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Battery Tenders? Should battery tenders be connected 24/7, or every other week or so?
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Re: Battery Tenders? I do mine and have for over 10 years now.
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Re: Battery Tenders? I have five and also keep them connected full time. Most of my batteries are 10-12 years old so they must be effective.
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Re: Battery Tenders? I have mine on 24/7 and have for years.
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I have eleven 12V batteries that I maintain. I use two Xtreme charger/desulfators, rotating every week or so.
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Re: Battery Tenders? Any automatic maintainer can be left connected.. make sure your electrolyte level is over the plates...if topping off the level know what your doing as overfilling is a no-no
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Re: Battery Tenders? I had defective tender which appears to have slowly drained my batter.... Once I fully recharged it my car has been on it's own for the past 14 months without any battery charger... I myself do not trust batteries left alone over night while charging but that's me...
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Re: Battery Tenders? I put battery tenders or trickle chargers on all our batteries once a month for 24 hrs. At the price of hydro these days I don't see the sense in putting then on 24/7. Done it this way for many years and have never had a battery that didn't last 10 or more years.
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Re: Battery Tenders? I use a solar powered tender connected 24/7.
Doesn't do much at night though.:D |
Re: Battery Tenders? Mine are on a sensory / timer device and run from noon to 8 pm daily.
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Re: Battery Tenders? Buy a $3 lamp timer at walmart and use it to turn the charger on for 1 hour a day.
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Re: Battery Tenders? We have one that will charge up to six batteries at a time. One central location and long
Leads to the different cars. On 24/7 Love my tender it's so sweet I'll never let it go. (Hum it to the Elvis song) |
Re: Battery Tenders? I keep mine connected all the time. I keep the Deltron ones on every antique car, boat and lawn mower. These smart maintainer/chargers extend the battery life as confirmed here by other members.
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Re: Battery Tenders? I do 24/7 during the winter months. During the warm months I drive them enough to keEp Them charged.
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When a battery is being used / and charged through normal operation small air bubbles form in each cell which release gas through the little vent in the cap. If the cell is overfilled liquid will come out with the gas which will result in acid getting on top of the battery and surrounding areas. A good height is 1/4" above the plates, along with that there is a gauge built into the battery casing for each cell to show the reccommended height. |
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Re: Battery Tenders? I use a Battery Tender brand unit connected 24/7. These are automatic battery maintainers and you can monitor their activity by the red and green leds. A local storage battery manufacturer claims you can double the life of a lead acid battery by using an automatic maintainer when the vehicle is stored for more than a couple of months. This guy is in the business of selling batteries and has no reason to lie.
John |
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Re: Battery Tenders? I use one solar charger on my optima & maintainer on my m/c batt. 24/7 when not in use
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Re: Battery Tenders? Do you need a special 6 volt unit or are they good for either 12 or 6 volt?
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Re: Battery Tenders? Rich you need a 6V for that battery and a 12V for a 12 volt battery. Even WalMart carries them now but I haven't seen 6V there, you'll have to go on line to buy a 6V.
I've used Deltran Battery Tender for years no problems. They do seem to lengthen the life of the batteries. Tom W. had a problem once with a trickle charger left on for a long time, and I know he recommends using a timer now to shut them on and off. |
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If you ever need to da a 12v this may be the way to go |
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Re: Battery Tenders? I would go simple/basic. A 12 vdc 300 mA Walwort connected to a lamp timer that comes on for 30 min a day will keep your battery in fine condition. If it fails, it will typically fail open so no harm done. Last thing you need is a fire. I know, I've had two serious fires, one caused by a battery charger.
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Re: Battery Tenders? I have 6 to 8 on at all times. I run them 24/7. They're a lifesaver!
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Re: Battery Tenders? I had a lamp timer burn up:mad:
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I dont trust battery chargers or trickle chargers left unattended. I just disconnect the battery from both posts in the fall then before I want to drive the car I take it out and put it on a 2A charger for an hour in the spring or a trickle charger overnight. Fires right up. |
Re: Battery Tenders? I periodically use a "Battery Saver" battery maintainer, though my Optimas have never given me any problems, even after a long storage with no maintainer. I use it primarily to maintain my very old 6V battery on my garden tractor.
http://shop.saveabattery.com/images/...155669295.jpeg I have installed a female end of a cigarette lighter in a discreat location in the engine compartment of each one of my Model A's. Then when I pull into my garage to park, I simply lift he hood and plug in the battery maintainer using the male cigarette lighter plug. http://shop.saveabattery.com/images/...994219631.jpeg I use the cigarette lighter plugs since I found them very easy to plug in and unplug with no fumbling around and always good contact. I can plug it in and unplug it with one hand (while the other hand holds the hood open). Schwoop-dee-woop and it is plugged in. The "Battery Saver" automatically detects either a 12V or 6V battery and automatically adjusts accordingly.....so I can use it on my modern cars as well as my garden tractor. One "Battery Saver" maintainer can maintain two batteries at once, reducing the number of maintainers needed if you have several batteries that need maintaining. I also like the meter on the Battery Saver - it gives me a quick snap-shot of the health of the battery that is being maintained. Fordially, Brad in Maryland |
Re: Battery Tenders? I plug tenders/trickle chargers in at my garage light & they're only ON, when the light's ON.
Bill Safe? |
Re: Battery Tenders? I use 'em and put battery oil in the battery and not because I use a tender.
I use the little Black & Decker tender (6/12V) with the battery plug hard wired into the starter. |
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John |
Re: Battery Tenders? John, battery chargers are rated in output amps. Most battery maintainers put out less than 2 amps depending on the state of discharge. Size your solar panel for 2-5 amp output and it can easily handle a couple of battery maintainers.
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If yes what model/brand? |
Re: Battery Tenders? I bought 2 B&D chargers a while back on amazon for <$20 apiece. They're switchable 6/12V, detect reverse polarity and overcurrent, hard to screw up. I leave them connected 24/7, 6V on the A, 12V on my 1999 M-B. They will work on any 6 or 12V lead acid battery.
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Re: Battery Tenders? Quote:
This one? https://www.google.com/shopping/prod...XsHDPQQ9AII6gI |
Re: Battery Tenders? I believe the Battery Tender model puts out 1/4 amp when it is charging. When the battery is fully charged it turns off.
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The pursuit of perfection is frustrating, neurotic and a terrible waste of time. Hi Tom. I like your signature and it is so true and correct, gary |
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Re: Battery Tenders? Pulled this off another forum:
Silverghost Members 1 1,517 posts Report post Posted November 29, 2010 (edited) Here is the scoop on "Battery Oil" Edison & Others developed the Nickel/Iron storage battery in the 1880s ! Edison, Exide, Willard, and others built & sold them for automotive use. Edison stated that this battery would last your lifetime ! He was promoting them for Early Electric auto use ~ The Nickel-Iron (NiFe) battery was considered a Life-Long Battery that could last 30-50 years or more! I was not harmed by deep discharge or repeated cycling charges. In many ways this battery was superior to the Lead/Acid storage battery we use today as it has a very long life; and could be restored by changing the electrolyte and cleaning the plates ! The battery was built with cells in a glass or ceramic jar with a lid that could be opened . This was an aklaline battery that used a Potassium Hydroxide caustic soda & distilled water electrolyte with Nickel & Iron (NiFe) plates contained in a glass cell with a rubber top supporting the plates & covering the cells.. The cells were connected in series with brass wing nut & wire or copper ribbon strip jumper connections.. The cells were stacked in a wooden crate and hooked-up in series. Each cell was .8 Volts with 1.2 Volts in later production variants. Each of the cells could be refreshed or replaced. Edison sold this battery to the Telephone , Telegraph, Railroads , and for early penny in the slot amusement listening tube phonograph use. You often find old Edison battery jars on eBay ! The Telephone & Telegraph companys had iron battery boxes on their poles with banks of the Edison Nickel/Iron battery in them . The railroads had iron signal boxes which also contained banks of Edison batteries. The "Battery Oil" was poured on top of the fresh electrolyte in each cell to prevent evaporation and gassing while charging on these utility poles. The oil would float on top of the electrolyte to give a thick protective oil film. This would help the battery gases to re-combine instead of gassing-off while sitting long term, or re-charging. It also prevented evaporation. You often find empty Edison Battery Oil bottles of 3-4 oz near old railroad iron signal & switch boxes in the woods near the switch & signal boxes today. The railroad workers would use the oil and then just toss the empty bottles in the woods along side the tracks. Look for them near the old railroad signal boxes ! You can still find many today ! The railroads and telephone/telegraph COs still used this type of battery well into the 60s-70s in some rural areas in the USA ! Edison Electric Storage Battery Co . built them until 1972~ Exide built them until 1975 ! Folks also collect the bottles, battery jars, and batteries today ! They are not worth very much~ There are 4-5 styles of battery oil bottles used over the years. I also understand farms used this Edison battery for farm & house lighting before general rural electrification. The battery banks were often connected to a wind mill "Aeromo" generator for re-charging. The wind mill usually used a Ford or other auto type generator. These electric set-ups were often sold thru the early Sears catalog ! The farmer's friend ~ Electric autos & very high-end & high priced gasoline autos often used the Nickel/Iron Edison , Exide, or Willard automotive battery. Many early electric autos Ie: Detroit Electric, Baker, and other auto builders often offered a Nickel/Iron battery bank as a higher price option; As it would last for decades, if not Life-Long! Deep discharge did not harm this type of battery as it did severly harm a Lead-Acid battery and shortened it's useful ife. This deep-discharge ability made it perfect for early electric auto carriages ! High priced gasoline autos used them also. A friend bought a Rolls_Royce Phantom I from the Ford museum a few years ago. It had not run in fifty+ years or more. The old Exide Nickel/Iron battery was still in the battery box on the left running board. My friend got the car up and running with a new modern battery~ He then decided to try to refresh & restore the old (NiFe) Exide battery. It consisted of a large crate style wooden box with many glass jar cells inside. Each with hard rubber jar lids. Each cell was connected in series to form 6 volts. He dumped the old electrolyte, and cleaned the plates which were in very good shape. He then added fresh electrolyte and charged the battery. It worked !! Today it is now installed in the Phantom's battery box and used to actually start and run this Phantom ! It still works fine after all these decades ! And yes~ He did pour a fresh bottle of Edison Battery Oil on top of each battery cell. If you search hard enough you can still find un-opened Edison battery oil bottles with the famous Edison script autograph cast in the glass bottle on eBay ! TRUE STORY~~~~ Believe it~ Or Not ! Edited December 1, 2010 by Silverghost (see edit history) |
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