Short battery life
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Club Member
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 463
Likes: 1
From: in a trailer next to a ditch in South Florida
Short battery life
Just returned from the dealer with a brand new battery. Went to start the bike and got a labored turn or two and then nothing. Did this 2 more times. Threw a 10 amp charger on it for about 20 minutes and got enough to start. Went to dealer and put a new unit in.
Bike was built in May of '07, I bought it brand new in July of '07. Have had a battery tender on it for the past 6 months. 2 years 6 months and that's all she wrote! Maybe the hot weather down here is a bit much on these AGM batteries or am I expecting too much? I recall a similar short life from an AGM in an aircraft I owned 10 years ago, lasted less than 2 years.
Bike was built in May of '07, I bought it brand new in July of '07. Have had a battery tender on it for the past 6 months. 2 years 6 months and that's all she wrote! Maybe the hot weather down here is a bit much on these AGM batteries or am I expecting too much? I recall a similar short life from an AGM in an aircraft I owned 10 years ago, lasted less than 2 years.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 5,615
Likes: 9
From: Escondido, CA
My son's 07 WG went bad at 2 years and 2 months. Dealer replaced it under warranty even though it was 2 months past. My 99 Heritage battery lasted almost 6 years before it died. New Heritage is at 2 years 6 months and still strong.
Road Master
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 983
Likes: 4
From: Fredericksburg, Va
My battery lasted less than one year. I had it on a tender for about 2 months and it just wouldnt start up. Dealer replaced it and no problems since, maybe its just the factory ones? who knows. This battery has been drained all the way down (left ignition on like a genious), had to jump start it with my truck and it still runs fine.
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 3,818
Likes: 2
From: Twin Cities
jan 07 and as good as new, and dont use a tender, and it sits in the 0 degree weather in the winter...........or wut ever it reaches in the garage...........but i do start it now n then when i heat the garage up to play(drink) work(mods on the bike) n the garage
Last edited by DyNaBoB; Nov 28, 2009 at 10:59 PM.
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Tourer
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 264
Likes: 2
From: Parker, CO
HEAT KILLS BATTERIES!! You can bet your last dollar on that statement. I have worked with batteries for a long time and heat is the one thing that kills batteries.
The cold actually preserves batteries but will not allow the chemical reaction in the battery to take place as it does in a warm climate. The hotter the battery is stored the shorter the life.
I Phoenix a battery will typically last 1 to 1.5 years in a car. A motor cycle is just the same or worse. In the Phoenix area it never cools off all summer and it literally destroys a battery. If you got 2 years you were lucky.
AGM batteries (Absorbed Glass Mat) units are manufactured so that no water can be added to the cells. Its got to dry out. The hotter it is the faster it dries out. Also the more it is charged and discharged will cause them to dry out also.
There is no real answer or help for this problem unless you want to remove the battery and store it in an air conditioned environment when its not in use.
Hope this info helps.
The cold actually preserves batteries but will not allow the chemical reaction in the battery to take place as it does in a warm climate. The hotter the battery is stored the shorter the life.
I Phoenix a battery will typically last 1 to 1.5 years in a car. A motor cycle is just the same or worse. In the Phoenix area it never cools off all summer and it literally destroys a battery. If you got 2 years you were lucky.
AGM batteries (Absorbed Glass Mat) units are manufactured so that no water can be added to the cells. Its got to dry out. The hotter it is the faster it dries out. Also the more it is charged and discharged will cause them to dry out also.
There is no real answer or help for this problem unless you want to remove the battery and store it in an air conditioned environment when its not in use.
Hope this info helps.
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Thread Starter
|
Club Member
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 463
Likes: 1
From: in a trailer next to a ditch in South Florida
HEAT KILLS BATTERIES!! You can bet your last dollar on that statement. I have worked with batteries for a long time and heat is the one thing that kills batteries.
The cold actually preserves batteries but will not allow the chemical reaction in the battery to take place as it does in a warm climate. The hotter the battery is stored the shorter the life.
I Phoenix a battery will typically last 1 to 1.5 years in a car. A motor cycle is just the same or worse. In the Phoenix area it never cools off all summer and it literally destroys a battery. If you got 2 years you were lucky.
AGM batteries (Absorbed Glass Mat) units are manufactured so that no water can be added to the cells. Its got to dry out. The hotter it is the faster it dries out. Also the more it is charged and discharged will cause them to dry out also.
There is no real answer or help for this problem unless you want to remove the battery and store it in an air conditioned environment when its not in use.
Hope this info helps.
The cold actually preserves batteries but will not allow the chemical reaction in the battery to take place as it does in a warm climate. The hotter the battery is stored the shorter the life.
I Phoenix a battery will typically last 1 to 1.5 years in a car. A motor cycle is just the same or worse. In the Phoenix area it never cools off all summer and it literally destroys a battery. If you got 2 years you were lucky.
AGM batteries (Absorbed Glass Mat) units are manufactured so that no water can be added to the cells. Its got to dry out. The hotter it is the faster it dries out. Also the more it is charged and discharged will cause them to dry out also.
There is no real answer or help for this problem unless you want to remove the battery and store it in an air conditioned environment when its not in use.
Hope this info helps.
I kind of suspected the heat as a contributor. My car batteries have given 4+ years or better. The bike is ridden regularly year round and I'm very careful to not leave lights on or do anything that will overtax the battery. The batteries in my boat are Delco maintenance free Marine types and have given excellent service for better than 5 years. It's way cooler in the boat than the sikle.
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