Can you use lead acid batteries for HID?

[Mdemon]

And if using 12v, would 7Ah be enough?

 

[65535]

depends on the wattage. Pb cells are great for long low discharge with Low voltage cutoff of you can use deep cycle batteries. They are used for 35 watt HID anything above that uses NICD NIMH or Lihiums.

 

[Trashman]

And if using 12v, would 7Ah be enough?

You sure can. The Costco/Harbor Freight 35w HID spotlights use a 12 volt, 7ah sealed lead acid battery. 7Ah refers to the capacity of the battery, though, so saying that "it would be enough" actually depends on how long you want to run the light for.

 

[Mdemon]

I have 35w H3 6000k HID. I need about an hour so 35w should be enough? I was more concerned whether the battery could supply the initial striking current. Sounds like it can.

Many thanks!

 

[Mdemon]

Just a thought, but what happens if you over-volt an HID? e.g. 15v not 12? Does it work or is there just an expensive puff of smoke?

 

[brickbat]

15V is well within the realm of what a well designed automotive HID ballast should accept. IOW the voltage on a car '12V' system is typically around 14V. The ballasts I've seen regulate the output to the lamp, so increasing the voltage from 12 to 15 won't even result in a visible difference in lamp output.

 

[Mdemon]

That's good. I have an old NiCD 15v battery pack knocking about. Could use it as a back up.

Charging SLAs seems to take forever whereas the Ansmann charger handles battery packs (NiMH/NiCD) in a few hours. I wonder if a 6A car battery charger would be quicker on the 7Ah battery? :thinking: