JN,
You have options here, each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Here is a simplified analysis:
Generally, eight 6-volt batteries in series to provide a 48-volt operating system as you describe is charged using a single bulk charger which is designed for a 48-volt system, it is connected to the battery pack at the most-negative and most-positive connections and charges the pack as if it was a single battery. There are many companies which make such chargers, which operate at a various input and output ratings. I personally prefer Delta-Q’s QuiQ chargers, as discussed previously on this forum. Many people prefer the sheer simplicity of this system, although if the charger fails, you have no back-up as you do in a multiple-charger regime (see below). The drawback of bulk chargers that treat the battery as one big battery is that it assumes that each and every battery acts the same and requires the same amount of recharge when in fact they can vary considerably. This may shorten the life of the pack, although there are products on the market that help to minimize this and monitor each battery individually.
There is the alternative of using eight separate 6-volt chargers (or even four 12-volt chargers) if preferred. The eight 6-volt charging regime is often preferred as it returns the amount of charge required by each individual battery which can extend the life of each battery within the pack. This system also offers some redundancy, in that if one charger fails, you can still get a charge into that battery in a pinch by utilizing one of the remaining chargers. The drawback of this system is complexity, cost and space requirements to handle eight individual chargers, not to mention the added complexity of plugging in, often into a single outlet. Each charger connects directly to each battery in the string; there is no need for isolation.
I hope this helps, each boaters determines their own best solution given their budget and other constraints. Good luck!
Hello, Does anyone have experience hooking up eight x 6 volt batteries in series to acheive 48 volts. My question is how have you set up the 110 volt battery chargers? How many chargers and of what size? What does the wiring diagram look like? Do the batteries have to be isolated for charging?
Thank you, in advance, for any input.
JN
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