Could you recommend me a decent AGM battery charger?

[Pete C]

How long was your battery dead for ? There is a good chance it has been damaged it left dead for too long.
If the Ctek says it is fully charged, then you don't need to go out for a run. In fact, due to the way modern alternators work, the battery may come back less charged then when you started the drive.
How long did you leave it before the battery died ?

Pete

 

[monsieurblack]

Hi Pete

Thanks for post. Tricky to say with 100% certainty due to all this lockdown and minimal driving but we did limited mileage in it over the past month/six weeks (handful of short trips) and two weeks ago shuffled cars on the drive so I could give it a good wash.

So parked up back on the drive two weeks ago and noticed Friday it was dead. That’s pretty much two weeks on the nose from last ‘driving’ it and noticing battery was dead. Basically couldn’t unlock the vehicle via remote etc.

 

[monsieurblack]

Meant to add...you mention the battery could well be damaged. Is there a good way to check/test for this? Other than trial and error

More than happy to get a new battery at some point but want to make sure there’s not any wiring issues overall before committing to a new one and possibly have it go dead on me again.

open to advice for sure. Thanks

 

[CAB]

That doesn't sound unusual, short trips won't charge it, and they can drain in 2-3 weeks.

 

[monsieurblack]

Ah really? That seems such a super short time for it to go flat.

I’ve never had any car I’ve owned do that and guess that’s why I mentioned looking at investigating and looking into what could be draining it seemingly so quickly (for me/my experience).

But is that a common thing you’re saying with the Transporters generally then? Is there anything in particular that makes them drain quicker than other vehicles that I should/could be looking into?

Feels like I might have lots to learn!

 

[CAB]

Ah really? That seems such a super short time for it to go flat.

I’ve never had any car I’ve owned do that and guess that’s why I mentioned looking at investigating and looking into what could be draining it seemingly so quickly (for me/my experience).

But is that a common thing you’re saying with the Transporters generally then? Is there anything in particular that makes them drain quicker than other vehicles that I should/could be looking into?

Feels like I might have lots to learn!

Not an expert myself, but noticed it on my van and others confirmed, have a search on the forum. I got the same Ctek to combat the issue

 

[YellowHound]

That doesn't sound unusual, short trips won't charge it, and they can drain in 2-3 weeks.

Yep, roughly the same time to drain for me too.

 

[Pete C]

Mine is fine for 5-6 weeks.

Pete

 

[monsieurblack]

Thanks again everyone.

having never owned a van before I do find it odd, but guess if it’s the same/similar for a lot of owners then it might have to be considered ’the norm’ ?

have to say it’s made me a little nervous. So once the battery is fully charged I’ll have to do some monitoring to see just how long it takes to drain etc so I know what I’m dealing with.

Will also look to get the overall health of the battery checked out to see if replacing it might help improve things a little.

 

[CAB]

Thanks again everyone.

having never owned a van before I do find it odd, but guess if it’s the same/similar for a lot of owners then it might have to be considered ’the norm’ ?

have to say it’s made me a little nervous. So once the battery is fully charged I’ll have to do some monitoring to see just how long it takes to drain etc so I know what I’m dealing with.

Will also look to get the overall health of the battery checked out to see if replacing it might help improve things a little.

Try one of these.

Dual USB Car Charger - JEBSENS Car Voltage Meter Car Charger with Two USB Ports, 4.8A / 24W, LED Display Built-in Safety Protection Fast Charging Compatible with All Smartphones and Tablets: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike

Dual USB Car Charger - JEBSENS Car Voltage Meter Car Charger with Two USB Ports, 4.8A / 24W, LED Display Built-in Safety Protection Fast Charging Compatible with All Smartphones and Tablets: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike

www.amazon.co.uk

Was going to say they are cheap enough, but have gone up by 50%

Easy way to monitor the battery. There are also Bluetooth solutions, search the forum for @Dellmassive battery monitoring.

 

[monsieurblack]

Cheers for that. Does look good.

Was looking at the CTEK ‘cigarette lighter’ cable CTEK 40-165 Battery charge indicator with 12 V Comfort connector 22 cm so it could give me an indication of charge and allow me to plug in right there through the connector.

Be good if there was a hybrid dongle though as the one you linked to has a digital readout and doesn’t loose me my USB ports that I currently use the socket for, so does look like a good solution.

 

[CAB]

Cheers for that. Does look good.

Was looking at the CTEK ‘cigarette lighter’ cable CTEK 40-165 Battery charge indicator with 12 V Comfort connector 22 cm so it could give me an indication of charge and allow me to plug in right there through the connector.

Be good if there was a hybrid dongle though as the one you linked to has a digital readout and doesn’t loose me my USB ports that I currently use the socket for, so does look like a good solution.

When the van is sat for a while I hang the Ctek from it's mains cable looped around the grab handle so I can see it through the window, also have a 12v doubler stuck in the top socket, so the USB voltmeter sits on the dash and again, can see it from my front door step.

Would be a pain if I used it often, but as a campervan it will be every fortnight at most, vaccine permitting

If it was more frequently used I would get a more permanent install, but then I probably wouldn't have the problem

 

[monsieurblack]

Ha nice!

love your solution

think I’ll look at getting one of the cigarette socket battery read outs and/or the CTEK traffic light adapter too.

So pleased that the CTEK MXS 5.0 has bought my van back to life and definitely going to plugging it whenever we’re stopping anywhere.

currently plugged directly to battery but think long term will be via the 12v socket in the dashboard for a more convenient solution.

hopefully get back to the list of ‘things to do on the van’ now we’ve had this little unexpected entry!

 

[monsieurblack]

Hi. Just an update to say I went ahead and got a cigarette lighter charge indicator (CTEK 56-870).

it has the three LEDs to indicate charge levels. Got it so I could, at a glance, look at when I might need to be topping up the battery and the benefit of also charging via the internal socket, instead of popping the hood.

anyway, unfortunately it appears pretty much worthless. I mean it lets me charge via the cigarette socket, so there’s that part of it but the notification/charge indication just seems useless.

Green LED illuminated when charged/plugged in, but second I switched off the charger once battery was fully charged it just flashes red So yup, it works for 50% of its purpose. Ha ha.

was imaging it would remain green for a couple of days at least, before flashing amber so I could look to top it up but nope, immediately flashes red.

So I’ll just have to monitor it by guessing when it might be going flat as before. No doubt have to pony up the cash for a new battery at some point though as not enjoying the anxiety of feeling it may or may not start, especially when the family is all ‘ready to go’ somewhere.

others may have a different experience but thought it was worth posting and updating you all on how i’s behaving on my setup. Cheers

 

[CAB]

Hi. Just an update to say I went ahead and got a cigarette lighter charge indicator (CTEK 56-870).

it has the three LEDs to indicate charge levels. Got it so I could, at a glance, look at when I might need to be topping up the battery and the benefit of also charging via the internal socket, instead of popping the hood.

anyway, unfortunately it appears pretty much worthless. I mean it lets me charge via the cigarette socket, so there’s that part of it but the notification/charge indication just seems useless.

Green LED illuminated when charged/plugged in, but second I switched off the charger once battery was fully charged it just flashes red So yup, it works for 50% of its purpose. Ha ha.

was imaging it would remain green for a couple of days at least, before flashing amber so I could look to top it up but nope, immediately flashes red.

So I’ll just have to monitor it by guessing when it might be going flat as before. No doubt have to pony up the cash for a new battery at some point though as not enjoying the anxiety of feeling it may or may not start, especially when the family is all ‘ready to go’ somewhere.

others may have a different experience but thought it was worth posting and updating you all on how i’s behaving on my setup. Cheers

Here's mine



Got the Ctek Mxs 5.0 in the cig plug, but have a splitter and USB voltmeter on the dash top plug, I can see it from the front door

 

[monsieurblack]

Thanks mate.

I know you mentioned that one before but hoped I’d get away with a slightly simpler ‘read-out’ and combined with a charging input all-in-one too it’d work out OK. Clearly not!

Will likely get one of those now. Never stop spending on these...

 

[BigDean]

Morning all,

I won't be using my van for a few weeks (T6.1), no leisure battery. Experience tells me it will need some kind of maintenance, so.....

I have a Victron charger (7A which will also do 2A) that I intend to leave connected with a timer socket.

What settings would you suggest, my thoughts are either:

1) 2A on 24/7

or

2) 7A on once a week for a few hours

What do you think?

Thanks
Dean

 

[Pete C]

What model charger is it ?

Pete

 

[BigDean]

What model charger is it ?

Pete

The SmartBlue IP65

Thanks

 

[Pete C]

I have one of those. You can leave it connected permanently according to the manual, as it has an intelligent charging cycle.
The low amps mode is for charging small capacity batteries. It will limit current itself, so no worries there.

Pete