Usually, electric forklifts are the best choice for indoor use in warehouses and manufacturing applications for 2 major reasons: First off they produce zero emissions. This is an extremely vital factor to take into account for indoor work places. Out of the Internal Combustion or IC units, only the propane-fueled models are able to be used indoors and these models still require extremely good ventilation. Gas and diesel powered units are not able to be used inside under any circumstances.
Fuel cost is the other primary advantage of electric forklifts. These units have lower cost per hour compared to any of the other internal combustion or IC units. One of the main drawbacks to the electric forklifts is their higher initial cost. Brand new electric forklifts can vary from 20 percent to 40% more compared to IC models that are similarly rated.
However, electric forklifts offer numerous benefits like quiet operation. This is a huge plus for indoor applications. Moreover, no need for fuel storage mean no room needs to be allotted for tanks of fuels that are flammable and dangerous. Since electric forklifts have less moving parts as opposed to internal combustion units, and they are normally utilized in cleaner settings and inside, they tend to have a longer lifespan overall.
The battery downtime is the biggest disadvantage of an electric forklift. These models function with heavy, big, lead-acid batteries, similar to the ones found inside your car. These batteries are really big and extremely powerful. Typically, batteries offer an adequate amount of power for one standard 8-hour shift, and this means 5 or 6 hours of nonstop use.
Originally, charging a forklift battery takes roughly 8 hours. After the charging process is completed, an additional 8 hours of cooling time is needed before it could be used. Because of this long process of slow charging speed and extra cooling time, if you need lift trucks for 2 or 3 shift operations, you should buy additional batteries so you could be charging the nest battery always. These extra batteries will add around $1000 to $2000 to buy.
On the market nowadays, there are several new fast charge electric forklifts. These fast charge batteries have changed the industry of electric forklifts. Their charging can be completed during the course of lunch and coffee breaks, enabling them to get back to work a lot sooner.