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16.
longer psrlod of time each day than possible or required In the stunner.
This system of charging the hattery every day, ptanplng Tsack into It the
eqnlTalent of the energy which it delivered the night before, is con-
ducive of the moat satisfactory battery operation and long life of the
plates, provided that an overcharge be given about once every week or
ten days and the battery is never over-discharged. Thus the absolute
iBinlmum size of battery for a village plant must be that which will
just carry the street lights and a small house lighting load from
10 PJiil. xmtil 7 A.M. Sudh a battery however, would tmdoubtedly be
overworked and would wear out rapidly. Therefore a larger battery
than this should be installed, and it should be of sttdh size that it
can be relied upon for reserve service in case of breakdown of the
generator. In other words, it must be large enough to carry the
street lights from 5 P.M. until 7 A.M. and in addition carry a portion
of the residence and store lighting. Thus, thirty six hours would
elapse after the breakdown of the generator before the town would be
In total darkness, and the battery, in addition to serving it's normal
function of lighting the town, would also serve as a source of pro-
tection against complete breakdown. Jast how far this protection is
to be carried generally is determined by financial conditions at the
time that the plant is being purchased. If considerable funds are
at hand, a generouis battery can be purchased, but if under other con-
ditions. It is recommended that the battery be at least large enough
to carry the street lights for fourteen hours.
Preparations for future growth of the battery load
should always be mads by Installing the plates in jars large enough