I made my own plasma today.
I was driving home...I did my usual 65 mph stint on the freeway for 12 miles
and then slowed to about 50 mph on the local road. The last mile or so at 65
mph, I smelled something so I eased up on the pedal. I smelled it again when
I accelerated from a stop light to 50 mph so I detoured to a 25 mph road
that would get me home the last 2 miles.
I accelerated to 25 mph from a stop sign and heard a zzzZZZZZTT- POW! and I
saw a brief, white puff of smoke and had a total loss of power. I hit the
hazards and slewed into a parking lot. I popped the engine lid and found an
8v floodie with the positive lug blown clean away and a shattered case up
top. Melted lead spray was on the inside of the engine lid, but no acid
spray even though the caps were blown off. The interconnecting cable was
HOT. Pretty dramatic.
Here's a little history: This battery had a loose cable a few weeks back.
The negative lug melted down a little but there was still a lot of usable
material. It wasn't bad so I tightened it down. The postive lug is the one
that blew apart. I routinely check the water levels and voltage levels once
a month. There was nothing out of the ordinary. The Zivan charger keeps
things pretty balanced and I've only had to add water once since March.
My theories are:
1. I overloaded the battery by pulling 80-300 amps (hills) doing 65 mph on a
hot summer's day. A plate warped and shorted out against another plate.
2. I overheated the battery and the lead lug simply boiled away.
3. I overloaded the battery and caused a cell reversal. (on a 128v pack, I
never pull below 115 volts for 1.8 vpc so I don't consider this likely)
I had a spare battery at home and these are still under warranty so I'm
already back on the road. I just want to know what I did wrong so I don't do
it again. Please post your theories.
Rich "plasma-wannabe" Acuti
Maryland
_________________________________________________________________
Don't get caught with egg on your face. Play Chicktionary!*
http://club.live.com/chicktionary.aspx?icid=chick_hotmailtextlink2
I was driving home...I did my usual 65 mph stint on the freeway for 12 miles
and then slowed to about 50 mph on the local road. The last mile or so at 65
mph, I smelled something so I eased up on the pedal. I smelled it again when
I accelerated from a stop light to 50 mph so I detoured to a 25 mph road
that would get me home the last 2 miles.
I accelerated to 25 mph from a stop sign and heard a zzzZZZZZTT- POW! and I
saw a brief, white puff of smoke and had a total loss of power. I hit the
hazards and slewed into a parking lot. I popped the engine lid and found an
8v floodie with the positive lug blown clean away and a shattered case up
top. Melted lead spray was on the inside of the engine lid, but no acid
spray even though the caps were blown off. The interconnecting cable was
HOT. Pretty dramatic.
Here's a little history: This battery had a loose cable a few weeks back.
The negative lug melted down a little but there was still a lot of usable
material. It wasn't bad so I tightened it down. The postive lug is the one
that blew apart. I routinely check the water levels and voltage levels once
a month. There was nothing out of the ordinary. The Zivan charger keeps
things pretty balanced and I've only had to add water once since March.
My theories are:
1. I overloaded the battery by pulling 80-300 amps (hills) doing 65 mph on a
hot summer's day. A plate warped and shorted out against another plate.
2. I overheated the battery and the lead lug simply boiled away.
3. I overloaded the battery and caused a cell reversal. (on a 128v pack, I
never pull below 115 volts for 1.8 vpc so I don't consider this likely)
I had a spare battery at home and these are still under warranty so I'm
already back on the road. I just want to know what I did wrong so I don't do
it again. Please post your theories.
Rich "plasma-wannabe" Acuti
Maryland
_________________________________________________________________
Don't get caught with egg on your face. Play Chicktionary!*
http://club.live.com/chicktionary.aspx?icid=chick_hotmailtextlink2