How long should a car battery last?
Comments
-
Some sound advice given here.
I would suggest buying a car charger.
CTEK is the brand you want. So some reading and Amazonia reviews will signal which to buy because in the reviews there is someone who has done a full work up of ALL the CTEK chargers.0 -
Video of battery charging at 1010 a.m. this morning:
Battery @ 12.5v before starting, this was after it had been disconnected for 1 week with a constant reading of 12.9v. (More info in OP.).
Went down to 11v whilst starting and was charging at 14.4v at cold, brought up to normal temp still charging at 14.4v.
Turned on rear demister, 4 speed fan and full beam headlights, (2 minutes 55 secs into video), charging at 13.6v, increased revs, charging @ 14.3v.
Engine off battery settled to 13v.
The above suggests to me the alternator is OK.
.Don`t steal - the Government doesn`t like the competition0 -
Look..... This thread is getting crazy, your alternator works, the voltage is dropping off a little too much under load, but it's an older car and won't have a very powerful alternator, so it's liveable.
I think you should get a smart charger and leave it connected to the battery when the car is not in use for any extended period.
The reason you want a smart charger is because a standard bulk charger will over charge, causing the battery to expel hydrogen gas, which is highly explosive (i've experience exploding car batteries). A smart charger will stop charging and monitor the voltage, only charging again when it drops below 12.8v“I may not agree with you, but I will defend to the death your right to make an a** of yourself.”
<><><><><><><><><<><><><><><><><><><><><><> Don't forget to like and subscribe \/ \/ \/0 -
Strider590 wrote: »Look..... This thread is getting crazy, your alternator works, the voltage is dropping off a little too much under load, but it's an older car and won't have a very powerful alternator, so it's liveable.
I think you should get a smart charger and leave it connected to the battery when the car is not in use for any extended period.
The reason you want a smart charger is because a standard bulk charger will over charge, causing the battery to expel hydrogen gas, which is highly explosive (i've experience exploding car batteries). A smart charger will stop charging and monitor the voltage, only charging again when it drops below 12.8v
So my battery should have lasted more than 25 months?
Why can't I use a normal charger via a timer for say an hour per week?
Smart chargers are expensive when I have a good ordinary one, (bearing in mind this is a money saving site).
.
.Don`t steal - the Government doesn`t like the competition0 -
So my battery should have lasted more than 25 months?
Why can't I use a normal charger via a timer for say an hour per week?
Smart chargers are expensive when I have a good ordinary one, (bearing in mind this is a money saving site).
.
Because a normal charger has no control, it could overcharge and you don't know if it has good reverse voltage protection to stop the battery slowly discharging itself through the charger.
I have an old charger somewhere, used to be my fathers, it's open circuit voltage is 18v, that means left unsupervised it would eventually try to get the battery up to 18v and actually using that charger over night is how I came across my first battery explosion.
Now i'll admit that the CTEK charger I have, turned out not to be as "SMART" as the marketing material suggested (took it apart), but it doesn't over charge and that's all that matters.
See if Lidl are selling their smart charger, I believe they normally stock them in January though and they sell out super fast (people buy lots of them and sell them on eBay to people who are too snobby to shop in Lidl).“I may not agree with you, but I will defend to the death your right to make an a** of yourself.”
<><><><><><><><><<><><><><><><><><><><><><> Don't forget to like and subscribe \/ \/ \/0 -
Strider590 wrote: »Because a normal charger has no control, it could overcharge and you don't know if it has good reverse voltage protection to stop the battery slowly discharging itself through the charger.
I have an old charger somewhere, used to be my fathers, it's open circuit voltage is 18v, that means left unsupervised it would eventually try to get the battery up to 18v and actually using that charger over night is how I came across my first battery explosion.
Now i'll admit that the CTEK charger I have, turned out not to be as "SMART" as the marketing material suggested (took it apart), but it doesn't over charge and that's all that matters.
See if Lidl are selling their smart charger, I believe they normally stock them in January though and they sell out super fast (people buy lots of them and sell them on eBay to people who are too snobby to shop in Lidl).
I know what you are saying, but if I leave it on a timer for 1 hour per week, the charger won't be live for the other 167 hours.
.Don`t steal - the Government doesn`t like the competition0 -
Just letting you know, I successfully recovered an Exide battery that had been fully discharged for over 2 weeks.
Garbage battery pal. Sorry.0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- All Categories
- 343.1K Banking & Borrowing
- 250.1K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 449.7K Spending & Discounts
- 235.2K Work, Benefits & Business
- 607.9K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 173K Life & Family
- 247.8K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 15.9K Discuss & Feedback
- 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards