Trickle charging?

[homeselljeff]

Can you hook up a battery maintainer to the jumpstart ports in the engine bay?



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[FABombjoy]

Yes. I have a Battery Tender Plus and hooked it to the jumpstart post and engine block. The connector is then routed to the intake vent on the quarter panel.

When the car is parked, I reach down into the intake, and fish it out and connect it to the charger. I glued a magnet to it so I could use a pickup tool just in case it slipped down but that has never happened in 6+ years.

[David T]

It is just as easy to hook the connector up to the terminals on the battery. Use the plug and not the clamps. If you use the clamps you can hook it up wrong and the clamps can jump off. I have the connector wired to the battery and I ran the wire out from under the battery cover where I can reach it behind the seat. I use the charger for 1 day every month if the car isn't being used, and I hook it up the night before I use the car so the alternator doesn't have to work so hard. I do not like it hooked up and running constantly.

[FABombjoy]

I have a Wal Mart battery with a 2009 date code. I've used a Battery Tender Plus since 2011, plugged in for months on end year after year. Car never fails to start regardless of weather.

I would ditch the traditional trickle charger and go with something more modern. I like having it hardwired to the jump post so I don't have to have a wire pinched in the door seal. With the connector routed through the air inlet it takes about 30 seconds to hook it up and no covers left open.

[DMC-81]

Hi there,

I read on another thread that trickle charging through the battery post can accelerate block rot. Is there any truth to that?

In any case, I have mine wired directly to the battery. I just lower the passenger window and plug in the tender to an adjacent plug when needed.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I don't trickle charge since my battery drain is so low. But if I'm going to make a long drive after the car sitting for a few months, I will plug a low current charger via the cigarette lighter the night before my drive.

[David T]

Hi there,

I read on another thread that trickle charging through the battery post can accelerate block rot. Is there any truth to that?

In any case, I have mine wired directly to the battery. I just lower the passenger window and plug in the tender to an adjacent plug when needed.

True but under certain conditions. The charger has to leak AC, it takes a long time, and the coolant has to be conductive (old). A big reason I do not leave my charger on continuously and test the coolant every year.

[sdg3205]

If you're looking at long term battery care, play it safe and just take the battery out. It takes 2 minutes and you never have to worry about your block, carpets, coolant or anything else in the car.

I too have a trickle charger wired into the car - pos to the jump lead terminal and negative to the block. I hide the 2 pin plug down under the fascia. I use it on and off for half the year, then the battery is out of the car November - April. Same Interstate battery for 7 years. It has never died.

[Morpheus]

If i'm not driving the car for an extended period of time, (due to some extended maintenance, for example) I just take the battery out, place it on a couple of 2x4s to lift it off the concrete floor a bit, and plug in the trickle charger. This keeps it topped off and ready to go whenever I install it back into the car.

[bfloyd]

I leave mine plugged in to a Battery Tender all the time when it's parked in the garage. I have a Cellular GPS tracking system installed on my car and it has a small parasitic drain on the battery. I have a permanent connector hooked to the battery posts, and the 2 pin connector sticks out under the battery door and is hidden by the carpet. The cord from the Battery Tender itself is thin enough that I just drape it over the door sill and close the passenger side door. My biggest issue is forgetting to unplug the dang thing when I back the car out of the garage. I have smashed 2 of those things so far by rolling over them with the front tire.

[David T]

Put a red tag on the dash to remind you to unplug the charger when you hook it up.

[homeselljeff]

Good idea


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[Peripatetic]

There's something wrong with my car so I need to trickle charge it at least once a month or it won't start. My guess is that the alternator is only providing 99% of the necessary power so the battery slowly drains. I should look into this...

But I use the engine bay ports because the instructions say to connect the battery tender like you would to jump the car.


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[homeselljeff]

There's something wrong with my car so I need to trickle charge it at least once a month or it won't start. My guess is that the alternator is only providing 99% of the necessary power so the battery slowly drains. I should look into this...

But I use the engine bay ports because the instructions say to connect the battery tender like you would to jump the car.


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Makes sense


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