For those interested some Maint / Float Charger info
Road Master
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 1,191
Likes: 233
From: North East, MD
So, I've been doing it right all along! I have one Deltran Battery Tender that I share between 2 bikes and a lawn tractor. I rotate between the three batteries once every few weeks during the winter "storage" season. I'll hook each one up for a full day until the full charge light comes on and then switch to the next then they'll all sit idle for two weeks or so and I'll do it again.
Sponsor
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 8,538
Likes: 1,646
From: SF Bay area
The NUMBER 1 cause of premature lead acid battery failure is in how you prepped and charged the battery BEFORE it was was ever installed in your vehicle. Any other comment is anecdotal. If you just bought a battery off the shelf, tossed it on the bike and started it up, then you've most likely destroyed its longevity. The most important thing you can do is to properly bring a brand new battery up to full charge before you ever pull current from it.
Most people believe that an off-the-shelf battery is bought ready to go, this is the furthest thing from the truth. You must slowly bring the new battery up to full charge with a charger rated at no more than 10 percent of the battery's rated current, ie; a 10 amp battery should be charged at no more than 1 amp, a 30 amp battery at 3 amps, etc. This should be done over a period of 10 hours or more before you ever install it. An off the shelf battery has a holding charge that will be strong enough to start your bike, but in doing so will irreversibly damage the battery's plates and chemical structure. This is guaranteed to shorten the battery's lifespan, and is in fact what most people do. Unless you know how the battery was conditioned before putting it into service, all the suppositions on trickle or float charging mean absolutely nothing.
A properly prepared battery will easily give you 5-7 years life out of it.
Most people believe that an off-the-shelf battery is bought ready to go, this is the furthest thing from the truth. You must slowly bring the new battery up to full charge with a charger rated at no more than 10 percent of the battery's rated current, ie; a 10 amp battery should be charged at no more than 1 amp, a 30 amp battery at 3 amps, etc. This should be done over a period of 10 hours or more before you ever install it. An off the shelf battery has a holding charge that will be strong enough to start your bike, but in doing so will irreversibly damage the battery's plates and chemical structure. This is guaranteed to shorten the battery's lifespan, and is in fact what most people do. Unless you know how the battery was conditioned before putting it into service, all the suppositions on trickle or float charging mean absolutely nothing.
A properly prepared battery will easily give you 5-7 years life out of it.
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Club Member
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 7,682
Likes: 8,414
From: Utah
So, I've been doing it right all along! I have one Deltran Battery Tender that I share between 2 bikes and a lawn tractor. I rotate between the three batteries once every few weeks during the winter "storage" season. I'll hook each one up for a full day until the full charge light comes on and then switch to the next then they'll all sit idle for two weeks or so and I'll do it again.
http://www.batterytender.com/Battery-Basics/
www.batterytender.co
Road Master
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 1,191
Likes: 233
From: North East, MD
So, a bottle activated AGM or conventional lead acid battery only comes to about an 80% charge level when you pour the electrolyte into the battery and putting that battery into service without fully charging will cause the battery to "see" 80% as a full charge. Does this apply to factory activated batteries also or are they brought to full charge state at the factory? I could not determine this from an admittedly cursory read of the Yuasa handbook.
Tourer
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 304
Likes: 177
From: Cleburne, Texas
I work at a nuclear plant and we have some seriously heavy duty batteries for emergency situations. Batteries get load tested about once a year and then recharged back to full charge. After that, they are maintained continuously with a float charger/tender. These batteries normally last at least 20 years.
I use battery tenders on all my motorcycles, ATV's and lawnmowers and see no reason to stop.
I use battery tenders on all my motorcycles, ATV's and lawnmowers and see no reason to stop.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 3,516
Likes: 1,994
From: Vancouver BC
So, a bottle activated AGM or conventional lead acid battery only comes to about an 80% charge level when you pour the electrolyte into the battery and putting that battery into service without fully charging will cause the battery to "see" 80% as a full charge. Does this apply to factory activated batteries also or are they brought to full charge state at the factory? I could not determine this from an admittedly cursory read of the Yuasa handbook.
A battery left to float charge on a tender cannot be destroyed by that float charger as long as it cannot deliver more than 10 percent of the battery's rated current capacity. It is always a good idea to leave it on a tender when not in use, this will greatly extend its service life.
Last edited by Ride my Seesaw; May 6, 2016 at 10:43 AM.
[QUOTE=ROCKOUT Rocker Products;15117520]This is fact. Yuasa has been saying it in their small battery handbooks for decades. Run it "off the shelf" and it will never hold more than an 80% charge & it's irreversible.
100 percent true.
100 percent true.
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Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 32,934
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From: Carlsbad, CA
[QUOTE=chrisg81983;15118275]
Probably a good idea, even if you are told the battery house brought the battery up properly. However, I've never had the luxury of discovering a battery needed changed while my bike/car was safely in my garage, and I had 24 hours to properly bring up the replacement battery.
So, I guess I live with possibly only 80% capacity, and always have my mc battery on a tender.
Oh yeah...then why if it makes sense to put a mc battery on a tender, why not also a car battery when the car isn't being run for a while? Because the parasitic draw of a car over time, is a lower percentage of the total battery capacity than that of a motorcycle and its battery.
So, I guess I live with possibly only 80% capacity, and always have my mc battery on a tender.
Oh yeah...then why if it makes sense to put a mc battery on a tender, why not also a car battery when the car isn't being run for a while? Because the parasitic draw of a car over time, is a lower percentage of the total battery capacity than that of a motorcycle and its battery.
Road Captain
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 698
Likes: 13
I have two vehicles and only driver in the house.................Which ever vehicle isnt being driven, the other is on a tender. My bike and mower stay on a tender when not in use. I firmly believe a good quality tender can be used without ill effects, least that has been my experience the last ten years or so.