Pulse De-Sulfaton Battery Maintenance FAQ's
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NOTE:  This is new technology and your mechanic or battery dealer may not be familiar with it.  The research for November '00 Aviation Consumer Magazine took nearly 2 years to compile and included information gleaned from numerous university studies, several large fleet users such as the Canadian DOT/Rail Industry, police and ambulance districts, and trucking companies.  It also included data provided by NASA and the U.S. military relative to significant field trials tests confirming this technology has proven effective in reversing excessive sulfation.   However some mechanics may feel this technology is still experimental or controversial.  We find it is not a "cure-all" but will go a long way to help curtail, if not reverse battery sulfation if used properly.

Q) I have a small "automatic" float charger/maintainer  which is supposed to regulate itself and not harm my battery.  So, why do I need a pulse de-sulfator/charger?
A) All other chargers are just that; chargers only.  Our research indicates battery manufacturers feel that automatic or "float" chargers can cause more harm than good if left truly un-attended for longer periods.  These types of automatic chargers are not "pulse de-sulfators" (as true pulse technology is a patented process), but straight line analogue chargers simply that do little more than attempt to keep batteries up to voltage when there is little or no sulfation present. Our findings show that especially when there is sulfation present, most un-attended automatic chargers tend to overcharge and eventually "boil" the acid out and thus overheat and ruin the battery they are designed to protect. 

Q) Do  your pulse de-sulfators also function as battery chargers?
A)  Yes, the "tuned frequency" units we currently offer are also true computerized "float chargers" and so rated. The 6 and 12 volt unit function as a 1.5 amp charger, 24 and 36volt units function as 2.5+/- amp chargers.  We find these ratings are slightly conservative, but see the specs for details. In practice, the units actually alternate between being "off", pulse de-sulfating, and charging in such a manner that (unlike most other chargers) it can be left un-attended for long periods of time without causing harm.  In practice it is intended to be kept on nearly constantly (between your usage of the aircraft, boat, collector car, or motorcycle, or what have you) if you so desire and our tests of 6 months+ have shown no adverse results, but to the contrary they can more than double average battery life. .

Q)  Can they restore or rejuvenate extremely weak or junk batteries*?
 A)  They WILL NOT "fix" a battery with a shorted cell or other physical maladies such as vibration damage or loss of reactive material (lead) which (due to past excessive sulfation or vibration) has shed itself and now rests on the bottom of the battery case and thus is "shorting" out a cell. Make no mistake, while the cause of a shorted cell may have been excessive sulfation, except for disassembly and rebuilding the battery by a battery manufacture, there is no actual "fix" for a battery which has a shorted cell. It is imperative for you to determine if your battery has shorted cells prior to attempting to de-sulfate it and/or if a defective battery exists within a bank of batteries (such as a golf card).  With that said, many batteries which have grown weak or thought to be "junk" and which simply won't accept a charge etc., the answer is YES.  Generally, electronic pulse de-sulfators seem to work 60 to 70%+ of the time on batteries which simply will no longer accept a charge.  For reasons not fully understood they will not work every time on every battery.  
 *In the scope of researching the Aviation Consumer report, the author rejuvenated about a dozen of various kinds of batteries and was able to return most of them to service.   In fact, he was still using a (otherwise junk") battery in his personal 750cc motorcycle well after a year he retrieved it from the junk pile at a nearby motorcycle dealer...!

Q) How often should I use a de-sulfator And can I keep it on most of the time I am not flying?
A)  Remember, sulfation didn't occur overnight and can't be cured overnight initially. In most cases it takes weeks of nearly constant de-sulfation to properly de-sulfate most larger batteries.  The amount of time needed is dependant on both the size (total plate area) of the battery and the extent of sulfation.  Typically it takes a week or longer to de-sulfate an otherwise working G-35 aviation or garden tractor size battery and a month (or more) for larger batteries in severe cases.  Again, successful de-sulfation is a function of several conditions such as:  surface area of lead plates, amount of sulfation present, temperature, and time the process is allowed to work.  Aviation Specific FAQs 

Q) Does the electronic pulse process itself harm any on-board "keep alive" circuits or aircraft avionics?
A)  We have had no negative reports, but we recommend you disconnect any highly sensitive equipment and/or leave off your aircraft's master switch during pulse treatments.  Generally, the battery acts as a large capacitor and absorbs the pulses and doesn't allow them to pass though to harm electronics.  However, we accept absolutely no responsibility for any damage to any on-board electronics should you elect to keep the battery connected to your aircraft systems during treatments.  We have no record of any electronics being harmed, but if you elect to use our product and keep your battery on-board, you are doing so at your own risk!  Aviation Specific FAQs

Q)  Will they charge a totally "flat" or dead battery?
A)  No, these units are designed to be "smart" and detect shorted cells which generally do not allow voltages to be near minimum specs.  Thus they need to see a minimum voltage present to begin their charging or de-sulfating cycle and especially before even switching to the pulse mode.  See unit specs for details.  If you have a "flat", dead,  or nearly dead battery you will probably need to use a normal charger to at least bring it up to some level of charge before using these units.  If you aren't successful using a normal charger, typically that means the battery has a "shorted cell" or has already been ruined by excessive sulfation and is beyond treatment.  Generally our 12v units need a battery which exhibits approx. 10.5 volts before it will begin charging and then later on) de-sulfating.  The 24v units need to see 22.5 volts, the 36v unit needs to see about 32.5volts  prior to beginning operation.  If in doubt, you can charge the battery (or bank of batteries) for a reasonable time with a separate "dumb" charger, then hook up our units and see if they will begin working as indicated by you being able to instigate the pulse mode by using the manual override button.

Q)  In a nutshell, how do I operate the unit and how can I tell if it is working or going to be successful at treating my battery? 
A)  The unit has two small LED lights, green and red as well as a small black button.  The red LED is simply a power indication light and should light up once the unit is plugged in to household voltage.  The green light should glow steady once the unit is hooked up properly to the battery (red pos, black neg) AND if the subject battery is showing sufficient voltage to accept a charge.  Once the unit has been hooked-up and operating for a while and becomes satisfied the battery is fully charged (typically overnight), it automatically switches to pulse de-sulfation mode and as indicated by a blinking green light.  The better condition the battery is to begin with, the quicker it switches to pulse mode automatically.  As a preliminary evaluation test however, after the unit has been hooked up for a hour or two, you can manually force it to go into the de-sulfation mode by pressing the mini black button and the green light should begin blinking if the unit has determined the battery will accept the pulse charging operation.  The unit is charging when the green LED is steady and pulsing de-sulfating when the green light is blinking. You may be able to return the unit to return back to its automatic mode by momentarily disconnecting one lead. If the green LED doesn't blink once you press the black button manually, or doesn't automatically go into the blinking/pulse mode after a day or so of being properly hooked up, chances are the battery  has other problems such as a shorted cell and is not a good candidate for de-sulfaton.  You should check for shorted cells prior to hooking this unit up via the hydrometer (enclosed) and/or test the battery with more sophisticated shop evaluation equipment, and make a special effort to do so if the unit fails to begin its pulse mode automatically after a few days. Totally or nearly dead batteries will need to be charged supplementally first by a "dumb" charger prior to using our units.

Q) What do the battery manufacturers say about this technology?
A) Most of those contacted are at least open to the technology if not endorse it.  Many have even gone on record promoting it especially in "problem" installations where there batteries are taxed to capacity and left un-attended frequently.  For example, Dan Rankin, VP of Teledyne Gill Battery openly recommends pulse charging for GA batteries as a method to promote longer life and increased capacity. 

Q) Can I have any other chargers or maintainers such as "shore power" attached to the battery(s) when I use these de-sulfators?
A)  This is not recommended as as our 10v powered units as they are designed to operate independently.  However, there are units soon to be available which are intended to be connected when your ships alternator is being used and/or a different charger such as shore power or R/V plug-in chargers etc.   We are not promoting these on-board "self-powered" units for certificated aircraft as this would require FAA approval and/or a 337 sign-off by your IA.  We will be offering these "self-powered" units in the near future if demand exists.  Presently call 941-484-0800 or Email us if you are interested

Q) Will these aviation units work on any other batteries such as in my R/V, PWC, boat, motorcycle, or golf cart?
A)  Yes, the units we offer here are specifically "tuned" to GA batteries, they will work on others.  We do however offer more heavy duty units for larger RV type batteries and a 36volt unit for golf cart and industrial batteries such as banks of 6volt batteries typically used to create 36volts for forklifts etc.  Call for details. 

Q)  Exactly what data exists proving this technology works?
A)  When doing the research for the Nov. '00 article in AVIATION CONSUMER we have interviewed a substantial number of large fleet/industry type users ranging from the Canadian DOT/Rail industry, maintenance officers in the U.S. Army, the Marines, engineers at NASA, and heads of ambulance districts, various universities/colleges (some of whom have tested and use pulse technology to "race" solar/battery powered cars against other universities nationwide), and police departments.  All fleet users contacted have substantial un-deniable anecdotal proof that they have firm data indicating that the use of pulse technology has caused their batteries to last significantly longer and they have substantially less battery maintenance problems when they use pulse technology than when they don't.  For example, the Army has measured this in millions of dollars saved annually.  It isn't un-common for fleet users to report battery lives more than double.  Official BCI (Battery Council International) reports that there is enough reactive material (lead) in most batteries for them to last nearly 15 years, but they also report most batteries last less than 1/3 that time primarily due to excessive lead plate sulfation. 

Q)  How long does it typically take to de-sulfate the average G-35 GA type battery?
A)  Generally speaking the more plates present (such as when doing  more than one battery at a time), the longer it takes to de-sulfate or even  maintain a battery.  Typically it takes at least 2 weeks to de-sulfate a otherwise functional or working G-35 aviation or lawn mower size battery and up to a month or more for larger batteries.  When doing more than one large battery at once, it can easily take a month or more but remember, it doesn't have to occur all at once.  You can use the battery (or vehicle) in-between periods of de-sulfating treatments.

Q)  Will they work equally well on all kinds of batteries such as sealed or recombinant, as well as gel-cell lead acid batteries?
A) Yes, reports indicate they work equally well on most any type lead/acid battery.  Interestingly, manufacturers clearly indicate that the  new style sealed RGB/recombinant types are also in need of de-sulfation.

Q)  Can they treat more than one battery at a time, if so how many?
A)  Generally unless you are familiar with the condition of each specific battery used, we don't recommend treating multiple batteries hooked together as if one is bad, it can affect the others unless you use special protective circuitry such as with isolation diodes etc.  However, in theory they are capable of treating several batteries in parallel (positive to positive, negative to negative), or perhaps in series (positive to negative) so as to provide the proper voltage needed for your de-sulfation unit.  For example, two 12v batteries hooked in series creates (in essence) one 24volt battery. Generally, except with our 36volt unit which is designed to treat a bank of golf cart batteries, it isn't best to treat more than 2-3 batteries at once.  Remember, the more combined plate area presented to the unit, the longer it takes to de-sulfate.  If you elect to attempt to treat more than one battery at a time, you will need with light gauge (16-18 gauge) jumper cables to connect your batteries which you will have to fabricate yourself.  We feel only users with a good grasp of how batteries function and how the de-sulfation process works should attempt to treat multiple batteries.

Q)  I have read the part about the red and green lights, but I am still confused.  Am I to understand I can use your unit to analyze the condition of my battery prior to actually de-sulfating it?
A)  Yes, one method to determine if a battery is rejected by our units as “junk” or doesn't have sufficient voltage is the fact the Bat Pack unit will never switch to the pulse mode as signified by a pulsating green light.  Sometimes however if the battery is not fully discharged, you can “force” it into the pulse mode by clicking the manual pulse override button.  While some minimal charging takes place in the pulse mode, it is generally recommended to simply hook the unit up to the subject battery and then allow the unit to automatically chose it’s method of operation.  Typically, it will switch from “charge” to “pulse” after battery is fully charged or some 24-48 hours if the battery is salvageable.  If it doesn't switch to the pulse mode after a reasonable period of time, you can attempt to charge the battery via a different "dumb" charger, but generally the battery should be considered junk and un-salvageable.

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