by Shane Henson — August 16, 2013—Pacific Floorcare recently introduced what it says is the first integrated, automatic battery protection system of its kind in the commercial cleaning equipment industry.
The company’s new BatteryShield—recently entered into the ISSA 2013 Innovation Award program—is designed to maximize wet battery life, giving purchasers of battery-powered cleaning equipment peace of mind after likely spending thousands of dollars in the past through replacing wet, lead acid batteries used in some battery-powered cleaning equipment.
As Pacific Floorcare President Dave Nelson explains, for customers who need battery-powered cleaning equipment, the best type of battery is the wet, lead acid battery because it provides the most power per dollar and longest life for customers—assuming it is maintained properly. However, early failure of the batteries due to forgetting to perform the watering maintenance has plagued these batteries for years. Batteries that should be lasting two to three years are often times lasting less than one year, resulting in early battery replacements and much higher operating costs, he says.
Pacific Floorcare’s BatteryShield protects wet batteries by sensing low water levels, signaling the operator through the machine’s light-emitting diode control panel, and automatically shutting down its cleaning functions. The purposeful stop to the machine’s cleaning functions will ensure that the operator returns to the storage area to water the batteries, thus ensuring that no harm can come to the batteries, the company says.
According to Pacific Floorcare, the BatteryShield will be available in 2014 on its new S-Series automatic scrubbers.
