Re-Conditioned BATTERIES, who has tried them?

[bamaboy473]

I've heard rave reviews, and statements that it doesn't work at all, so who here have actual first-hand knowledge/experience using batteries that have been re-conditioned?

These are my 6V GC-2 house batteries (AKA golf cart batteries). Price is about half of a new battery, and warranty is the same (one year).

Since they are passive assistance items (not critical, like starting batteries), I like the concept of replacing them every 3 years...but who knows more about this than I do?

[powderman]

No experience with reconditioned, but if there is a Rural King in your area, they have GC-2 Exide batteries for $79 each that have a one year full replacement warranty and 2 year pro rated. I find it hard to make reconditioned worthwhile.

[bamaboy473]

Good call on Rural King, but their closest store is 179 miles away. I found new batteries for $90 that are a second tier from Trojan, and am trying to learn whether re-conditioned are worth it.

[Jay D.]

Back in the late 50s early 60s my uncle rebuilt battery's and I would help sometimes. they are really very simple to do we would melt the tar that sealed the tops then pull what was left of the lead plates and separator's out. we had a mold and would pour new lead plates and post then cut separator's out of linoleum. he sold a lot of battery's and I don't remember any problems with any. he always said his battery's were better than the factory ones because the materials were better. I personally wouldn't be afraid of a rebuilt battery but it depends on the rebuilder ahh those were the good old days.
Jay D.

[beenthere]

I have used returned batteries about many times. wifes car daughters car my pickup. lawnmower and I did 2 of the 4 batteries in my London aire. as the ones in tested good with load test and gravity test..o I mixed them. ect.. I go to interstate and I also have them do a proper load test. for me to see. I have refused a couple and they say no problem. and the cost is $50 not over a hundred. also make sure you know what amps for battery they should set load to. or they may do a light test. never happened to me but just saying..

[Gary RVRoamer]

Since the cost of the lead is the major part of battery cost these days, is there enough price differential to be worthwhile? I can see a difference vs the MSRP of a brand name, but with so many steeply discounted private labels these days, I have to wonder.

You would also have to distinguish between the "re-condition at home" vs commercially reconditioned. A recondition such as Jay D describes is essentially a new battery in a used case and ought to be fine. Others may be the original lead plates but supposedly de-sulphated and maybe some new electrolyte. That is a more chancy process that may work with some and not at all with others. Further, it is quite possible for a battery to be brought back to proper voltage that way, but still be substantially reduced in amp-hour capacity. That's a big factor for deep cycles, but maybe not so important for cranking batteries (except in severe cold).


There is also a DIY reconditioning that substitutes Epson Salt (magnesium sulphate) as the electrolyte. That works chemically, but substantially lowers the amp-hour capacity. Doesn't seem like a good idea for a deep cycle battery.



Be aware that new batteries are almost completely made with recycled materials anyway. More than 98% of each old battery gets reused in producing new ones.

[Bahamaniac]

I use them in our car and truck. I would use them for the starting battery but haven't used them for house batteries. Never had an issue.

[Mark_K5LXP]

There is no way to "recondition" a battery much like there's no way to uncook a cooked egg. An honest source might actually test a given battery to some level of performance and may even offer a warranty, which is often called "reconditioning" (that word has more perceived value than "used"). The best you could hope for is that it was simply a good battery that was recovered from some use, and now resold. The worst is that it sat dead for some time, or was rode hard and put away wet, cycled a few times and now it shows enough life to turn over an engine or light some lights. Without comprehensive testing there's no way to know actual merit and even if it's "good", no way to know if you're at the beginning, middle, or end of cycle life.

That's not to say a used battery is automatically bad but in my view limits what application it will see. A used battery put into your "beater" car you drive to work every day would be fine in my view. Or placed somewhere that's temporary, where it only has to work for a nominal period of time before you will be replacing it. Or non-critical storage applications where if it pooped out there would be little impact. Totally mis-applied where reliability matters - cars/RV's that "must" start, where saving a few tens of dollars results in a roadside jump or a cold night when the furnace doesn't have enough power to run totally negates any realized savings. Also not a good idea in the case of a battery bank of two, four or six where not being matched can impact capacity and service life of the bank. No matter what though I wouldn't pay more for it than I could get returned as lead recycle value. Any more than that and you're just buying a guess. Even with a warranty, you're the one that will be ultimately proving it out, then swapping out again any marginal battery. What's your time and trouble worth. Buying a new battery doesn't necessarily assure perfect performance but there is no doubt of it's history and treatment (and manufacturer warranty).

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

[Spdracr39]

Originally Posted by Mark_K5LXP

There is no way to "recondition" a battery much like there's no way to uncook a cooked egg. An honest source might actually test a given battery to some level of performance and may even offer a warranty, which is often called "reconditioning" (that word has more perceived value than "used"). The best you could hope for is that it was simply a good battery that was recovered from some use, and now resold. The worst is that it sat dead for some time, or was rode hard and put away wet, cycled a few times and now it shows enough life to turn over an engine or light some lights. Without comprehensive testing there's no way to know actual merit and even if it's "good", no way to know if you're at the beginning, middle, or end of cycle life.

That's not to say a used battery is automatically bad but in my view limits what application it will see. A used battery put into your "beater" car you drive to work every day would be fine in my view. Or placed somewhere that's temporary, where it only has to work for a nominal period of time before you will be replacing it. Or non-critical storage applications where if it pooped out there would be little impact. Totally mis-applied where reliability matters - cars/RV's that "must" start, where saving a few tens of dollars results in a roadside jump or a cold night when the furnace doesn't have enough power to run totally negates any realized savings. Also not a good idea in the case of a battery bank of two, four or six where not being matched can impact capacity and service life of the bank. No matter what though I wouldn't pay more for it than I could get returned as lead recycle value. Any more than that and you're just buying a guess. Even with a warranty, you're the one that will be ultimately proving it out, then swapping out again any marginal battery. What's your time and trouble worth. Buying a new battery doesn't necessarily assure perfect performance but there is no doubt of it's history and treatment (and manufacturer warranty).

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

They do recondition them by chemically cleaning the plates of sulfides and refilling with fresh electrolyte. This is an accepted industry wide standard for "reconditioning" so yes there is a way to do it. They cannot always remove all the contaminants from the plates though so sometimes they are better than others. I am sure they are not as strong as a newly manufactured battery but they do work just like a reconditioned air compressor or lawn mower works but isn't necessarily as good or trouble free as new.

[Mark_K5LXP]

Real reconditioning wouldn't be cost effective for anything but stationary or industrial batteries where the cells are serviceable. The shop selling "reconditioned" automotive starting or golf cart batteries isn't doing this, at best they're dumping a potion in there and doing a quick load test. It's still a used battery with a questionable past. There's more to it than just sulfides, there's the ancillary damage to the paste and plates from crystal formation which drives up internal impedance and diminishes capacity, at best. You can't uncook a cooked egg.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

[Soppy]

A lot depends on how the battery is reconditioned . The shop I toured a few yrs back only reconditioned defective new batteries. The tops of the batteries were removed and in most cases there would be a shorted or open cell or improper connection. The cell would be replaced from another battery of the same type and the connections were repaired. They were charged and load tested. Essentially you were getting a new battery for half price. They did not recondition "used" batteries.

[bamaboy473]

I disagree with what are considered to be proper applications for re-con batteries. A starting battery, whether in a beater car or RV, needs to be at the top of its game.

Golf carts and motor home house batteries may not last as long, but they aren't critical to work every time, and my guess is that failure occurs over time rather than being dead when they are absolutely needed.

My boat or plane needs the best battery made, my car needs a good battery, re-con batteries for house purposes seems to be a decent gamble.

P.S. my reason for starting this thread is because I'm forgetful, and didn't turn the shore power circuit breaker ON the last time I parked the coach at the house (never have somebody talking while you're doing your work). All house batteries had gone to nothing... My guess is that this could happen again, so why kill $160 batteries when I can buy re-cons for $60?

[Cisco Kid]

Originally Posted by bamaboy473

I've heard rave reviews, and statements that it doesn't work at all, so who here have actual first-hand knowledge/experience using batteries that have been re-conditioned?

These are my 6V GC-2 house batteries (AKA golf cart batteries). Price is about half of a new battery, and warranty is the same (one year).

Since they are passive assistance items (not critical, like starting batteries), I like the concept of replacing them every 3 years...but who knows more about this than I do?

I work in a shop and years ago we used to sell these reconditioned batteries. We stopped selling them because we had to warrantee too many of them. I would say that we had a 40%-50% failure rate within the year warrantee. Sure there were some that came out good but from a business perspective it wasn't good. There is an application that makes sense for these. For instance a lot of local dealers use these batteries because they only need them to last long enough to make the sale and they are cheaper than a cheap new battery.

I personally wouldn't use them in my rv because I use mine too often and they will probably fail me at the worst time. I dry camp so they are critical to me. Your case may be different. This is just my experience.My new batteries generally last me about 2.5 years before they start giving me problems but I use my rv batteries juice more than most rv'rs. The most important thing is maintenance. If you leave it plugged in, check the water level often or they will become worn.

[Jay D.]

in short here's what happens. as a battery is used it forms sulfates on the plates, some of this (eventually most) settles to the bottom. it can get up to the plates then this causes a low level short that drains the battery. the fix was to wash the inside of the battery, flush each cell. your plates may still have 30-40 % of there life, no real way to tell. then refill with new electrolyte and your back in business, for how long its a crap shoot could be a year could be one month. as a kid I did this all the time. in the old days they used external lugs to bridge the cells, later they went to internal bridges and not as robust as the external. they could suffer breakage between the cells this would require a disassembly and rebuild.
Jay D.