Smart battery chargers with reconditioning modes

[Jaylegger]

Neither CTEK or Noco have temperature compensation. Battery Tender plus chargers I believe has temperature compensation. It's difficult to find non-commercial chargers with a automatic temperature compensation and why I jumped on the Batteryminder charger.

 

[John_Mc]

Neither CTEK or Noco have temperature compensation. Battery Tender plus chargers I believe has temperature compensation. It's difficult to find non-commercial chargers with a automatic temperature compensation and why I jumped on the Batteryminder charger.

I know the Battery Tender Plus has temperature compensation. However, their units lack any desulfation circuit.

 

[RoyKing]

battery minder model 1510 with 10 year warranty, temperature compensation and desulfator circuit made usa

 

[3930dave]

Most detailed service manuals (even cars/trucks) will show the alternator voltage curve, wrt. temperature.

Figure 2 below shows the curve, for an individual lead-acid cell.

Charging Batteries at High and Low Temperatures – Battery University

At the high end, ignoring the curve can help evaporate electrolyte, but what matters to most Canucks and Northern USA folk is the low end. Pb batteries need the higher voltage at cold temperatures to charge properly - hence the curve is built-in to most every modern alternator.

A work around on some of the basic chargers now is to have an AGM/Cold setting - allows you to manually bump the charge voltage for AGMs in general, or Pb acid batteries for low temperatures. The Owner's Manual will list what "Cold" is considered to be, or if they were really thinking, it's printed directly on the charger.....

Temp Comp is Nice To Have, but nothing I lose sleep over...... I have absolutely no qualms about using my 40 year old 6amp analog charger on any Pb battery..... at ultra-low temperatures I just allow for longer charge time, if possible....

Rgds, D.

 

[Jaylegger]

what matters to most Canucks and Northern USA folk is the low end. Pb batteries need the higher voltage at cold temperatures to charge properly - hence the curve is built-in to most every modern alternator.
Rgds, D.

I do 90% of charging on my boat batteries and even in Canada the engine/battery compartment can get very very hot in summer conditions and why I placed high value on compensation to not cook off the battery. I also place high value in a charger who's measured performance matches exactly marketing lit. Noco would be at the opposite end of that spectrum.

Tractor battery needs charging from time to time in very cold winter conditions but agree that compensation is likely less valuable at low temps

 

[Industrial Toys]

I have never understood why high capacity alternators don't destroy batteries in a few short years. Especially if you run a battery down a bit.

 

[3930dave]

Tractor battery needs charging from time to time in very cold winter conditions but agree that compensation is likely less valuable at low temps

Different climate, different use-cases.... my priority is Low Temp. I prefer to buy Pb batteries with removable caps..... I can compensate for High Temp issues, by checking levels more often...... not something most consumers are willing to do today, and quite possibly a PITA to service in a recreational boat hold.

Under charged battery at -20C and lower...... end limit is a cracked battery case.

Had a quick look at a 4amp batteryminder datasheet - does seem spec'd more so for high temps, so should be a good choice for your application.

Unless the charger is set up for remote thermocouple input, be aware that there can be offset/errors between what the charger is seeing for temperature, and what the battery experiences.

Rgds, D.

 

[3930dave]

I have never understood why high capacity alternators don't destroy batteries in a few short years. Especially if you run a battery down a bit.

Got a point there..... alternator output has at least tripled, in the time I've been messing with vehicles.

Dead battery...... unless it's an emergency, I try and get a slow charge into it, before hitting it with high speed alternator output.

Quite possible to design control circuits to soft-charge with alternator output, but I don't want to bet a battery that every alternator manufacturer is (paid to be) that sophisticated.

Rgds, D.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I have also seen vehicle gauges that read pretty high voltages that should also destroy the battery. I think my GMC is on the high side, but I don't recall what it is reading.

 

[stevem5215]

I bought a Kubota B3030 back in 2005. It has 682 hours on it now and I am still starting reliably with the original factory supplied wet lead acid battery that is fourteen years old !!!
I would have thought that was impossible considering extended parked times but when parked it is always plugged into a 'smart' CTEK MUS 4.3 battery charger maintainer. The CTEK incorporates pulse charging that aids in the desulphation process keeping the lead plates in a younger state if not like new.

These desulphation chargers work. I have eight of them so that all parked batteries (farm, marine, auto, mc) are properly maintained. At around 80 bucks each it may sound expensive but I haven't bought a replacement battery in over 14 years. If you do the math you'll see the savings .

This thread initially asked about reconditioning mode which I have had to use on my underrated motorcycle AGM battery (but not the tractor ... yet ) to eke out nine years of service so far. In the spring when riding season begins I will try reconditioning again but I fear it may be near the end. The average battery lifespan for my 80 cu.in. V-Twin is 3 years! My lawnmower has a bigger AGM battery cranking a 45 cu.in. V-Twin (less cranking load) and with the aid of reconditioning has completed eight years of service and is looking good for another season at least. I mention V-Twin because in the case of my mc the cranking load is higher than the average american V8 .

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This guy has it all correct. And a 14 yr old battery to boot. That beats my 9 year old one in my Steiner.

Steve