The average life of a good quality power wheel battery may be between one to two years. But with proper care and maintenance, you can extend their life for some more years. Maintenance matters, but for the lifespan of your battery, your battery storage strategy matters.
There are more chances of battery damage when you improperly store the battery in the garage. You should follow the expert’s guidelines to extend your battery life with proper storage. Here we will guide you about storing the power wheel battery and what care you need to store the battery in winter.
What Are the Risks For Your Power Wheel Battery During Storage?
No doubt how carefully to store the battery there is a genuine issue that is the rate of discharge. It means even if you do not use the charged battery; it will discharge.
It is a common issue with rechargeable batteries, including the power wheels battery. Even with a fully charged battery, it will automatically discharge after two to three months without use.
The most affected reason for battery damage is to store it for a more extended period without charge or use.
When the battery remains unchanged for a longer time, sulfation starts building on the internal lead plates reducing the battery capacity. If it continues for a longer time, sulfation causes corrosion, and battery capacity will reduce.
What Are Common Mistakes That Can Damage Your Power Wheel's Battery During Storage?
Now information about anything is easy to access, but people still make mistakes. Some common mistakes damage your battery performance, but we do not pay attention. You can increase your battery life by taking care and avoiding those mistakes.
Store Overcharged Batteries
Power wheels batteries do not need to charge more than 15 hours and a maximum of 18 hours. But some people do not care and keep the batteries on charging for continuous hours, instead of charging batteries causing overcharging.
Power wheel chargers are not available with automatic functions and keep batteries charged even after completion. It causes overcharging that is one of the significant reasons for battery damage. It is a good time to charge the power wheels battery when it is stored. But do not keep it plugged in for more hours.
Overcharging will cause damage to internal plates that generate excessive heat. Due to heat, the plastic parts of the battery swell up, and cracks appear on the battery's surface. So take care while charging, and do not allow overcharging to extend your battery life.
Stores Batteries for a Longer Time
Storage of charging in power batteries is not forever, so it starts discharging even without use. People keep the batteries on hooked-up units for longer, such as for 3 to 4 months. If batteries discharge during that period, the chemicals inside the battery start drying that kill the battery performance.
If you have placed the power wheel battery for a longer time, the charger will not accept the damaged battery. So avoid storing the batteries for a longer time for safe use charge and use the battery at least once a week.
Store Dead Power Wheels Batteries
As already explained in the above point, storing dead batteries can also cause damage. The battery's internal chemicals dry out, which causes battery damage. So make sure you have not stored the battery dead.
Make sure before battery storage that your battery has enough charging. At least keep your battery at 50 percent charge while storing. It is necessary if you are storing the battery for a long time, like a week or two weeks, first charge it fully.
Do Not Consider the Storage Temperature
Batteries are durable and offer more excellent resistance, but it does not mean you can store them anywhere. It would be best if you store the battery properly in the garage or your home cupboard. But it is necessary to maintain temperature level; too hot or too cold temperature causes battery damage.
When storing the power wheels battery, make sure the storage temperature should be between -10 F to 75 F.
At this temperature, your power wheels battery will remain long-lasting. Most people ignore temperature, but it matters because too cold or hot temperature causes corrosion and sulfation.
Keep Battery Open
Another common mistake is when we remove the battery from the power wheels to store it; we place it anywhere without covering it.
It can harm the power wheel batteries because dust and dirt in open-air enter the battery and reduce its performance. It also causes corrosion that may damage the battery's internal parts.
So make sure when you store the power wheel's battery, place it adequately covered. Make sure there is no chance of contacting dust or dirt. It will keep your power wheels battery protected and extended lifespan.
Stores Battery in any Position
It is also essential to store the power wheels battery in the proper position. Because its position also matters, experts recommend the upright position while charging or storing the battery.
There is a meager rate of discharge when the battery is placed in an upright position. But most of us do not consider that point and store the battery in a random position.
So for the safety of your battery and to protect it from damage, you should position the battery the wrong way. It is also recommended that you keep the battery upright when you are charging.
Storing the Battery of Your Ride-On Toy Car in Winter
Your power wheels battery needs proper care for storage to ensure its maximum efficiency. You should be careful every time, but the winter season is worse for the batteries. More batteries reported damage during the winter.
There are many chances that in the cold weather power wheels battery becomes less efficient. The battery is also at risk because we keep the inside temperature higher in the winter. We should have better storage of power wheel batteries in the summer without damage, and we should follow some simple rules.
- Follow the pre-conditioning rule, and when you plug in power wheels, you should heat the interior without drawing the battery out of the power wheels.
- It would help if you used the "Eco" option in the electric car to maximize energy consumption through regulating heating, braking, and accelerations.
- For maximum efficiency of your power wheels, adopt the eco-driving behavior. It will recover more and more energy. Avoid sudden braking and acceleration that consumes more energy.
You can enhance your battery performance by following the above simple rules. But proper storage also matters in the winter season.
Storage Tips in the Winter Season
You should follow these tips around the year but strictly follow them in the winter season to protect the power wheels battery.
- Keep power wheels at a dry place; remove the battery from the power wheels and store it separately if there is a risk.
- Ensure the temperature is not less than -10 degrees F; it may damage your power wheel's battery.
- Keep your battery charge but not overcharge; avoid leaving the battery at storage for more than a week.
Conclusion
Your power wheel battery has an average life of between one to two years, but with proper storage, you can extend its lifespan. You should avoid the common mistakes that we have shared in the above content and ensure proper battery storage.
In winter, follow the simple rules and care to protect your battery from damage. With proper care, you can extend your power wheels battery life for some more years.