Sealey Jump Starter unit

AdrianC

iolanthe07 wrote: »

If you're going to leave the car for an extended period and don't have access to a power point for a trickle charger, you can always disconnect. For a negative earth car (most are these days; I had a Morris Minor decades ago that was positive earth), disconnect the negative lead.

Not terribly helpful on something that consumes electricity for ecu memories, alarm, remote locking - like just about anything built in the last quarter century.

Positive earth? You're somewhere around half a century ago for that... It went out with dynamos.

forgotmyname

prowla wrote: »

I've got a car I don't use so much and its battery has conked out, so I need to jump start it.

No you need to CHARGE it with an external charger or replace it.


Yes, I know I should use the car more often to keep it going, but it's happened to me a couple of times, so I'm looking for a plan B...

Fit a new battery that holds a charge?

I bought a rather neat little Sealey SL65S hand-held jump starter unit on ebay, which I thought might be ideal, but when it arrived it was a "Red Fuel" branded one instead, so I'm sending that back (I think it's a grey import from the US). That's set me back, as I can't use it today.

Is the US 12v different to a UK 12v?

Annoyingly, the ones which are now on ebay today are more expensive, so I'm considering other options too.

So far I see:

• Sealey SL65S - very compact, 600A, up to 2l engine.
• Sealey RS1312HV - larger, 900A.

Any recommendations for alternatives & where to buy?

Fit a new battery instead, so much easier to know the cars battery will just start and not have to mess around with jump packs that also need charging.

So the votes are in and fit a new battery won with a 99.9% landslide.

onomatopoeia99

AdrianC wrote: »

Positive earth? You're somewhere around half a century ago for that... It went out with dynamos.

They did say "Morris Minor", there was no suggesting they were talking about a new car being positive earth...

Joe_Horner

For all the "fit a new battery" comments, the OP has said clearky that he doesn't use the car often. Depending what he mapeans by that, running out and replacing the battery could easily be a complete waste of money, time and landfill.

The parasitic drain from modern cars is typically of the order of 50mA. That would completely drain a 50 ah battery, in perfect condition and fully charged, in a little over a month. Fitting a new, fully charged, battery would give exactly the same result after another month.

The only ways around that are to use the car more, or to charge the battery occasionally / use a (reliable) trickle charger to keep its reserve topped up. If neither of those are practical in the OP's situation then a boost pack is a sensible alternative.

prowla

Joe_Horner wrote: »

For all the "fit a new battery" comments, the OP has said clearky that he doesn't use the car often. Depending what he mapeans by that, running out and replacing the battery could easily be a complete waste of money, time and landfill.

The parasitic drain from modern cars is typically of the order of 50mA. That would completely drain a 50 ah battery, in perfect condition and fully charged, in a little over a month. Fitting a new, fully charged, battery would give exactly the same result after another month.

The only ways around that are to use the car more, or to charge the battery occasionally / use a (reliable) trickle charger to keep its reserve topped up. If neither of those are practical in the OP's situation then a boost pack is a sensible alternative.

Thanks.

I've gone 3-4 weeks without using it.

It's not kept in a garage with power.

I'm not sure about the trickle chargers - I've heard they can damage the car's EMU if it's (accidentally) stated with one plugged in.

As far as the OP goes, I'm sending that one back, as it looks like it's a grey import of the US branded one rather than a UK one, which would mean I'd be on my own if something went wrong with it.

I've bought a larger one and used it on the weekend; I'll see how the car fares before deciding on a battery (it was only a cheap car I bought instead of getting a skip to take things to the tip, so I don't want to be investing in it).

EdGasketTheSecond

Don't the batteries in these starter packs go bad if they are hardly used? Wouldn't you need to cycle the battery once every so often to stop them losing capacity too?

Looking at those SIP units, a spare new battery would be a lot cheaper and you could charge that up in your house and use it with jump leads to start the car as and when necessary.

Joe_Horner

EdGasketTheSecond wrote: »

Don't the batteries in these starter packs go bad if they are hardly used? Wouldn't you need to cycle the battery once every so often to stop them losing capacity too?

The old type with sealed lead acid batteries would suffer if not used, the new type with Li-ion cells are a lot better. They're also a LOT easier to carry round than the older type (or a spare battery)!

onomatopoeia99

EdGasketTheSecond wrote: »

Don't the batteries in these starter packs go bad if they are hardly used? Wouldn't you need to cycle the battery once every so often to stop them losing capacity too?

Mine doesn't.

For me it's just a handy thing to have, especially compared to keeping a spare lead acid battery around on charge and carting it around the garages / driveway to use with jump leads.

almillar

I'm not sure about the trickle chargers - I've heard they can damage the car's EMU if it's (accidentally) stated with one plugged in

Anything connected, really, not just trickle chargers, but don't let that put you off.

If you keep letting this battery go flat, it'll die prematurely, and so will the next one.
You don't need a jump start battery pack- it's good for when you get caught out, but if you think about it, you're wilfully letting your car's battery go flat - exactly what you shouldn't do.
Either a Charger that can trickle, or simply disconnecting the battery, would be better solutions than jump starting your flat battery every time.
And if you're really concerned about damaging the EMU, go find the stories people will tell about all the electrical gremlins you can get with a low battery!

Richard53

What about a solar charger that you can plug into the car's 12v socket and leave on the dash? That might be enough to keep a full and healthy battery topped up.


The only solar chargers I have used have been cheap rubbish off ebay for phones etc. and haven't worked well (or at all), but I imagine a proper unit for proper money would work well in this situation. Anyone used one and care to comment?