# Nickel iron batteries?



## SugarMag (Jun 30, 2011)

I am really interested in these! It seems they have been around for a long time but are hard to come by. Is anyone using them? Or know more about them?
Thanks!


----------



## no1cowboy (May 2, 2004)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


The *nickel&#8211;iron battery* (NiFe battery) is a rechargeable battery having a nickel(III) oxide-hydroxide cathode and an iron anode, with an electrolyte of potassium hydroxide. The active materials are held in nickel-plated steel tubes or perforated pockets. It is a very robust battery which is tolerant of abuse, (overcharge, overdischarge, and short-circuiting) and can have very long life even if so treated.[6] It is often used in backup situations where it can be continuously charged and can last for more than 20 years. Due to its low specific energy, poor charge retention, and high cost of manufacture, other types of rechargeable batteries have displaced the nickel&#8211;iron battery in most applications.[


----------



## no1cowboy (May 2, 2004)

double post


----------



## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

A friend of mine has a set of the real old Edison NiFe bats. . .He is saving them for . . . ?!?!

When fully charged the voltage is so high that inverters will shut down--the better inverters with high voltage disconnect----
The cheapo inverters will probably just smoke (burnout).
Back when the NiFe was "the battery" there was no such thing as an inverter . . .so the huge voltage swing was not an issue. They were used by the railroads.....

They (NiFe) take much more energy to charge than the wet-lead/acid bats.

I have read many times that the imported ones have problems . . . .mostly "quality"
I see in Home Power mag that there is another importer advertizing NiFe's...........
I do not know about the "quality" of this guys supplier.

I would be very cautious about laying out the big bucks for a new set----today.......

If I stumbled on an old Edison set of NiFe's . . .I would jump on them.


----------



## SugarMag (Jun 30, 2011)

Thank you! I wasn't in much danger of shelling out for them anytime soon, but of course the literature stressed the positives and left out the drawbacks.


----------



## SolarGary (Sep 8, 2005)

Hi,
There is a China supplier for these cells, and a US company that distributes them.
This may be the outfit: http://ironedison.com/

I got an email from one person who just put a new set in for his off-grid home and will report on how it goes. The attractions for him were lower weight and longer life -- both being installation and maintenance hassles for his large battery installation.
He does say that the edison cells were much easier to wrestel into place and have been doing well so far.

Gary


----------



## ||Downhome|| (Jan 12, 2009)

you can check out eds yahoo group , he has been making ni-fi batteries.

Yahoo Group: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/edsworkshp/
YouTube Channel: [ame]http://www.youtube.com/user/edsworkshop#p/u/14/CBGcdtAzzUE[/ame]

These hold my Interest as well. 
there's also a company in the US that supposedly refurbs old Edison cells and is manufacturing new ones.

I think the voltage issue could be rectified easily.
The other draw back is the higher internal discharge.
On a regularly used system though, I think that would be mute.

But in weighing all thing the Advantages IMO far out weigh the negative.
They Take abuse and to freshen them up just change out the electrolyte.


----------

