Ray@Autogeek
10-30-2012, 11:35 AM
Yesterday morning I heard something no driver wants to hear....the sound of an engine attempting to turn over.
It was a chilly morning in Stuart, FL. Weather reports had thermometer readings at 51° F (which felt like 48° F) on Monday morning. In Stuart, this is considered a category 5 Ice Age apocalypse.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-74LqGLqnn8s/UI_a4CGLijI/AAAAAAAAE_M/M1VSgRNNUvg/s281/weather.jpg
After my morning coffee and bacon, I went out to my driveway to fire up my motorcycle. I always give my carburated bike a few minutes before riding to let the engine properly warm up, except it wasn't turning over! The starter sounded weak and I knew I would need a jump. I started to run through a mental checklist of possible problems or previous symptoms. I remember thinking on a couple occasions how weak the starter sounded sometimes....and how my headlight seemed to dim while driving at night. I realized I had an underlying problem in my charging system.
After having my bike jump started by a friendly neighbor, I arrived at Autogeek and headed straight to Meghans office. I was pretty thirsty after the start to my week and she always has a can of pop to offer :xyxthumbs:.
Back to my motorcycle, I decided to at least have it on a Battery Tender until I was able to figure out the problem. I found a Battery Tender Plus (http://www.autogeek.net/btplus.html) in the AG Show Car Garage and connected it to my battery.
A Battery Tender Plus couldn't be any simpler to use.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sqRxjw9jMw4/UI_lYxhoIVI/AAAAAAAAE_k/UU0CXuk8KBI/s600/setitbattery.jpg
The Battery Tender Plus charges any size, flooded or sealed maintenance-free lead acid batteries. So having to find specific information on my battery was not needed. I knew Battery Tender had an equation on their website which allows you to calculate the recharge time:
Approximate Recharge Time Calculations
(Battery Capacity) / (Charger Current) = Hours
(Amp-Hours) / (Amps) = Hours
Let’s say I have a 50 Amp-Hour battery and a 10 Amp charger. These are fairly typical sizes for an automotive engine start type battery and an automotive battery charger. The dash that normally appears between Amp and Hours has been replaced by the multiplication sign (*) to emphasize the behavior of these 2 items in a mathematical equation.
If the battery is fully discharged then the first approximation for the charge time is (50 Amps*Hours) divided by (10 Amps) = 5 Hours. Truthfully, this is a rough estimate and it usually tells us how long it will take to recharge the battery to about 80% of its capacity.
I knew the Battery Tender Plus at 1.25 amps will charge as fast or faster than any 3 amp charger available, and after using the equation above I expected the Battery Tender Plus to take ~4 hours to recharge my 12 AH battery. I only had it on my bike for a couple hours before having to go home and the solid Red light indicated the battery still needed to be charged.
I drove immediately to my local Auto Parts store and had them test my battery. They told me my CCA's and Voltage looked perfect so my battery was perfectly fine :dblthumb2:. Instead of buying a new battery I decided to let the Battery Tender Plus completely charge my battery.
As soon as I got home I plugged the Battery Tender Plus back in. Again, the red light showed the battery would need more time.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/--b8KnoNaU68/UI_NmI7kPMI/AAAAAAAAE-A/_kVMFqG_uks/s576/IMG_0580.JPG
The Battery Tender Plus has a ton of safety features. So I was comfortable leaving the Battery Tender Plus on my battery overnight.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-FKHkfiq7XkY/UI_NlLdO8zI/AAAAAAAAE94/Lu7Uc9ZjVHc/s576/IMG_0581.JPG
Before I went to bed I decided to check on the Battery Tender and she gave me good news! A blinking green light!!
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-RpqPCIdzYSY/UI_NrQHN6sI/AAAAAAAAE-Y/C3yyqroR3Wg/s576/IMG_0584.JPG
The indicator light guide on the back of the unit told me my battery was now at greater than 80% charge.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cnIiDts8cjo/UI_xyEFHyFI/AAAAAAAAE_8/BJp_BPv9MVw/s510/B000NCOKNI.03.lg.jpg
The next morning I was greeted to a solid green indicator light!
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LUsypT11Plk/UI_NwVKuClI/AAAAAAAAE-0/Kf65mB9BMtY/s576/IMG_0587.JPG
Weather conditions were almost identical to the previous morning. I removed the Battery Tender and my bike started stronger than it had ever before!! When I purchased the bike it looked like it had been sitting for some time, so I should have expected the battery to not be fully charged. After starting the bike a few times now, it's clear to me the bike has been undercharged since I've had it.
After talking to a few car guys, it seems to be a belief that Battery Tenders are simply maintainers ---- Deltran specifically says on their website that this is "NOT TRUE!" Each and every Deltran Battery Tender is programmed with a microprocessor that will correctly charge a battery then automatically switch to a maintenance/float mode - regardless of its size.
Battery Tender has a great resource of information on their website that clearly shows the benefits a Battery Tender has over a conventional battery charger: Freq Asked Questions - Batterytender.com (http://batterytender.com/resources/frequently-asked-questions/)
EVERY car or bike guy should have one of these in their garage. Without it, I would have spent $100 on a new battery at my local motorcycle parts supplier. If you have a vehicle that is being stored - whether it's a car, truck, RV, motorcycle, boat, etc., put a Battery Tender on it and have it fire right up when the next season starts. :props:
Thanks for reading!
It was a chilly morning in Stuart, FL. Weather reports had thermometer readings at 51° F (which felt like 48° F) on Monday morning. In Stuart, this is considered a category 5 Ice Age apocalypse.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-74LqGLqnn8s/UI_a4CGLijI/AAAAAAAAE_M/M1VSgRNNUvg/s281/weather.jpg
After my morning coffee and bacon, I went out to my driveway to fire up my motorcycle. I always give my carburated bike a few minutes before riding to let the engine properly warm up, except it wasn't turning over! The starter sounded weak and I knew I would need a jump. I started to run through a mental checklist of possible problems or previous symptoms. I remember thinking on a couple occasions how weak the starter sounded sometimes....and how my headlight seemed to dim while driving at night. I realized I had an underlying problem in my charging system.
After having my bike jump started by a friendly neighbor, I arrived at Autogeek and headed straight to Meghans office. I was pretty thirsty after the start to my week and she always has a can of pop to offer :xyxthumbs:.
Back to my motorcycle, I decided to at least have it on a Battery Tender until I was able to figure out the problem. I found a Battery Tender Plus (http://www.autogeek.net/btplus.html) in the AG Show Car Garage and connected it to my battery.
A Battery Tender Plus couldn't be any simpler to use.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sqRxjw9jMw4/UI_lYxhoIVI/AAAAAAAAE_k/UU0CXuk8KBI/s600/setitbattery.jpg
The Battery Tender Plus charges any size, flooded or sealed maintenance-free lead acid batteries. So having to find specific information on my battery was not needed. I knew Battery Tender had an equation on their website which allows you to calculate the recharge time:
Approximate Recharge Time Calculations
(Battery Capacity) / (Charger Current) = Hours
(Amp-Hours) / (Amps) = Hours
Let’s say I have a 50 Amp-Hour battery and a 10 Amp charger. These are fairly typical sizes for an automotive engine start type battery and an automotive battery charger. The dash that normally appears between Amp and Hours has been replaced by the multiplication sign (*) to emphasize the behavior of these 2 items in a mathematical equation.
If the battery is fully discharged then the first approximation for the charge time is (50 Amps*Hours) divided by (10 Amps) = 5 Hours. Truthfully, this is a rough estimate and it usually tells us how long it will take to recharge the battery to about 80% of its capacity.
I knew the Battery Tender Plus at 1.25 amps will charge as fast or faster than any 3 amp charger available, and after using the equation above I expected the Battery Tender Plus to take ~4 hours to recharge my 12 AH battery. I only had it on my bike for a couple hours before having to go home and the solid Red light indicated the battery still needed to be charged.
I drove immediately to my local Auto Parts store and had them test my battery. They told me my CCA's and Voltage looked perfect so my battery was perfectly fine :dblthumb2:. Instead of buying a new battery I decided to let the Battery Tender Plus completely charge my battery.
As soon as I got home I plugged the Battery Tender Plus back in. Again, the red light showed the battery would need more time.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/--b8KnoNaU68/UI_NmI7kPMI/AAAAAAAAE-A/_kVMFqG_uks/s576/IMG_0580.JPG
The Battery Tender Plus has a ton of safety features. So I was comfortable leaving the Battery Tender Plus on my battery overnight.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-FKHkfiq7XkY/UI_NlLdO8zI/AAAAAAAAE94/Lu7Uc9ZjVHc/s576/IMG_0581.JPG
Before I went to bed I decided to check on the Battery Tender and she gave me good news! A blinking green light!!
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-RpqPCIdzYSY/UI_NrQHN6sI/AAAAAAAAE-Y/C3yyqroR3Wg/s576/IMG_0584.JPG
The indicator light guide on the back of the unit told me my battery was now at greater than 80% charge.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cnIiDts8cjo/UI_xyEFHyFI/AAAAAAAAE_8/BJp_BPv9MVw/s510/B000NCOKNI.03.lg.jpg
The next morning I was greeted to a solid green indicator light!
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LUsypT11Plk/UI_NwVKuClI/AAAAAAAAE-0/Kf65mB9BMtY/s576/IMG_0587.JPG
Weather conditions were almost identical to the previous morning. I removed the Battery Tender and my bike started stronger than it had ever before!! When I purchased the bike it looked like it had been sitting for some time, so I should have expected the battery to not be fully charged. After starting the bike a few times now, it's clear to me the bike has been undercharged since I've had it.
After talking to a few car guys, it seems to be a belief that Battery Tenders are simply maintainers ---- Deltran specifically says on their website that this is "NOT TRUE!" Each and every Deltran Battery Tender is programmed with a microprocessor that will correctly charge a battery then automatically switch to a maintenance/float mode - regardless of its size.
Battery Tender has a great resource of information on their website that clearly shows the benefits a Battery Tender has over a conventional battery charger: Freq Asked Questions - Batterytender.com (http://batterytender.com/resources/frequently-asked-questions/)
EVERY car or bike guy should have one of these in their garage. Without it, I would have spent $100 on a new battery at my local motorcycle parts supplier. If you have a vehicle that is being stored - whether it's a car, truck, RV, motorcycle, boat, etc., put a Battery Tender on it and have it fire right up when the next season starts. :props:
Thanks for reading!