I'm clueless

[TrudyM]

Ok I have just finished reading so many golf cart threads my head hurts. Amps and volts and 36 and 48 and reducers and I am feeling stupid.

Here is the problem. Rental unit came with electric club car. It has problems with hills and I am not sure we are getting it charged up all the way.
The gauge has from left to right- Pink triangle then an E (I assume for empty) a Large green pie then a F (I assume for full) then a white small pie with CHG printed inside it, then another pink triangle.
The charger has only once shut off most of the time it runs and runs and the needle moves from the CHG white to the pink but never shuts off and when we unplug it the needle drops back to the H in CHG. As soon as we move it the needle drops to the right side of the green. How do we know we are getting it fully charged, shouldn't the charger turn off? :ohdear: What do the different colors stand for I thought it was simple but now not so sure. Should I worry if it goes into the far right pink zone when charging?

[kaydee]

not sure what all those triangles and such mean but yes the charger should turn off when cart is fully charged. The batteries do require water in them so you might want to check to see if they are full. Should you need to add water please use distilled water only. If the batteries are old ( 3 or more yrs) then they won't hold a charge for very long. If all else fails call the owner with your concerns & complaints.
Hope you are enjoying your time here in The Villages.

[TrudyM]

not sure what all those triangles and such mean but yes the charger should turn off when cart is fully charged. The batteries do require water in them so you might want to check to see if they are full. Should you need to add water please use distilled water only. If the batteries are old ( 3 or more yrs) then they won't hold a charge for very long. If all else fails call the owner with your concerns & complaints.
Hope you are enjoying your time here in The Villages.

Thanks the owner said they were new batteries and we have checked the water. I guess I may have to call her, I just wasn't sure she would know the answer. Don't know how many hours it should take to charge but from half down we had it plugged in for over 5. It is needle going into the red area that makes us nervious.

[mulligan]

Most people plug the charger in when they are done for the day, and leave it plugged in overnight. Sounds like you're not leaving it on long enough.

[lightworker888]

we have an electric and keep i on the charger when not in use. It is often in the red when we go to use it,but stays in the white or bit of the green while driving. Our mechanic said not to worry it is working right.. Remember that the top speed is 19mph so that is not fast. It will lose speed going up hill so it may feel like it is losing power. If the batteries are new and the water is up, then you may be expecting more speed than it is set for. JMHO


LW888

[ajbrown]

First off Club Cars do slow down up hills, to what degree depends on state of charge in battery pack and the motor/controller combination.

When you say the charger 'never shuts off', what is never, have you let it run overnight? It should shut off by itself.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af146/ajbrown2007/totv/IMG_0328.jpg (http://s1002.photobucket.com/user/ajbrown2007/media/totv/IMG_0328.jpg.html)

On the gauge above:


the needle will be pegged to thr right when charging
a fully charged cart (charger shuts off) will point to the 'H'
the 'F' line represents about 48 volts. This line is important. When the needle is to the left of the 'F' line WHEN THE CART IS SITTING IDLE, I figure I have used about half of the pack. Since I own the pack and do not wish to discharge too deeply, I would like to be home by then. As a rental I would not sorry so much <grin>
If you are crusing along (not climbing hills) and the needle is less than half way into the green, get home soon :)


hope that helps...I have to run so maybe some typos or dumbos

[TrudyM]

First off Club Cars do slow down up hills, to what degree depends on state of charge in battery pack and the motor/controller combination.

When you say the charger 'never shuts off', what is never, have you let it run overnight? It should shut off by itself.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af146/ajbrown2007/totv/IMG_0328.jpg (http://s1002.photobucket.com/user/ajbrown2007/media/totv/IMG_0328.jpg.html)

On the gauge above:


the needle will be pegged to thr right when charging
a fully charged cart (charger shuts off) will point to the 'H'
the 'F' line represents about 48 volts. This line is important. When the needle is to the left of the 'F' line WHEN THE CART IS SITTING IDLE, I figure I have used about half of the pack. Since I own the pack and do not wish to discharge too deeply, I would like to be home by then. As a rental I would not sorry so much <grin>
If you are crusing along (not climbing hills) and the needle is less than half way into the green, get home soon :)


hope that helps...I have to run so maybe some typos or dumbos
Thanks we will try charging it longer.
It was all the way in the red past the white and did not shut off but quickly dropped down to the H when we unplugged the charger so maybe we just are not leaving it in long enough. I thought 5 hours when it had only driven from Hemmingway to Publix and back would have been enough and the needle in the red scared us a bit. I read everything on this site and the warnings about old carts and fires had us concerned.