LEWCO ELECTRIC
Phone (949) 548-8383
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NEVER LEAVE YOUR SLIP WITHOUT FULLY CHARGER BATTERIES
LEWCO
EFFICIENCY… Due to the extremely high forward-to-back
current ratio, silicon rectifiers achieve rectification efficiencies up to 99%
at power frequencies. The high
efficiency is characterized by forward conduction voltage drops of
approximately one volt, hence higher output voltages, and reverse currents of
the order of microamperes at the peak inverse voltage.
HERMETICALLY
SEALED… Each silicon diode is hermetically sealed. This seal is a great advantage to the marine
field, for the ever present salt air and moisture cannot damage the silicon
diode.
CHARGER
CABINETS… The cabinets are power coated.
CHARGING
POWER… The charger, without damage to
itself can be connected to discharged banks of batteries and will fully charge
them on a perfect taper curve, automatically reducing charging rate to a
trickle as batteries become charged.
INSTALLATION… Designed as a
permanent installation in the boat and a permanent connection to the battery
bank.
LINE
VOLTAGE... Compensation tap switch incorporated so that the converter may be
operated efficiently from either extremely high or low line voltages.
D. C.
AMMETER… Ammeter is incorporated in the output circuit to indicate current being
supplied to batteries and accessories.
TRANSFORMER… The transformers
are designed for marine use and incorporate isolated primary and secondary
coils. This prevents electrolysis and
eliminates shock on the charging lines.
Installation instructions for the
Lewco Silicon Diode Marine
Charger
wire connections and cable
runs
The
terminal panel with the terminals on it is located at the bottom of the
charger. The DC terminals are marked
plainly with their polarity. Connect the
positive terminal to the positive terminal of the batteries and negative
terminal to the negative terminal of the batteries. BE SURE YOU ARE RIGHT! If the battery terminals are unmarked,
corroded or unreadable, check the polarity with a voltmeter. Connections from the LEWCO CHARGER to the
batteries are always POSITIVE TO POSITIVE and NEGATIVE TO NEGATIVE. The two AC terminals are usually connected to
a cable long enough to reach the AC dock outlet, except on boats already wired
for AC, in which case the charger in connected to the nearest AC line. Use marine-approved wire and clamp all
internal wiring securely to the hull and bulkheads.
Caution
The
LEWCO FULL SERVICE BATTERY CHARGER can charge
Wet and Gel Cell batteries. The older LEWCO STANDARD BATTERY CHARGER can be updated to F.S. technology if in serviceable condition.
The
recommended size of wire is shown below:
MODELS AC
INPUT DC
OUTPUT
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12V-20 amp #16 #10
12V-40 amp #12 # 8
12V-80 amp #10 # 4
24V-20 amp #12 #10
24V-40 amp #12 # 8
32V-20 amp #12 #10
32V-40 amp #10 # 8
115V-10 amp #10 #10
Operating Data
When
you connect a LEWCO CHARGER to a fully charged set of batteries, there will be
no indication anything is happening because it supplies current only when it is
needed. To bring the charger into
operation, turn on the accessories and let them run for a short period. This will give you a reading on the
ammeter. When the charger replaces the
current lost, it will return to a reading of one milli ampere for every amp-hour of batteries, commonly
called a float condition.
Caution
LEWCO FULL
SERVICE BATTERY CHARGER operates on battery
voltage, the batteries should be checked periodically for dead cells. Should a dead cell appear, replace
immediately with a new battery.
Answers to most common questions about Lewco Rectifiers
Will the charger damage my
alternators if I don’t disconnect my batteries?
What would I damage if I started my engines and forgot to turn off the
charger?
The
charger will not damage the alternators in your boat because it will be
permanently connected to your batteries in the proper polarity and cannot
accidentally send a reverse polarity to your alternators. The rule “DISCONNECT BATTERY BEFORE CHARGING”
applies primarily to the automotive industry where in a service station an
inexperienced person might connect a high-rate, fast charger to your battery in
reverse and burn out the alternator diodes.
If
you start your boat engines with the LEWCO RECTIFIER charging on your
batteries, it won’t hurt a thing. The
charger will be trying to help supply the power to start the engine and could
charge more than the rated output. It
might trip out the breaker in the charger, but it won’t hurt a thing.
Testing Your
Hydrometer
readings reflect the batteries’ “State of charge”.
Specific Gravity of 1.265 = Full
Specific Gravity of 1.200 = Half
full
Specific Gravity of 1.150 =
Discharged
Unless
you are looking for a battery problem, it is not necessary to test all cells –
just pick one cell in the battery and use it to monitor.
Since
we consider voltage and stage of charge two different things, we feel you are
better informed on battery condition by using a hydrometer.
Service Note
After
the charger has been in service a number of years the “Power On” light may begin to flicker. This is a sign the pilot light is wearing
out, and it is just a matter of changing the complete pilot light assembly.
Additional Instructions Applicable to
Lewco Full Service Models
(FS)
A
load-handling, electronic-switching charger is available in 115-volt or
230-volt AC, 50/60 Hz. It is
self-regulating to compensate for unstable incoming AC line power between 110
and 125 volts.
The
LEWCO FULL SERVICE BATTERY CHARGER model will
cycle down to a slow, variable pulse charge to finish and maintain batteries at
a full capacity without abnormal water loss.
LEWCO FULL SERVICE BATTERY CHARGER models are available in 12-, 24-, 32-, and
36-volt systems, 20, 40 and 80 amp. All
models can be ordered for single or multiple bank operation.
The
LEWCO FULL SERVICE BATTERY CHARGER model can
be used with GELL CELL and AGM systems by keeping it in the normal
position. The higher position could be
used for faster charge recovery, but should be returned to normal position upon
completion of charge.
GELL
CELL, AGM and WET CELL batteries may be serviced from the same charger. Due to the physical differences between the
two types of cells, they can NOT be mixed in a bank either in series or
parallel.
The
LEWCO FULL SERVICE BATTERY CHARGER model
still retains the desirable feature of hands-on control over the rate of
charge. A power tap switch with three
positions allows you to control the output of the machine. The Low position is for heavily discharged
batteries. The
Float Voltage
The
lower voltage shown is for storage. LEWCO FULL SERVICE
BATTERY CHARGER models are set for active battery systems.
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System 12 Volt 24 Volt 32 Volt 36 Volt
Cells 6 12 16 18
Float 13.4 26.7 35.8 40.1
Volts to to to to
13.8 27.6 36.8 41.4
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Caution
On multi-output (ACD) chargers, connect positive output terminal to one bank of batteries only.
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