Usually, electric forklifts are the best choice for indoor use within warehouses and manufacturing applications for 2 key reasons: First off they produce zero emissions. This is an extremely vital factor to consider for indoor work places. Among the Internal Combustion or IC models, only the propane-fueled units are able to be used inside and these models still require extremely good ventilation. Units which run on gas and diesel are not able to be utilized inside under any circumstances.
Fuel cost is the other primary benefit of electric lift trucks. These units have lower cost per hour compared to any of the other internal combustion or IC models. Amongst the main disadvantages to the electric forklifts is their higher initial expense. New electric forklifts could range from 20 percent to 40 percent more compared to internal combustion units which are rated the same.
On the other hand, electric forklifts offer numerous advantages like quiet operation. This is a big plus for indoor operations. Moreover, no fuel storage requirements mean no room has to be allotted for tanks of fuels that are both flammable and dangerous. Because electric lift trucks have less parts that move compared to internal combustion models, and they are typically utilized in cleaner settings and inside, they tend to have a longer lifespan overall.
The battery downtime is the biggest disadvantage of an electric lift truck. These models run with heavy, big, lead-acid batteries, similar to the ones found inside your automobile. These batteries are extremely big and extremely powerful. Typically, batteries provide sufficient power for one standard 8-hour shift, and this means 5 or 6 hours of nonstop utilization.
Charging a forklift battery will take about 8 hours. An additional 8 hours of cooling time is required before it could be used after the charging process is done. Because of this long process of slow charging speed and additional cooling time, if you require forklifts for 2 or 3 shift operations, you should purchase extra batteries so you could always be charging the next battery. These extra batteries will add roughly $1000 to $2000 to buy.
There are a few new fast charge electric forklifts available on the market. These specialized batteries have changed the electric forklift industry. Their charging can be done during the course of lunch and coffee breaks, allowing them to get back to work much faster.