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Susan Hsu
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Jun 27, 2022
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Regular maintenance should be carried out by the emergency light owner on a monthly and annual basis. If the 90 second or 90 minute emergency readiness test proves unsatisfactory (i.e. the light does not come on), it may be necessary to replace the Emergency Power Packs.
Fortunately, the maintenance involved is actually very quick and easy as most modern luminaires have a push to test switch that will provide you with an accurate battery reading. Pressing this test button activates the unit’s cut-off circuit (simulating the loss of AC power) and should trip the battery. If the battery is dead, the light will not come on. It really is that simple.
Types Of Exit Sign Batteries
Most emergency exit signs are powered by the building’s AC power supply, which keeps the battery back-up system fully charged. During a power failure, the batteries are required to illuminate the sign for at least 90 minutes. But did you know that exit signs use more than one type of battery?
The Steps to replace emergency light batteries
Step 1 — Take a screwdriver and open the housing. Most emergency lights will use a Philips head, but special hexagonal screwdriver heads will be used for certain hazardous locations on vandal-proof luminaires. It is expected that you or your maintenance department will keep the bit that came with the unit when you purchased it.
Step 2 — Now that you have removed the tray you will see a lot of wires (don’t worry it is normal). Some of these red, black, blue or white wires will lead from the AC conduit to the voltage transformer which leads to the switching circuit. One, two or several wires connect the circuit board to the battery.
For more emergency exit lights batteryinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.
Step 3 — Depending on your emergency light, the batteries will be either sealed lead acid (SLA) or nickel cadmium (NiCd) battery types; SLA looks like a baby car battery, while NiCd usually resembles a regular household AAA battery sealed in a protective plastic shrink wrap.
Once the leads are removed from the + and — contacts, most batteries will slide out of the unit. Some batteries will be installed in the wiring harness and you will also have to remove them.
Identifying the correct replacement battery
Remove the harness and battery from the housing. The first thing to note is the voltage, usually 6v or 12v. Do not attempt to use a 12v battery in a 6v emergency light and vice versa.
One of the fastest ways to find the battery type is to simply look at the label inside the housing.
Yes.
Almost all self contained emergency lights have a battery that are designed to be replaced. They are designed to last about 4 years, with regular testing which actually does the battery some good. There are many factors that affect the life of a battery, that is why regular testing is a must.
Extremes of heat and cold for prolonged periods can dramatically reduce the life of the battery. This could mean that you are changing the battery in your emergency light more often.
Throughout the years battery technology has advanced quickly. This makes it hard to pinpoint exactly what battery you have in your emergency light. Typically, emergency lights come with:
All batteries will have identification on them. It is important to match like for like when replacing them. This is because the charging control circuit will have been designed to charge that specific type of battery. If you replace with a different type of battery it will probably damage it. They all charge slightly different.
Also, note the configuration the batteries are packed in. From the picture above you can see a 5 cell D pack, a 6 cell D stick and two 3 cell sticks type C and sub C. The way they are arranged is only important when fitting inside the emergency light. A 3 cell pack would be the same as a 3 cell stick.
Tip: You simply order the exact same battery type and shape that you have when replacing the battery.
The replacement battery will be secured in the same way as the old one. This will be either via battery end caps or perhaps screwed or zip tied into the fitting. Either way it is important to secure the battery inside the emergency light. This is because they are relatively heavy and could damage the control gear if not secured.
At the start I mentioned that most self contained emergency lights have replacement batteries. If you have a central battery system then the actual lights are not classed as self contained. Their battery is in another part of the building and not inside, so that rules them out. However we now have some self contained emergency lights that use supercapacitors.
Supercapacitors are not batteries and are generally not replaceable and you probably wouldn’t need to either. We use supercapacitors in our emergency lights for cold stores. This is because they can tolerate much lower temperatures and can last 10 years +.
No. But you should be competent with working with wiring. First thing, ensure there is no power supplying the fitting, if your unsure on how to do this talk to your electrician. Then it should be a simple procedure of unclipping the old battery and removing from the fitting then reversing the steps to put the new one back in.
Once the fitting is back installed restore the power and check that the green charging light is illuminated.
Additional Reading…
When to Test Emergency Lights
How to Test Emergency Lights
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