I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- plus I just generally hate to throw things away.

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works???

They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. A shame to throw it away.

On Aug 14, 7:23*pm, mm wrote:
I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. * One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- *plus I just generally hate to throw things away.

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. * I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works??? *

They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. * Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. *A shame to throw it away.

Is there a manufacturer's name anywhere?? Contact the mfgr and ask for
a schematic.

mm wrote:
I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- plus I just generally hate to throw things away.

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works???

They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. A shame to throw it away.

Boat anchor comes to mind.

--
LSMFT

I look outside this morning and everything was in 3D!

On Aug 15, 8:11*am, LSMFT wrote:
mm wrote:
I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. * One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- *plus I just generally hate to throw things away..

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. * I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works???

They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. * Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. *A shame to throw it away.

Boat anchor comes to mind.

--
LSMFT

I look outside this morning and everything was in 3D!- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Put them up on Ebay. The more disclaimers you put like "flashing
error codes and they apparently don't work", the more people will want
them. Seriously. Take a look at some of the PCs people bid on that
are 5 years old. I saw one where the listing clearly stated that
they had never booted it up, have no idea if it works, no software, no
returns, sold as is, etc. And people had bid it up already to $75.

mm wrote:
I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- plus I just generally hate to throw things away.

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works???

They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. A shame to throw it away.

I'd find an amateur electronics enthuasist (ham radio operator comes to
mind) to see if repairs could be made cheaply. If so, sell the suckers on
ebay. Current prices there range from $125 to $350.

If you're enough of a salesman, visit your local golf clubs. "Tell ya what
I'm gonna do. I'm gonna sell you this charger for $200. You can be confident
that if your current charger croaks, you can stay in business and not risk
being beaten to death with a 9-iron. Further, I'm gonna throw in a TWO YEAR,
MONEY-BACK, UNCONDITIONAL guarantee...."

Under that rubric, the worst that can happen is you break even.

On 8/14/2010 8:23 PM, mm wrote:
I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- plus I just generally hate to throw things away.

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works???


No. If the batteries aren't the same size or the same level of discharge
the strongest battery will take most of the charge. This is similar to
memory effect in NiCad. Don't put them in series unless the batteries
are even, which is unlikely outside a device that needs three.

The dead one could be easy to fix, it might even be just a fuse. Take it
apart and take a look.

As far as usage, probably not much beyond their original intended.

Note that copper, in the transformer, is valuable. Your best bet, as
has been suggested, is to try to fix the dead one and then sell them as
a pair. Many people could make two out of one, since the symptoms are
different.

Jeff


They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. A shame to throw it away.

On Sun, 15 Aug 2010 09:23:26 -0400, Jeff Thies
wrote:

On 8/14/2010 8:23 PM, mm wrote:
I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- plus I just generally hate to throw things away.

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works???


No. If the batteries aren't the same size or the same level of discharge
the strongest battery will take most of the charge. This is similar to
memory effect in NiCad. Don't put them in series unless the batteries
are even, which is unlikely outside a device that needs three.


Actually you have it WRONG. Batteries are ALWAYS charged in series

The dead one could be easy to fix, it might even be just a fuse. Take it
apart and take a look.

As far as usage, probably not much beyond their original intended.

Note that copper, in the transformer, is valuable. Your best bet, as
has been suggested, is to try to fix the dead one and then sell them as
a pair. Many people could make two out of one, since the symptoms are
different.

Jeff


They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. A shame to throw it away.

36 volt chargers are becoming uncommon on golf carts, most are 48 and
higher today (many even 72) - I use a 36 volt GC charger to charge the
36 volt battery pack for my E-Bike - but even there, 48 volts is much
more common on the "good" ones, and 24 on the cheapies.

When I READ the paragraph BEFORE your comment, it MADE perfect sense
to ME. Charging in SERIES is best done when the batteries are EQUAL in
BRAND, type and STATE of CHARGE.

I'd be WILLING to charge BATTERIES in PARALLEL since they all end up
at the SAME VOLTAGE.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..



wrote in message ...



No. If the batteries aren't the same size or the same level of
discharge
the strongest battery will take most of the charge. This is similar
to
memory effect in NiCad. Don't put them in series unless the batteries
are even, which is unlikely outside a device that needs three.


Actually you have it WRONG. Batteries are ALWAYS charged in series

On Aug 16, 9:03*am, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
When I READ the paragraph BEFORE your comment, it MADE perfect sense
to ME. Charging in SERIES is best done when the batteries are EQUAL in
BRAND, type and STATE of CHARGE.

I'd be WILLING to charge BATTERIES in PARALLEL since they all end up
at the SAME VOLTAGE.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
*www.lds.org
.


wrote in messagenews:82bh661a348bgvhngr8653t1e3l9hvgtcv@4ax .com...



No. If the batteries aren't the same size or the same level of
discharge
the strongest battery will take most of the charge. This is similar
to
memory effect in NiCad. Don't put them in series unless the batteries
are even, which is unlikely outside a device that needs three.

Actually you have it WRONG. Batteries are ALWAYS charged in series

If you think a little harder about it, he is correct. A single 12v
wet cell battery is comprosed of six 2 volt cells in series.

The conclusion you jumped to was that it's desirable not to charge
several independent 6 or 12 volt batteries in series unless they are
identical in composition and use. Even then it is a good idea to
independently charge each one periodically to try to maintain
identical charge states.

On Mon, 16 Aug 2010 09:03:18 -0400, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:

When I READ the paragraph BEFORE your comment, it MADE perfect sense
to ME. Charging in SERIES is best done when the batteries are EQUAL in
BRAND, type and STATE of CHARGE.

I'd be WILLING to charge BATTERIES in PARALLEL since they all end up
at the SAME VOLTAGE.
Think about it - a "battery" is a string of cells in series.
Charging batteries in series puts the same amount of current through
each battery. Parallel charging is fraught with possibilities.
Maintenance charging of warehoused batteries is done with all kinds of
batteries, including different voltages and capacities, all connected
in series, charging at 2.2 volts per cell, more or less. The
precautions you state are mandatory for parallel charging, and almost
irrelevent for series charging.

Well, lets see. Now, lets look at the "irrelevant" factors, during a
series charge as you seem to prefer.

We start charging. About an hour later, the battery #4 in the line is
fully charged. We continue to pump in the two amp charge.

Hour two. Battery #3 is now fully charge. Battery #4 has been over
charged for the last hour, and is losing water as it electrolyzes to
hydrogen and oxygen.

Hour three. Battery #2 is fully charged. Battery #3 is rapidly losing
water. Battery #4 is nearly dry. Candidly, I think you are mistaken.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


wrote in message
...
On Mon, 16 Aug 2010 09:03:18 -0400, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:

When I READ the paragraph BEFORE your comment, it MADE perfect sense
to ME. Charging in SERIES is best done when the batteries are EQUAL
in
BRAND, type and STATE of CHARGE.

I'd be WILLING to charge BATTERIES in PARALLEL since they all end up
at the SAME VOLTAGE.
Think about it - a "battery" is a string of cells in series.
Charging batteries in series puts the same amount of current through
each battery. Parallel charging is fraught with possibilities.
Maintenance charging of warehoused batteries is done with all kinds of
batteries, including different voltages and capacities, all connected
in series, charging at 2.2 volts per cell, more or less. The
precautions you state are mandatory for parallel charging, and almost
irrelevent for series charging.

On 8/15/2010 11:13 PM, wrote:
On Sun, 15 Aug 2010 09:23:26 -0400, Jeff
wrote:

On 8/14/2010 8:23 PM, mm wrote:
I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- plus I just generally hate to throw things away.

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works???


No. If the batteries aren't the same size or the same level of discharge
the strongest battery will take most of the charge. This is similar to
memory effect in NiCad. Don't put them in series unless the batteries
are even, which is unlikely outside a device that needs three.


Actually you have it WRONG.


About what? Surely you are not advocating charging 3 unequally
discharged backup batteries? That *is* the point. There is nothing wrong
with charging in series provided the batteries are similar and in a
similar state. Not that they would blow up, but the charging would be
unequal with the weakest battery taking less and less charge after every
cycle until it was dead. Hence the advice to discharge completely your
NiCads from time to time, so they all start at the same (fully
discharged) level. This is all basic ohms law with the voltage divided
between all the batteries, the weak link progressively falls in voltage
and hence the amount of charge it is given.

For unevenly charged batteries or batteries of different types, the
best option is to charge them independently.

FYI, large battery arrays are usually in a series/parallel combo of some
type. Look it up yourself.

Jeff

Batteries are ALWAYS charged in series

The dead one could be easy to fix, it might even be just a fuse. Take it
apart and take a look.

As far as usage, probably not much beyond their original intended.

Note that copper, in the transformer, is valuable. Your best bet, as
has been suggested, is to try to fix the dead one and then sell them as
a pair. Many people could make two out of one, since the symptoms are
different.

Jeff


They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. A shame to throw it away.

36 volt chargers are becoming uncommon on golf carts, most are 48 and
higher today (many even 72) - I use a 36 volt GC charger to charge the
36 volt battery pack for my E-Bike - but even there, 48 volts is much
more common on the "good" ones, and 24 on the cheapies.

Clare says that with series charging. all those rules and factors are
not relevant. Maybe you can help explain it to him?

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"Jeff Thies"
wrote in message ...

No. If the batteries aren't the same size or the same level of
discharge
the strongest battery will take most of the charge. This is similar
to
memory effect in NiCad. Don't put them in series unless the
batteries
are even, which is unlikely outside a device that needs three.


Actually you have it WRONG.


About what? Surely you are not advocating charging 3 unequally
discharged backup batteries? That *is* the point. There is nothing
wrong
with charging in series provided the batteries are similar and in a
similar state. Not that they would blow up, but the charging would be
unequal with the weakest battery taking less and less charge after
every
cycle until it was dead. Hence the advice to discharge completely your
NiCads from time to time, so they all start at the same (fully
discharged) level. This is all basic ohms law with the voltage divided
between all the batteries, the weak link progressively falls in
voltage
and hence the amount of charge it is given.

For unevenly charged batteries or batteries of different types, the
best option is to charge them independently.

FYI, large battery arrays are usually in a series/parallel combo of
some
type. Look it up yourself.

Jeff

On 8/17/2010 9:44 PM, Stormin Mormon wrote:
Clare says that with series charging. all those rules and factors are
not relevant. Maybe you can help explain it to him?

Nope. Your explanation was better than any I had in mind!

Jeff

Of course, you could list them on Ebay. As for uses, not much comes to
mind. If you try to charge three batteries, they ought to be matched
set for age, type, usage, etc. Not really practical.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"mm" wrote in message
...
I have two 36 volt, 20 amp golf-cart chargers that no one else in town
would be interested in repairing. One broke ten years ago, one two
weeks ago, and the business which owns them have already bought a new
one, and told me I could throw the old ones away.

Do you think it would have any other use for someone who didn't own a
golf-cart, like me?

I'm sort of curious what's inside that might be different from any
other charger -- it's fancier than my 1 amp and my 10 amp, with
circuits to turn it off at full charge, to time how long it charged
before that, etc. -- plus I just generally hate to throw things away.

One of them flashes numbers it shouldn't flash, and one was just dead
iirc when they plugged it in. I'm thinking this second one might be
easier to fix, but it seems to depend on being connected to a set of
three car batteries in series to turn on, even when it is working.
Maybe I can connect three 12 volt UPS /
home-burglar-alarm-backup-batteries and get the same effect, or maybe
it will overcharge them if it ever works???

They weigh about 20 pounds each, 8w x 7d x 10h inches and have a
handle. Plus it sells for about 600 dollars locally and 300 and up
online. A shame to throw it away.