Battery Types

General:

As a rule, these batteries were designed for motor vehicle start applications.  An Automotive battery is capable of delivering high current pulses, but for short times - as an example, to start up a motor vehicle in the winter.  The battery charge can drop to 1.4 volt per cell (8.4 volt) , and recover without permanent damage.  It cannot continue to deliver the maximum current at a low voltage as this would permanently damage the battery.  The lowest voltage of 1.75 volt per cell (is the lowest suggest continuous battery voltage). A standard motor vehicle is also rated on its.'Cranking Current' capability.  This is the maximum current rating which the battery can deliver for 60 seconds, without going below 1.4 volt per cell. (Your car’s battery is rated on this current) .  In worst conditions, the maximum current that your car’s starter might draw is, the 'Cranking Current'.  Although the standard vehicle battery is designed for this short period - high current applications, it was not designed to be totally discharged and then recharged.  The life time of a normal car (high cranking) battery is reduced considerably by exposure to continuous deep cycling.

Leisure batteries are of hybrid design and manufactured with less plates and with a fibreglass matt between them. This matt keeps the lead sulphide up against the plates in the battery, which allows the battery to be cycled more frequently.  These extra matts    unfortunately create higher internal battery    resistance, which in turn limits the peak current.  (This is the reason why the leisure battery is not specified on a 'cranking current' rating) .  The leisure batteries form part of the hybrid range batteries.  The   advantage of the hybrid design is the ability of being charged, without releasing any gas or spilling of acid.  (Hybrid batteries also have other advantages).  Leisure batteries are designed to deep cycle.  Find out more about leisure batteries here

Leisure batteries can be deep cycled.  They are ideal for solar applications and application when your charging source is not continuously present, the disadvantage though, is the inability to produce high current rating for short periods.  For this reason, one can use a 1,500 volt ampere Inverter on a single standard car battery for a short       while but cannot with a leisure battery.  By using the leisure battery the correct way, you can get a much longer battery life from your leisure batteries then from your normal car battery.  For a 250 watt application, which would cycle between 10.8 volt and 14.5 volt   over a 40 hour period, the normal car battery will last for approximately 3 months (if that long) and your leisure battery up to 500 charges (4 years) !

More about leisure batteries:

	Click here to find out about the Excis maintenance free battery
	Click here to find out about Optima High Performance batteries for industrial, leisure, and marine use
	Click here to find out about Deltec Battery
	Click here to find out about Royal battery