Battery Tender Jr. connection question

[morgal48]

So you use the cigarette lighter to connect the battery tender to the battery you are maintaining. Drawing energy from the battery to inject energy into the battery. How does that work? Buck and boost internals in the tender?

[Chuck W.]

Originally Posted by morgal48

So you use the cigarette lighter to connect the battery tender to the battery you are maintaining. Drawing energy from the battery to inject energy into the battery. How does that work? Buck and boost internals in the tender?

I had wondered the same thing.... but for the last 10 years I have used a Battery Tendered plugged into the cigarette lighter without issue. Perhaps the cigarette lighter has to handle a heavy load to work thus can handle a the Battery Tender.

[paulofto]

Originally Posted by morgal48

So you use the cigarette lighter to connect the battery tender to the battery you are maintaining. Drawing energy from the battery to inject energy into the battery. How does that work? Buck and boost internals in the tender?

Ummmm. No. The battery tender gets plugged into the lighter socket at one end and into a 120 volt outlet at the other end. The tender takes 120 Volts, converts to 12 volts and feeds it to the battery via the lighter socket. No magic here.

That said, I have my tender attached directly to the battery and I simply disconnect it at the cowl. Just like Keith Newby.

[joecal]

[QUOTE=morgal48;532267]So you use the cigarette lighter to connect the battery tender to the battery you are maintaining. Drawing energy from the battery to inject energy into the battery. How does that work? Buck and boost internals in the tender?[/QU

The battery tender is plugged into an electrical outlet, and is connected to the cigarette lighter for charging. You beat me to it,lol. I use the clips but yes the ring terminals would be a better choice, I used mine on a motorcycle I sold. I have a battery cut off switch installed on the battery, so in the winter months I disconnect the battery, while it's charging.

[pidj]

Is there any issue to leaving the battery connected and running the charger into the cig lighter (otherwise you'll need to recode etc.)? I believe the CTEK 7002 will not overcharge the battery (I have a Porsche branded one that I understand WILL overcharge the battery).

[paulofto]

This is what I use from Princess Auto.

https://www.princessauto.com/en/detail/spf1-automatic-battery-charger-extender/A-p8487332e

I picked up 2 using one on my Boxster full time all winter and during driving season if the car sits for any length of time and one on my Fusion since it isn't driven as much in the winter. These will not overcharge and have proven very reliable.

I got them both when Princess had them on sale for about $45.00 CDN I believe a couple of years ago.

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by pidj

Is there any issue to leaving the battery connected and running the charger into the cig lighter (otherwise you'll need to recode etc.)? I believe the CTEK 7002 will not overcharge the battery (I have a Porsche branded one that I understand WILL overcharge the battery).

Depends upon the quality of the maintainer. Good units, like the Ctek, can be left plugged in indefinitely, other lesser units may not actually be maintainers, but are "trickel chargers", which never shut off and can cook the battery over time.

[morgal48]

Originally Posted by joecal

The battery tender is plugged into an electrical outlet, and is connected to the cigarette lighter for charging. You beat me to it,lol. I use the clips but yes the ring terminals would be a better choice, I used mine on a motorcycle I sold. I have a battery cut off switch installed on the battery, so in the winter months I disconnect the battery, while it's charging.

Thanks! That never occurred to me. I use ring terminals on all mine. Old people linear thinking.

[joecal]

Originally Posted by morgal48

Thanks! That never occurred to me. I use ring terminals on all mine. Old people linear thinking.

You're welcome! I need to buy a set of ring terminals, they're inexpensive. Yeah, I'm an old person too.

[DaveNW]

Anybody know how long a normal charging session for a Battery Tender Jr generally takes? Battery Tender instructions say a fully-discharged battery will take approximately 16 hours to recharge. For those of you who have used one, is this a normal number, or can it take longer?

I put the ring terminals on my Boxster battery yesterday. The tender has a single status light with four modes: Red flashing indicates a battery with too low a voltage, or ring terminals not properly connected. Solid red indicates normal connection, and battery is charging. Blinking green indicates more than 80% charged, and can be disconnected. Solid green is fully charged, and the tender has shifted to maintenance mode.

When I first connected the tender, the status light went to solid red. I expected that, and knew that things would be charging for awhile. But it's now been more than 16 hours, with no change. I don't know how to gauge whether my battery is just slow, or if there is a problem. Everything seems normal, but... ?

Yeah, yeah, I know: First-world problem.

Dave