How fast can you charge an AGM Battery?

ARTICLE CREDIT: AARON PLEW, PRODUCT DIRECTOR AT FULLRIVER BATTERY USA
AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT ASIA FROM DRAKE MARINE

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How long does it take to charge an AGM battery? First, the good news, of all lead acid batteries available (Flooded, Gel, AGM), AGM charges faster and more efficiently than the others.  However, there are a few important factors to consider before determining the answer to this question.  Once these questions are answered, then we can estimate the time it will take to charge an AGM battery.

Size Matters?

The old saying “size matters” is very true when it comes to charging batteries.  In AGM the physical size of the battery will typically indicate the amount of energy the battery can store.  The more energy stored; the more energy that will need to be put back into the battery after it’s been used.  For example, one of the smaller batteries from Fullriver is our DC35-12 (U1).  At 420W/35Ah of stored capacity, the DC35-12 is approximately the size of two bricks stacked on top of each other.  On the opposite end is our DC260-12 (8D), this beast holds 3,120W/260Ah, and is comparable in size to some laser jet printers.

The Red Cup

The next factor we must account for is the power output capability of the charger. Imagine it in terms of filling up a swimming pool with water and using a Solo Red Cup. But what if we were talking about a kiddie pool, nay a Barbie pool? Then the Red Cup might even be too big and harm the battery. Because we are returning energy to the battery, a 12V, 2A (24W) charge tender is going to take a lot longer to recharge a battery than a 12V, 25A (300W) charger, while at the same time using this 300W charger on the 420W DC35-12 is like filling the Barbie pool with a garden hose.  Charging is all relative like our Red Cup analogy notes. 

Goldilocks

And there’s one other thing to consider when choosing a charger, the Goldilocks principal.  We don’t want to go too small (undercharge) or too big (overcharge), but we want it to be “just right”.  Fullriver batteries can be charged with more amperage than a typical flooded or gel battery.  We advise at a minimum 10% of rated capacity but recommend 25% in amp output from the charger (e.g., 100Ah battery should be charged with a minimum of 10A, but we recommend using a 25A charger to achieve 25%). 

Are we there yet?

Finally, we can begin to answer the question that we started with using simple math.  To determine how long it will take to charge an AGM battery, simply divide the rated capacity of the battery at the 20hr. rate by the amp output of the charger, and then multiply by 1.33 to account for the balancing phase of the charging and the natural aging of the battery. 

Ah/A*1.33= ~Charge Time (H)

We’ll use our popular DC105-12, 12V, 105Ah battery, and assume it is discharged fully, recharging with a 25A charger:

100/25*1.33= ~5.58 or ~5hrs 30mins Of course, this accounts for a fully discharged battery, and gives a very good picture of how long recharging typically will take.  In the real world you can perform this same exercise and get pretty close to the actual time by referencing the open circuit voltage (OCV) of the battery to our chart below: 

In summary, we have seen that pairing the right sized charger and battery can make a great difference in charging a battery as quickly and efficiently as possible.  Determining how much time recharging will take is just some simple math and a bit of estimation. 

Did you already know this about recharging batteries?  We’d love to hear some of your experiences with recharging batteries!

ARTICLE CREDIT: AARON PLEW, PRODUCT DIRECTOR AT FULLRIVER BATTERY USA
AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT ASIA FROM DRAKE MARINE