Battery charger testing and maintenance

[cranky108]

Has anyone seen a guide or recommendations for testing and maintenance for battery chargers?

With proposed regulation for testing and maintenance of battery chargers, exactly what would they be expecting to see for documentation?

And if they are so critical, why not require two of them?

 

[rbulsara]

A lot would depend on what is the "proposed" regulation, and who is "they"?

As for the criticality, that varies by the application. I have often provided two of such things, when deemed critical either the project team/needs.

Rafiq Bulsara

http://www.srengineersct.com

 

[Zogzog]

ANSI/NETA section 7.18.2

 

[stevenal]

Is this regarding the NERC redefinition of protection system to include chargers, thereby including them in PRC-005? Suggest periodically recording volts and amps and noting alarms. Evidence would be the inspection forms used.

 

[cranky108]

Actually it is in reference to the NERC redefinition of protection system.
The issue is not that we don't do this. It is the growing amount of documentation with fines attached. One fine could pay for purchasing a second battery charger for everyone of our substations.

And hey NERC dosen't even have an approved definition for what the BES is. What gives?

 

[stevenal]

I think we will see the real reliability decrease as more man-hours are devoted to maintaining paper and less is devoted to maintaining the system. I guess we need jobs, though. Obviously we need to start with full employment for regulators and lawyers.

No worries on the definition, FERC has that one covered:

http://www.ferc.gov/whats-new/comm-meet/2010/031810/E-8.pdf

 

[cranky108]

I think we are making inroads here it that we have convenced some people that the battery charger isen't needed in any substation for at least an 8 hours. Which is a magnitude difference from the need of the batteries for every second.