Batteries

[Craig Clayton]

I found this article about battery chargers.CTEK identifies battery charging myths


Written by CE Staff

CTEK a company in the care and maintenance of vehicle batteries identified �he most frequent myths associated with battery charging all types of lead acid batteries.



- å¾¹ne size fits all? A smart charger needs to be fit for purpose so that a product can be used for a wide range of applications.
- 典rickle Charging is 賎ood Enough樗: A trickle charger is 田onsiderable less sophisticated than a smart charger. Trickle charging uses a �op-up charge over time which reduces battery capacity and the ability to retain a charge, whereas smart charging monitors and maintains the battery.
- é„*lternators Keep Batteries Charged? An alternator does not look after the maintenance of the battery which is found in smart chargers.
- 釘atteries Can Last For Many Years? Smart battery chargers can 兎xtend the life of a battery by as much as three times in comparison to unmaintained batteries.


CTEK
CTEK SWEDEN AB - The smartest battery chargers in the world


Craig Clayton

 

[schmism]

I have never done better than 5.

Chris

Ive done better than five in daily driver cars. But never in my truck with all the extra accessories on the truck.

 

[lilranch2001]

I have 5 on my OEM GMC now, and was thinking about replacing it this fall.
I usually go with Diehard replacements, was wondering if there are any better ones, or if Diehards are still good batteries

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I just got to thinking, and I have about 6 years on my truck battery. I last replaced it during my last job, and I've been working here for 5 years. It's probably time to replace it. Some cold morning this winter it will die suddenly.

 

[Ford tractor]

I have one tractor with a factory battery from 1998. Another with a new one last year replacing a 10 year old battery. The 12 year old battery is expected to die this fall. The tractors are in the machine shed with power, so they can be charged and the block heaters run, so even a weak battery will be ok.

But, the work truck got a new set of batteries after 5 years. The diesel get's ornery at -30F with weak batteries. That's one thing you don't want as the pre-heaters and glow plugs can suck over 150 amps alone! And it often has to start miles from the nearest plug in the dead of winter - weak batteries don't make you confident.

 

[homedad]

15 years and still starting strong. My 1995 F-150 with 43,000 miles sits outside every day in Michigan. Obviously I rarely use the truck but it starts very quickly. I think that a properly running engine which doesn't crank very long helps. It's never been on a charger of any kind and often will go a month without being started.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

15 years and still starting strong. My 1995 F-150 with 43,000 miles sits outside every day in Michigan. Obviously I rarely use the truck but it starts very quickly. I think that a properly running engine which doesn't crank very long helps. It's never been on a charger of any kind and often will go a month without being started.

I vote for homedad as the president of the Long Battery Life Club.

What are you doing differently than the rest of us to get that much life out of a battery?

 

[Jay4200]

Last year or early this year there was a topic where guys talked about getting as much as 13-15 years out of their truck batteries. I've searched but can't find it. Anyone know what they were doing to get such long life out of their batteries?

The trick to longevity in a lead-acid battery is to keep it fully charged and maintained at at a higher than 100% charge voltage continuously. Leave your door ajar and kill your battery once, and you've taken a good 2 years off of it's life. Full charge is 12.6V - if you don't use it everyday, use a float voltage maintainer that charges to ~13-13.5V and it'll last pretty much forever.

I just changed out the OEM battery in my '01 Tundra last week. The only reason it died is that the mount rotted off, and the battery bounced around enough to knock off the cell covers, letting the electrolyte either spill out and/or evaporate away. I tried to fill it up with beer, but it didn't work.

JayC

 

[homedad]

I never do anything to it. Unfortunately I had 2 occasions in the last 3 months when I left the headlights on and required a jump so the party may soon be ending.

 

[brokenot]

- 驗*lternators Keep Batteries Charged? An alternator does not look after the maintenance of the battery which is found in smart chargers.
- 驥和tteries Can Last For Many Years? Smart battery chargers can 蜈支tend the life of a battery by as much as three times in comparison to unmaintained batteries.

Marketing mumbo-jumbo.

What's a properly-functioning charging system doing if not "looking after the maintenance" of the battery?

And the second part of the quote is amusing as well. Smart chargers can extend the life of a battery by as much as three times.

So far in this thread, the guy with the 15 year old battery in his F-150, and the list of 10+ year old batteries I posted myself are pretty much in the lead as far as battery longevity goes. And one of the common denominators in those situations and experiences isn't the use of a battery maintainer/smart charger.

Not saying there's anything wrong with such devices, but they aren't necessarily going to guarantee you longer life....unless they're used in an application where the vehicle or equipment sits for extended periods. In those cases a battery maintainer would be a plus, because the factory-installed belt-driven "battery maintainer" isn't able to do the job.