yellowchinaman Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 So my battery is dead now and just bought a new one. It's a tiny racing battery from Banner for caterham kit cars. I was surprised that it's died in just 1.5 years so I emailed and asked a few questions from some suppliers and was advised that I should disconeect the battery if the car isn't in use. Also to kept it on a conditioner (not a trickle charger). What does that mean? Now the other question is, more about the faff. After the car starts ituses power from the alternator to keep it running. Does that mean the battery is then isolated and not used aside from heating and stereo? Also the alternator actually charges the battery rite? There is no wire or feed from that alternator to the battery apart from the earthing so how does that work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briano Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 ray my celica got a brand new battery just before its MOT about 4 weeks ago, its not moved since and the battery is flat, seems the gen 6 alarm and imobaliser just drain the thing dead I usually disconnect mine but tbh cause the garage its at are moving it every day i thought it would be fine, obviously not keeping it runnign long enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Clogwyn Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 Racing batteries behave differently to regular batteries. They require a different charge regulation so they don't last long on conventional systems. I can't remember the specifics now I'm afraid though. Your alternator must be feeding something, it's not good practice to have it open circuit! Chances are it runs to the starter motor where the battery is aso connected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver gt Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 ... Now the other question is, more about the faff. After the car starts ituses power from the alternator to keep it running. Does that mean the battery is then isolated and not used aside from heating and stereo? Also the alternator actually charges the battery rite? There is no wire or feed from that alternator to the battery apart from the earthing so how does that work? With the engine running the alternator provides enough power for ALL the electrics plus enough extra to charge the battery as well. If there is more load than the alternator can handle (usually because of extra audio or lights) the alternator warning light will come on, which indicates that the battery is draining rather than charging. The alternator is connected to the battery via the loom. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arizona Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 When i was looking up car covers for the vert the website i found also suggested using a battery conditioner if storing the car. I dont know how they work though as i didnt investigate further yet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowchinaman Posted November 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 (edited) thanks guys. It's the conductor thing I wanted to know about cos its the first I've ever heard of them aside from trickle chargers. Also I've never seen or heard that we had an alternator light before? Edited November 23, 2011 by yellowchinaman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2diffs Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 I have bought a conditioner from ebay, it is tiny and not designed to fast charge a dead battery. Instead the conditioner reverse pulses a low battery to wake it up, it then goes into normal charge mode until the charge rate drops. The circuit then drops to a maintenanance mode which just matches the voltage losses from radio, alarm etc. I have a big heavy duty charger to get a dead battery up to working condition in a hurry. Many people think that an alternator will recover a jump started battery, this is not correct unless you have a long run. An alternator can maintain a battery perfectly but will struggle to recharge a discharged one. The voltage regulator etc work against the requirements by trying to balance the load when you are driving. (This is the simple version it is a bit more complicated in reality.) A cheap trickle charger can kill (cook) a good battery by boiling off the electrolyte,been there done that. I have had some sucess with a cheap caravan type solar charger, it keeps my boat battery maintained when not in use. Halfords, 10years plus and still going strong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craig87 Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 Ray, I have the same battery mate and mine has lasted 3 years so far!! My car stands still most of its life! But then it doesn't power hardly any electronics like yours would so it oes to show the draw the standard car pulls off the battery when standing!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowchinaman Posted November 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 so recommend me a conditioner at a budget?I was using a trickle charger and now given up on the battery so I just bought a new one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazz54 Posted November 24, 2011 Report Share Posted November 24, 2011 The term "conditioner" is ambiguous and may mean different things to different people. I believe it refers to so-called pulsers and I have one which is sold either a kit of parts or ready assembled by a company in Scotland called Courtistown Marine, which I really think does work and serves to break down sulphate deposits which accumulate as a battery ages, or worse still, is unused for a period of time. However, the reality seems to be that alternators operate so that much of the time, your battery is only partially charged (maybe 50-75%), but with an older battery, or if you do lots of short runs, it may even be less. Deep discharging greatly reduces the life of batteries and so every 4-6 weeks, I connect a charger to mine and get them right up to full charge; sometimes they don't need much, other times they will take 15-20 amp hours of charge. Other thing is that if you look after a battery it should last 5-6 years (the OEM ones often last appreciably more), and my view is that when it's clear they are deteriorating, don't mess about; replace them and keep the old one as possible back-up while it still has some life left in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldspeed. Posted November 24, 2011 Report Share Posted November 24, 2011 Optima red top.. All the way.! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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