GILL Batteries - warning ...

[Overthere67]

Last year my CAMO fitted a new Gill battery on our aircraft. This new battery lasted a mere 11 months before it failed. When I raised the issue with my CAMO, they contacted Global Aviation (the supplier) who advised them that there was almost no chance of receiving any money back - pointing out that Teledyne’s so-called ‘warranty’ is a 12 month warranty where the last 6 months are only covered pro-rata. In other words the 'warranty' is not worth the paper that it is written on. I am informed by my CAMO that I am not the only aircraft owner to experience this problem with a Gill battery.

I have now replaced the failed Gill battery with a Concorde battery – a more superior battery at a similar price, which comes with a 2-year 'normal' warranty.

My advice is to think twice before opting for a Gill battery. There are better, more reliable batteries on the market, which are supplied with meaningful warranties.

[mrmum]

Assuming you and your CAMO are in the UK, if you are a private owner, rather than a company, then irrespective of whatever rubbish warranty the battery manufacturer give, the retailer can't dodge their responsibilities under the Sale of Goods Act.
http://http://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/regulation/sale-of-goods-act
Anything a retailer sells you, in this case your CAMO, has to be of satisfactory quality. I'd be tempted to hit them with this, then let them sort it out with the distributor and/or manufacturer.

[smarthawke]

When did your battery supplier buy the battery from their supplier? Was it a specific order for your aircraft or did they already have it in stock and for how long?

Pedant point: the CAMO didn't fit the battery, a CAMO looks after the maintenance paperwork not the maintenance itself (although many companies are an approved maintenance organisation and CAMO).

[Bushfiva]

Five or more years ago Aviation Consumer tested batteries by Gill and Concorde. Misremembering vaguely, they all performed pretty much as expected, except something like 75% of Gill owners had the battery fail within 2 years compared with 25% of Concorde owners.


Edit: Silvaire's post below prompted me to search for the report I read, and I think it's this one (http://www.skytecair.com/images/p1/batterycomparison.pdf). And of course, searching for it shows that everyone's been talking about this for years and years. So I can fix the numbers, too: 78% and 22%. Finally they wonder why 24V seems better than 12V: all things being equal, half the current at 24V so 25% the heat that needs to be dissipated might be a good starting point.

[A and C]

The experience across my fleet reflects what you have said, with a much higher failure rate with the Gill battery's

I have been encouraged by my parts supplier to run a Gill sealed battery in one aircraft and a Concord in another aircraft of the same type, as both aircraft are flying for the same club and get almost exactly the same treatment from the customers it will be interesting to see which battery offers the best performance.

[Silvaire1]

Gills are junk, Concordes are a little better, Odysseys are best. However its a good example of uncertified equipment that's exposed to a broader non-aviation market being the leader. Only a few certified aircraft use Odyssseys without a field approval (Super Cubs etc)

http://www.concordebattery.com/otherpdf/ac0811_batteriesconcorde_reprint0811_web4c.pdf

[cockney steve]

If the statistics quoted are documented, I think a UK owner would have a very good case against the supplier.....they, in turn, would have a good case against the manufacturer. One has to query the fitness for purpose of the certification regime, which is purportedly in place to try to ensure safety.
Sounds like the approval certificate is just an excuse to operate a ripoff. Whatever, it brings the system into disrepute.
County Court, Small Claims procedure....fees on a sliding scale according to level of claim and you could probably aggregate several of the same, faulty product into one claim.
Sure the manufacturer will pay up to hush- up for every militant aggrieved owner like you, there are dozens who "suck it up" on the basis that it's not a lot of money in the big scheme of things. Nowadays, 3-5 years is a reasonable life-expectancy from a lead-acid accumulator. Cheap Taiwanese ride-on toys like trikes and Quads are normally powered by sealed lead-acid batteries...these ,by the nature of the application, are deep-cycled and often left in a discharged condition, yet they still last well out of the normal year's guarantee.

[Big Pistons Forever]

I just replaced the Gill G 243 24 volt battery in my airplane with another Gill battery. It was 2 months shy of 5 years old, and the previous Gill battery had lasted 5.5 years.

Premature battery failure may not be a battery issue. If the charging voltage is too high, the battery is left in a discharged state for extended periods, the airplane started with a fully discharged battery, or the battery leads and contacts are in corroded/in poor condition etc etc ; you will get reduced battery life.

[Overthere67]

In my case it was certainly a battery issue. My previous G243 battery lasted 8 years, with no problems at all. The new one lasted 11 months! Indeed the results of the CAP test on my previous 'failed' battery showed that it was in a healthier state than the new one.

No more Gill batteries for me after this experience.

[phiggsbroadband]

Hi Bushfiva.... you quote....


Finally they wonder why 24V seems better than 12V: all things being equal, half the current at 24V so 25% the heat that needs to be dissipated might be a good starting point.


I suppose you are referring to the equation W = I squared x R.


There is also another formula...
W = V squared / R... and as V is doubled then W is increased x4.


So it's either 25% or 400%... Take your pick!

[irish seaplane]

I had 4 of the Gill batteries die on me in various aircraft over the past 24 months. I wrote a strongly worded email to the customer support. I did get speaking to a great guy called Tom Jones (yes I know - he knows too) and he couldn't do enough for me. If Gill are at fault they will arrange a courier to collect the battery and will replace it FOC. There is a new type sealed battery about to be released by them which is supposed to be better than all the competition. If you have a problem with the flooded batteries please get in touch with this guy Tom as he want to help :ok:

Regards,

[ChickenHouse]

It appears that specific batches of Gill do have a durability issue. My last one died after less than 12 month - no reaction from Gill though ... If my current Gill dies again, I toss them.

[awqward]

Sorry, Bushfiva is correct phiggs...The power (W) required for starting should be roughly the same for 12v or 24v....so your point about 400% is irrelevant

[tecman]

Another example (if we needed one) that aviation-certified parts don't always deliver the best deal. I was disappointed to see that Tecnam has just chosen a (significantly heavier and notably less reliable) Gill battery as an optional replacement for the original FIAMM motor cycle battery in the P2002JF. LSA versions of he same aircraft are happily flying around with reliable, higher capacity and lighter VRLA batteries from the likes of Yuasa, Odyssey etc.