Glossary of Terms

Alternating Current (AC) - AC stands for alternating current and is continuously changing the directional flow of charge.

Amp or Ampere - This is a measurement of the electrical current travelling through an electrical circuit.

Battery - Batteries are a collection of one or more cells whose chemical reactions create a flow of electrons in a circuit.

Capacity - Usually specified in Ah this is the amount of energy a battery can supply until it is fully discharged.

Cycle - One complete discharge and recharge of a battery.

Deep Cycle - Deep cycle batteries are designed to be able to be continuously and regularly discharged and recharged.

Direct Current (DC) - DC stands for direct current, and is a one directional flow of charge.

Discharge - When your battery loses energy or voltage this is known as discharge. Essentially this means your battery has lost some of its charge. This discharge of your battery can happen during storage or through active use of the battery.

Ingress Protection(IP Rating) - The Ingress Protection rating is used to classify the degree of protection provided by an enclosure against the entry of foreign objects such as dust and water. Check out our IP rating guide to find out what the numbers really mean.

Inverter - An inverter changes DC power into usable AC power. This will enable you to power appliances such as kettles and laptops.

Lithium Ion Battery - A lithium ion (Li-ion) battery has advanced battery technology. During a discharge cycle, lithium atoms in the anode are ionized and separated from their electrons, these lithium ions move from the anode to cathode where they recombine with the electrons.

MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) - MPPT is maximising the amount of energy that can be converted from a power source into usable energy.

Negative Terminal - The electrode from with the electrons emerge is the negative terminal. It is also called the cathode.

Overcharge - Continually charging a battery or a cell after it has already been charged to 100%, results in overcharge of the battery.

Parallel Connection - A parallel connection will increase the capacity of the batteries. You can achieve this by connecting the positive terminals to positive terminals and negative terminals to negative terminals.

Portable Power Stations - A portable power station is essentially a mini generator. It will allow you to keep electronics and appliances running whilst you are off grid. Typically used for laptops, phones, kettles and mini fridges. However some can support whole house emergency power.

Self Discharge - Battery self discharge happens to all batteries, whether they are connected or not. Each battery will have different levels of self discharge. It is recommended to monitor and check your batteries so that self discharge doesn't irreversibly damage the battery.

Series Connection - Joining batteries together in a series connection involves connecting positive terminals to the negative terminals of the additional batteries. This will increase the voltage, but will not affect the capacity.

Voltage - Voltage is the force of an electric current and measured in volts.

Watt - A watt is a measurement of electrical flow and is a measurement of power. A 60W lightbulb requires less flow (power) than a 100W lightbulb.

Watt-Hour - The amount of energy that has been used is measured in Watt-hours. A 60W light bulb switched on for 30 minutes would use 30Wh.