topping up battery

After a few issues with one of the batteries out of the 101 (which has recently been running the Disco) I got around to checking the levels in the 6 compartments.

The battery was working OK, firing the car without problems, but not holding charge when the car was laid up for, say, 2 weeks or just doing very short journeys. I've had it on the charger for over a week and it hasn't gone to the 'maintaining' light, still on 'charging'.

To top it up, I've just added exactly 2 litres of deionised water. This seems to be about half the capacity of the battery - is there any chance that the battery will come good again? Or should I just bite the bullet and buy a new one?

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 '77 101FC Ambulance '95 Discovery V8i

Reply to
Tim Hobbs
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I had a similar problem and 'fixed' it in the short term by pulse charging it, then boost charging it. Worked fine for Y2K show season.

I used a serious heavy duty charger. If you're passing drop in and pick it up (lighter than the jack!).

I did eventually replace both batteries with Optimas, though - and have the dedicated Optima charger, which is well neat! :-)

Martyn

Reply to
Mother

The obvious answer is to bin it and get a red top Optima (or one of the slightly cheaper Exide alternatives) and I probably will do that. But as I don't desperately need it (I have at least one spare) I thought it would be fun to give it a go.

My charger is just a dull old Halfords job. There have been times when I have let a battery deep cycle and it has just done nothing, but then after several days has magically started charging. I'll let it run for a few more days and see how it gets on.

What's your charger then?

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 '77 101FC Ambulance '95 Discovery V8i

Reply to
Tim Hobbs

A 20A / 180A Absaar - quite old now but kicks out enough to start a

101 on a total flattie!

Martyn

Reply to
Mother

So how do the Exide batteries compare to the Optima ones. I know the Optima are supposed to be "the bee's Knees" but are they worth the extra cost as opposed to regular ones ?

I know it's "horses for Courses" with what people will pay or can afford to pay for a decent battery, i saw the Optima on sale at LRO for around £110 each. My heavy duty Exide on Matilda cost only £35 three years agos. My secondry battery is a Gel based one for Caravans-low maintence. Both could do with being relaced (The old ones run the electric fences up the farm)

Do i fork out £200+ for a pair of optima's or should i go for a cheaper option ?

Reply to
Brevit

I'm beginning to consider putting together a website.

"Gold plating landrover ownership"

Starting with Magnecor plugleads for a car that's running properly

I now think I have to add Optima batteries to the list of things.

What do you reckon? A list of items and suppliers to take a perfectly well working landie and make it work just as well but cost twice as much?

P.

With his tongue fairly firmly in his cheek.

Reply to
Paul S. Brown

I take your point whilst admitting to having Magnecors (and not the cheap ones) on my 101. When the leads go on the Discovery I'll put Magnecors on that too. The 101 also has a very trick distributor, with a red dizzy cap, which matches the red magnecors, which matches the red paintwork. All very silly really.

The one thing I will say is that for the 101 I have a lot of unproven bits that could go wrong at any time, leaving me needing recovery. As I fix things I am getting them properly fixed so I can 'forget about them' and worry about the bits I haven't sorted yet.

For the Discovery, it is my everyday car so I need it to work. So I also take the 'fix it properly' approach. That being so I rarely use secondhand parts, don't use pattern parts if genuine are sensibly priced and notably different and occasionally I will pay through the nose for 'trick bits' depending on the state of my wallet at the time.

If there is a genuine difference in the components then they may be worth paying more for. I think the Optima batteries are questionable

- I know lots of people swear by them but my life rarely depends on my battery so the Exide ones may be much better value and will probably be my choice.

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 '77 101FC Ambulance '95 Discovery V8i

Reply to
Tim Hobbs

In your position, and since neither weight nor volume can be at that much of a premium in a 101(!), I'd spend my 200 quid on a bog-standard battery (£20), an absorption fridge (£135), and 48 cans of Old Speckled Hen :-)

Reply to
QrizB
?

God that sounds like a brilliant option.!!! A couple of the Cheaper Exides and plenty more for the much needed beer. Mind you have just come back from the pub and feeling much better for it.( 5 Pints of Fosters and a double Vodka and coke). The Fridge is a consideration anyhow (to be fitted behind the drivers seat) Old Speckled Hen ....mmmm........ I can taste it now... pure heaven.... Trouble is the 101 has to go to Australia and work out there and i want a reliable Battery. I know i can buy new one etc...but in the long term would it be a better investment to buy the Optrima's? God I don't usually drink and i think this lot has gone to the remains of my brain.... Ha Ha... Mind you Fosters has nothing on Old Specalded Hen.......(I know I work in the pub trade ) It was 30p cheaper in the pub a pint that i went to tonight than the one i normally work in. On sunday i have to get up early to watch the England V's Wales game. Mind you plenty of Beer and available from 9.00am...... Guess who will be legless for a change.....

Reply to
Brevit

In article , Brevit writes

A reliable battery is a well-maintained battery. There's no such thing as a 'maintenance free' liquid electrolyte battery, and even Cyclons (the original lead acid gel cells) can be damaged by abuse. Quality: current technology lead acid batteries use very thin lead plates - partly to keep size and weight to a minimum and partly because of cost. Various strategies are employed, including perforating plates and louvre-ing them, but the bottom line is that there's less tolerance of abuse than there used to be.

Lead acid batteries need to be kept well charged but not massively over-charged, and not left for long periods without charging. For Oz, one of those solar trickle charges might be a good investment - much better value than the difference in price between batteries. You also need to check the electrolyte level regularly (top up only with de-ionized water or sulphuric acid), keep the top scrupulously clean and the terminals greased. Also make sure the cables, solenoid and connections to the starter are as good as possible - tight and clean of corrosion. The lower the resistance of the circuit, the more power is available to actually start the engine, and the less energy used per start, the healthier the battery should remain. It's also worth jacketing the battery (thermally insulating it) in extreme cold weather (not Oz, presumably!). If you can keep it above zero Celsius, it'll work far better, as the chemistry works better if its warmer. I don't know the freezing point of conc. Sulphuric, but it's well below zero - that isn't a problem. If you're expecting extreme heat, carry some deionized water with you, as evaporation can be a problem.

One final point, a hygrometer works far better than anything else as a determinant of battery health. If one or two cells show a noticeably lower charge than the rest, the battery is dying or is already duff. If you'll be far from base, it may be worth carrying one - smaller and lighter than a spare battery, but remember you'll be dipping it in conc Sulphuric - not good for aluminium or steel! Those spiked short-circuit ammeters are bad news - they flatten a healthy battery and will finish-off an ailing one. It might be why battery vendors use them (or I just might be a cynic!).

Regards,

Simonm.

Reply to
SpamTrapSeeSig

and another final point (!) - if it does go flat, trickle charge it,

*don't* blast it with a trillion amps, that will kill it in short order.

Richard

Reply to
richard.watson

The electrolyte is only "conc sulphuric" in a fully charged battery. As the battery discharges, the sulphate is used up to make lead sulphate, and the electrolyte becomes less concentrated.

The nice people at Dynasty Battery:

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that while a fully charged battery shouldn't freeze until-71C/-95F, a flat one might freeze at -7C/+20F.

Reply to
QrizB

In article , QrizB writes

Fair 'nuff, but if it's flat it's no use anyway, and that's a *very* large range of temperature.

For practical purposes it's still sensible to keep the battery from getting too cold - on that we definitely agree.

Regards,

Simonm.

Reply to
SpamTrapSeeSig

On or around Thu, 06 Nov 2003 20:52:37 GMT, SpamTrapSeeSig enlightened us thusly:

yebbut, that's the point of 'em. Properly used, they simulate the heavy current drain of starting the engine, and allow you to look at the voltage while it's doing it. I guess they probably draw about 100A, or some such figure - the voltage should be stable and within certain limits - if the voltage is low or declines visibly, the battery isn't capable of sustained high output, and thus will likely give you problems starting the car. Having said that, no doubt people abuse the results so as to flog you a new battery, but that sort of thing is the fault of the operator.

battery voltage with light load is a good indicator too, I find, and if you have a voltmeter which stays in circuit while you crank the engine, you don't need the spike-thing - watch the voltmeter when cranking, if it goes down to about 9V or so, but sits there, the battery ain't bad. If the voltage is lower than 8, then it's struggling.

conversely, if the engine cranks slowly but the voltage stays at 10V or more, then you've a bad connection somewhere.

Reply to
Austin Shackles

On or around Thu, 06 Nov 2003 22:45:23 GMT, SpamTrapSeeSig enlightened us thusly:

just BTW, not convinced how "conc" the sulphuric is.

battery efficiency drops with temperature, mind - so you need a bigger battery for the same job in cold climates, and also this is why battery sales go up in winter - the battery which was managing fine in warm weather hasn't got enough "go" in cold weather, and the engine oil is thicker too, unless you change to thinner oil in the winter, as I've just done in fact, and as people used to do in the good old days...

Reply to
Austin Shackles

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