Originally Posted by ChuckDickerson (Post 1447785)

Could someone please provide some credible documentation to substantiate this please? I have seen this posted on Chief Delphi numerous times but I have never seen manufacturer documentation that states this.

It is my understanding that this is true of old liquid cell batteries so that the electrolyte doesn't spill but modern SLA batteries are safe to use/store/charge in any orientation. I may be entirely incorrect in my understanding which is why I am seeking some actual documentation which I am unable to locate even though I have looked. I may just not know what to search for. Thanks.

Edit: For the record our battery charging station is designed so that the batteries are charges laying down. This has seemed to work perfectly fine for us for more years than I can remember right now but that in no way means we are doing it correctly.

Edit #2: I found a wealth of info about a large number of 12V 18Ah batteries of the size we use in FRC at ATBatt.com. They seem to have manufacturer PDFs and technical documentation for just about all of the various brands of batteries we use. As an example I pulled up the Technical Manual for the PowerSonic PS-12180-NB batteries we have purchased to use this year and while there are pages and pages of information on battery charging I did not find one single mention of battery orientation during charging. I would think that if it was important the manufacturer would make mention of it somewhere.

Originally Posted by Jon Stratis (Post 1447829)

The vents for these batteries are on the top. When charging, the battery can generate excess gasses that need to vent. Charging upside down will not allow that to happen.

Originally Posted by MrBasse (Post 1446927)

Well worth the $450 we paid for it.

Originally Posted by Wferr (Post 1447919)

If you dont mind me asking... How did you get it at that price :confused:

Originally Posted by Alan Anderson (Post 1447843)

If the battery is upside down and gas does need to be vented, there is a real possibility that some of the electrolyte (i.e. acid) will be forced out along with it. In normal operation there shouldn't be any significant liquid outside the glass mat, but overcharging to the point where the battery is overpressurized is not normal operation.

Originally Posted by MrBasse (Post 1446927)

we got the big Battery Tender.

Well worth the $450 we paid for it. If you have enough batteries to keep it fully loaded, you'll never need more than two amps to charge a battery. Plus it is made by a company named after maintaining batteries...

Originally Posted by Chris_Ely (Post 1447993)

We got the same charger, and we love it. We never half to worry about having a charged battery at competition. By the time we get through 5 or 6 batteries, the first one is already fully charged again.

By the way, I love your charging station!