At IOTA®, we've discovered that when connecting multiple batteries in parallel to create a larger battery bank, not all batteries are treated equally. Depending on your connection method, some batteries can be charged harder, worked harder, and discharged faster than others. This can lead to harder-working batteries failing sooner than the other batteries in your bank, and in some cases, failing early in their expected lifespan. The culprit is a small, yet impactful amount of resistance between your battery connections.
To combat this problem, we recommend using "Balanced Charging." This involves evenly distributing the resistance between the connections across all of the batteries, allowing you to reap the maximum potential of each battery and ensuring that they all have a similar, lengthy lifespan. Realizing the effects of resistance on batteries connected in parallel is best demonstrated through a common method of wiring them, where batteries are connected side-by-side (negative to negative, and positive to positive), starting with the first battery connected to the second, and so on until connecting to your battery charger.
In this typical wiring method, the battery connected directly to your charger will draw more amperage than the battery furthest down the bank due to the current being reduced through each interconnecting lead. This difference in current between the closest and furthest batteries from your charger can be significant and increases as additional batteries are added to the system.
To learn more about Optimal Charging for Multiple Batteries, click here or visit our Technical Library
For more information on IOTA battery charger and power converter solutions, visit www.iotaengineering.com or call us at 1-800-866-4682.
