When the car sits for several weeks, the battery is way low so I slap on the charger for a couple hours or put the charger switch in the high current start mode and fire it up!
Decided last month to get a battery tender for winter meantime check things out. Checked the battery voltage after charge. 12.5 ok.Tried cranking the engine...no cranking. Checked voltage again...9 volts! Re charged the battery to 12.5 and disconnected the charger. By morning the voltage was down to 10V. Must be a system short. Disconnect the negative lug put the VOM to 20,000 ohms per volt.(I have an antique Simpson 260 VOM). The needle doesn't move. On that scale if I put one lead in each hand the needle goes almostto the middle! Great...fantastic...my 68 Mustang with original wiring has no even slight short circuit. My 8 year old battery has internal cell shorting.
Ya I know, any idiot should have suspected the battery first. Sad thing about getting old. Time passes faster the older I get. Could have sworn that battery was only a few years old!!
Batteries just like sitting. My mower needs a new battery almost every year after sitting through the winter. A recently tried charging the battery for my 66 which has been sitting in the garage for a couple years while I restore get car. No good, won't take a charge. It was fine when I removed it.
Yeah, they will die if you don't maintain them. I use a trickle charger for my modern batteries. I got one of the Autolite reproduction group 24 batteries for my 66 and had the same thing happen to me after about a year and a half. Thankfully, there was a partial warranty remaining, so I got a partial discount on the replacement. The new one came with some documentation that recommends not using a battery maintainer, but to drain the battery slightly every two to three months by turning on the headlights for 10 minutes, then charging for 90 min at 10 amps. They say this procedure will make the battery last 7 or more years. Definitely a lot of work. I have another of the same batteries on a second car that I have used a maintainer on, and it is working fine. Gotta keep the electrons moving in those things.
My battery has been in the car about 8 years and gets started once a year so maybe your documentation is apropo in my case. I do disconnect the negative battery lead during that year.
Hated to see the old battery go. It was one of the last Auto Lite Stay Full that looked just like the original except for "modern" push
on cell fill covers rather than the red screw in caps. It was 8 or 9 years old.
Bought a GAM Autolite repro from Antique Auto Battery in Ohio 4 years ago. I dont use my car much, and it sits all winter
in an unheated garage. They told me get a Deltran battery tender. I have never had a problem. Come April it fires right up.
I run my 68 occasionally and it sits all winter in unheated garage. Bought a Deltran Battery Tender Power Plus 3 Amp. Intended to use it on my old Autilite but turned out the battery was shot. Don't know if I'll need it on the new battery.
Hey slim, you should always use a battery charger/maintainer if you're storing your car more than driving it! Rarely will a battery last 8 years, so if you haven't updated yet it's time to drop the $ on a fresh one. In the meantime be sure to check out some high quality chargers, they aren't too expensive and will keep your battery at peak performance much longer.
Hey NOCO! Just re read my OP. Neglected to say put a new premium battery in before the OP. I put the automatic tender on along with the new battery. Before installing the new battery used my trusty Simpson 260 confirming completely open circuit (no load).
I'm not a skimper, getting older and a tad forgetful.
Ya I like to see/read the analog gauge. Yup with a DVDM you get to read 12.5125 instead of estimating is the analog reading 12.5 or a little over? 12.5 is close enough!
The ONLY Batteries that I ever buy are Interstate, Exide, and Optima.... All the rest of the other name brands are dead within 2-3 years....and that includes Motorcraft, Delco, and Die-Hard to name a few..
Interstate, Exide, and Optima should last 7-8 Years easily. Some Auto Store retailers like Autozone and Advance Discount Auto Parts have their own line of batteries but are made by Exide. If this is the case with a certain battery, There will be a small "Made by Exide" sticker located near the base of the battery, usually on the lower side or lower back of the battery.
On all my Classics, I use Battery Cut-Off switches. I don't like Battery Tenders because they die after a few years, and some have been known to short circuit and burn down a few homes.. Just use a Battery Cut-Off switch...It's much easier. cheaper, and the Battery will not drain as fast as when its connected.
Tony, splain to me. If the car's wiring is as it should be there will be no load when the car is parked. Our errand/occasional loaner/hauler often sits outside for 1 or 2 months without being started. When needed the son, daughter or my wife fires it up! It's a 97 Town & Country with 165,000 miles and 3 or 4 year old battery. Why is a cut off switch needed?
I learned the hard way on battery tenders. Few years back I went out to start my 2008 vette and it was completely dead (hadn't driven it in several weeks). When the computer loses power for too long on the C6 vettes the car has to be flat bedded into the dealer to be reset. Battery plus computer reset set me back $1500.
A $65 battery tender would have solved that had I stopped to think of it. Since that day I have one on every car including all 6 of our stangs. They remain plugged in when not driven. Cheap insurance.
At the turn of the century there were 100 auto battery manufacturers. In 2016 we are down to about 3
big players.
(I'm not counting the regional/specialty battery makers like New Castle, Trojan, US Battery, etc)
There may be only several manufacturers, just like bicycles and many other items, but they all make different quality product lines. John Deer makes their "better stuff" for their distributors, and lesser quality product for Home Depot.
FWIW, I always get 6 Years out of Advance Auto "premium" batteries, and a year or two more from Diehard Platinum's. Though my vehicles rarely sit for a Month or more.
Interestingly, I just had to replace my Advance Auto Gold battery yesterday as it had a grand total of 0.05 mV charge in it. When I brought it in to warranty it out the tech said "wow! That's as dead as they get!"
The battery is (was) 6 months old. Fortunately, the 36 month warranty was still very much in effect
I've had really good luck with Interstates in the past. The battery that Jane came to me with had been bought in 2003 and finally died in 2012. I replaced it with the same brand/type of battery and that one lasted only 3 years til December 2015.
No offense Kelly, but I think in your case you hastened your batteries demise by running it flat multiple times ? Looking at your other thread with the alarm, and leaving the door open, every time you run a battery flat, it looses capacity (at least for a Lead/Acid battery).
Interstate Battery - made by Johnson Controls
Die-Hard - made by Johnson Controls
Optima Battery - made by Johnson Controls
Motorcraft Battery - made by Johnson Controls
A.C. Delco - made by..... yep, Johnson Controls. "
You might want to see exactly when all these were all acquired by Johnson Controls, It's painfully obvious that the quality of the batteries is not the same between all of these Sub makers... There is a major quality difference between all of these brands though they may all be owned by the same "Mother" company now. Interesting info though. Thanks for the note.
"Tony, splain to me. If the car's wiring is as it should be there will be no load when the car is parked. Our errand/occasional loaner/hauler often sits outside for 1 or 2 months without being started. When needed the son, daughter or my wife fires it up! It's a 97 Town & Country with 165,000 miles and 3 or 4 year old battery. Why is a cut off switch needed? "
That's real easy Slim...
As long as a car Battery is connected to both terminals, It is ALREADY a negative drain on the battery. You don't need a load. The Grounding of the car battery to the car will do that all by itself over time. If the car has anything such as clocks or electronics with memory, It will just add to the drain. More modern cars that have their own computers will need to draw small amounts of juice just to maintain computer memory and history and amounts of juice to the Alarm systems such as the previous poster posted about his C6 Corvette.
So back to the two cases I mentioned. My 68 Mustang has no measurable load between the plus and minus lug when disconnected. IMO the battery charge drops by sulfication as bartl said. The older battery drops faster.
The radio memory is a solid state circuit giving a extremely minute load when a voltage is applied/connected.
Until the battery was 8 years old the Mustang could sit for a month and the battery still was charged enough to start the Stang.
The 97 T&C is fully loaded including premium sound, front/rear climate control, traction control, headlight and interior delay circuits. Has over 4 year old battery and often sits for 1-2 months between use.
Yes I do understand A good battery will eventually lose charge if not used even if disconnected.
"Batteries will even self-discharge when not connected to anything, obviously at a slower rate than if is there is any parasitic current draw. "
+1
Correct.. But it will take some time... It will not discharge as fast as it will when connected to both battery terminals....hence the Battery Cut-Off switch... I love them and live by them.. )
I was told by a BATTERY chain store (all they sell) is as ANY battery "just sits around" a chemical process within battery happens, called "sulficication" (hope spelling correct) please correct if not.
Was told again recently when I bought battery for inside my enclosed trailer, "batteries need electrical stimulation, a charge, ~ once a month or so if you want them to last. So whether battery just sitting or in car with clock ticking, all batteries (brand or how new, doesn't matter) need at least a trickle charge or they will sulficicate and start to go weak.
Thought this was talked about few months back.
The term is "stratification" and occurs when the battery sits idle and the electrolyte begins to separate with the heavier acid concentration settling to the bottom of the case leaving the upper parts of the plates surrounded by just water. This can lead to sulfation of the bottom of the plates and corrosion at the top. Stratification occurs when batteries remain dormant at or below 80% charge over time. Physically agitating the electrolyte by shaking or tipping the battery can help as can an equalization charge.... charging the battery 1-2 hours at high voltage...for a 12 volt battery at 15 volts.
We get furniture from multiple plants from the same manufacturer. The quality is not the same.
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