Know Your Battery’s Water-Fill Level

Anyone who has a set of deep-cycle flooded lead-acid batteries knows that proper maintenance includes checking the water level in each cell, after a full charge. Although it’s easy to carefully add water to each cell, many people get confused as to how much water to add. Too little, and they’ll be having to add more sooner than is necessary. Too much and it runs the risk of overflowing when the batteries are charging.

The proper method recommended by most battery manufacturers is to add enough water so that the cell plates are completely submerged, but not so much that the water is up to the battery case cell cap vents. The proper fill level, according to battery manufacturers, is approximately 1/4-inch below the fill well bottom. (See photo example)

Battery manufacturers also recommend using only distilled or deionized water and to use a watering gun or pitcher to fill each battery cell. Ensuring your batteries are properly watered will add life and provide optimum performance from your deep-cycle batteries. For more information on battery maintenance, visit www.usbattery.com.