Battery Tender Question

tr7driver

Member

Sep 5, 2006

117

3

19

Illinois

Apr 15, 2011

#1

• Apr 15, 2011

• #1

I bought a die hard battery tender at Sears last fall. Hooked it up to my 05 GT. The lights came on and it worked its way up to the carged setting. A few weeks later I went to start the car and the battery was flat dead, not enough power to make the window move when I opened the door. I took it back to sears and exchanged it for a new one. Last week I went to start the car and the same thing happened. Even thougth the tender indicated the battery was charged, it was flat dead.

I jump started the car, drove down to the auto parts store and had them check the battery (its about 2 years old) and it tested fine.

So, what's up with the die hard tender? Is it worth the effort to get a replacement or is there a better alternative out there I need to buy to keep my battery charged?

 

arcwcb

Member

Oct 26, 2009

417

2

19

Pennsylvania

Apr 15, 2011

#2

• Apr 15, 2011

• #2

Do you really not drive the car enough that you need a battery tender?

 

Az Pete

10 Year Member

Mar 30, 2005

711

18

49

Panama City, Fl.

Apr 15, 2011

#3

• Apr 15, 2011

• #3

Not sure about your tender but make sure you use one that monitors the level and will shut off when charged. Also, tenders will dry out a battery.....check the fluid if it is not a maintenance free type. Also, as asked/mentioned....drive the car more...lol I use whatever tender the local parts houses sell.....when I need one which is very seldom.....I use an EverStart on my RV coach battery....been there for three years now.

 

jaybertx

Member

Apr 18, 2003

387

1

18

Sarasota, FL

Apr 15, 2011

#4

• Apr 15, 2011

• #4

I've also read (in boating circles) that even auto-shutoff tenders don't really do the job super well so the recommendation is to put the auto-shutoff tender on a timer and let it do it's thing only for a few hours a day. This is very non-specific and I've never had to do it so take it for what it's worth.

 

streethorse

15 Year Member

Oct 8, 2005

1,042

6

58

Dallas Texas

Apr 15, 2011

#5

• Apr 15, 2011

• #5

tr7driver said:

Is it worth the effort to get a replacement or is there a better alternative out there I need to buy to keep my battery charged?

Click to expand...

A better alternative is to drive the car more. But It could be other things besides the Tender....... Cables, Alternator, parasitic drain..... Electrical
problems can be tough to solve, but really you should try driving it every day
for a week or two and see what happens.

 

tr7driver

Member

Sep 5, 2006

117

3

19

Illinois

Apr 15, 2011

#6

• Apr 15, 2011

• #6

I don't drive it in the winter

With all the salt and snow on the roads here I don't drive it much at all between november and march, I have a 4wd truck to get around in. When I drive it regularlly in the summer, it will stay charged fine unless I park it for a couple of weeks. I just wonder why the tender isn't doing the job or if there is something with the car that requires a different tender.

 

Y

YellowRipper

New Member

Apr 17, 2011

3

0

0

Colchester CT.

Apr 17, 2011

#7

• Apr 17, 2011

• #7

I have the same battery tender and it has let me down in the past. You need to make sure your getting a good connection when you use it. Put a volt meter on the battery terminals and you should see aprox. 13.1 volts. When mine failed the green float light was on but the battery was dead. Now for the bad news, every time your battery discharges completely you lose aprox. 25% of the reserve capacity of the battery.

 

SkyRender

Member

Feb 11, 2011

93

1

8

Frederick, MD

Apr 18, 2011

#8

• Apr 18, 2011

• #8

I use a Die Hard battery tender on another car that I have and I've never had one issue. How are you hooking the tender into the car? Are you hooking it directly to the battery, or are you using the cigarette lighter adapter?

 

tr7driver

Member

Sep 5, 2006

117

3

19

Illinois

Apr 18, 2011

#9

• Apr 18, 2011

• #9

I put the ring connectors on the terminals and plug into those. I have also tried just using the aligator clips on the battery. I haven't tried the lighter connection.

 

642mx

Member

Feb 23, 2011

145

6

18

Apr 18, 2011

#10

• Apr 18, 2011

• #10

I use the Yuasa brand on a couple of my batteries and really like them. Its the only charger that hasn't dried out a battery on me. Here ya go: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/YUASA-Battery-Charger-Maintainer-Smart-Charger-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem2a0fbbb487QQitemZ180652586119QQptZMotorsQ5fATVQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

 

B

black06pony

New Member

Jan 30, 2011

6

0

0

Apr 19, 2011

#11

• Apr 19, 2011

• #11

I use the Battery Tender Plus and it works great. I've only used it on my car once to charge the battery from dead. I don't drive my car all that much. I've been using it on my motorcycle for 7 years. I don't ride the bike more than once or twice a month but I keep it on the charger. The charger will shut off when the battery is 100% charged and keep a trickle on it to make sure it stays charged. I have kept the same battery in the bike for 7 years and it tests fine.