Battery Wiring Question

[TomSeller]

Batteries in parallel can lead to a number of strange problems -- It's highly unlikely it was designed to use any batteries in parallel.

Right. It is designed to work with four 6 V batteries in series to total 24 V. Wiring two 12 V in series and paralleling two more in series would "work" but is not ideal and should at least have separate fuses. In the OP's case, where he already bought the batteries, wiring two 12 V in series is proably the best unless his budget allows him to buy the four 6 V as designed.

 

[dlwford]

Right. It is designed to work with four 6 V batteries in series to total 24 V. Wiring two 12 V in series and paralleling two more in series would "work" but is not ideal and should at least have separate fuses. In the OP's case, where he already bought the batteries, wiring two 12 V in series is proably the best unless his budget allows him to buy the four 6 V as designed.

Yep ... I would just use the two 12 vdc in series. Not as much total energy as 4 6vdc but it will work safely. Other than answering this specific question, my larger point is this ... batteries .. if used improperly can be dangerous. There are cases where batteries improperly used in parallel can over heat, burst in to flames and explode even if fused for their rated loading.

 

[rutwad]

Sorry I haven't responded before now. Last night I found this. Well I wanted to attach pictures but they are too large. I'll try to resize on my computer later today and post.

 

[rutwad]

This shows 4 batteries, but it had 3- 12 volt batteries when we bought it used. I can get 24 volts from the 3 batteries. But I have not hooked up the charger because I checked it's output with my voltmeter and it read 36 volts. So now that I have the batteries wired for 24 volts, how can I hook the charger up?

 

[TomSeller]

This shows 4 batteries, but it had 3- 12 volt batteries when we bought it used. I can get 24 volts from the 3 batteries. But I have not hooked up the charger because I checked it's output with my voltmeter and it read 36 volts. So now that I have the batteries wired for 24 volts, how can I hook the charger up?

I am not seeing a picture. The third battery needs to be disconnected and the remaining two need to be in series. Do not operate it with three 12V batteries in any configuration

 

[Xfaxman]

Where did the charger come from?

Does it have a nameplate with a model number and output ratings?

Any chance the motor was changed to 36 volts?

We need pictures, they have to be 1,000 KB or smaller and the total size of a group uploaded at the same time has to be 1,000 KB or smaller.

 

[chim]

rutwad, if you must continue heading down the "gotta make it work with three 12V batteries" road, please wear a face shield.

 

[Tx Jim]

I think if you attach two 12 volt batteries in parallel and one 12 volt batt in series on same electrical system you are going to see SMOKE and a lot of it.:thumbdown:

As TomSeller stated if it's a 24 volt system install four 6 volt batteries or I would suggest two 12 volt batteries because of less battery cable connections required.

 

[Looking4new]

rutwad, if you must continue heading down the "gotta make it work with three 12V batteries" road, please wear a face shield.

and clothes you don't care about. You WILL lose them when everything blows up in your face.

 

[Bigkrank]

I took the four 6V out of my lift and replaced with 2 big Optima 12V yellow tops 11 years ago. Still works perfect.