Considering I do not use my van much, would't it be a good idea if I buy one of those battery chargers? I own some old battery chargers.I was thinking when I am not using my van, I could remove the battery and hook it up to a new floating battery charger.I guess Sears sells some good ones? cuhulin
If you really think this is necessary, just convert one of your old battery chargers to do the job.
You dont have to remove the battery. That is a lot of work for nothing
I was going to suggest a "battery tender" rather than a formal charger. should be cheaper and do the same job
nate
Forgot, another option would be one of those solar panels that sits on the dash and plugs into the cig. lighter. I think VW uses those on cars waiting for delivery, so if you're friendly with the service/prep guys at your local VW dealer you might pick up a couple for free.
nate
I have used a battery charger with an appropriate lamp bulb inserted in series just to maintain charge when the battery has to sit dormant for some weeks.
A 12 volt automotive bulb insures that even if the battery has a dead short, the charger current is limited. If you work out the Ohms law values, you can choose the bulb wattage to give a wide range of "tickler" currents.
It works, and not much could be cheaper.
The old trickle chargers put out about an amp and a half, IIRC, but that could be too much for long term storage.
I used to have a good circuit for a tapering charger which will completely shut off when the battery is fully charged. I haven't seen it around for a while, and never got around to building the thing because I never really needed it.
The battery tender devices do a very good job of keeping your battery clean and topped-up... they will extend your battery life much longer than a conventional trickle-charger because they constantly charge your battery in short pulses, then watch how the battery voltage changes when the pulse stops. Consequently, they optimize the charging rate on the fly.
But... if you never went out to find your car hard to start... there is no reason to bother with it.
--scott
A battery tender,,, maybe that's what I was thinking about? I like to buy a new gadget once in a while. cuhulin
I have a half dozen of these HF float chargers hooked up to my low usage vehicles; pretty much ended my battery problems.
The Sears store at the shopping mall is just across Highway 80 from me, about 275 foot steps from doggy's couch.In a few days, I will drive over there and see what Sears has in the way of floating battery chargers.I am not going to order anything long distance if I can buy what I want locally. cuhulin
Your choice, good luck finding what you want at Sears for $7.
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