08 burb fan

While in the dealer for the transmission diagnosis, I had my battery tested and was told it was weak, which I knew. Had them quote a new ac delco oem batt, $165+ install and tax.

Red top, here I come.

in2pro

Last week I put my battery on the charger and left it over night on the 2 amp auto mode... It gave me no issues.. just got back from a trip visiting family in Arkadelphia and not a problem one... I can only surmise that perhaps some of my daily driving is too short to get a full recharge and the times that I use the accessory mode to listen to the radio are too long and are causing the discharge on top of the several days my truck may sit in the garage unused... I may just build up a trickle charger I can plug into the 12v outlet to keep the battery topped off when I don't expect to drive her for a few days...

OptimaJim

That does sound like an application that will slowly discharge a battery over time. There are some maintainers that will plug into 12V outlets and others will have connectors you can permanently mount to your battery, which you can plug in to the charger, just as you would plug in a diesel vehicle. However, it's always a good idea to make sure that connection is visible and obvious, so you don't forget your battery is being charged and drive off with the charger still connected.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
OPTIMAŽ Batteries (optimabatteries) on Pinterest

SWHouston

Jim,

I know that the "Trickle" maintenance charging is used frequently, but one needs to select that type Charger carefully.

I believe I'm correct in saying...
That the Trickle Amperage would need to be selected according to the quantity of Batteries installed. Where, with just one Battery, there wouldn't be as much current required as if there were multiple Batteries. The intent as you've stated, to keep everything just above 12.4 vdc.

Then, if there wasn't a Isolator which (by driving) brought the voltage up like for use like in a RV, or then a "Hi" mode in the Charger for that, like would be needed in the case of a Travel Tailer.

OptimaJim

You are correct- people should use care when selecting any charger. The terms "float" and "trickle" are used quite often to describe charging and have different meanings to different folks and the same to others. "Trickle" generally refers to the rate of charge and is usually a lower amperage rate, like 1 or 2 amps. Traditional "float" chargers will provide constant voltage with tapering amperage to the battery, even when it is fully-charged. Those are ok to use and certainly better than doing nothing to maintain a battery, but the "smart" chargers with microprocessors are a better option. Those chargers will vary and taper both amperage and voltage, depending on the needs of the battery.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
OPTIMAŽ Batteries (optimabatteries) on Pinterest

SWHouston

Jim,
HA, why am I not surprised that you're familiar with this issue as well

Just to dwell briefly on the importance of proper charging...
Keep in mind, that regardless if you have one or several Batteries in use, that is a considerable investment, and, when purchasing/replacing a Charger, you get exactly what you pay for !

Beyond reading Jim's post carefully, here's a few things to consider, when selecting a Charger...

As stated previously, you need to select a Charger which is capable of charging more than one Battery, if you have them in parallel. (ie: two or more House Batteries) This should include data entry as to what Type Batteries you are using.

If (like in an RV) you have two Battery Systems (House/Start), there are Chargers which have more than one "Bank". This permits the Charger to address the two systems independently.

Some chargers have a very valuable "Pulse Desulfation" capability, which prevents/reconditions (within wide limits) batteries which have been improperly maintained.

There are numerous other issues (temperature detection/amperage acceptance/diagnostic capabilities/bad Cell detection) which cause the Microprocessor type Chargers not to be cheep ($100-$200) but well worth their capabilities.

dbrakeman

I hate to tell you this but you will probably go through your share of batteries. The battery is under sized to begin with. It was made for an Audi and there's no real estate to improve this. AGMs are great and have a higher peak voltage until they drop but eventually you will cross that path.

I installed a second battery in the extra battery tray and run a guardian back up system charging isolator system. No more problems. The second battery is isolated form all the drain. Your primary never goes all the way down just far enough not to start. The parasitic drains let it down fast. The isolator system keeps a full charge on the second battery and you can run all your extras off it. It comes with a painless wiring system and a wireless remote so nothing goes through the firewall unless you just got to have buttons.

see:

www.atct-guardiansys.com for details.

I can off road or camp and not worry about it now.

dbrakeman