Sharing a battery tender
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Joined: Dec 2014
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From: SWFL
Sharing a battery tender
I live in a high rise apartment building, with underground parking. The lot is shared with about 50 cars, and has zero electric outlets. The maintenance manager at the condo rides one of those Can Am abominations (it's actually not that bad), and there's a corner of the garage where some bikes are parked.
I've got two bikes, but there's only room for one of them in that corner, and I typically leave my Dyna there and park my Road Glide in one of my two assigned spots on a Moto-Mover dolly against the back wall.
So over the holidays I convinced the maintenance guy with the Can Am to install an outliet in that corner so we both can use battery tenders. (Though there are three other bikes there, they're ancient and never used).
So now the question: since I only have one tender, I want to rotate the bikes so they both get some tender time over the frozen winter months. During the other three seasons I ride both plenty to keep them charged up. Note I'll be rolling them over as I'll not be able to get them up to operating temp if I start them up.
Does a week on, a week off sound reasonable?
I've got two bikes, but there's only room for one of them in that corner, and I typically leave my Dyna there and park my Road Glide in one of my two assigned spots on a Moto-Mover dolly against the back wall.
So over the holidays I convinced the maintenance guy with the Can Am to install an outliet in that corner so we both can use battery tenders. (Though there are three other bikes there, they're ancient and never used).
So now the question: since I only have one tender, I want to rotate the bikes so they both get some tender time over the frozen winter months. During the other three seasons I ride both plenty to keep them charged up. Note I'll be rolling them over as I'll not be able to get them up to operating temp if I start them up.
Does a week on, a week off sound reasonable?
Last edited by Mchad; Jan 8, 2017 at 07:18 AM.
Road Warrior
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 1,462
Likes: 105
From: Kentucky
You can actually use one tender on both bikes with no problem Just make a set of jumper wires out of #14 or larger wire (don't try to start one on the bikes with it attached) The tender only knows 12 volt. Not size or number of batteries
Road Warrior
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 1,462
Likes: 105
From: Kentucky
PS
Sorry just seen no room for second bike. Are you near a window? I have a small solar panel on my trailer wench battery full time that works great
Sorry just seen no room for second bike. Are you near a window? I have a small solar panel on my trailer wench battery full time that works great
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Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 5,023
Likes: 1,352
From: Virginia
how far away is the 2nd bike from the outlet? I am thinking a multi plugin in one of the receptacle outlets and an extension cord to the 2nd tender?That way you would only be using one of the two outlets available.
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From: Galt's Gulch - MI
Back in my hedonist excess days of owning 4 vehicles I'd store the 2 summer zoom cars at a climate controlled storage garage so I'd have more room to work on the motorcycles over the winter; there were no electrical outlets available so I'd pull the batteries and keep them on the bench and I'd rotate which battery was on the Tender every morning...
