Tricke vs Float Charger?

[vesnyder]

Bought an inexpensive "Float" charger last year from Harbor Freight to keep my battery charged during the Winter for those unexpected warm/sunny days. Is there a risk using these? Do they prolong or diminish battery life? How are they different/better/worse that a trickle charger?

[TMH]

Vance,

I think that a float-type charger is what you want. I think that these are a little "softer" than some trickle chargers, and you don't risk boiling out the electrolyte.

Maintenance chargers are the best thing that you can do for your battery when storing a car for more than about a week. Lead-acid batteries like to be fully charged all the time. If they run down, their plates sulfate and you will never get the same capacity out of the battery again. I am a believer in trickle/float "pulse" chargers: The pulsation of the charge effect can remove some sulfation from the plates and keep your battery in top shape. Besides Porsches, I also collect antique fire engines. These can sit for a long time between events. I got tired of replacing 8D size batteries (big ones!) at about $150 each, and set up maintenance chargers on my rigs. Haven't replaced a battery since. I personally use and recommend the BatteryMinder charger. I get mine from batterymart.com, as they have the best prices I have found. No financial interest in either company, just a satisfied customer.

BTW: I have never been pleased with the quality of anything electronic which I have purchased from Harbor Freight. Keep an eye on your car to make sure that the HF unit does not boil electrolyte out of your battery or it is toast.

Good luck,
Tom

[RickM]

Good info from Tom. I am a satified user of "Battery Tenders". They also make a multi battery unit. This is great however the vehicles or batteries have to be within the same vicinity.

Great for Generator batteries, Motorcycles, Cars etc.

[85Gold]

If you are going to leave a charger on for a long time I would reccommend removing the battry and placing it on a piece of wood. This way if it over charges and leaks it will not damage your car.

Peter

[vesnyder]

Is there any way to know if the charger is "boiling the battery" until it is too late?

[HawgRyder]

Yup...just put a voltage meter on the battery as it is being charged.
If the meter reads more than 13.6 volts you are charging....if it reads about 13.2 it's more of a trickle charge.
In the movie industry we only use batteries to run our equipment....I usually have 15 - 20 around my desk every day.
With the lead-acid type...we exercise them (drain and charge) once every 10 charges.
Unfortunately the bad part of the system is the client...they do not recharge to full capacity most of the time....and this weakens the battery.
The new type of chargers out there now drain and charge every time, which lengthens the useful life of the batteries (particularly ni-cads).
Look for a charger that has electronics inside (it will not be the cheapest on the shelf)...ask if the unit discharges and recharges....ask if it shuts down and samples the voltage on a long term charge cycle.
Bob

[TMH]

Bob,

I definitely agree with you regarding ni-cads (memory effect and all), but unless things have changed significantly with the chemistry and/or structure of lead-acid batteries, discharge-recharge cycling is not only not necessary but detrimental. During discharge is when plate sulfation occurs (deposition of lead sulfate out of the H2SO4 solution and onto the plates). When re-charging, not all of the lead sulfate will go back into solution - some will remain on the lead plates. This essentially reduces the surface area of plate in contact with the electrolyte, and reduces the battery's overall capacity. Repeat the process, and you are killing the battery a little at a time.

Granted, this is with 'wet' lead acid batteries like those in most vehicles. I think that some of the newer batteries use spiral wound plates and electrolyte gels - maybe these are what you use in your business. I don't know if the chemistry or aging effects are the same in these new types of batteries...

Tom

[Early_S_Man]

Vance,

As some have suggested, taking the battery out of the car during the winter would be the best move, and clean the terminals and connectors (and apply silicone grease) before returning the battery to service.

Your charger will probably best serve the battery if controlled by a programmable timer ... say 8 hours on -- once per week over the winter.

[RickM]

Below are a couple of informative links to check-out. According the Battery Tender it is totally acceptable to leave it on and connected for the entire length of storage...it is "intelligent" enough to manage the charge. IMO, this battery maintainer is the standard. I've used it for years and have been very pleased with the results. On the P-Car I also use a battery cut-off switch. Using that I break the connection to the cars circuits before using the Tender for storage.

http://batterytender.com/why_batterytender.php?osCsid=ade77df0ec5b6691a9282 5aec304fce2

http://batterytender.com/faqs.php?osCsid=ade77df0ec5b6691a92825aec304fce2

Battery Charging Basics: http://batterytender.com/battery_basics.php