Do I need a battery charger?

ralph · Post by **ralph** » 03 Jan 2010, 12:17

Hello all

Quick question - do I need a battery charger?

I'm storing my Merc 190D over the winter in a garage, while the Xsara soldiers on through the salt and snow.

I don't intend to spark up the Merc until March/April. The battery is disconnected but will it be knackered by spring if I don't keep it charged?

Thanks

Citroenmad · Post by **Citroenmad** » 03 Jan 2010, 12:32

It could well be knackered by that time, but it depends if the battery is good now or is it a bit weak?

Its often a good idea if you dont intend to start the car for a few months to take the battery off and keep it somewhere warmer, as the cold kills batteries. If you take it off dont stand it on a concrete floor as that will be freezing. Id then put a slow charge on it every now and again.

Or if you want to leave it on the car it might be a good idea to get a slow charger and leave it on for a day or so, just to keep it topped up.

I usually take them off, keep them somewhere warmer and charge them up every now and again for a day.

270K on your Xsara is impressive, still going well?

HDI · Post by **HDI** » 03 Jan 2010, 12:57

The battery will almost defo not start the car when u put it back into service next year , especially if it's part way through it's life. Get one of the new smart chargers , connect it and leave it. The charger will monitor the battery condition and charge as needed. Aldi occasionally have a great little smart charger for about £15 , I've bought 2 over the last year so I can charge a bike battery and a car battery.

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 03 Jan 2010, 13:25

i was told once many years ago if/when storeing a car battery for a long period, to attatch a very low wattage bulb across the terminals to keep the battery active, then every nowe and then charge it back up

regards malcolm

ralph · Post by **ralph** » 03 Jan 2010, 15:55

Off to Aldi then - thanks very much all.

Citroenmad - the Xsara is as good as when I bought it eight years ago with 58k on the clock.
I do a 100 mile round-trip to work five days a week, 80 miles of which is on the M62.
So with 5,000-mile oil changes and two-year antifreeze flushes, it enjoys pretty much perfect running conditions, with relatively few cold starts for its miles.
Disabled the exhaust recirculation valve years ago, which has probably helped.
It's a sooty bugger mind, and spews a fair bit out when I give it a red-line blast in third gear to clear things every fortnight or so.

HDI · Post by **HDI** » 03 Jan 2010, 17:14

The Aldi charger is great !! Has an equal spec to more expensive units , is made in Germany and has a 3 year warranty !! Just hope you find it in stock as my local store only has them occasionaly

I'm a bit of a tool snob but have bought a fair amount of useful stuff from Aldi as it is often such good value for money.

deian · Post by **deian** » 03 Jan 2010, 17:34

there's all sorts of handy things like that to be had from aldi, lidl and netto!

addo · Post by **addo** » 03 Jan 2010, 20:30

Thanks for the ALDI charger tip. I'll put my "hound" onto it. Some of our specials run parallel to Europe, the others are seasonal and thus offset.