These days, 67% of all forklift sales are for electric forklifts. This is because they reduce energy costs as well as maintenance time and costs. Electric forklifts are also more eco-friendly, safer around food and beverage products, and much less noisy than their diesel and combustion engine counterparts. While electric forklifts offer many benefits, they also require a battery fleet. To get the most out of your electric forklift, you need to stay on top of your battery maintenance. Here are some tips for maintaining your battery fleet, which will extend their lifespan and save you time and money.
Maintain, Inspect, and Clean Your Batteries
When you routinely check and examine your batteries, you become aware of how they run on a regular basis, and you can identify any potential problems before they become major ones. Here are some preventive maintenance steps you can take:
- Create an inventory list – Creating a list of all of your batteries can help you keep track of how often you use each one, what their state of charge is, how long a battery maintains its full charge, and other details.
- Water your batteries – Check your batteries’ water levels weekly or bimonthly and adjust levels as necessary. Only add water after the charge cycle is complete.
- Make routine inspections – Inspect the battery cables, tips, watering systems, and connectors regularly. This will help you detect any defects or malfunctions your batteries may have.
- Have your batteries washed and your systems serviced – Your batteries should be washed and serviced semiannually. Battery washes remove acid buildup and hazardous materials, optimize watering systems, mitigate cell shorts, and make contact points more efficient. A wash improves a battery’s overall appearance, too. You also should have your battery charging systems (and any other battery-related systems you have) serviced so they keep producing and maintaining fully charged batteries.
Store Your Batteries Properly
For proper storage, keep your batteries clean and dry and away from any damaged battery terminals that might cause corrosion. Also keep the tops of your batteries away from metal and flames. Material handling is extremely important for your electric power maintenance, so you should be extra careful with your battery storage.
If you’re looking to extend the lifespan of your battery fleet, Brennan Equipment Services can inspect, wash, and service your batteries. We will perform battery voltage testing, give you specific gravity acid and water indicator readings, clean the contact points, and inspect the cables and the single-point water system. And those are just some of our preventive maintenance services. If you’d like these services and more, contact us today. Brennan Equipment Services is one of Indiana’s and Ohio’s top material handling companies, and we’d like to help you save on your battery fleet expenses and improve your battery performance.