facility focus Productivity can be maximized by selecting the correct batteries for your machines and maintaining them accordingly. By: Elke Hirschman Today’s cleaning and maintenance profes-sionals face a variety of challenges to get-ting their jobs done, ranging from limited staff to shrinking budgets. As a building services manager or a contractor of cleaning equipment, these issues can cost both time and money when it comes to successfully completing floor cleaning or maintenance tasks. But, choosing the right battery for your floor scrubber, knowing proper battery maintenance and educating your staff are a few important ways to ensure the safe, unin-terrupted operation of your floor machines and are the keys to getting the biggest return on your battery investment. The demanding use inherent in floor machine applications has created a need for more powerful batteries that provide maximum runtime and less downtime for maintenance. Technological advances are constantly incorporated into battery designs to make floor machine ownership and operation more productive and cost effective. Enhancements in deep-cycle flooded, absorbed glass mat (AGM), gel and lithium-ion battery technologies ensure maximum productivity and worry-free operation of equipment. When selecting a deep-cycle battery, first determine the appropriate voltage and con-nections, which is usually set by the floor machine manufacturer. The floor machine manufacturer has designed the floor machine to fit specific battery sizes, so be sure to check your floor machine owner’s manual. Next, consider capacity rating in minutes or ampere-hours (AH). You can refer to the capacity the equip-ment manufacturer uses as a baseline, but if your daily demand is more, you may need a higher capacity battery. When choosing the right battery for your floor machine, veer on the safe side and oversize a battery for capacity. Undersizing a battery can result in unex-pected downtime, while oversizing can only benefit you by providing longer operating time. Whether you choose deep-cycle flooded, AGM or gel battery technology, be sure to consider a battery’s maintenance require-ments. While both AGM and gel batteries provide maintenance-free battery solutions, they are costlier than flooded batteries and do not provide the longevity that flooded bat-teries offer. Deep-cycle flooded batteries have a lower initial cost, but require periodic “watering” to ensure the electrolyte remains at a proper level to ensure performance and long life. So, be sure that you can commit to a reg-ular maintenance schedule before selecting a flooded battery. T Otherwise, a flooded battery could suffer premature failure as a result of not being maintained properly and must be replaced sooner than expected. Another option available is lithium-based batteries. Lithium technology provides significantly longer runtimes, allowing cleaning profes-sionals more hours on the job. Lithium-based battery solutions also come in a variety of shapes and sizes enabling them to be designed to fit a variety of floor cleaning equipment. Lithium batteries also are maintenance-free and can operate in a wide range of temperature conditions, permitting opera-tors to continue their day-to-day duties without worrying about the upkeep of the battery. Like AGM and gel technologies, lithium batteries carry a larger price tag, but offer operator convenience of no maintenance and long battery life. Proper Care And Maintenance Proper maintenance of your deep-cycle flooded, AGM and gel batteries will provide maximum performance and longer life of your battery investment. Following these simple steps ensures that these batteries will enable you to operate at optimum levels day in and day out. 1. Safety ■ Always wear personal protective equip-ment (PPE) while performing battery maintenance ■ Never add acid to a battery Choosing The Right Battery Deep-cycle battery technology is the best choice for cleaning machines because these batteries are optimized for the deep discharge and recharge cycling that is char-acteristic of daily machine operations. 36 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • November2011 Image courtesy of Windsor Industries Selection And Maintenance ProperBattery
CMM – Archives Nov 2011: 36
