Whether you work in an enclosed space where exhaust from an internal combustion engine would pose a hazard or you’re simply striving to minimise your business’ carbon footprint, electric battery forklifts are a popular and economical choice. Choosing to go electric for your entire fleet allows you to do away with costly deliveries of gas or diesel, but care must be taken with your equipment to keep the maintenance costs to a minimum.

One of the key areas where costs can skyrocket is in the battery itself. Improper battery maintenance can severely decrease the overall life expectancy of even the best quality units, meaning you have to shell out thousands for another battery far sooner than you’d prefer. In this article, we’ll provide a few tips to help you keep your battery in top condition, allowing you to keep your costs low, your productivity high, and your accountant happy. Read on to learn more.

Charging do’s and don’ts

Proper charging practice for your phone is a world apart from proper charging practice for your forklift. Where most people might think to plug their phone in at 50% to get just a little bit more in the tank before they go out, forklift operators have to be careful to avoid both opportunity charging and interrupting charge cycle.

Like the lithium-ion battery in your mobile phone, lead-acid forklift batteries have a limited number of charge cycles before their capacity is sharply reduced. Where they differ is in the cost; while you may think nothing of picking up a new battery for a much-loved device for $80, forklift operators can be looking at thousands of dollars to replace their worn-out battery. With your average battery lasting 1500 cycles and a single cycle generally being good enough for a single six- to eight-hour work day, you can expect about five years from your battery. Start opportunity charging as much as two or three times a day and you could see that drop to under 24 months.

Watering the right way

Keeping your battery’s water levels within the manufacturer’s recommended levels ensures that it’s always performing at optimal efficiency. That means making a regular check and top up every five to ten charges a necessity to ensure that it can operate safely. Equally, don’t overfill the battery, as extra space is needed to account for the expansion of the battery when in use.

Consider investing in a watering system for faster, more precise filling. These systems replace the existing vent caps on the battery and use automatic shut off valves to ensure the perfect water level is reached every time.

For more information on electric forklifts or to buy one of your own, speak to the team at Eureka Forklifts today.