How to Charge an Electric Wheelchair
Learning how to charge an electric wheelchair is one of the first steps to take when you've just acquired a new, used, or rental power chair. Your power wheelchair batteries are the driving force behind your newfound independence, and knowing how to charge them properly will help to maximize their lifespan and performance.
How to Charge an Electric Wheelchair: Step-by-Step
To charge your batteries:
Position your electric wheelchair or rental power wheelchair near a power outlet.
Make sure the controller power is turned off and the electric wheelchair is in drive mode.
Plug one end of the battery charger into the charging port on the control panel.
Plug the connector into the power outlet. The status indicator should read “Charger power on” and then change to “Charging in progress.”*
Leave the wheelchair charging for 8 to 10 hours or until fully charged. The status indicator should then read “Charging complete.”
Unplug the wheelchair battery charger from the power outlet.
Unplug the other end from the charging port.
When unplugging the connector from the power outlet, always pull from the connector. Never pull the power wheelchair charger out by the cable.
Note: The exact phrasing and steps can vary depending on the model. Before charging your motorized wheelchair, read the manual supplied with the chair for model-specific charging instructions.
How to Properly Break In New Electric Wheelchair Batteries
Charging an electric wheelchair battery isn't rocket science, but learning when and for how long to charge the batteries is something of an art—especially when breaking in a new battery.
To break in new batteries:
Fully charge your batteries before use.
Drive your power wheelchair until the battery's capacity reaches two-thirds full.
Fully recharge the batteries. They should reach 90% of the battery's capacity or above at the end of the charging cycle.
Repeat for 10 charging cycles, never using more than a third of the battery's capacity. The batteries should now reach 100% when fully charged.
After 10 charging cycles, you can use and charge the batteries normally.
Tips to Maximize Your Battery's Lifespan
Knowing how to charge an electric wheelchair properly makes a big difference to the performance of your battery. When they’re charged with care, you can even double the usable life of your batteries, reducing the costs of owning a power wheelchair over time.
For maximum performance and lifespan:
Recharge your power wheelchair batteries every day after use. This can double the life of your batteries compared to draining the batteries over a few days and then recharging them.
Don't drain the batteries more than 50%. Repeatedly allowing a longer and deeper discharge will drastically reduce their lifespan and your electric wheelchair’s driving range.
Always use the battery charger received with your power wheelchair—or a manufacturer-approved replacement charger. Other battery chargers may not shut off automatically and could overcharge your wheelchair batteries.
Charge the batteries at room temperature, avoiding extremes. Charging power wheelchair batteries in a very cold place will take longer and the batteries won’t last as long.
Once your wheelchair batteries reach 100%, let them charge for another two hours to reach the float stage for maximum drive time.
Don't use one of the batteries to power a 12-volt appliance as you won't be able to equalize the charge between the two batteries later on.
For infrequent use, fully recharge your batteries twice a week. If you go more than two weeks between uses, disconnecting the batteries is a good idea.
If you're dealing with a dead battery, you may be able to stretch out its life a little longer by recharging it and draining it fully around five times to remove the sulfations. However, expect it to take longer to recharge, and make sure you buy new batteries straight away!
How to Buy a Replacement Battery
The best way to replace a dead battery is to contact the manufacturer or retail store where you purchased your power wheelchair. You can usually purchase replacement batteries and battery chargers in-store. Retailers like Mobility Plus in Denver, Colorado, can even deliver them to your home.
Understanding Electric Wheelchair Batteries
You know how to charge an electric wheelchair, but how much do you know about the batteries and how they are different from the batteries that charge other vehicles and devices?
While some electric wheelchairs run on lithium-ion batteries or wet-cell batteries, most power wheelchairs use two 12-volt sealed deep-cycle batteries in a series. These are maintenance-free, valve-regulated, lead-acid batteries—either AGM (absorbent glass mat) or gel batteries.
As power chair batteries are sealed rather than wet, you don't need to add water or check the electrolyte levels. You can also fly with your power wheelchair on an airplane—just look for an "airplane approved" sticker on the battery and double-check with your airline before you fly.
With the Proper Care, Your Wheelchair Batteries Can Take You a Long Way
If you recharge your wheelchair batteries correctly and avoid common mistakes like draining the batteries completely, you can expect your deep-cycle batteries to last you a good year with daily use or two or three years if used only occasionally.
Remember: to help your wheelchair battery last, use the battery charger received with your chair and recharge the batteries every night. If you do this right consistently, your batteries will take you a long way.