using a mobile amp on a battery at the base

[Twink]

talkin to my local cb shop about gettin my base together. i told them i wasn't gonna run my 240 at home, because i didn't have the $300 to spend on a power supply i can trust. he said you got a battery charger? well, yeah, i actually have a really nice one.

he said he's got gell cell deep cycle batteries for just this purpose for $50. i asked if it would work just as well, he looked at me dumb and said it works in your car doesn't it? ok, stupid question.

what do you guys think about using this kind of setup?


here's what i got:
cobra 29 swinging to 30w (i've got a PS for it)
antron99
mf240 swings to 400 watts

[killapits]

thats what i do in my house for right now, untill i get something bigger

[Texas Mobil 219]

A buddy of mine runs mobil equipment for a base. (BIG RADIO) He has four battery's sitting on his porch with a 200 amp charger. Im going to set my up the same way.

['Doc]

You ready for this?

Can you use a battery and charger to power stuff in the house? Yes, you can. But there are complications that go with that. Sealed or not, batteries are not good news in a closed environment. They tend to produce gases when discharging and charging. Those gases are not a "breath of spring", they are corrosive to 'things' and people. Gell cells can also cause problems with they're rate of charging/discharging. Discharge one really fast and you'll end up with a sort of swollen up mess, if you're lucky. Same for charging. So much for batteries.
That charger can also be a real P.I.T.A.! They typically have no filtering, so are potential RF noise makers.
So, if you just gotta use a battery and charger in the house, take some fairly simple precautions. Use a battery box/enclosure, a vented one (outside). Setting that battery box on something that will 'contain' any drips/whatever, is also a good idea. It's your house and your lungs, treat them like you want them to be treated.
- 'Doc

(Yes, I've done it too. Doesn't mean it was very smart.)

[linx]

Amen to that Doc. I was wondering if anyone was going to mention that.

No way I'd have a car battery in my house...using it, or even sitting here. Those things leak more than you can imagine. Most of what is leaked is noxious gases. Tons of locals run their setup on batteries and car chargers, and know the risk of it, and just don't care. You won't see a big battery in my house, ever.

[Tinman590]

Amen to that Doc. I was wondering if anyone was going to mention that.

No way I'd have a car battery in my house...using it, or even sitting here. Those things leak more than you can imagine. Most of what is leaked is noxious gases. Tons of locals run their setup on batteries and car chargers, and know the risk of it, and just don't care. You won't see a big battery in my house, ever.

Im with linx on this one!

[Texas Mobil 219]

Yep, Never inside the house, Maybe i should of been more imformative the just saying Porch.

[Twink]

You ready for this?

Can you use a battery and charger to power stuff in the house? Yes, you can. But there are complications that go with that. Sealed or not, batteries are not good news in a closed environment. They tend to produce gases when discharging and charging. Those gases are not a "breath of spring", they are corrosive to 'things' and people. Gell cells can also cause problems with they're rate of charging/discharging. Discharge one really fast and you'll end up with a sort of swollen up mess, if you're lucky. Same for charging. So much for batteries.
That charger can also be a real P.I.T.A.! They typically have no filtering, so are potential RF noise makers.
So, if you just gotta use a battery and charger in the house, take some fairly simple precautions. Use a battery box/enclosure, a vented one (outside). Setting that battery box on something that will 'contain' any drips/whatever, is also a good idea. It's your house and your lungs, treat them like you want them to be treated.
- 'Doc

(Yes, I've done it too. Doesn't mean it was very smart.)

yeah i heard about that somewhere on a previous post. i'll be keeping the battery on the back porch. and, i've got a two year old little **Censored** running around, and i don't want that kind of electricity just sitting around the house for him to discover.

[madsage]

gell cell not good for indoors?

I know they are the only battery that its not required to be pulled when transporting viehicles by air cargo or ship.
So i always assumed there are no gasses. Please elaborate on this one. As i want to add some gellcells to my Samlex that is supposed to also charge batteries for backup. Thank you.

The 933 RiffRaff
in the stickerz

['Doc]

Got an old gell cell that's not really any good any more? Try this. The typical 6 or 12 volt gell cell has a sort of plate between the terminals. Pop that plate off and see what's under there. What it amounts to is several 'cells' sealed with a stopper type cap. When a gell cell is discharged too quickly, or charged too quickly, gas is generated in that little 'doo-gee' until it over powers those seals. Then it vent's the gases. That venting doesn't have to be fast, or explosive, it can be almost undetectable. But it's there. Ever smelled a gell cell being charged? Fumes...
If I were going to have to use a largish battery in the house it would be a gell cell type thingy. That doesn't mean that they are absolutely safe, just safer.
- 'Doc

As to exactly what those gases are, I have no idea. Not too sure I want to find out either.

[madsage]

thanks Doc, will keep that in mind.
maybe do some research too, i have a 7yr old daughter.
wouldnt want anything in her breathing atmosphere that could be harmful, known or unknown.


the 933 RiffRaff
in the stickerz

[madsage]

I problably should have read before my last two posts.

here is a wiki on the subject, [Please login or register to view this link]

Gell cells are still Lead-Acid. This i did not know, however thier electrolyte (sulfuric acid) is better contained and cannot escape as easily as a typicaly wet cell.
Also the hydrogen and oxygen when broken down from the water will re-attach in a gell cell unlike a wet cell that will vent it.
As far as i can see, if a VRLA battery does vent, if over charged or charged to quickly or higher than specs amperage draw, (should'nt happen anyways) there is a pressure relief valve for safety, if this occurs. And from what i can figure out, the only thing that will escape is hydrogen gas. while it is flamable, hydrogen will not harm you if breathed. Wet cells on the otehr hand can emmit hydrogen and evaporated sulfuric as they are open atmosphericly.

the 933 RiffRaff
in the stickerz

[cornbrown]

talkin to my local cb shop about gettin my base together. i told them i wasn't gonna run my 240 at home, because i didn't have the $300 to spend on a power supply i can trust. he said you got a battery charger? well, yeah, i actually have a really nice one.

he said he's got gell cell deep cycle batteries for just this purpose for $50. i asked if it would work just as well, he looked at me dumb and said it works in your car doesn't it? ok, stupid question.

what do you guys think about using this kind of setup?


here's what i got:
cobra 29 swinging to 30w (i've got a PS for it)
antron99
mf240 swings to 400 watts

Just make sure you use a gell cell deep cycle battery to avoid the fumes and it will work just fine.

['Doc]

Deep cycle batteries don't produce fumes? Really?
- 'Doc

[cornbrown]

I should have said the fumes are less with the gel type marine type battery.

[Foxhunter]

All common batteries will normally outgas poisonous and explosive hydrogen sulfide gas. Although much safer than a "normal" battery, even the sealed type "gel cells" have a vent incorporated into the top for this purpose. So be careful. Rapid charging/discharging of a battery will surely produce excess gas, and running a charger hooked to it on 200A jumpstart will also immediately produce this condition.

In another thread recently, Linearone had a good point about doing this where he said "it gives the firefighters something to talk about after they put out your house that burned down when the battery fumes ignited. . . "

He's right in a way, what will the Fire Marshal or Fire Investigators think? What about the Homeowner's Insurance Co investigators? Insurance companies are ALWAYS looking to get out of paying out from a policy and that would surely be their excuse, for absolute sure. I think you'd seriously need a heavy-duty and vented containment box that's leak-proof, explosion-proof and again vented to the outside. I once watched a truck battery explode right by my Father's face and let me tell you an exploding battery is truly unbelievable.

[hunter]

This may seem to simple but there are allot of people selling base amps pretty cheap.
It just seems like a heck of a mess and problems to go with trying to use a mobile amp.
Check around a bit, you may be surprised at at how low some are. Just a 100 amp would have ya blowing smoke with a good set up.
good luck

[Twink]

yeah, since my last post i got a 15amp power supply and a radio that does 125 out the back.... it suits me fine.

[Sporty Mike]

125 out the back?? whered you find that??

[cornbrown]

I came to my senses on this one... Keep the batteries out of the house!!!!! Get a power supply!!

[Bakerman1]

I have this setup in my house....it works great......make sure you have a line fuse at the positive terminal on the battery in case you have a short in the wires !

[909 wis]

the whole battery concept with the cb hooked up does work. but note: do not recharge the battery when cb is hooked up and on, this maycause a bad buzz in your radio. a long term buzz sound. I found that out when I was 14 and learned my lesson.

[cornbrown]

Keep the batteries outside of the house...They vent hazardous fumes which are dangerous to your health.

[Bakerman1]

I have this setup in my house....it works great......make sure you have a line fuse at the positive terminal on the battery in case you have a short in the wires !

It should be outside but I ran out of wire.........one more thing don't get the wires crossed !!

[Lost Ram]

Before I got Married I had a 36V Fork lift battery and charger I obtained when I worked for Yale fork lifts. Parked it outside on a pallet behind the house. I used the same type cable as on the fork truck to come into the house. Worked great, I could attach the positive cable to any amount of cells I wanted to get the desired voltage. I had a smaller set of wires hooked up to get 14V to run the mobile radios. The other BIG wires really fired up those Comp boxes!!!!! 24V-26V looks real impressive for a short while on those comp boxes LOL!!!!! Yea, that was an expansive repair, it still makes me cry. Also no matter how many grounds you have, it still HUMS with the charger on!

NOTE: I have a GEL Battery in my tractor, when the charging system went south and caused the alternator to go to full field (18V), it caused the GEL battery to vent pretty rapidly. It smelled just like a regular battery and HISSED very load.

Merry Christmas.