As an electric wheelchair user, one of the most important accessories for your wheelchair is a wheelchair charger. This is because from time to time you’ll need to charge your electric wheelchair battery to ensure that you maintain it in the best working condition. Failure to do this means that you may not enjoy using your wheelchair the way you are supposed to. But what are wheelchair chargers and why do you need to have them. Well, wheelchair chargers are devices that you normally need to add power to your electric wheelchair so you can ensure they remain in the best working condition. This is according to National Wheelchair Services.

Some of the best chargers will provide you with fast charging services for your electric wheelchair and mobility scooter. Most of the chargers in the market come with a sleek design and unique features that are also easy to use as well. With fast and heavy-duty charging circles, these charges are made in such a way that they can charge your power wheelchair while on the move. Since they have a range of prices depending on the model and features you can always choose the one that best fits you. If you are looking for the best wheelchair chargers, click here to read our in-depth review or check out our homepage for the best wheelchairs for sale.

Benefits of wheelchair charger

A wheelchair charger is specifically designed to provide a low current that will bring your electric wheelchair to full charge without destroying it. When it’s in a fully charging state it will resume charging but supposedly only at a rate that’s equal to the recharged battery to ensure that the wheelchair battery remains in the fully charged state all times. However, when shopping for the best charger it’s very important to look for one that works effectively. This is because if you choose a bad charger you might not only damage your battery but your wheelchair as well. For more details check out www.natioanlwheelchairservices.co.uk

While these charges may slightly vary in size, shape, and voltage capacity all of them are very important to ensure that your mobility batteries are kept fully charged at all times. With the best wheelchair charger, your wheelchair batteries and your wheelchair will last as long as you want. Some of them are also made in such a way that once they are done charging the automatically switch back to float maintenance mode so you don’t have to worry about overcharging your batteries. More so they are compact, quiet and light as compared to other chargers in the market.

How wheelchair battery chargers work

The batteries found in wheelchairs are usually different from the ones found in cell phones, cars, and computers. As compared to cell phone batteries that can simply be plugged into the charger and be ready after 2 hours, wheelchair batteries are deep circle batteries which can only achieve a full charge after a long slow process. If a wheelchair battery dies down it may need to be charged for at least 2 hours before it can great ready for full charge. Although it can take up to 18 hours to fully recharge the battery in some instances, some charging places can fully recharge a power chair in less than 45 minutes by connecting directly to the battery.

However, the success of this mode of charging usually depends on the models of the charger, its wiring and the ability to safely accept the current. However, you need to understand that this method of battery charging can significantly affect the battery hence you need to be very careful while using it.

How to use wheelchair chargers

As a power wheelchair user, you need to know how you can achieve maximum performance of your wheelchair. However, since most wheelchair batteries are sealed there is no need to check out the electrolyte level. The good thing is that most batteries are designed in such a way that they can comfortably handle longer and deeper discharge. Although the batteries are similar to the one used in vehicles

If you want to prolong the use of your wheelchair it’s always important to use a wheelchair that’s specifically meant for it. This is because the charger is designed in such a way that it will optimise the performance of the wheelchair by charging the batteries, quickly, safely and easily. Here are the steps that you need to follow

• Make sure you position your wheelchair next to the electrical outlet.

• Make sure that your wheelchair controller power is off and the wheelchair is in drive mode.

• Plug the charger into the off-board charging socket on the controller.

• Plug the wheelchair charger into the electric outlet

• Once your wheelchair battery is fully charged unplug the onboard charger from the outlet and from the controller.

The LED light on the wheelchair charger always indicates different charging conditions including charging in progress, charger power on and charging complete. If you are looking for more information about these you need to refer to your owner’s manual so you can understand more about them. If the LED lights does not show that the charging has been completed after 24 hours you need to unplug the charger and contact the company that provided your charger.

How often to always charger your electric wheelchair batteries

If you regularly use your electric wheelchair then you need to ensure that that you charge the batteries as soon as you finish using your wheelchair. After daily use, it’s recommended that you charge your power wheelchair for at least 14 hours. If you normally use your power wheelchair less frequently then you need to charge the batteries at least twice a week to ensure that they remain in good working condition always. It’s however not recommended to charge your wheelchair for more than 14 hours as you may end up damaging the battery.

How to know the best charge for your wheelchair

Normally it will take a few charging circles for you to establish the chemical balance that’s suitable for your wheelchairs battery peak performance and that will ensure that it lasts long. You, therefore, need to take time to properly break in your new electric wheelchair batteries. Here are some steps that you need to take.

• Prior to its initial use, you need to fully charge your electric wheelchair battery.

• Once you have done this for at least 4 to five charging circles you should be in a position to know the amount of charging that your wheelchair needs.

Top tips to help you use wheelchair charger effectively

Electrically powered wheelchairs are some of the best means to get the independence and freedom that you need. Since you need to be confident that your power wheelchair is working in the best way, here are some tips to help you

Always start with at least 18-hour charge

It cannot be stressed enough how important it is for your wheelchair batteries to get at least 18 hours charge. This process is known as priming and it works well since batteries only have to hold a charge when supplied with power.

You need to charge by the hours and not by lights

The lights found on your charger for a wheelchair are just guides, hence you should not charge by them. It’s, therefore, important to leave your wheelchair battery to charge as long as possible instead of finishing charge early just because the charger lights or the controller suggest that the charging is complete. Since it’s hard to overcharge your wheelchair batteries, the longer the charge the better.

Charge as often as you can but avoid shorter chargers

One of the worst things that you can do is to allow the batteries to run down between charging. Even if you’ve used your power chair for only a few minutes ensure that you charge it for at least 12 hours since short charging of fewer than 2hours may not be suitable. This may damage the battery and lead to a shorter life span of the battery.

Always charge in a suitable place

The most suitable operating temperature of the batteries is between 18 degrees and 20 degrees. This is why it’s important to avoid charging your batteries in temperatures under 10 degrees as this may lower the capacity of the battery and shorten its lifespan.

Stay in green and out of red

While driving your power wheelchair always try to maintain a consistent speed as speed deviations may eventually have a negative effect on the battery while charging your wheelchair.

Best electric wheelchair charger and power wheelchair charger brands

Wheelchair batteries are not immortal. As a matter of fact, manufacturers can only guarantee that they will remain in good working conditions for only a year. After that, you need to start thinking of how to replace it. If you want to prolong the life of your wheelchair battery, it’s very important to choose the best charger. Here are some of the best brands that you need to consider.

Battery Tender Plus Brand

Having been in business for a long time, this charger brand has been creating one of the best designs that will match all your functionality. To avoid defect the company is always ensuring that they are manufacturing the best quality battery chargers in the market. nowadays, they still remain as one of the most trusted brands in the market. The always focus on innovation to ensure that their products are the latest and have the latest features. This quantum wheelchair battery charger is not only built to last but is also ensuring that you’ll use it for several years. With this charger, you don’t have to worry about leaving your wheelchair plugged

The Black Decker BM3B

This refers to an American company that’s famous for its top-quality power tools since the beginning of the 1900s. With more than 100 years of operation, they have become one of the best brands in the market as they manufacture durable tools and even other electronics as well. Their length of existence is just a testimony about their dedication to serving the clients and delivering consumers electronics and other tools that are needed. Since it’s compact and small it takes up the very little place while ensuring that your wheelchair is charged to full capacity. It’s also fitted with a safety feature that will automatically switch off to maintenance mode once the battery has been fully charged.

Schumacher SC1325

This is a very good brand when it comes to a wheelchair battery charger. They are famous for manufacturing some of the best battery chargers, power converters, jump starters and testers and even other accessories out there. They also manufacture chargers for wheelchairs. Its float charging function will ensure that your wheelchair is fully charged within a very short time. It also comes with built-in heavy-duty transformer that you can depend on.

CTEK MUS4 Charger brand

Since its establishment, this company has been making some of the best wheelchairs chargers. This smart and handy charger is not only compatible with most acid lead type batteries but also fully automated hence you just need to plug it in and you are good to go. To fully research your wheelchair it uses an 8 step procedure. It’s also made in such a way that once the charging is complete it will change into another mode to ensure that the battery is not overcharged. It’s, therefore, one of the best battery chargers in the market.