Wheelchair Battery Chargers - Keeping Mobility Charged Up

For added mobility and ease of use, certain wheelchair users will get themselves power wheelchairs that run on battery power. Unlike the way cars utilize batteries, a power wheelchair does not use the battery to ‘start-up’ the wheelchair motors. Instead, these wheelchairs have to be fed a continuous supply of power which can be conveniently provided with batteries. Wheelchair battery chargers usually come along with the batteries itself when one makes a power wheelchair purchase.

Gel batteries usually utilize battery chargers from MK, Lester or Dynamic. MK battery chargers come in the switch mode or a dual mode. Both are available in 24 volts, 8 amps specifications and cost about $350 to $450 to obtain. Some of the wheelchair manufacturers using this type of battery include Invacare, Sunrise and Quickie. Incidentally, they have even manufactured specific plug heads that cater to the different wiring specific to each power wheelchair motor. The chargers can be used for lead-acid batteries as well as the sealed type batteries. When fully charged, the batteries will automatically shut off. Lester and Dynamic share the same features as MK battery chargers. The difference between the two is that Dynamic chargers are not equipped with amp meters and are lighter. It is therefore $45 cheaper than Lester chargers, although still sold at the $200 price range.

Battery Defender Charger

The Battery Defender is a unique wheelchair battery charger and is actually the only charger that can prolong a battery life. It does this by removing sulfation off the batteries while charging the batteries. Released with a U.S. patent to its name, this battery charger can charge any type of lead-acid battery: gel, dry or sealed. It can also adjust itself to cater to any voltage input in the world and being small and lightweight adds to its portability. This wheelchair battery charger also comes with two types of protection, reverse polarity and short circuit. When both situations occur, the charger will not work thereby preventing it from malfunctioning or blowing up. Users can also leave it on when charging as it is not capable of overcharging the battery. The charging process is indicated with green and red LEDs on the charger. This wheelchair battery charger comes with a 1 year warranty and is available at $70.