“I have been receiving many questions from readers and visitors to the BHM web site concerning deep discharge solar batteries. These questions include: How do they work? Which type is best? How long will they last? Are they dangerous? Do they require maintenance? Can they be located outside? How low can they be discharged? How do you clean them?
There are all kinds of batteries, using all kinds of materials.
Battery technology is rapidly advancing to increase power density and reduce weight for everything from cell phones to electric vehicles. Unfortunately, this usually requires more toxic materials and a much higher cost.
When it comes to choosing a battery for an off-grid solar home or back-up emergency power system, we usually are not that concerned with battery size or weight. We just want a battery that can be quickly charged, then supply power slowly for one or more days, and last six or more years. With all this battery research, it is still hard to beat the lowly deep-cycle lead-acid battery for this type of solar system performance and low cost…”
