JJZ 109
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Feb 7, 2009
- Messages
- 2,175
- Location
- Lake Ontario/St. Lawrence River
- Tractor
- Kubota BX2380/LA344 loader/60" MMM, Bobcat S185 skid steer, JD X394 4 wheel steer mower
I had the same problem with lawn mower batteries. What I do now is take them inside for the winter. I put them up on a shelf in the basement. By doing this I occasionally see them sitting there and will connect them up to a charger for a day (maybe once or twice a winter). I haven't had to replace a battery now in the last 10 years. Before doing this I was converting any motorcycle/ ATV to taking a lawn mower battery because they were half the price of a motorcycle battery.
I have pigtails attached to the batteries in both of our bikes. They're in an unheated attached garage year round. Generally I just go out once a week or so and switch the tender from one bike to the other.
Over the last several years I've found that I only seem to get 3, maybe 4 years out of a bike battery. This sucks at $100+ at the local NAPA. I'm hoping these 2 $35 AGM batteries that were delivered yesterday will have a longer life. But if they're the same or slightly less long lived I'm still money ahead.
I've had unbelievable battery life since I started using Deltran chargers 15 years ago. I have them connected to something all the time and never had one get low on water,much less go dry. The key isn't charging the battery before using it,it should be at 100% as much of time as possible. Quick charging is poison to batteries. If at all possible,you should slow charge battery rather than boosting then allowing vehicle to charge it up.
I always go with a 2 amp and let it take as long as it needs if the batteries get down for some reason.