4 years ago I spent a couple nights in a cabin in below zero temps. The morning I left I had to bring the Odyssey PMA battery into the cabin to warm up because it wouldn’t crank the engine. And the engine was warm using a Honda 1000 generator.

After getting back to town I bought a battery warmer from NAPA. The foot print was about right to fit under the battery. The Honda would run the battery warmer and the Reiff engine system. When I did my condition inspection that spring I found that the case on the Odyssey had been distorted by the heat. I replaced it of course but that battery is still being used on my quad.

The more expensive battery blankets have a thermostat in them. So be careful what you buy.

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A friend of mine modified his Honda 1000 by making an exhaust extension that goes out his window. He runs the generator inside the cab that powers his engine heater. The heat from generator engine warms the inside of the cab.

Jerry

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That's awesome! Such a great example of Alaska engineering. Always looking to get the most use out of every item.

Web
 
One of the things about Odyssey batteries is that their instructions say to just install and go. No need to charge the battery first. I suspect if you use the wrong flavor of charger, you may damage the battery.

I've run five or six of them in different airplanes and never charged one prior to installation.

MTV
 
I always charge any battery before install. Always charge at a rate of five amps or less and you won't ever damage any type of ships battery.

Web
 
Odysseys lose so little charge during storage it’s unlikely they need charging. EarthX is the same, but for lithium I bought an Optimate charger. I do put the charger on my EarthX batteries once in a while mostly to assure they pass the diagnostic phase.

At my cabin the generators are plumbed to exhaust outside and the waste heat warms the adjacent outhouse. The primary gennie is a Northern Lights 6KW diesel with a Yamaha 4KW gas as a backup for cold weather. The Yamaha is reluctant to start when its cold and the Northern Lights cranks to life at -50 with no preheat. And that with a flooded lead-acid battery. Go figure. My solar system batteries and inverter use a temp sensor to adjust the charge rate for temperature. I have no idea how it works but I appreciate that it does. You guys think airplane batteries are expensive!!!
 
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