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        General >> Give/Need advice to/from others >> Batt Charging - When & How
        
(Message started by: Mike Holmes on Jul 21^st, 2006, 6:16pm)

Title: Batt Charging - When & How
Post by Mike Holmes on Jul 21^st, 2006, 6:16pm

Hi all - been meaning to mention this for some time - a while ago I was interested to read a thread on the forum about battery problems; one correspondent said his was flat after just leaving the car over the weekend. I had this kind of problem last September (2005) - unfortunately though if the battery's like this, even after putting a charger on, then it's basically broken - a healthy one should hold a charge for at least a couple of months if not longer.

For those who've not yet experienced it (there has to be a first time!) the early warning symptom of serious battery depletion, even though the engine starts okay & everything else works, is the dreaded 'flicking needles syndrome' immediately after starting, which I deduce is what the dashboard microprocessor does when resetting itself (all the dials go to max. then back to zero), and which also zeros the trip counter.

If the situation is allowed to deteriorate further then the next stage is flicking needles accompanied by the ABS light flashing briefly (or it is in my case). The terminal stage is engine won't turn over, followed by the radio coming on at full volume!!?

Anyway I had a new battery installed & topped it up with a charger (as you should). Then I started getting the flicking needles again this January 2006. However this was easily sorted by putting the charger on again. I ought to explain that in our case the car is seldom used in an average week, & then mostly for just short journeys. I.e. the 'down time' is considerably longer than any actual driving time. It used to be reckoned any car needed about 20 minutes of driving time just to put back what the starter took out, and that's WITHOUT turning on lights, leccy windows, blower, radio etc. A quick trip to the shops doesn't cut it. You may use yours more regularly but think about how many hours it's left standing compared with how many it's actually being driven?

As the original discussion thread pointed out this is exacerbated by the Scorpio having a lot of electric gadgets, and some of them are constantly energised. The PCM(?), or some part of it, is active all the time, for the alarm and central locking control from the keyfob transmitter. (Note disabling the alarm, by e.g. unplugging the bonnet PIN switch, won't make any difference.) Although the actual radio receiver for the keyfob is turned off after 150 hours (slightly over 6 days) since last driven (or, more exactly, since ignition key was last at position II) to conserve the battery (which explains why the keyfob doesn't want to work if the car's been unused for a week). To ensure the battery's at peak you can either take it for a long drive (assuming you don't already) or put a charger on.

Just so happens the one I'm using includes a diagnostic test cycle that is run when first connected. LED's light up showing state of charge at <=20%, 50%, 70% & >=90%. In January (as with the old battery last year) it showed <20%. Because of opening the windows a bit for ventilation each day during the current hot weather (and closing them at night, obviously), I put it on again this week just to check and again it was down to 20% (though no other symptoms yet). This charger outputs 8 Amps, yet from <=20% it needs leaving on for about 16 hours to ensure getting the battery back up to >=90%! Works out as 128 A/h! Maybe not as much allowing for some decrease of current as time passes... the test indicators are really useful, else it would be very easy to underestimate how long the charger should actually be on for - worth noting!

I don't mess about putting the clamps direct on the battery terminals. Instead I've soldered a cigar lighter plug onto the leads (note centre is positive!), and plug it into the rear passenger lighter socket (these are 'live' all the time and have a fairly high current rating). The charger then sits on the floor along with the reel of a mains extension lead - easy. I've just found out if the mains lead exits at the lower rear corner of the doorway (bottom end of the wheel arch curve) then the rear door can be completely closed, which means the car can be locked for the duration and also keeps the rain out. The lead then goes through a small window in the house to a socket. Sorry this is so long, I just wanted to cover everything I thought of... :)

Title: Re: Batt Charging - When & How
Post by hellblue on Jul 21^st, 2006, 11:14pm

hi over the years iv known two people who have had fires from charging thier car battery one of which lost his car & garage if your not around to keep an eye on it its wise to remove battery from car & charge it outside (my old work places insurance gave no cover for over night charging)!............Iv myself had a nicad battery fire & now only charge batts on something non flamable or outside if im not about ......