How To Properly Maintain Your Golf Cart Batteries
If you have an electric golf cart, then you know that battery maintenance is the key component to the upkeep of your golf cart's batteries. Whether it is winterizing your cart or keeping it running optimally during the summer months, the condition of your batteries is paramount. There are a few things that you can do to make sure your batteries are always maintained properly.
Visual Inspection
Electric golf carts are a staple in the golf industry. Whether it is on the course or for private use, one of the easiest and most noticeable things to take care of is the tops of your batteries. When you lift your seat and possibly your under-seat storage, you will have a clear view of your batteries. A visual inspection can save you the trouble of a broken cable while out on your cart. It can also prevent future issues. Make sure the tops of your batteries are always clear of debris. You will want to wear gloves whenever cleaning your batteries to protect your hands from exposure to acid.
Cleaning Your Batteries
If you have a bristle brush, you can use this to remove any foreign substance from the battery tops and terminals. You can use a mixture of baking soda and water to assist with getting rid of corrosion, or use a formulated spray available online or at Lake Erie Golf Cars in their parts department. The batteries should be dried once cleaning is finished. Finally, you will want to protect your cables and terminals by using an anti-corrosive spray. This heavy coating will help protect against build up on your terminals that lead to a loss in performance and possible cable breakage. Please note that you should not wear jewelry of any sort while cleaning or maintaining your batteries.
Filling Your Batteries
Your batteries have cells in them that need to be filled with distilled water. Why is distilled water important? Tap water tends to have other chemicals and minerals in it that are not conducive to the lifetime of the battery and its performance. Spring water also should be avoided for those same reasons. Distilled water has none of the impurities that effect your battery. Buying distilled water is an inexpensive way to make sure you have optimal performance and lifetime out of your batteries. After all, the cost between a few gallons of water and a new set of batteries is rather significant. You want to routinely check your water especially after a lot of use and those hot summer months. Remember though, do not fill your batteries with water before charging. This will cause overflow when boiling and will damage your batteries and terminals. Fill your batteries after a full charge for a more true level. You’ll want to fill your batteries about 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch above the platelets inside of each cell. If you are filling to 1/4 you will have to check your battery cells more often. If you fill it to 1/2 inch, you will have some accumulation on the tops of your batteries. This will cause more frequent cleaning. This is unfortunately a pick-your-poison sort of scenario. Choose what best fits you.
Charging Your Batteries
For the most part, charging your batteries seems relatively simple. And it is. However, there are scenarios when specific ways of charging your battery apply. You should charge your golf cart for 8-10 hours with the proper golf cart battery charger. With that being said, you can base that ideology on the cart being 80% discharged. Leaving that 20% charge will make sure you are getting the most out of the batteries. Some chargers also have an auto off when the cart is charged, so charging it overnight shouldn’t hurt the batteries at all. If you plan own not using your batteries for a while, do not leave you golf cart plugged in, unless it has a storage mode. Charge it fully and then remove the charging receptacle and place you car in tow mode or whatever your make and model supports. This will have the lowest draw on the batteries. Bonus - remove your seat when charging your batteries to assist in the air flow and prevent corrosive build up.
Use Your Golf Cart Often
Using your golf cart will constantly cycle your batteries due to usage and will ensure proper charging. If you use your golf cart seasonally and are able to, a gas cart may be more beneficial. Using your golf cart on the weekends or months in between is easier to manage with a gas golf cart, but there may be reasons you have your electric. If you are seasonal, investing in a good charger with a storage mode would likely help to give you batteries a longer lifetime. In those winter months, you need to have your electric golf cart stored somewhere above freezing. If your batteries are full and freeze, the expansion will burst the housing of the battery and rendering it useless.
Looking for new batteries? You can make a parts request here. Make sure you include the info on the request so we can be sure to get you exactly what you need.
Interested in getting your car serviced? Lake Erie Golf Cars has attained team of technicians to assist you in all of your golf cart maintenance and repairs. Request service here.
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