-
This site contains eBay affiliate links for which Sea-Doo Forum may be compensated.
Battery tender?
- Thread starter MrDigitaL
- Start date
- Status
Battery....
If you were able to start your ski before leaving the ramp and it went dead on the water, you need to be concerned with your charging system. The common cause for a failure to charge is the rectifier/regulator. You need to do a charging system test. This is done with the motor running and a multi meter (you can get a cheap one at Walmart). Test with the ski off. The reading should be around 12. Then, start ski and test. The reading should be around 13.5 to 14. If you see no change, check your fuses. Make sure all your cables are clean and tight.
If the battery is suspect, take if to Advanced Auto or Autozone for testing.:cheers:
If you were able to start your ski before leaving the ramp and it went dead on the water, you need to be concerned with your charging system. The common cause for a failure to charge is the rectifier/regulator. You need to do a charging system test. This is done with the motor running and a multi meter (you can get a cheap one at Walmart). Test with the ski off. The reading should be around 12. Then, start ski and test. The reading should be around 13.5 to 14. If you see no change, check your fuses. Make sure all your cables are clean and tight.
If the battery is suspect, take if to Advanced Auto or Autozone for testing.:cheers:
sporsterjoel
New Member
If your charging system and battery are good you shouldnt need a battery tender. If the battery goes dead while its sitting try un hooking the + wire then hook it up when you go to use it and it should start. also boosting it can damage the ecu.
Playing it safe!....
Joel, your playin it safe. Which is what I do. I always disconnect my negative lead from my battery, since it's a simple thumb screw. But the PWC's use a motorcycle type battery that has phillips head type screws that connect with that little flat nut type fastener from the bottom, that always seems to fall out into the hull somewhere.....:ack:
The charging system is set up to run 14 volts DC to the battery and the electrical component of the engine. We are always told that a battery charger will damage these systems. This isn't entirely true. The damage comes from amps, not volts. Most battery chargers use 5, 10 and upwards of 45 amp charging rates. This will likely damage your electrical system. My charger has these three selection switches. The 45 amp rating is designed solely for starting.
I looked at these battery tenders and from all I've read, they appear to be safe for our electronics because of their low amps used in maintaining the battery and the "float" setting that is automatic when the battery is fully charged. This prevents gassing of the battery.
Here is an excerpt I pulled from this website to explain a little more about them:.........http://batterytender.com/why_batterytender.php
All Battery Tender battery chargers are designed to fully charge and maintain a wide range of styles of lead acid batteries in ways that avoid the potential damaging effects that can be caused by most trickle chargers. All Battery Tender battery chargers have the five following characteristics:
Fully Automatic: At the end of the regular charger cycle, every Battery Tender battery charger automatically switches its output voltage to a safe, storage or float level that eliminates the need to constantly check on the conditions of the battery.
Full Output Power at Low AC Line Conditions: Battery Tender battery chargers will deliver full output power with input AC line voltages as low as 90 VAC. (Excluding chargers with output current of 2 amps or less).
Zero to Minimal Current Draw from Batteries: When the AC power is disconnected, most Battery Tender battery chargers draw zero current from the battery. A few of the higher power models draw less than 1 milliamp from the battery.
Compact, Lightweight Construction: At any given power level, Battery Tender battery chargers offer some of the highest charging power density in the industry.
Visual Indication of Charge State: Every Battery Tender battery charger has some combination of colored lights to indicate the progress of charging.
Battery Tender battery chargers offer a variety of power levels: 7.5, 15, 70, 300 & 600 watts, maximum charge currents: 0.75, 1.25, 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 15 & 20 amps, and nominal battery voltages: 6, 12, 24, 36 & 48 volts. Various charging algorithms are available to acommodate the wide range of lead acid battery styles: Flooded, Sealed, VRLA, GEL & AGM. Check with the factory for the combination of power, current, voltage and battery style that best meets your needs. Battery Tender battery chargers are equipped with a variety of safety and interconnect options, not available on all models. Safety options include: spark free operation, reverse polarity protection and continuous short circuit protection.
If you'd like to research this info further about how the battery tender is different than the trickle charger, .......Follow the above cited link.:cheers:
Joel, your playin it safe. Which is what I do. I always disconnect my negative lead from my battery, since it's a simple thumb screw. But the PWC's use a motorcycle type battery that has phillips head type screws that connect with that little flat nut type fastener from the bottom, that always seems to fall out into the hull somewhere.....:ack:
The charging system is set up to run 14 volts DC to the battery and the electrical component of the engine. We are always told that a battery charger will damage these systems. This isn't entirely true. The damage comes from amps, not volts. Most battery chargers use 5, 10 and upwards of 45 amp charging rates. This will likely damage your electrical system. My charger has these three selection switches. The 45 amp rating is designed solely for starting.
I looked at these battery tenders and from all I've read, they appear to be safe for our electronics because of their low amps used in maintaining the battery and the "float" setting that is automatic when the battery is fully charged. This prevents gassing of the battery.
Here is an excerpt I pulled from this website to explain a little more about them:.........http://batterytender.com/why_batterytender.php
All Battery Tender battery chargers are designed to fully charge and maintain a wide range of styles of lead acid batteries in ways that avoid the potential damaging effects that can be caused by most trickle chargers. All Battery Tender battery chargers have the five following characteristics:
Fully Automatic: At the end of the regular charger cycle, every Battery Tender battery charger automatically switches its output voltage to a safe, storage or float level that eliminates the need to constantly check on the conditions of the battery.
Full Output Power at Low AC Line Conditions: Battery Tender battery chargers will deliver full output power with input AC line voltages as low as 90 VAC. (Excluding chargers with output current of 2 amps or less).
Zero to Minimal Current Draw from Batteries: When the AC power is disconnected, most Battery Tender battery chargers draw zero current from the battery. A few of the higher power models draw less than 1 milliamp from the battery.
Compact, Lightweight Construction: At any given power level, Battery Tender battery chargers offer some of the highest charging power density in the industry.
Visual Indication of Charge State: Every Battery Tender battery charger has some combination of colored lights to indicate the progress of charging.
Battery Tender battery chargers offer a variety of power levels: 7.5, 15, 70, 300 & 600 watts, maximum charge currents: 0.75, 1.25, 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 15 & 20 amps, and nominal battery voltages: 6, 12, 24, 36 & 48 volts. Various charging algorithms are available to acommodate the wide range of lead acid battery styles: Flooded, Sealed, VRLA, GEL & AGM. Check with the factory for the combination of power, current, voltage and battery style that best meets your needs. Battery Tender battery chargers are equipped with a variety of safety and interconnect options, not available on all models. Safety options include: spark free operation, reverse polarity protection and continuous short circuit protection.
If you'd like to research this info further about how the battery tender is different than the trickle charger, .......Follow the above cited link.:cheers:
sporsterjoel
New Member
yup chances of a problem from boosting it are slim but it can happen. Reason i said to un hook the battery was if he puts it away with a good fully charged battery and comes back to a dead one then there maybe a draw in the system. just a suggestion to temp fix the dead battery problem instead of having to by a battery tender. Like you said snip they should check the charging system first and if it ok then maybe its time to replace that old battery.:cheers:
boats.........
I bet your boat is like mine. It's always taking power.
When I leave my boat hooked up, tied at the bulkhead, the auto bilge pump is always ready to run. When we connect our batteries, we'll see a small spark. That would tell the average person that there is a "live short" somewhere, if all the power is off. But not the Seadoo. When you connect the battery, the MPEM comes alive for 33 seconds, then shuts back down.
I like to play it safe, but I don't disconnect the battery in my PWC's because of how hard they are to get to. If they are shut down for any period of time, I do disconnect the negative wire. Like now, the batteries are removed for the winter.
I did find that web site on the tenders interesting..........:cheers:
I bet your boat is like mine. It's always taking power.
When I leave my boat hooked up, tied at the bulkhead, the auto bilge pump is always ready to run. When we connect our batteries, we'll see a small spark. That would tell the average person that there is a "live short" somewhere, if all the power is off. But not the Seadoo. When you connect the battery, the MPEM comes alive for 33 seconds, then shuts back down.
I like to play it safe, but I don't disconnect the battery in my PWC's because of how hard they are to get to. If they are shut down for any period of time, I do disconnect the negative wire. Like now, the batteries are removed for the winter.
I did find that web site on the tenders interesting..........:cheers:
I've been using Battery Tenders for years on all sorts of recreational vehicles and have never had any trouble, in the winter months i pull the batteries out of my ski's and leave the chargers hooked up, my Polaris battery is original from 2001, the trick is to keep the acid level correct
David N
David N
Battery tenders......
Yeah, the battery tenders are fine for our Seadoos. It's the battery charger which has the ability of high amps during the charge cycle and doesn't shut down when the battery has it's charge, which will cause the battery to gas.
If you've got a battery from 2001, that's a miracle, no matter how well you take care of it.................:cheers:
Yeah, the battery tenders are fine for our Seadoos. It's the battery charger which has the ability of high amps during the charge cycle and doesn't shut down when the battery has it's charge, which will cause the battery to gas.
If you've got a battery from 2001, that's a miracle, no matter how well you take care of it.................:cheers:
- Status
