Why is my BCDC Stage Light Flashing?

This information is applicable to the following BCDC chargers:

BCDC Classic Under Bonnet 25A DC Battery Charger (BCDC1225D)
BCDC Classic Under Bonnet 40A DC Battery Charger (BCDC1240D)
BCDC Classic Under Bonnet 50A DC Battery Charger (BCDC1250D)
BCDC Core In-Cabin 25A DC Battery Charger (BCDCN1225)
BCDC Core In-Cabin 25A DC Battery Charger (BCDCN1240)
BCDC Trailer - 12A DC Trailer Battery Charger (BCDC1212T)
BCDC Trailer S – 12A Vehicle to Trailer Charger with Solar (BCDC1212S)

MY BCDC STAGE LIGHT IS BLINKING, WHAT IS THE FAULT?

A flashing stage LED is not indicating a fault. The BCDC Stage light indicates what stage of the charge profile the BCDC is in.

Depending on the flash rate of the stage LED, it is indicating what stage of charging the BCDC is currently in – Boost, Absorbtion or Float.

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT STAGES OF A BCDC?

With any profile selected, the BCDC1225D and BCDC1240D chargers will output a 3-Stage type charging profile. Whereas the BCDC1250D charger will output a 4-Stage type charging profile.

SOFT-START

When the Charger is turned on, it will start ramping current from 0 A up to the full rated current, this is called Soft-Start and usually takes around 30 seconds. Once the full rated current is reached the charger will move into Boost stage. The soft start charging process only applies to the BCDC1250D.

BOOST

When the Charger is turned on, it will begin in the Boost stage. The Boost stage maintains a constant current until the battery voltage reaches its Absorption Voltage. The current in Boost stage may vary during operation in order to maintain safe operating temperature, or to limit the difference between input and output voltages.

ABSORPTION

The Charger will then move to Absorption stage which maintains a constant voltage level for a predetermined period of time or until the current being drawn by the output battery drops to less than 4 A for 30 seconds; after which the Charger will enter Float stage.

FLOAT

Float stage maintains 13.3 V (13.6 V for LiFePO4) on the output battery, keeping the battery topped up. This counteracts the battery’s self discharging or loads applied to the battery. When the battery loses charge, the Charger will move back into the Boost stage.

WHY IS MY BCDC IN FLOAT WHEN MY BATTERY IS NOT 100%?

The BCDC Classic, Core and Trailer chargers have automatic timeouts to protect the battery from being damaged by overcharging. The BCDC will automatically move from Boost to Absorption according to these timeouts, if a timeout occurs before the battery is fully charged, the charge process will begin again from the Boost stage after the ‘rest-period’. The lithium (Li) profile timeouts have been adapted to suit optimal charging for larger battery banks.

Note: Depending on the power usage and size of the battery bank, it may take multiple charge cycles to fully charge the battery.