Six month old batteries sold at retail?

softdown
softdown Solar Expert Posts: 3,925 ✭✭✭✭
in Grid Tie and Grid Interactive Systems #1
Does not seem unusual to find six month old batteries being sold at the retail level. Voltage typically measuring 12.6 volts.

One may ask for a discount due to the batteries being a 1/2 year old. A valid point considering typical battery longevity of flooded lead acid.

One will likely get countered with "We can always send them back". They can.

So what does the distributor do with these aging batteries? In a perfect world they would either be:
1) Sold at appropriate discount.
2) Melted down and recycled. Rather expensive I'm sure.

What really happens most of the time? I strongly suspect they get recharged and "rebadged". This seems to be a well known industry practice, 

How much real harm is incurred by six months of storage though? I suspect the answer is little - guessing 5%ish. But what if they got rebadged and are now a year old? Possibly even more? 

On a related note - it is really too bad that we can't buy dry batteries and install the liquid ourselves. That used to be commonplace in the 70's. A few idiots probably ruined it for everyone. Happens a lot. 


First Bank:16 180 watt Grape Solar with  FM80 controller and 3648 Inverter....Fullriver 8D AGM solar batteries. Second Bank/MacGyver Special: 10 165(?) watt BP Solar with Renogy MPPT 40A controller/ and Xantrex C-35 PWM controller/ and Morningstar PWM controller...Cotek 24V PSW inverter....forklift and diesel locomotive batteries
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  • Marc Kurth
    Marc Kurth Solar Expert Posts: 1,174 ✭✭✭✭
    edited February 2020 #2
    I have no idea what happens at the retail level. In my world, they are never re-badged - ever. They simply get sold at a discount.
    Many of my PV Contractor customers love when that happens because they know that 6 month old AGMs are still at 90+% charge level. We can always find customers looking for bargain.
    Right now, I know a distributor who has a bunch of 1,200 AH 2v AGM that he is selling at huge discount because they are pushing 4 months old, which is his self imposed limit. Just as a favor, I have helped him out by finding homes for (48) of them so far.






    I always have more questions than answers. That's the nature of life.
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  • softdown
    softdown Solar Expert Posts: 3,925 ✭✭✭✭
    #3
    Estimating that 90% are more inclined to buy a "bargain". It is almost always the cheaper manufacturer that buys out the more expensive manufacturer - it seems. 
    First Bank:16 180 watt Grape Solar with  FM80 controller and 3648 Inverter....Fullriver 8D AGM solar batteries. Second Bank/MacGyver Special: 10 165(?) watt BP Solar with Renogy MPPT 40A controller/ and Xantrex C-35 PWM controller/ and Morningstar PWM controller...Cotek 24V PSW inverter....forklift and diesel locomotive batteries
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  • Marc Kurth
    Marc Kurth Solar Expert Posts: 1,174 ✭✭✭✭
    #4
    Could be, but I work in a narrow slice of a specialty industry with a limited view. By far most of my core customers are far more concerned with future headaches than first cost. Personally, I tend to search out the best cost/benefit ratio. Too many people don't factor in the cost of their capital investment and their time.
    Time is my most valuable asset.
    I always have more questions than answers. That's the nature of life.
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