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Winter Storage. Keep battery under charge or disconnect?
Hey Everyone! Every year I prep the car and disconnect the battery over winter. It's not really a big deal but a bit of a drag come spring time to reconnect and reconfigure the few things needed. This year I’d like to keep he battery under charge but don’t know if that’s advisable while under the car cover? I've had my winter car plugged in all summer and didn't have a single issue but then again it wasn't under a cover.
I hope this isn’t a stupid question but are there any risks with keeping the battery under charge while under the car cover? Or am I just over thinking it?
This is the charger I use:
Thanks in advance.
David
Last edited by DAVIDYR1; Nov 24, 2017 at 10:45 AM.
Much better option is to use a smart charger as pictured above, I have been using a CTEK 3300 for 7yrs now with out issue, GM sells same unit for Corvettes that plugs into your cigarette lighter.
The only issue I can think of is that when a battery is charging it gives off hydrogen gas, whether or not it could accumulate under the cover, I don't know.
I've had my C6 under a car cover and on a Battery Maintainer (Battery Tender Plus) since 2010, and I.ve had no issues whatsoever. I keep the hood unlatched and the battery tender cables run down the passenger side under the cover. BTW, the battery charger/ maintainer that you have from CTC is an excellent unit.
Since I didn't have anyone at the time that could keep a close eye on my car with a battery maintainer attached ... I opted to disconnect the battery altogether, and then put a car cover on the car.
When I got home a year later, I just charged the battery up fully and then re-connected it.
I find it much easier to just disconnect the negative lead of my '08 when I store it over the winter. In the Spring I use a CTEK 3300 to bring the battery up to snuff before I crank.
I can't see any harm keeping the battery hooked up to a battery tender (not a charger) over the winter. But why run the tender for 4 or 5 months unnecessarily?
Also, I'm not sure what state the battery tender would come back in if there was a power failure or surge.
I do use my CTEK for other vehicles, which is another reason why I just disconnect the battery.
I live near Kingston. What part of Ontario are you from?
M....
Last edited by Mike Green9; Nov 27, 2017 at 04:24 PM.
Reason: addition
I recommend a good quality battery tender. Don't need it on full time to keep the battery up. I have mine on a timer and only have the tender powered up 2-3 hours a day.
I find it much easier to just disconnect the negative lead of my '08 when I store it over the winter. In the Spring I use a CTEK 3300 to bring the battery up to snuff before I crank.
I can't see any harm keeping the battery hooked up to a battery tender (not a charger) over the winter. But why run the tender for 4 or 5 months unnecessarily?
Also, I'm not sure what state the battery tender would come back in if there was a power failure or surge.
I do use my CTEK for other vehicles, which is another reason why I just disconnect the battery.
I live near Kingston. What part of Ontario are you from?
M....
If there is even a very short power outage ctek 3300 will turn off and not assume the previous state if charging. So you come home after a month of business travel and your battery is dead. Ask me how i know. I ended up trading it in for ctek mus 4.3. That one assumes charging after power comes back on.
I am using a Black & Decker battery maintainer that is also a 6 amp battery charger.
You can keep it connected for an indefinate period of time in order to keep the battery always charged ... but since it is 6 amps, it can recharge a completely dead battery overnight.
Black & Decker model: BC6BDW
Use with AGM, GEL, or WET automotive or marine 12V batteries
Built-in circuit protection guards against overcharging, reverse polarity, and short circuiting
If there is even a very short power outage ctek 3300 will turn off and not assume the previous state if charging. So you come home after a month of business travel and your battery is dead. Ask me how i know. I ended up trading it in for ctek mus 4.3. That one assumes charging after power comes back on.
That is a good point because you have to set the mode when you hook up the 3300, so if you unplug or power goes out you have to reset it. I have not had that issue yet, but if I was going away for a long period of time I would unhook my battery.
If there is even a very short power outage ctek 3300 will turn off and not assume the previous state if charging. So you come home after a month of business travel and your battery is dead. Ask me how i know. I ended up trading it in for ctek mus 4.3. That one assumes charging after power comes back on.
I just tested my 3300 with a power outage test & the light for the car stays on when the power is shut down, & automatically goes back into charge mode when power is restored, so maybe the 3300 you had was defective.
I use a battery tender on my car which is driven on most weekends. I have it on 24/7 . I have been doing this to my older corvette for years and on my C6 for almost 2 years without a problem.
From: Currently somewhere in IL,IN,KY,TN,MO,AR,MS,AL, or FL
Reading the manual for your charger - https://www.scribd.com/document/2442...ger-011-1519-6 it is primarily a big ol' charger that thinks it can just turn into a trickle charger to protect the battery. I don't know I would trust it to no forget what it was supposed to do and trickle too much or go into charge mode. As everyone is telling you, you need a battery tender/maintainer. Disconnecting the battery will keep it from going dead in a week or so but it will still self-discharge over the winter. You need a battery tender/maintainer. There is no problem with hydrogen if you have a battery tender/maintainer. That is only an issue if you are trying to use a charger that has so much power it is capable of charging a battery in a short period and even starting a car as a battery tender/maintainer. The SLOWER you charge a battery the less damage you do to it.
Winter Storage. Keep battery under charge or disconnect?
