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Post by Ken on Oct 21, 2020 14:15:50 GMT -6
I leave my Mustang in the garage all winter and I stop the insurance too. I have it insured from May 1 thru October 31 so it just sits outside of that time. I learned last winter that the car won't start if I leave it for longer than about a week. I have been driving it all this spring and summer without issue but with the cold and no activity, I need to keep it charged. I have a PORTABLE CAR JUMPER that I use when the car won't start but what about a trickle charger that I leave on the car all the time? Anyone have any information on these? I see that Amazon has a bunch of them but not sure which one to get.
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Post by OldMan on Oct 21, 2020 15:52:48 GMT -6
I bought a cheap Harbor freight one and it seems to work. plugs into the wall but you have to hook the connections up to the battery -some claim you can go through the power plug in the car but it didn't work for me.
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Post by Ken on Oct 21, 2020 16:01:00 GMT -6
I see there are some new 'smart trickle chargers' from a company called NOCO. They charge the battery and will not overcharge it. The reviews are good. There are 1-amp, 2-amp, 5-amp, 10-amp... how do I know which one to get? Is it just a matter of a quicker charging time? Should I get the 1-amp assuming that I'm just going to leave it connected to the car at all times? This is not my area. Thanks Oldman.
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Post by chils on Oct 21, 2020 18:19:01 GMT -6
The harbor freight one is $10 and only charges on demand. I'll probably pick one up for my Miata. They don't need many amps to maintain a battery.
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Post by Ken on Oct 21, 2020 20:05:16 GMT -6
The harbor freight one is $10 and only charges on demand. I'll probably pick one up for my Miata. They don't need many amps to maintain a battery. Okay, good stuff. I asked a question on Amazon too and two people mentioned that I could get the cheapest one and it would just "maintain" the battery so it doesn't completely die. I like the sound of that. When I brew or when I need to get into the attic I have to move it out into the driveway and if it's dead, it now becomes a larger project. This little charger I bought is about the size of a spare phone battery with two jumper cable clamps and I used it many times this past winter. My neighbor was standing out there the one day talking with me and I went to move the car and it was dead. Got this charger and he was all, "BAH! That thing will never start this car!". 30 seconds later... VRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOM! He was impressed. I'll check out Harbor Freight. Thanks gang.
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Post by chils on Oct 21, 2020 21:26:16 GMT -6
Never go to HF without a 20% off coupon. I google it and let them scan it off my phone. There is always one available.
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Post by Ken on Oct 21, 2020 21:53:14 GMT -6
Never go to HF without a 20% off coupon. I google it and let them scan it off my phone. There is always one available. Ooh, even better. Thanks Chils. I think I still have a Harbor Freight right down the street from me. Cheers.
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Post by Ken on Oct 29, 2020 8:37:25 GMT -6
I found a "smart charger" which is supposed to keep the charge on the battery without overcharging and it's also supposed to do a bunch of other things including "maintain the battery" and extend its life. Check it out HERE. I have it just set to 12V and I connected it last night. It's a tiny little control box and I got the 1 amp version. There was a 2, 5, 10, etc. My FIL is all about these things and told me the 1 amp was the way to go for simple constant charging. It will be interesting to see how well it works when I go to move the car after not starting it for a couple weeks. Guys, thanks for the help on this.
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Post by zymot on Dec 24, 2020 2:40:07 GMT -6
Anything long term, it is easy to set and forget. Ignore it for a couple months
I would disconnect the positive terminal on the battery. Any misfortune or problems will not affect or harm the car. If you wanted to be extra sure, remove the battery from the car. If there is a leak or a problem, like an overcharge, you reduce any possible impact.
While I was at it, I would add fuel stabilizing additives to the gas. Probably you do not "need" it, but five bucks or so, it will not hurt.
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Post by Ken on Dec 24, 2020 8:46:53 GMT -6
This thing has been working well. Two of my kids are home right now and one asked me yesterday "How long have you been charging this car?" and I explained that it's a "maintainer". Charge the battery, once it's fully charged it stops, etc. I have actually been disconnecting it but only because the attic door is directly above this car so it's been in and out the garage. I also brew right there. So it's been connected but also disconnected for a time. Every time I brew the car would be disconnected and moved into the driveway.
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Post by Seven on Dec 26, 2020 11:25:05 GMT -6
Don't these chargers give off a gas that should be vented while in use?
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Post by Ken on Dec 26, 2020 11:45:52 GMT -6
Don't these chargers give off a gas that should be vented while in use? Say what? Electronic charger. No mention of venting for any reason in the documentation. My FIL used to run one in his single-family-home garage and now runs one in a condo underground garage.
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Post by chils on Dec 26, 2020 20:38:15 GMT -6
I picked up a float charger today at HF for $5.99. On sale until the 31st. I charged up the battery and then hooked it up. Reviews are good on them so I hope my Miata is ready to go next time I fire it up. Batteries can off gas acid vapors when charging but one of these isn't charging hard enough to make one put much of anything off. I'd call that a non-issue unless you sleep with your head resting on the battery. www.harborfreight.com/automatic-battery-float-charger-64284.htmlAttachments:
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Post by brewbama on Dec 27, 2020 9:13:02 GMT -6
Don't these chargers give off a gas that should be vented while in use? Say what? Electronic charger. No mention of venting for any reason in the documentation. My FIL used to run one in his single-family-home garage and now runs one in a condo underground garage. I don’t think the charger vents gas but I believe the battery does. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
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Post by Ken on Dec 27, 2020 9:56:51 GMT -6
Say what? Electronic charger. No mention of venting for any reason in the documentation. My FIL used to run one in his single-family-home garage and now runs one in a condo underground garage. I don’t think the charger vents gas but I believe the battery does. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Huh. Never heard this. No mention of it by anyone I spoke with about including some people on Amazon and also my FIL. No mention of it in the documentation for the charger either. I see (on a Google search) that over-charging a battery can produce hydrogen sulfide which is colorless, very poisonous, flammable and has the odor of rotten eggs. My FIL mentioned that the older versions of these chargers just CHARGED. You had to monitor it and disconnect it when the battery was charged. These newer ones are smarter than that and do not overcharge. We do open the overhead door in the garage on a pretty regular basis so hopefully that works to disperse any small amount of nastiness. I do not smell any rotten eggs.
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