The electric lift truck is normally the best option for indoor applications in manufacturing and warehousing settings. This is mostly due to 2 reasons with the first being that they create zero emissions. This is a really important factor to take into account for indoor work places. Out of the IC or internal combustion models, only the propane-fueled units can be used inside and these models still require extremely good ventilation. Units which run on diesel and gas could not be utilized indoors under any circumstances.
Fuel cost is the other main advantage of electric lift trucks. These models have less cost per hour as opposed to any of the other IC or internal combustion models. Among the main disadvantages to the electric forklifts is their higher initial expense. New electric lift trucks can range from 20% to 40 percent more compared to IC units which are rated the same.
Electric lift trucks on the other hand, provide numerous advantages such as quiet operations, that could be a big plus for indoor settings. Moreover, no fuel storage requirements mean no room needs to be allotted for tanks of fuels that are both dangerous and flammable. Since electric forklifts have less parts that move than internal combustion models, and they are usually utilized in cleaner environments and indoors, they tend to have a longer lifespan overall.
The electric lift trucks biggest downside is the batteries downtime. The large and really heavy, lead acid batteries are quite like the ones now found in cars. These batteries are extremely strong and extremely large. Typically, batteries provide sufficient power for one standard 8-hour shift, and this means 5 or 6 hours of nonstop use.
Charging a forklift battery would take approximately 8 hours. An extra 8 hours of cooling time is required before it could be used after the charging process is done. Due to this long method of extra cooling time and slow charging speed, if you need forklifts for 2 or 3 shift operations, you will need to purchase extra batteries so you can be charging the nest battery always. These additional batteries will add roughly $1000 to $2000 to the purchase price.
On the market today, there are several new fast charge electric forklifts. These fast charge batteries have changed the business of electric lift trucks. Their charging could be done in the course of coffee and lunch breaks, enabling them to get back to work much faster.