Batter Tender Questions

[stevef1972z]

Anyone had problems with thier battery after using Battery Tender?

My wife got me a Battery Tender, the smart chipped charger that is supposed to keep your battery charged when the car is not in use without over charging your battery. I have a new battery I purchased last year, but in the winter months here in the St. Louis Metro area we get snow and they put tons and tons of salt down so I do not drive the Z much and my garage is not heated. I went down today to start the car, it hasnt been started in about a month, and I wanted to get everything spun over and circulated. No go, low battery voltage. I broke out my larger standard charger and the battery was taking 10amp charge showing about 30% of charge.

I do not know if it is damaged yet as it is still on the charger, but it seems rather odd that the battery was that low, with the charger on it showing full charge. I plan on charging it to full and load testing it.

Has anyone run into this type of situation using the Battery Tender?

[=Enigma=]

Well that really sucks. Sorry to hear that. I've had a new Optima on one of these for over a year and I will be really pissed if the battery is ruined. The model I have is a double charger and it seems to keep the 4runner battery charged up between drives.

[Unkle]

Did you disconnect the car's battery cables before using the tender ?

[stevef1972z]

No the cables were not disconnected per instructions, you leave it all connected, the Tender has a cable connecter you simply pull apart and drive away. No the car does not drain the battery on its own any other time, there are no shorts drawing amperage when the key is off.

[zcar70]

I've used the battery tender on my 350Z since Dec. of 2002 when I got the car. We also get tons of snow here in western NY so my Zs sit from November to April every winter.

The 350Z still has the original battery and I have never had an issue. Holds a charge like new and starts right up every spring.

I don't use the tender on my 240, I remove the battery and bring it inside every winter. The 350's computer requires power or it sends out a fault code after 72 hours which needs to be reset at a dealer, thus using the battery tender.

This is my eighth season using the Battery Tender, no issues whatsoever. Perhaps your battery has a dead cell?

[Darrel]

ok, bear with me here. Watch nat'l lampoons christmas vacation when Clark was trying to get the lights to light up. Could the battery tender be hooked up to the garage lights?

Yeah, I know I don't have enough to do today.

[Chino 240Z]

I use a 2-port Tender to charge 2 Optima batteries, one for the Z and one for the trailer. I just plug them in for maybe a couple days, once a month till the signal light says fully charged then put the charger back on the shelf. The Tender and 2 batteries purchased in 2002. Never had any problems.... knock on wood!

[stevef1972z]

Darrel, there is power to the charger all the time.

It seems from those who are using the Tender have stepped up to the Optima, something I might have to do, a yellow one would look good under my hood!

Battery chared with the old reliable Sears charger got the battery up to charge, and I got the car started and run today. I left it with no charger connected tonight, and I will check it in the morning after I check on the 24 Hours of Daytona race. That way I can see if the battery held a charge. Down to single digits tonight so that should be a good test.

[Murf300]

This year my 10 year old Battery Tender died. Plug it in a use a Volt meter to check the voltage coming out of the Tender. Mine had no output. Took it to a friend and found that the output transistor was bad. These things have a long warranty so you should be able to get it fixed or replaced where you purchased it.

[ajmcforester]

Batteries do not like to be stored. I've used a battery tender for 7 years and my Dad 5. The problem might have been before you started to use one, my Dad's Corvette would kill a battery every year while in storage, so we were replacing it all the time. Since getting the battery tender my Dad has not had to replace his battery. The slow drain does more damage than anything, you don't need to disconnect you battery tender I have mine wires wired into my Z so I just reach under the passenger side fender to plug it in. If it isn't out it is plugged in. I need to get one for my FJ Cruiser since I can now park in front of a garage. I have a work vehicle so I only drive my vehicles for pleasure and personal things so sometimes my FJ sits for a week or two:)

[Unkle]

So the reason I asked if the battery cables were unplugged is : some tenders,

like my Optimate 3's , have a recovery mode to ''renew'' sulfated plates before it

starts it's charge / float mode . New vehicles require a certain voltage to

maintain the ECU memory . The unit senses that the battery is still connected

to a vehicle's wiring circuit which effectively offers a lower electrical resitstance than the battery on it's own . No damage will occur to the newer car's

battery or vehicle electronics if it isn't removed , but the recovery mode won't

function at all (thus no charge ). My '73 Vette killed batteries as well ( probably the clock ) but because it was ''old'' (no computer ) I left it connected. My FX45 however needed the battery disconnected ( both have red top Optimas ).

You can reflash the ECU manually if you get any fault codes on that vehicle , no need

to bring it to a dealer . ( re the guy with the G35 or 350Z ).

Edited January 31, 2010 by Unkle