Usually, electric forklifts are the most ideal choice for indoor use in manufacturing and warehousing applications for 2 key reasons: First off they produce zero emissions. This is an extremely essential factor to consider for indoor work places. Among the Internal Combustion or IC units, just the propane-fueled models could be used indoors and these models still require really good ventilation. Gas and diesel powered units can not be used inside under any circumstances.
Fuel cost is the other primary advantage of electric forklifts. These units have less cost per hour compared to any of the other IC or internal combustion models. Among the main drawbacks to the electric forklifts is their higher initial cost. Brand new electric forklifts could range from 20% to 40 percent more compared to IC units which are rated the same.
On the other hand, electric lift trucks provide numerous benefits including quiet operation. This is a big plus for indoor operations. Additionally, no need for fuel storage mean no room has to be allotted for tanks of dangerous and flammable fuels. Because electric forklifts have less parts that move as opposed to IC units, and they are normally utilized indoors and in cleaner environments, they tend to have a longer overall lifespan.
The battery downtime is the biggest downside of an electric forklift. These models run with heavy, big, lead-acid batteries, similar to the ones found inside your automobile. These batteries are extremely strong and very large. Normally, batteries provide sufficient power for one standard 8-hour shift, and this translates into 5 or 6 hours of continuous utilization.
Charging a lift truck battery would take around 8 hours. An additional 8 hours of cooling time is needed before it can be used after the charging process is done. Because of this long process of slow charging speed and extra cooling time, if you require lift trucks for 2 or 3 shift operations, you should buy extra batteries so you could be charging the nest battery always. These extra batteries will add roughly $1000 to $2000 to the acquisition price.
There are some new fast charge electric lift trucks available on the market. These specialized batteries have changed the electric forklift industry. Their charging can be done in the course of coffee and lunch breaks, allowing them to get back to work much sooner.