Tell me about trickle chargers

[NiceGuyEddie]

OK

The roadster sat for about 4 months and my 5-year-old Optima battery struggled a little bit when starting the car. I'd like to invest in a trickle charger. Examples on Amazon are a NOCO Genius 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, etc. at proportional prices, $29-$99 which seem to correlate to 1A, 2A, 5A, etc.

The specs look to be the same except for "more power." I don't need the battery to trickle charge from dead to 100% overnight. I just want to plug in the trickle charger a week before I take the car out of summer (5 month) storage.

The little 1A is fine, right? If not, why not?

[JohnK]

If you're just looking to maintain a good new(ish) battery, most chargers will do the job. The things to look for in a battery charger, IMO, is that it can charge the type of battery you have (deep cycle, AGM, Lithium, etc.) Some of the more expensive ones can bring an older battery back with a "desulfate" or "recovery" mode. I've always used Optimate chargers on all my motorcycles and non-daily driver cars and they've worked flawlessly. My parents travel out of the country every summer for 3-4 months (pre-Covid) and they just use a basic Battery Tender that can charge two batteries, and it's also been flawless. I'm not personally familiar with the Noco brand.

[RoadRacer]

I dont have an alternator yet, and bought a second hand battery from the local parts store.. so obviously I'm depleting my battery when go-karting. So I bought a super cheap trickle charger for my battery and hardly use it, but it's great for topping up every month or so. Even the cheapy one will turn off when it's done, so doesn't do any harm.

[Papa]

For my lead acid batteries, I really like the Deltran Battery Tender products. I have two of these (One on my tractor, one on my dump trailer battery):

https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tende...NsaWNrPXRydWU=

I have one of these on my standby generator:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

One of these on my riding mower:

https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tende...NsaWNrPXRydWU=

And for my Optima red-top:

https://www.amazon.com/Optima-Digita...e-b06387f8bcf1

My full-size Craftsman charger will charge the Optima battery, but the Deltran battery tenders do NOT work with the Optima battery.

[Fixit]

"Battery Tender" all the way... I've got 3 - boat, El Camino, and Roadster. (Running "old tech" lead-acid in all 3)

[FLPBFoot]

OK

The roadster sat for about 4 months and my 5-year-old Optima battery struggled a little bit when starting the car. I'd like to invest in a trickle charger. Examples on Amazon are a NOCO Genius 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, etc. at proportional prices, $29-$99 which seem to correlate to 1A, 2A, 5A, etc.

The specs look to be the same except for "more power." I don't need the battery to trickle charge from dead to 100% overnight. I just want to plug in the trickle charger a week before I take the car out of summer (5 month) storage.

The little 1A is fine, right? If not, why not?

I have 2 AGMs in my boat. Over the winter they are in my basement and I use the 1 amp NOCO charger. Put in on each battery for a couple days per month. All toped off and have been good for going on 5 years now.

I have a lead acid in the Cobra so use a regular 3 amp charger to keep it topped off. I do pull the battery over the winter and bring it too into the basement.

The CTEK Multi US 7002 charger works on all types of batteries so one charger will do it all. It is a bit pricey though.

Steve

[Ray]

I’ve been using a “Battery Tender” for years on the Roadster and a second one for the Harley. Leave them hooked up 24/7 unless we’re away from the house for a few days. Then, I put them on a timer so they charge for just a few hours late at night.

Haven’t had any starting or charging trouble (related to the chargers) since 2003.

Ray

[Bob Cowan]

There are a bunch of them out there, and they all seem to work just fine.

What you really want is a float charger. It keeps the battery in good condition over the long run. If you let it run down over 4-5 months, and then charge it up, you're not doing the battery any favors.

[NiceGuyEddie]

https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-u...ing-battery/25

https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-us/battery-charger

Whatddaya know. When looking up specs for my own Optima battery, I found that Optima has their own charger.

It looks like I have a Red Top 25, or very similar.

[NiceGuyEddie]

I bought the little one - the NOCO Genius 1. I plugged it in, and after 48 hours the battery started the engine like a donkey.
The Optima battery I have is a 44 Ah battery. Now that I look at all the specs it looks like I was supposed to buy the Genius 5.

Genius 1 Suited for 12V batteries up to 30 Ah
Genius 2 Suited for 12V batteries up to 40 Ah
Genius 5 Suited for 12V batteries up to 80Ah

I guess it’s just a matter of how long the battery takes to charge. Mine seems to have worked OK.

It came with a little harness that you can permanently attach to the bolts on the battery terminals, then it's just a matter of connecting the charger to a single plug.

[Paul2STL]

For my lead acid batteries, I really like the Deltran Battery Tender products. I have two of these (One on my tractor, one on my dump trailer battery):

https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tende...NsaWNrPXRydWU=

I have one of these on my standby generator:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

One of these on my riding mower:

https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tende...NsaWNrPXRydWU=

And for my Optima red-top:

https://www.amazon.com/Optima-Digita...e-b06387f8bcf1

My full-size Craftsman charger will charge the Optima battery, but the Deltran battery tenders do NOT work with the Optima battery.

What do you mean the tenders don't work on Optima batteries? I have been using the Deltran battery tender on my Optima for years keeps a good charge on it over the winter. I had it bring one back to life on another Optima I have in my truck. I have been using this type.

https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tende...Q2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

[Papa]

What do you mean the tenders don't work on Optima batteries? I have been using the Deltran battery tender on my Optima for years keeps a good charge on it over the winter. I had it bring one back to life on another Optima I have in my truck. I have been using this type.

https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tende...Q2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

When I tried to use one of my Deltran tenders on my Optima battery, it acted like it wasn't connected to anything. No indication of it charging, floating, nothing. Maybe the newer ones are okay? My tenders are about 12 years old.

[CNIdog]

I have gone through a few cheapy battery maintainers. Most were crap. Either never shut off or never turned on. I got the smallest Noco to leave on my car I leave up North during the winter and another for the car I leave in Florida for the summer. They have done very well for two seasons so far on a 2-yr old and 3-yr old battery, six months at a time. When I need to charge a "dead" battery I have a 12 amp smart Schumacher unit which works well. Remember, most conventional batteries don't live long after repeated full drain/recharge cycles. I also use a small 15 watt solar panel to charge a portable power box for USB cell phone/tablet device charging whenever the power grid goes down.