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Trickle Battery Charger

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xsteamer

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I just purchased a 1A - 12V trickle battery charger. I was planning on taking the battery out of the car and hooking up the charger and forget about it until spring. The instructions state that this is a manual charger and should be monitored to prevent overcharging the battery. The expected final charge rate is 0.3 amperes. Is this really going to overcharge the batteryand do I really have to monitor it?
 
Yes. As the battery is charged it will "boil" out acid and eventually dry up the battery. This is the same problem as in a camp trailer when you leave it plugged in all the time. I charge my spares then test and recharge when I go to use them. I am a firm believer in keeping the battery off the garage floor by using a board. I have seen reports on whether this is needed or noe but I had a teacher in college do it to a battery and I was convinced you need to put something under the battery. Also, by a gallon of distilled water to top you battery off when it gets low.
 
I ruined 2 sets of RV batteries following the RV seller's advice to trickle charge during storage, then I installed a cut-off switch and have had no battery trouble for several years. Current batteries have been in the RV for at least 6 years. Same with my lawn tractor.

Guinn
 
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/iagree.gif on the trickle charger bit /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nonono.gif

HI Xsteamer, What you want to keep the battery charged insitu is a "Sure Charge Four" Battery minder It is not a Trickle charger. Being an automatic Pulse/Float charger it will constantly adjust to maintain the battery at full charge. Visit VDC Electronics web sites for full details.---Fwiw---Keoke
 
If you are going to keep the battery connected for a long time, Keoke's way is the way to go as you can just jump in and start her up. If you don't anticipate using the car for several weeks (or even months), save the money for the car and just disconnect.

Guinn
 
HI Quinn, storing the lead acid battery for months without a sustaining charge will cause the battery to Sulphate it may work on reinstallation but its capacity has been permanently reduced.---Fwiw---Keoke
 
Thanks, Keoke. Didn't know that. I guess I have never stored mine that long. We use the 5th about twice a year for a few days, then lay it up 'til the next trip. Current batteries have been in the rig for about five years.

Guinn
 
I use a cheap trickle charger on the B that I keep connected all winter long, but have it plugged into the same switched outlet as my light over the B in the garage. The only time the charger trickles is when I have the light on for working on the car or cleaning...invariably I am there sometime every now and then and it keeps a nice charge on her, preventing a complete rundown of the battery.

I also have a good automatic charger that I hook up to various car batteries and my bass boat batteries. It has an automatic shut off and full charge indicator that I try to connect about once a month to all of the various batteries I have and seems to do the trick.

Bruce /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cheers.gif
 
One more idea, you can spend a bit of extra money and buy an Optima battery. You can let them sit for years and still fire the car right up. I got one recently at Pep Boys for $108. It will outperform and outlast a standard battery in addition to holding a charge much better.
 
I have used the inexpensive float chargers from Harbor Freight to keep two of my seldom driven cars ready to drive. In general I've been pleased with the cheap float chargers. However, (and ironically) I went to start one of the cars this weekend and discovered that my cheap float charger had boiled out the battery. The caveat here is that even if you decide on a float charger instead of a trickle charger, check the electrolyte level periodically. It took about three years to ruin the battery I found yesterday so I have no one to blame but myself.
 
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