Battery Dead again

[ohlord]

I guess i was wrong again and the automatic low amp trickle float charger that harbor freight sells does not exist.Matter of fact the 4 that i have keeping a steady and reliable charge on my race cars don't exist either,I just imagine them.
WAA

never had one fail,but since I must be wrong ,I probably imagined that also
and remember when you hook up your imagined trickle low amp float charger it is
Note: This Float Charger is intended only to keep a fully charged battery from losing
its charge. It will not work to charge a battery that is discharged or damaged. that is from the imagined manual
maybe these other suppliers sell imagined ones also
Automatic 12 Volt Battery Trickle Float Charger NEW
maybe the guy that says you don't need to change brake fluid in california because it never rainsshould go online and modify the wikipedia entry
Trickle charging - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The unit has a trickle charge value up to charged battery rating and then with an internal regulator switches to a float charge to maintain proper charge for months at a time.

[Yacht Master]

Originally Posted by Frankbenz

Great, I am going to harbor freight to get the float charger after work. Thanks for the priceless inputs guys

Automatic chargers work great, I use a surge suppressor on the 110V side.
Try and get an automatic that is 1.5 to 2 amp solid state with overload protection. I store my car with doors locked so factory alarm on and I have Viper alarm with no go, and Lo jack too. The extra load is why I installed the charger other wise 3 weeks dead batt.
Did you check the 2 items that cause a slow drain on the battery?
brake switch and seat controller both seem to prevent the car from going to sleep.

[ohlord]

one of those new fangled non existent trickle/float chargers that regulate voltage and keep the battery charged while the car is in storage?

[Frankbenz]

I just got the Automatic Battery Float Charger from HF for $8.58 out the door. Nice.
it said: Floating circuit maintains a full charge without overcharging. Automatic safety shutoff.

Yacht Master, if that is the float charger, it looks like it's installed permanently to me??

I would like to check the brake switch and seat controller, but what should I know about it?? I know the brake switch location but where is the seat controller?

[Yacht Master]

Originally Posted by Frankbenz

I just got the Automatic Battery Float Charger from HF for $8.58 out the door. Nice.
it said: Floating circuit maintains a full charge without overcharging. Automatic safety shutoff.

Yacht Master, if that is the float charger, it looks like it's installed permanently to me??

I would like to check the brake switch and seat controller, but what should I know about it?? I know the brake switch location but where is the seat controller?

Yes installed permanent, My 430 is a garage queen gets exercised 1-2 times a month so she is plugged in all the time.
The brake and seat controller you will have to search for. I just remember reading about them more than once, check out the stickies first.
Good luck

[Musikmann]

Off topic Yacht Master but that's a nice clean engine bay you have.

[Frankbenz]

Yacht Master, I browsed most of major auto parts reseller including Sears but I could not find like the one that you installed in your car. can you tell where you got it from ? the one that you installed looks better than the one I got with clips
thanks.

[gregs210]

Originally Posted by Frankbenz

Yacht Master, I browsed most of major auto parts reseller including Sears but I could not find like the one that you installed in your car. can you tell where you got it from ? the one that you installed looks better than the one I got with clips
thanks.

YM's looks like a repackaged Battery Tender Jr.

You can change out the clips on the HF one if you want, not a big deal. Lots of them come like that. Bike guys do that all the time.

The little cheapo from HF works fine, but it's not terribly durable. We had power fluctuations where I live and it fried mine, which then contributed to draining the battery (didn't know it was dead and the little led light just added to the bit of drain anyway). Battery tenders are lots more durable but several times the cost.

Take care and enjoy the ride,
Greg

[Yacht Master]

Originally Posted by Frankbenz

Yacht Master, I browsed most of major auto parts reseller including Sears but I could not find like the one that you installed in your car. can you tell where you got it from ? the one that you installed looks better than the one I got with clips
thanks.

Here you go
SE-1-12S - 1.5 amp Battery Charger

I have many of these in use, some over eight years.
The fact that they are solid state and sealed means I can safely install them in gasoline boats, jet skis. and in locations that can get wet (splash proof). So many other chargers can't get wet.

[Kajtek1]

There is generally lack of public education what each kind of chargers do and this topic only added to the potential confusion.
Wilkipedia is written so even uneduaced people could understand it, but as everything it has its limits.
So let me point what different animals in charging do.
-Standard chargers are set for for certain amperage. They operate at high voltage and have potential for damaging electronics. Small output chargers are commonly called trickle-chargers. Left for prolonged time they will boil the battery dry.
-Automatic chargers have a circuit that shuts the charger off and on at preset voltage. Most of the time the voltage is set well above 14V what still might do some damage.
-Float chargers observe the voltage (usully 13.6V) and adjust the charging amperage for optimum charging without doing any damage. Those can be monster chargers, like mine in motorhome has 2400W output, or small output float chargers commonly called battery maintainer.
Those are top of the line chargers with optimum performance, that can be left hooked up for long periods.
As mine and Greg's experience shows -nothing is foolproof. If left unsupervised, the small maintainer malfunction can kill the battery.