Nanopulser - Performance?

[rardiH36]

Not sure if its proper to post this query to forum members about the effectiveness of a product cuurently being highlighted by the hosts of this website, but I'll go for it anyway.

Does anybody of have experience with the Nanopulser? The concept of the device sounds good, but not being an electronic engineer I don't know. In addition to helping maintain batteries longer by inhibiting the build-up of lead sufate crystals on the plates, the product description also claims that it can help to revive older batteries that are in generally good condition. One of my house/starting batteries is probably in this category. It doesn't retain the full charge of appx 12.8 volts as well as the other one and it seems to drop its voltage faster when under load. Any insights/testimonials are appreciated.

regards,
rardi

 

[Sailm8]

I would think that it would not be necessary if your battery charger had a "desulfiding" mode built in. I would check my current charger it see if it had the necessary circuit.

 

[Tom Spohn]

I have used one on my house bank since they were installed in 2004 and they still come up to full charge. I bought it from Fisheries Supply in Seattle who at one time had one on a "dead" battery in their showroom which very slowly revived. There are many tests available on the web if you google nanopulser. There are many folks that don't believe they do anything and are a waste of money. I would say that they do work, but the action is not very fast. They will not miraculously restore a dead battery overnight--it may take weeks and, if too far gone, will not work at all. I think they are good for batteries that sit on the charger and are used maybe a few times a month in the winter and more often in the summer.

 

[chuckwayne]

We put one on our 356 last spring and it certainly seems to have improved battery performance-but as Tom pointed out, it takes time. BTW, bought it here- I doubt Phil would sell something he doesn't believe works.

 

[Rich Stidger]

rardi, see the following thread for a discussion of the nanopulser effectiveness.

http://forums.hunter.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?p=543727

Since that posting I have observed improved battery performance in the '08 and '09 season. Specifically I have observed that my batteries present a higher voltage for a given level of discharge.

I know the nanopulser looks like electronic snake oil or smoke-and-mirrors, but I feel that it works. Although I designed my own circuit for the size of my house batteries, I would expect based upon my results and testing that the commercially available nanopulser would perform well.

 

[rardiH36]

Thanks for Comments

Thanks all for good responses. Particularly Rich for the link to a previous thread and who has actually quantified performance of the concept.

I'll think about it a bit longer, then probabably take the plunge.

regards,
rardi

 

[rpwillia]

DeSulphinators Work!

I have a BatteryMindR for my solar panel and it brought a battery back from the dead and gave it several more years of life.

 

[kenn]

Desulphating works. The key is that the pulses are high and long enough to actually do something. Definitely look for reviews from users, and the size of batteries they use'em with.

Before I knew about desulphation, I used to "zap" old pooped NiCd and lead-acid batteries with brief bursts of a higher DC voltage as the last hail-Mary try before discarding them, and often it would coax some more life out of them. For the NiCds, I believe that the zaps, and some hard charge/discharge cycles would burn off the cat-whisker internal shorts they are prone to, and for lead-acid, I now believe that I was doing some brute-force desulphation.

Yes, I'm lucky that none ever blew up, but I usually only used short bursts, and I monitored current and heat.

 

[walt]

Looks interesting and good info- especially since I don't have a good way to equalize the batteries on my lower power trailer system.

One thing to point out after I dug into the specs a little. This device looks like it has a constant power drain of 40ma (about 1 amp hour in 24 hours). It will shut off if the battery voltage gets down to 11.6 volts.

One amp hour per day isn't much.. unless you for example leave it on the batteries over the winter with a 5 or even 10 watt solar panel to keep the batteries trickle charged in which case the Nanopulser would pretty much use up everything the solar panel was putting out on the short winter days. Mostly just a minor detail to keep in mind..

 

[Snotter]

A cell went flat (specific gravity = 1) in a bank of batteries when my battery charger shorted out. I wonder if a nano pulser could revive it. The batteries are only 18 months old.

 

[Rich Stidger]

According to information that I have seen, leaving a flooded wet cell battery in a discharged state allows sulfation to occur.

The nanopulser-type circuits have been shown to reduce the sulfation, but in your case I think the question is "to what degree?" and "is it too far gone?".

If it were me, knowing the results that I obtained with my own circuit, I would try the nanopulser on this battery after recharging it carefully.

To recharge I would place a 12V headlight in series with a known good charger to charge just the one battery. The headlight will limit the charging current to a few amps (less than five) so that the one very low cell will be charged while limiting the current that will boil the remaining good cells. After the battery is back up to "normal" range over 12.3V, you can remove the headlight and charge normally. Check the specific gravity during the charging in all of the cells to be sure that all cells are meeting expectations. Discontinue if the battery becomes warm to the touch and let cool before continuing. Any cell that has exposed plates needs to have distilled water added to just cover them.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Rich, I didn't read the instruction manual, yet, but...

Does the nanopulser work only when plugged into shorepower? A recent post said it draws mA, so thinking maybe it's always on even when unplugged.

 

[rpwillia]

I Use Solar

My Solar Charge Controller has the Desulphinator circuit built in. Never used it with shore power.

 

[Rich Stidger]

Stu-

I have not read the nanopulser manual, but I believe that it is the same type of circuit that I built. Mine is a two lead device that hooks to the 12V battery terminals only. It does not plug into any outside power. Right now I have it connected to my house and starting battery and I also have a small float charger connected.

During the summer on-board season, I have it connected only to my house bank. I also have a wind generator connected so that the house bank is kept up-to-snuff all the time on my mooring. But even at a current draw of 40mA, unless you are going to be away from your batteries for a long while, it should not be a concern. Like Walt posted above, it uses about 1AH per day. IMHO that's not a big deal if you have a 400+ AH bank.

Edited:

I just checked the nanopulser site and it is just a two-wire connection- across the battery terminals. So it is just like my circuit, an it does draw a small amount of power to produce the current pulses.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Thanks, Rich