A few of questions for the Gurus

[The Weatherman]

Just for future reference: you may want to update your profile and/or signature to include the Model and Year of your Lightning. It is helpful for responders to to know due to the varies issues the different models have had.

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[RLXXI]

I would do a full charge of the HVB to start, then connect a known good 12v charger to the CORRECT connections under the passenger side frunk panel. DO NOT connect directly to the battery regardless what anyone says. Photo to show the proper battery connection points.

 

[Firn]

I would do a full charge of the HVB to start, then connect a known good 12v charger to the CORRECT connections under the passenger side frunk panel. DO NOT connect directly to the battery regardless what anyone says. Photo to show the proper battery connection points.

You can charge the battery without going through the LVB bms if you reset the learned BMS values, as was mentioned. Thats the point of the reset procedure

 

[RLXXI]

You can charge the battery without going through the LVB bms if you reset the learned BMS values, as was mentioned. Thats the point of the reset procedure

I fail to understand what that has to do with properly connecting a charger to the vehicle but ok.

 

[Jseis]

My 12V issue was the the battery monitor sensor, what we used call a voltage regulator. That led to error messages galore, inability to receive over the air updates, status updates on the 12V charge level dropping (the lowest I ever saw was 45.%). I got to where I’d turn the truck on while parked to get it to charge as a failed 12V battery (and software that thinks it “failed”.leads to a lot of other issues.

The BMS was an inexpensive part. Once replaced by dealer.., all back to normal.

EV ownership is like buying a new smartphone. Sometimes you just want to scream and blow it up, drive into the ocean, off a cliff, set it on fire, pound the dash to pulp thinking it will reset itself, or find some 16 year old computer whizz to “restart my truck” lol.

 

[Firn]

I fail to understand what that has to do with properly connecting a charger to the vehicle but ok.

Because they are the same thing

The reason you connect it the way you describe is so that the LVB BMS remains calibrated. Charging the battery fully and resetting the BMS is HOW you calibrate it.

I recomend charging fully and resetting so that you ensure there is no drift in the BMS.

 

[RLXXI]

Because they are the same thing

The reason you connect it the way you describe is so that the LVB BMS remains calibrated. Charging the battery fully and resetting the BMS is HOW you calibrate it.

I recomend charging fully and resetting so that you ensure there is no drift in the BMS.

That is NOT the only reason. Apparently you weren't aware that SLA batteries produce hydrogen gas (highly explosive) and all it takes is one spark at the battery connecting charger or jumper cables to end your dreams.

 

[chl]

As everyone knows, wires connect point A to point B electrically with low resistance.

So the jump terminals thereby electrically connect to the battery via wire in some low resistance manner and that manner for the negative terminal is downstream of the BMS as shown in this picture by the blue circles.

If the jump terminals did not connect to the 12v battery electrically (the negative terminal being downstream of the BMS), there would be no 12V voltage on them would there?

There is nothing 'magical' about the jump terminals connection to the blue circled points in the picture. It is a low resistance electrical connection. (The negative ground terminal of the battery downstream of the BMS and the negative jump terminal are also grounded/electrically connected to the chassis/body of the truck so the negative connection could be made to the chassis/body.)

You will find the jump terminals are electrically connected directly to the blue circled points with low resistance (near zero).

@RLXXI There is no reason you cannot connect a charger to the blue circles without any harm. Electrically it is the same as connecting to the jump terminals.

Do NOT connect a charger to the red X's. If you did that you would 'screw up' the BMS and it would have to be recalibrated.

BTW, based on some posts about Ford mobile services, remarkably, some Ford tech do not know where to connect their battery chargers to the Lightning and go with the red X locations. (Some updates require the battery be on a charger correctly connected.)

Pulling the cover off the battery compartment in the Frunk is a lot less hassle than unscrewing all those plastic connectors and pulling off the passenger side Frunk cover to access the jump terminals.

But to each his own.

 

[RLXXI]

There is no reason you cannot connect a charger to the blue circles without any harm. Electrically it is the same as connecting to the jump terminals.

Do NOT connect a charger to the red X's. If you did that you would 'screw up' the BMS and it would have to be recalibrated.

BTW, based on some posts about Ford mobile services, remarkably, some Ford tech do not know where to connect their battery chargers to the Lightning and go with the red X locations. (Some updates require the battery be on a charger correctly connected.)

Pulling the cover off the battery compartment in the Frunk is a lot less hassle than unscrewing all those plastic connectors and pulling off the passenger side Frunk cover to access the jump terminals.

But to each his own.

I'll give you a little leeway because you haven't seen or experienced what I have over the past 40+ years as a professional auto tech so I'll simply leave you a couple pics WHY you should NEVER connect a charger or jumper cables directly at the battery.

Are you familiar with hydrogen gas? Did you know that SLA battery contains a lot of it? Never had one blow up in your face?

You do you, I'll do it the right way.

 

[Firn]

That is NOT the only reason. Apparently you weren't aware that SLA batteries produce hydrogen gas (highly explosive) and all it takes is one spark at the battery connecting charger or jumper cables to end your dreams.

And it is not just "one spark". It actually takes a large number of issues, PLUS a spark, to create an explosion. The batteries dont vent hydrogen in normal operation.

Can it happen, yes. Is it likely? No.

Good god, no need to play the "guess what I'm trying to say" game, just recomend ensuring its well ventilated before connecting the charger. You could have just recomended some additional steps rather than playing 5 rounds of back and forth before getting to the point. I dont disagree with you but there ARE WAYS to charge a battery safely that does not require using the posts you pointed out.

 

[RLXXI]

And it is not just "one spark". It actually takes a large number of issues, PLUS a spark, to create an explosion. The batteries dont vent hydrogen in normal operation.

Can it happen, yes. Is it likely? No.

Good god, no need to play the "guess what I'm trying to say" game, just recomend ensuring its well ventilated before connecting the charger. You could have just recomended some additional steps rather than playing 5 rounds of back and forth before getting to the point. I dont disagree with you but there ARE WAYS to charge a battery safely that does not require using the posts you pointed out.

I've personally have had the battery explode 4 times in my life, two of those times was my own vehicle. The other two were customer cars. I went to school for automotive technology in college and 40+ years in the profession has taught me they knew what they were teaching.

Like I told another uninformed user, you do you, I'll do it the right way.

P.S. Since we all know how Ford will pinch a penny to save a dime, you should call them and explain to their engineers how they can save even more by eliminating those useless connection points under the access panel, I'm sure they'd love you for that.

 

[Firn]

I've personally have had the battery explode 4 times in my life, two of those times was my own vehicle. The other two were customer cars. I went to school for automotive technology in college and 40+ years in the profession has taught me they knew what they were teaching.

Like I told another uninformed user, you do you, I'll do it the right way.

P.S. Since we all know how Ford will pinch a penny to save a dime, you should call them and explain to their engineers how they can save even more by eliminating those useless connection points under the access panel, I'm sure they'd love you for that.

You do know one can "do it the right way" without using the posts you pictured right? You do also realize I never said you SHOULD charge it in the truck either. And considering there is MORE THAN ONE REASON to use the posts you pictured....

But if you want to think its impossible to safely charge a battery without using those terminals then "you do you".

 

[chl]

That is NOT the only reason. Apparently you weren't aware that SLA batteries produce hydrogen gas (highly explosive) and all it takes is one spark at the battery connecting charger or jumper cables to end your dreams.

Because the Lightning LV batteries are sealed AGM batteries - they should not leak unless extremely overcharged (causing the safety valve to open and vent) or physically damaged.

During nomal charging they are designed to be recombinant and NOT release the gases produced during charging.

So the chances of a gas leak are very low....but safety first.

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Q: Has anyone ever smelled hydrogen gas coming from the Lightning AGM sealed OEM battery?

I did a search and did not find any reports of that, but maybe someone has seen that and not reported it. From what I've read it seems that an AGM battery leaking gas generally would only happen if it is being/has been overcharged/overheated, damaged, poorly manufatured or maybe at the end of its useful life.

Nearly all AGM batteries are "recombinant" - what that means is that the Oxygen and Hydrogen recombine INSIDE the battery. These use gas phase transfer of oxygen to the negative plates to recombine them back into water while charging and prevent the loss of water through electrolysis. The recombining is typically 99+% efficient, so almost no water is lost.... AGMs ... even under severe overcharge conditions hydrogen emission is far below the 4% max specified for aircraft and enclosed spaces.

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The Lightning should not overcharge the LV battery - the opposite seems to be the problem we've been experiencing.

A good battery charger should not overcharge the LV battery either.

So leaking gas seems very unlikely... but sure, safety first.

If concerned about leaking gas, then make the negative charging connection to a ground point on the chassis away from the battery as show below. The chassis is downstream of the BMS so not issue there.

Since LV battery issues seem to be a common problem, one might want to have a quality battery charger handy and follow the directions for use.

BTW, good battery chargers do not even produce a spark since they do not keep any charge on the terminals when they are off and not charging. So in that case, the worry about gasses can be put aside.

They are often advertised as "spark free" or "spark proof" and often protect against reverse polarity connections as well. See the NOCO GENIUS1: 1A 6V/12V Smart Battery Charger on Amazon for example:

" *Safety Features*: Overcharge protection, spark-proof technology, and reverse polarity protection ensure safe operation."

And if you follow the charger instructions (does anyone besides me read them? I hope so) you would connect the charger to the battery BEFORE plugging it into the wall, which is extra protection against producing a spark.

If you don't have a "spark-free" or "spark proof" charger and are worried about a spark, before connecting it to charge the Lightning battery (blue circles), and before plugging it in, touch the pos and neg clamps together and see if there is any spark. Use a resistor to discharge any residual charge that could be producing a spark from the terminals. Then connect it to the battery, and then plug it into the wall outlet.

If you are using another vehicle to charge the Lightning LV battery, and you want to watch out for a spark, use the safe step by step process for connection, generally: 1) Pos to pos then
2) Neg to chassis/body ground of the vehicle being charged.

But the chances that a seal AGM battery is going to leak gas are very low.

Q: Has anyone ever smelled hydrogen gas from the Lightning AGM sealed OEM battery? Hope not.

 

[chl]

I've personally have had the battery explode 4 times in my life, two of those times was my own vehicle. The other two were customer cars. I went to school for automotive technology in college and 40+ years in the profession has taught me they knew what they were teaching.

Like I told another uninformed user, you do you, I'll do it the right way.

P.S. Since we all know how Ford will pinch a penny to save a dime, you should call them and explain to their engineers how they can save even more by eliminating those useless connection points under the access panel, I'm sure they'd love you for that.

A sealed AGM battery?

 

[TaxmanHog]

Better safer than sorry, I'm in the @RLXXI camp, ya'll do what ya want....................

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