Batteries are very dangerous. They can explode if
mishandled and while charging they give off hydrogen gas.
Be very careful.
A battery expert we met through our work installing
renewable energy systems explained the process of reviving
these batteries thoroughly so we set to work to do just that.
It was a bit of a scary process at first and required two people
to achieve success, but we soon worked out a process that
was finally fairly safe.
OK, SO WHAT IS A DESULFATOR?
WHY ARE BATTERIES SULFATED?
It is a safe bet that about 80% of all ‘dead’ batteries are
merely sulfated according my battery expert friends.
Most batteries are made up of plates inside, that when left in
an undercharged state become sulfated. That means that
they develop a layer of sulfate crystals on the surface of the
plates.
After years of hard use, as in the case of the large industrial
batteries we are talking about here, there are only two ways
to remove the sulfate crystals from the batteries.
You could take the batteries apart and clean the plates. This
is what my professional battery builder friends do, but it is
very dangerous and requires a special setup in your shop.
A much safer way they explained was to build a desulfator.
This is basically an electronic device that does the ‘shake,
rattle and roll’ at the plate level, without opening up the
battery. This is Much safer, although still dangerous.