I am looking for a battery charger/trickle charger for about $50. I just don't see the benefit to buying just a battery tender since most chargers will do the same. I really never use a battery tender but dummy here left the switch on and drained the battery. Since I am buying a charger anyways I would like to know what is a good one for all around use, car and bike. Any opinions?

 

Never mind

 

I use a battery tender and love it but for a all around charger i bought one from sears.It has a quick jump/start feature and also a timer with hold option incase i am afraid to overcharge.You might check Walmart for their options.or Pepboys/autozone.

 

Yes, a trickle charger/tender will not recharge a dead or discharged battery

a battery charger ( most) will not maintain a trickle charge which is about 500 to 800 milliAmps of power with some kind of a "brain" to tell it to turn off.

to size a charger to a motorcycle battery, most batteries are about 300CCA- to charge from dead a 10 amp charger would need 30 hours to charge it up- a 20 amp charger would need 15 hours.

a 30 amp or higher capacity charger may overheat the battery

I've had the same battery charger for over 20 years, and the same trickle charger for over 15.

a battery which is run all the way down ( like leaving the lights on) will loose about 25% of it's capacity from that event, and will begin it's slide. Keep an eye on it.

suspect batteries should be removed for the bike, charged on the bench, and load-tested at an auto parts store.

charging batteries release hydrogen- remember the zeppelin, no smokes, no sparks

when pulling a battery from a vehicle disconnect negative first/ on install connect negative last.
that way when your wrench hits the frame while pulling on the positive, it won't spark


don't try to charge a dead battery in the bike, after jumping from another vehicle- it can stress your charging system to the point of failure

2¢
Mike

 

Unless you are in a hurry to recharge your battery, I would suggest you consider a Battery Tender Plus brand charger/maintainer.

It will charge your battery at a rate of 1.25 amps and then switch to a maintenance mode that will maintain your battery at a fully charged state without over charging, meaning you can leave it connected and working indefinitely.

Battery Tender brand products (both the Plus and the Junior) will recharge your battery as long as the voltage is above three (3) volts. If it is below 3 then you would need to wait to see if it will recover above 3 volts on its own or look for another charger.

Several companies make so called smart chargers that will automatically charge at a higher rate, such as 5 or 10 amps, and then turn themselves off. As far as I know, they are not capable of going to a maintenance mode so you could leave them on continuously. Sears, Ace Hardware, and other places sell that type charger.

 

When your battery is completely discharged, you can start charging it from another vehicle's battery with jumper cables. After a couple of minutes you will have enough charge to let the battery tender continue the work.

People buy chargers when the frost comes and later replace their batteries as the weather gets colder. I think it's simpler to replace batteries after 5-7 years and keep them healthy with a tender.

 

My yuasa tender will charge a dead battery, granted it takes a day or so but it works. It is much bigger than a tender plus. Can't recall offhand but I know the output is more than a tender plus.

 

If battery is complety discharged and a battery charger doest charge it. Give it a hot charge of 30-50 amp for no more than 15-20 minutes. Then reduce charge to 10% of battery amperage. Under normal conditions you should never charge over 10% of battery amperage. If you have the time the lowest charge setting will give the best charge for the battery. On a wet battery if you see that the water/acid has evaporated and 1/4 of the plates are exposed with with deposite built up on the plates. Filling it with water will not give you the battery back. Once plates are exposed and have build up that much of the battery is lost, will never recover. Keep the water levels up. If while charging you smell rotten egg, the battery is over charging and producing gas. Do not smoke or make a spark at this time because it can blow up.

10amps @ 10 hours charge time
2 amps @ 50 hours charge time

 

Think you need a low amp tender for the small AMG (gel) or a quality charger (what ever that is). Know my battery states right on it warnings about charging it. Guess they are for some non regulated high amp charger. Have a 6 and 9 amp full size charger and a Harley and Warmart (bell) maintance charger. Harley one came with bike. Do like it better for the indicator lights that are on it that flash. Plug it in and it flashes yellow for charging and the flashing green for close and then a solid green for done. When you unplug it from bike it flashes to remind you to turn it off or unplug charger. Keep mine on a switched surge protector regulator. Need it when rides get further apart in the winter around here. It seem to take about 15 minutes to touch up battery if my rides get 2 to 4 weeks apart (10 miles)

 

Get a Deltran Battery Tender Jr. you should be able to find them on-line for about $25. Best thing I ever did. You can keep your bike plugged in all the time and the unit will turn itself on and off. I have one on my Harley and one on my Triumph. My brother keep on on each of his three bikes. Always reliable.