Optimizers/trickle chargers

[pof]

I've always been a bit wary of them. I can only go by my own personal experiences with batteries and their charges. Lots of contradicting advice ranging from "better to run a battery down fully before 're charging" to" keep them topped regularly ".
My last bike (2004 r1) still had the original battery right up till it's last outing at cartagena back in Nov and it never saw a trickle charger in its life.
As some of you know I had my gen 2 stolen in feb last year and when I got another gen 2 a tracker was first on the shopping list. When it came to this winter my normal plan of action is to remove battery and bring it in doors but alas with a tracker that's not an option.
Now this is my issue- during the summer and autumn I could regularly leave my bike 2/3 and once I left it 4 weeks without the battery getting too low to start the bike. Since using a trickle charger (?74 from Halfords so not cheap but not top end) I now have a weak battery. I've run an extension lead from my garage to my kitchen and top the battery up till it's full (charger says it's full and so does the tracker). After 1 week I started getting messages from the tracker saying "external battery source is low). Now it's got to the stage where it needs topping up after 2 days!!!
I can't think of any other reason the battery has good dud apart from the charger.
Any advice please on what to do next, yes I can buy a new battery but if a trickle charger is going to reduce the life of it then it would make no sense.
Help

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[fast_ryan]

Battery Chargers

I?ve personally never bothered using trickle chargers etc. Whenever I?ve stored bikes for long periods of time I just remove the battery and place it indoors. To date I?ve never experienced any issues with either Lithium or OEM batteries.

 

[pof]

Re: Battery Chargers

I?ve personally never bothered using trickle chargers etc. Whenever I?ve stored bikes for long periods of time I just remove the battery and place it indoors. To date I?ve never experienced any issues with either Lithium or OEM batteries.

Like you , that's what I normally do and it has worked well, the tracker is the issue .

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[2002sportevo]

I can leave my bike all winter without charging the battery (2015 model, no alarm) and it fires up instantly - I don't even bother removing the battery.......bike is kept in my garage.

 

[scooby]

have mine connected upto an optimate4 when it's stood for a while,(all my bikes) never had any issues

 

[soofsayer]

Complete opposite to you, I have put all my bikes and cars on ctek chargers since 2009 and never had a problem. The only time I experienced a flat battery was when I left the GS for a few weeks unconnected.

Have you tested the draw on the battery with the ignition off to see if there is unusual draw beyond what the tracker should be using? If the battery is a dud then it will not hold a charge, if it keeps running completely flat it will soon expire.

 

[phil]

Have you tested the draw on the battery with the ignition off to see if there is unusual draw beyond what the tracker should be using? If the battery is a dud then it will not hold a charge, if it keeps running completely flat it will soon expire.

+1, also you could get the Battery checked to see if it is the problem.

 

[pof]

Complete opposite to you, I have put all my bikes and cars on ctek chargers since 2009 and never had a problem. The only time I experienced a flat battery was when I left the GS for a few weeks unconnected.

Have you tested the draw on the battery with the ignition off to see if there is unusual draw beyond what the tracker should be using? If the battery is a dud then it will not hold a charge, if it keeps running completely flat it will soon expire.

I will have to check tbf. After it says "fully charged " it's reading about 13.4v after a day it's about 12.5 and down into the 11s after 2/3 days and then I get the "external battery is low" from the tracker

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[pof]

But my original point was , until I started to use the charger I was getting no issues, 3-4 weeks between uses and started fine. Now it's 2-3 days

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[soofsayer]

But my original point was , until I started to use the charger I was getting no issues, 3-4 weeks between uses and started fine. Now it's 2-3 days

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Could be a faulty charger. Or battery has developed a fault.

 

[Flyingscotsman]

Hi Pof,

Has your use of charger coincided with fitting the tracker? The tracker draws significant current. With my bike (alarm & tracker) I was getting about 2 weeks with two year old battery, now with a new battery I get about 4 weeks before it needs a charge.

Might be worth thinking of a new battery.

 

[pof]

Hi Pof,

Has your use of charger coincided with fitting the tracker? The tracker draws significant current. With my bike (alarm & tracker) I was getting about 2 weeks with two year old battery, now with a new battery I get about 4 weeks before it needs a charge.

Might be worth thinking of a new battery.

No mate, the tracker was fitted in March. I ran the bike most days during the summer but I did have times where I was working away so was left a week or 2. The optimizer was put on the start of December after I got the first "external battery is low" . It charged back up to nearly 14v so I thought all was good but maybe it went too low? Only other thing I've done is fitted motodynamic rear indicators but can't see that being an issue

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[scooby]

depending where your bike is kept,you'd be suprised how fast the cold weather will kill a battery

 

[pof]

depending where your bike is kept,you'd be suprised how fast the cold weather will kill a battery

It's got no heating out there so maybe that's a factor

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[Zxcv12]

I've always been a bit wary of them. I can only go by my own personal experiences with batteries and their charges. Lots of contradicting advice ranging from "better to run a battery down fully before 're charging" to" keep them topped regularly ".
My last bike (2004 r1) still had the original battery right up till it's last outing at cartagena back in Nov and it never saw a trickle charger in its life.
As some of you know I had my gen 2 stolen in feb last year and when I got another gen 2 a tracker was first on the shopping list. When it came to this winter my normal plan of action is to remove battery and bring it in doors but alas with a tracker that's not an option.
Now this is my issue- during the summer and autumn I could regularly leave my bike 2/3 and once I left it 4 weeks without the battery getting too low to start the bike. Since using a trickle charger (?74 from Halfords so not cheap but not top end) I now have a weak battery. I've run an extension lead from my garage to my kitchen and top the battery up till it's full (charger says it's full and so does the tracker). After 1 week I started getting messages from the tracker saying "external battery source is low). Now it's got to the stage where it needs topping up after 2 days!!!
I can't think of any other reason the battery has good dud apart from the charger.
Any advice please on what to do next, yes I can buy a new battery but if a trickle charger is going to reduce the life of it then it would make no sense.
Help

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I?m also a bit wary of them, I think (no idea if i?m Right though) that batteries need ?exercise? and that means running through a wide range of different charge states to keep the healthy, a bit like a exercising a muscle through the full range of movement. I?ve got an optimate, hardly ever use it. The last time I did it had sat for 5 weeks without use, and the optimate said fully charged after 30 minutes so I disconnected it. Original battery with 3 years and 17k on the clocks. It starts on the button, never had an issue and it has lots of peripherals to keep me happy when I?m out in winter that take a lot of power.

 

[pof]

I?m also a bit wary of them, I think (no idea if i?m Right though) that batteries need ?exercise? and that means running through a wide range of different charge states to keep the healthy, a bit like a exercising a muscle through the full range of movement. I?ve got an optimate, hardly ever use it. The last time I did it had sat for 5 weeks without use, and the optimate said fully charged after 30 minutes so I disconnected it. Original battery with 3 years and 17k on the clocks. It starts on the button, never had an issue and it has lots of peripherals to keep me happy when I?m out in winter that take a lot of power.

A lot of people agree with you (and me) that a battery needs to work from fully charged to nearly empty.

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[GixxerChuck]

Check the settings on the tracker. Some ?touch base? regularly and some just lie dormant until disturbed. Most of the ?touch base? ones can have the setting disabled as it is this that uses the power. All will use some power to liaise with the GPS


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[CJK]

I personally always use a trickle charger and have no issues. I also have a tracker fitted and it drains the battery quick I have now swapped to a lithium battery which is put on charge after every run to keep it topped up. There is lots of conflicting information on battery usage. I have E-bikes and Bosch state to keep the lithium battery mid to three quarters charged during storage however I have Mikita power tools which are used for commercial use and they are constantly run flat stored flat and most of them are going strong at 5 years old with lots of cycles (off memory Makita tell you just to change when power drops off which is normally when they are flat). I also have a motor home with although is a leisure battery but a standard lead one, we have run that flat a few times and it destroyed the battery and it would not hold its charge despite the dealer testing it and saying it was fine, since we replaced it we have never had any issues and this motor home was new so the damage to the battery to my knowledge was off running it flat by us a three times.

 

[preynol1]

+1 always used a trickle charger, but ones that maintain the battery condition.


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[Flyingscotsman]

There is a difference between Lithium batteries which do like to be cycled flat and recharged and the old fashioned lead acid batteries. The lead acid are designed to be kept topped up (hence optimisers & trickle chargers). The quickest way to kill a new lead acid battery is to leave it flat.