Carbon monoxide and deep cycle batteries (during charging.) A question.

[JVinNE]

My mother's husband said that large batteries leak carbon monoxide while being charged. Is this true? If so, I won't be able to charge it in the house. Do they give of carbon monoxide while in use? This might seem like a stupid question to you, but it's important to me to know the truth about this. Thank you.

[AlanE]

They do not. Carbon Monoxide is a byproduct of combustion. What batteries may give off (while charging), particularly the lead-acid car batteries is Hydrogen. That can be explosive.

[AlanE]

If you are using/charging SLA or Sealed Lead-Acid batteries (aka deep-cycle), you'll have no problems charging and using those in the house. Those are the types of batteries you would typically find in a UPS battery backup. Other rechargeable batteries that are safe to use and recharge in the house are Nickel-cadmium (NiCad). Nickel-Metal Hydride (NiMH), Nickel-Zinc (NiZn), Lithium Ion (Li-ion), and ones you probably won't find to easily are rechargeable alkaline.

I say safe to recharge in the house because I assume you will be using a charger you plug into the wall and not a generator.

A battery gives off nothing on discharge except electrons.

Fyi - Never attempt to recharge carbon-zinc batteries. Those are your typical 'flashlight' batteries also known as alkaline.

[Mark Douglas]

My mother's husband said that large batteries leak carbon monoxide while being charged. Is this true? If so, I won't be able to charge it in the house. Do they give of carbon monoxide while in use? This might seem like a stupid question to you, but it's important to me to know the truth about this. Thank you.

Lord, what fools these mortals be

What Alan said.

IF you overcharge (at a high enough rate in proportion to the size) the battery you might make it vent a little hydrogen but to reach the LEL (lower explosive limit) is something I cannot imagine.
I have several UPS's around the house and I don't give them any thought other than to blow the dirt out of them now and then.

[PaulaO2]

If you charge the batteries by starting an open fire to use a steam generator, then yes, there's a risk of carbon monoxide from the open flames. But not from the batteries themselves.

Your mother's husband is a nut. But you didn't hear it from me.

The difference between a car battery and nearly all deep cycle batteries is the car batteries are not sealed. Like Alan said, the open lead acid car batteries "leak" while being charged and there is a very, very, very slight danger. But nearly all deep cycle batteries are sealed and aren't "wet" but use a gel mat inside.

But your mother's husband is still a nut.

[OMyMyOHellYes]

My mother's husband said that large batteries leak carbon monoxide while being charged. Is this true? If so, I won't be able to charge it in the house. Do they give of carbon monoxide while in use? This might seem like a stupid question to you, but it's important to me to know the truth about this. Thank you.

No. he is wrong. CO is not the product of battery charging.

He may be thinking H2 if the battery charging is going crazy wrong, but not likely a huge risk unless in a very confined space. And not at all a risk if you are using SLA type of marine deep cycles. Which are impossibly big to begin with.


OMM

[AlanE]

If you had a car battery like I did, discharged with heavy-sulfated plates, and you nail it with a 45 amp charger the ensuing hydrogen out gas is a sight to behold.

[justMongo]

Ah, the memories. When I was about 13, I had a 6 Volt auto battery in my garage for electrical experiments.
I would charge it from an old television transformer and a silicon rectifier. It well exceeded the gassing Voltage.
I drilled one of the vent cap hole to accept a piece of plastic tubing.
I'd fill balloons with the gas from the charging gas -- it was lighter than air. (It's a mix of H₂ and O₂)
Tie a string around the neck; and light the string such that it's a burning ember; and release.
Great hydrogen flash in the air a few minutes later.

Do not try this at home.

[JVinNE]

If you charge the batteries by starting an open fire to use a steam generator, then yes, there's a risk of carbon monoxide from the open flames. But not from the batteries themselves.

Your mother's husband is a nut. But you didn't hear it from me.

The difference between a car battery and nearly all deep cycle batteries is the car batteries are not sealed. Like Alan said, the open lead acid car batteries "leak" while being charged and there is a very, very, very slight danger. But nearly all deep cycle batteries are sealed and aren't "wet" but use a gel mat inside.

But your mother's husband is still a nut.

1. Your response is awesome.
2. He is a bit of a nut, and it's sad. He is pretty scary in temperament sometimes.

Thank you for your response.

---

If you had a car battery like I did, discharged with heavy-sulfated plates, and you nail it with a 45 amp charger the ensuing hydrogen out gas is a sight to behold.

Bad-ass response.

---

My mother's husband said that large batteries leak carbon monoxide while being charged. Is this true? If so, I won't be able to charge it in the house. Do they give of carbon monoxide while in use? This might seem like a stupid question to you, but it's important to me to know the truth about this. Thank you.

No. he is wrong. CO is not the product of battery charging.

He may be thinking H2 if the battery charging is going crazy wrong, but not likely a huge risk unless in a very confined space. And not at all a risk if you are using SLA type of marine deep cycles. Which are impossibly big to begin with.


OMM

Thank you.

---

My mother's husband said that large batteries leak carbon monoxide while being charged. Is this true? If so, I won't be able to charge it in the house. Do they give of carbon monoxide while in use? This might seem like a stupid question to you, but it's important to me to know the truth about this. Thank you.

Lord, what fools these mortals be

What Alan said.

IF you overcharge (at a high enough rate in proportion to the size) the battery you might make it vent a little hydrogen but to reach the LEL (lower explosive limit) is something I cannot imagine.
I have several UPS's around the house and I don't give them any thought other than to blow the dirt out of them now and then.

Thank you.

[Mark Douglas]

Ah, the memories. When I was about 13, I had a 6 Volt auto battery in my garage for electrical experiments.
I would charge it from an old television transformer and a silicon rectifier. It well exceeded the gassing Voltage.
I drilled one of the vent cap hole to accept a piece of plastic tubing.
I'd fill balloons with the gas from the charging gas -- it was lighter than air. (It's a mix of H₂ and O₂)
Tie a string around the neck; and light the string such that it's a burning ember; and release.
Great hydrogen flash in the air a few minutes later.

Do not try this at home.

I might possibly have know some kid many years ago what did this with a tap on a natural gas line in a garage for a "mangler" which is used on clothing.