My parents are out of country for about a year and asked me to watch over the house. I check in it every 2 weeks. I want put a battery tender on their car, as I drive it around a bit every time I'm there but want to keep the battery topped up. Can I keep it on there unattended in the closed garage and be ok? Or is that enclosed space dangerous?
Leaving battery tender unattended?
- Thread starter sobediny
- Start date
Use a decent brand and you should be fine. It shouldn't go low in two weeks. I have friend who maintains a collection for a wealthy guy. They put them on timers like you would have a light on. They keep them set for 15 minutes each day.
d.mcfarland
Well-known member
I have the Battery Tender PLUS and I have had a car hooked up to it all winter without a single problem. It was about $45 and can maintain and/or charge if you battery is low. I would recommend it.
HOTFR8
Banned
They are designed to be left on. As others have posted if a decent brand you will be good.
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bob15
Well-known member
You will be fine leaving it hooked up and plugged in.
grumpychevy
Well-known member
I have the same Battery Tender PLUS and have also had it hooked up all winter without any issues. Good investment, I recommend it also.
Strouty
Well-known member
Anything like that can have a risk, it could cook the battery or it could even start a fire. I think the idea of a timer is great, then you get the maintenance and have minimal risk. Then of course the timer could fail and cause the same problems.
Bretny
Well-known member
I would plug it in and un plug it every 2 weeks. It really shouldnt need to be charged every 2 weeks unless the csr has a draw.
I have left my lawn tractor on my Battery Tender Plus for months on end in a closed garage. When a second one went on sale at Costco for dirt cheap, I grabbed it for my stand by generator. I have used them on cars as well. I just replaced the battery on the tractor yesterday. I was amazed when I found an activation sticker on the old battery that said 2007. That suggests that beside being a good battery, it did very well on that charger. The Deltran Battery Tender Plus has been around for years and is damn near bullet proof. I have never read of anyone complaining of a failure.
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lakeroadster
Well-known member
2CRUZ
Well-known member
I have had one on an antique car of mine for the last eight years with no problems. I have noticed that after I drive the car, it takes the charger a little longer to bring the battery up to full charge though. The battery is like ten years old so I think I may have to get a new in the next two or three years.
theoldwizard1
Well-known member
But a cheap MECHANICAL lamp timer and plug the Battery Tender into that. Set it to run a couple hours a day.
lakeroadster
Well-known member
Attachments
battery tender is designed to be left on indefinitely. As an example my father never drives his corvette. I bought him the batt tender plus 4 years ago, no issues since. Longest it gets disconnected is when he needs to get it out of the garage when he cleans the garage. Same batt, 4 years old now.
I like the Battery Tender brand. But there are 2 reasons I won't leave unattended.
I had an moderately priced motomaster intelligent timer hooked up to a Suzuki cappuccino, sure the battery is on the smaller side but still somehow the battery vented in an attached enclosed garage. Not sure if a charger or car issue, I don't dare use this charger anymore. The hydrogen sulphide produced is toxic, hydrogen gas is also explosive.
The 2nd reason, I primarily ran either a full sized motomaster charging rig with maintain function or a Schumacher intelligent charger on my Grant National, I'm talking maintainer hooked up 365 days a year. Current and electrolysis in the cooling system to the point where a 200 miles(but 3years) water pump completely eroded through and leaked! After a lot of checking the only electrical short in the car is the oe stereo. I've since wired the stereo circuit to a switch and switched to distilled water. If I ever had to charge this car I suppose I would disconnect the battery as an added precaution.
So I have maybe 8 charger/maintainers that no longer see much use. I'll charge a battery only as needed, no more maintaining for me.
I had an moderately priced motomaster intelligent timer hooked up to a Suzuki cappuccino, sure the battery is on the smaller side but still somehow the battery vented in an attached enclosed garage. Not sure if a charger or car issue, I don't dare use this charger anymore. The hydrogen sulphide produced is toxic, hydrogen gas is also explosive.
The 2nd reason, I primarily ran either a full sized motomaster charging rig with maintain function or a Schumacher intelligent charger on my Grant National, I'm talking maintainer hooked up 365 days a year. Current and electrolysis in the cooling system to the point where a 200 miles(but 3years) water pump completely eroded through and leaked! After a lot of checking the only electrical short in the car is the oe stereo. I've since wired the stereo circuit to a switch and switched to distilled water. If I ever had to charge this car I suppose I would disconnect the battery as an added precaution.
So I have maybe 8 charger/maintainers that no longer see much use. I'll charge a battery only as needed, no more maintaining for me.
matt_i
Well-known member
I've used the BatteryMinder brand, I have 10 or so in use currently, hooked up for months at a time. I have had one battery that liked to boil out the water but all of the others are just fine.
MikeF2316
Well-known member
I have a Battery Tender bought back before the front was painted green. I used it for the winter, connected and on 100% of the time and not used in the summer when the bike was being used frequently. The first battery it was connected to lasted 13 years. The replacement is at 11 years and going strong.
lakeroadster
Well-known member
Minimal risk.. by adding another device? I don't see the logic.
And the manufacturer already points out in the FAQ above that cycling the charging off and on decreases battery life.
So you have added complexity and reduced efficiency.
Stuart in MN
Well-known member
If you're driving it every two weeks a battery tender probably isn't necessary, but make sure you drive it long enough to get the car fully warmed up - otherwise it may cause more problems than good.
Bryanthegreat
Well-known member
I've got 5 of the Battery Tender Plus hooked to cars, tractors, etc.
They are on all the time, 24/7/365
For the last 10 years.
I have had this on cars all winter as well with no issues
xin
Well-known member
I've got 5 of the Battery Tender Plus hooked to cars, tractors, etc.
They are on all the time, 24/7/365
For the last 10 years.
The BEST brand - also put a SURGE protector in the outlet then plug the tender up to that.
TangoFoxTrot
Well-known member
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- Jan 23, 2009
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It should be fine, but I put a mechanical outlet timer on mine to just save a little electricity and put an extra margin of safety. Once a battery is "full" seems a waste to have it running 24/7. I have noticed that even when a battery tender is on the "float" mode and not supposed to be running, it's still "warm" to the touch.
I did one time "ruin" a battery leaving it on a battery charger on trickle charge, the next morning it was basically smoking, but granted it was an older model. Ever since I'm sort of skittish to just leave it on there.
I did one time "ruin" a battery leaving it on a battery charger on trickle charge, the next morning it was basically smoking, but granted it was an older model. Ever since I'm sort of skittish to just leave it on there.
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Jazz1
Well-known member
I have the Napa battery tender for 5 years. Its used all winter along with my block heater. Never had issues and nice to have a "hot" battery on cold mornings.
I have three of Deltran's Battery Tender Plus, a 1.25 and two 3 amp models (from Costco). Two of them have been used on a near constant basis for a couple of years and left unattended for months during the winter. No problems at all.
jeepinerdeep
Well-known member
I'm with this guy./\
I have a diesel pickup that sits outside, in the winter, at the airport for that length of time. I'd just run it hard and keep junk gas out of it.
ihateminimumwage
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NAPA 85-300A is the maintainer I've installed on countless backup generators, and have had no failures with.
cajunfirehawk
Well-known member
I run 3 all year and 4 in the winter, get a good brand and you will be fine.
Ben Buck
Well-known member
Roberts210
Well-known member
NO thanks. Not for me. Google "garage fires caused by battery charger". There are 19 million results from that Google search. Granted not every article is about a different fire, but here's just one article:
https://www.hagerty.com/articles-videos/articles/2017/03/28/burned-out-bikes
https://www.hagerty.com/articles-videos/articles/2017/03/28/burned-out-bikes
HOTFR8
Banned
Battery Chargers have always been an issue with fires.
Battery Tenders when used correctly are very different.
A charger is designed to charge quickly and then be turned off once it has charged the battery. A tender on the other hand is designed to be left on all the time and maintain a battery at full charge.
kctyphoon
Banned
Motorcycles sit entire seasons with tenders on. As stated by others "BUY A GOOD ONE". and since the HF special was mentioned- yea avoid that.. it's lacks the "brain" of a good unit. I've tried them on generator batteries- all died once unplugged..
APEowner
Well-known member
Both the race car and my motorcycle are connected to BatteryTender Jrs whenever they're parked in the shop.
Lonnies Performance
Well-known member
Keep in mind a Battery Tender is designed to be left on, whereas many so called trickle chargers will go down to a very low current, also but have the capability to charge with considerable current (20a or so). A malfunction in one of these could boil a battery, but I doubt a tender with 1-3a max could hurt anything.
My motorcycle has had a Tender on it continuously & the batteries last about 10 years. Not bad for a 3yr battery.
My motorcycle has had a Tender on it continuously & the batteries last about 10 years. Not bad for a 3yr battery.
Using the term battery tender, generically, can lead to confusion. The name rightfully belongs to the Deltran series of small multistep chargers that charge at .75 to1.25 amps and charge at constant current, then constant voltage and then float charge. A battery can stay on them indefinitely. The term is often applied to cheap trickle chargers that charge at constant low current and in time will boil a battery dry. However, there are other good "tenders" like the C-tech that are safe for continuous use. I just replaced a battery that lasted 11 years on a 1.25 amp Battery Tender Plus. All little battery minders are not Battery Tenders.
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i don't get why a person would recommend a good battery maintainer and then use a cheap timer in conjunction with it. how is safer to have more connections and things turning off and on?
put on a decent one and forget it. check the battery once a month if you are concerned,
put on a decent one and forget it. check the battery once a month if you are concerned,
Hilltopmasonry
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+1
I agree
Been using a tender for a few years when I store my 15 Camaro for winter and never had problem.
Older cars were ok to store for a while since there was no electronics in them but my Camaro will go dead after 3-4 weeks. Don’t know if that normal or not
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