MK Gel Cell Batteries Sealed Valve Regulated Gelled Electrolyte Lead-Acid Batteries (Please verify that the default terminal type listed below for the battery of your choice will suit your needs)

Benefits Completely maintenance free. Sealed construction eliminates periodic watering, corrosive acid fumes and spills. Electrolyte will not stratify, no equalization charging required. Allows faster recharge. Increases durability and deep cycle ability for heavy demand applications. Less than 2% per month stand loss means little deterioration during transport and storage. Tank formation ensures voltage matching between cells. Batteries under 150lbs can be easily shipped by UPS, and don't require special freight truck shipping like with flooded lead acid batteries. Warranty - 1 year

Specifications

Terminal Types

How does a gel cell work?

A gel cell is a "recombinant" battery. This means that the oxygen that is normally produced on the positive plate in all lead-acid battery recombines with the hydrogen given off by the negative plate. The "recombination" of hydrogen and oxygen produces water (H2O), which replaces the moisture in the battery. Therefore, the battery is maintenance-free, as it never needs watering.

The oxygen is trapped in the cell by special pressurized sealing vents. It travels to the negative plate through tiny fissures or cracks in the gelled electrolyte.

The sealing vent is critical to the performance of the gel cell. The cell must maintain a positive internal pressure. Otherwise the recombination of the gasses will not take place, and the cell will dry out and not perform.

In addition, the valve must safely release any excess pressure that may be produced during overcharging. Otherwise, the cell would be irreparably damaged.

It's important to note that gel cell must never be opened. If opened, the cell loses its pressure, and the outside air will "poison" the plates and cause an imbalance that destroys the recombination chemistry.

What is the difference between gel cell and traditional wet batteries?

Wet cells do not have special pressurized sealing vents, as they do not work on the recombination principle. They contain liquid electrolyte that can cause corrosion and spill if tipped or punctured. Therefore, they are not air transportable without special containers. They cannot be shipped via UPS or used near sensitive electronic equipment. The can only be installed "upright".

Wet cells lose capacity and become permanently damaged if:

• Left in discharged condition for any length of time (due to sulfation). This is especially true of antimony and hybrid types.
• Continually over-discharged, due to active material shedding. This includes specially designed deep cycle wet cells, but is especially true of automotive types.

Deep cycle antimony wet cells have seven times less shelf life as well.

Our gel cells have triple the deep cycle life of wet cell antimony alloy deep cycle batteries due to the gel cells unique design.

How do gel cells recharge? Are there any special precautions?

While our gel cell will accept a charge extremely well due to its low internal resistance, any battery will be damaged by continual under- or overcharging. Capacity is reduced and life is shortened.

Overcharging is especially harmful to gel cells because of their sealed design. Overcharging dries out the electrolyte by driving the oxygen and hydrogen out o f the battery through the safety valves. Performance and life are reduced.

If a battery is continually undercharged, a power-robbing layer of sulfate will build up on the positive plate, which acts a s a barrier to electron flow. Premature plate shedding can also occur. Performance is reduced and life is shortened.

Información en español

Gel Brochure
Technical Manual