The electric forklift is normally the best option for indoor operations in manufacturing and warehousing environments. This is mostly because of 2 reasons with the first being that they produce zero emissions. This is an extremely essential factor to consider for indoor work places. Amongst the Internal Combustion or IC models, just the propane-fueled models can be utilized inside and these units still require really good ventilation. Models which run on diesel and gas are not able to be utilized indoors under any circumstances.
Fuel cost is the other main benefit of electric forklifts. These units have less cost per hour as opposed to any of the other internal combustion or IC models. One of the main disadvantages to utilizing the electric forklifts is their higher initial expense. New electric forklifts can range from 20 percent to 40 percent more compared to internal combustion units that are rated the same.
On the other hand, electric lift trucks offer numerous benefits like quiet operation. This is a huge plus for indoor operations. Furthermore, no fuel storage requirements mean no room has to be allotted for tanks of dangerous and flammable fuels. Since electric lift trucks have less moving parts as opposed to IC units, and they are typically utilized indoors and in cleaner settings, they tend to have a longer lifespan overall.
The battery downtime is the biggest disadvantage of an electric lift truck. These models function with heavy, big, lead-acid batteries, similar to the ones found inside your car. These batteries are really big and really powerful. Normally, batteries provide an adequate amount of power for one standard 8-hour shift, and this means 5 or 6 hours of continuous utilization.
Initially, charging a lift truck battery takes approximately 8 hours. After the charging process is done, an additional 8 hours of cooling time is needed before it can be utilized. Due to this long method of slow charging speed and additional cooling time, if you need forklifts for 2 or 3 shift operations, you should buy additional batteries so you can always be charging the next battery. These extra batteries would add about $1000 to $2000 to purchase.
There are several new fast charge electric forklifts available on the market. These specialized batteries have changed the electric forklift business. Their charging can be done in the course of lunch and coffee breaks, allowing them to return to work much sooner.