Battery....which is the way to go, opinions needed.

[Chas]

It seems hard to understand but my battery is dead again...and again. Seems its always this way, charge it up and i am good for a few weeks but now it has been 4 years and I think the dry cell is toast. I am going to have to replace it and use a tender or disconnect my clock. The clock is the only drain on it as far as I can tell so this time it will be a tender hooked up and that's that.

Should I just get a conventional battery or get a dry cell? Is there an advantage one over the other being used the way I do?.....usually 1000 miles a season or less.

TIA Chas

 

[Vettehead Mikey]

A few weeks? You have a drain somewhere on the car- fix it. If your clock is working and the battery is not disconnected, keep a battery tender attached

 

[Chas]

A few weeks? You have a drain somewhere on the car- fix it. If your clock is working and the battery is not disconnected, keep a battery tender attached

Will a volt meter tell me if its other than the clock? it just started lasting a few weeks recently, usually it took longer to require a charger. I rebuilt the clock with a quartz conversion and it keeps perfect time if not for the battery issue. Had surgery recently and have yet to roll more than 30 or so miles at a time this summer.
Thanks VHMikey

 

[Peer81]

Not a volt meter but an amps meter is what you need.
Take out a fuse one by one and connect the amps meter to the left and right "connectors" where the fuse sits in. If you see nothing then there is no drain, if the number is more then 0 then you have a drain in that circuit somewhere. After that you can check that circuit by leaving the amps meter in and disconnect all the acc. one by one and check the meter if the amps drop (to 0 or not), if you than that acc. is causing THE or partly the problem.

Just a guess, disconnect the hood light, the kwik switch not always kills the light.

For the battery. Problem with the dry cell's if you drain them ones there good to light a candle but that's it (have a optima yellow for candles overhere). Now I have a Maxxima and keep it good on level with a tender because it could have the same problem. My battery shops says there are even more $$$ dry cell's that don't have that problem but the optima and maxxima cell's really are the max I want to spend on a battery. Just my 2 cents

Greetings Peter

 

[Hib Halverson]

There is no such thing as a "dry cell" automotive battery.

There are "gel cells" and they're marketed by a variety of battery vendors.

The best automotive battery for the high-performance duty cycle is the Odyssey Battery. They have amazing durability compared to conventional batteries. They are also more tolerant of deep cycles. But...like everything else that's very high-quality, the Odyssey is not cheap.

I've gradually converted all but one of my cars to Odysseys and, when the battery in the last one goes bad, I'll put an Odyssey in that car, too.

 

[Chas]

There is no such thing as a "dry cell" automotive battery.

There are "gel cells" and they're marketed by a variety of battery vendors.

The best automotive battery for the high-performance duty cycle is the Odyssey Battery. They have amazing durability compared to conventional batteries. They are also more tolerant of deep cycles. But...like everything else that's very high-quality, the Odyssey is not cheap.

I've gradually converted all but one of my cars to Odysseys and, when the battery in the last one goes bad, I'll put an Odyssey in that car, too.

Indeed I had stated dry cell and meant gel cell.........Thanks

 

[Chas]

Not a volt meter but an amps meter is what you need.
Take out a fuse one by one and connect the amps meter to the left and right "connectors" where the fuse sits in. If you see nothing then there is no drain, if the number is more then 0 then you have a drain in that circuit somewhere. After that you can check that circuit by leaving the amps meter in and disconnect all the acc. one by one and check the meter if the amps drop (to 0 or not), if you than that acc. is causing THE or partly the problem.

Just a guess, disconnect the hood light, the kwik switch not always kills the light.

For the battery. Problem with the dry cell's if you drain them ones there good to light a candle but that's it (have a optima yellow for candles overhere). Now I have a Maxxima and keep it good on level with a tender because it could have the same problem. My battery shops says there are even more $$$ dry cell's that don't have that problem but the optima and maxxima cell's really are the max I want to spend on a battery. Just my 2 cents

Greetings Peter

Thanks Peter, I will go this this and find the problem......Many Thanks

 

[LLC5]

It seems hard to understand but my battery is dead again...and again. Seems its always this way, charge it up and i am good for a few weeks but now it has been 4 years and I think the dry cell is toast. I am going to have to replace it and use a tender or disconnect my clock. The clock is the only drain on it as far as I can tell so this time it will be a tender hooked up and that's that.

Should I just get a conventional battery or get a dry cell? Is there an advantage one over the other being used the way I do?.....usually 1000 miles a season or less.

TIA Chas

Battery's will self discharge with nothing hooked up to them, and obviously discharge quicker if attached to a circuit. When the battery voltage gets low enough sulfation will occur internally and damage it, and if left discharged long enough eventually destroy the battery. Keeping a battery fully charged by driving it often or with a battery tender will significantly extend the battery's life cycle. I would have your battery properly load tested before replacing it as it may still be good and just not fully charged. Buying a battery with the longest FREE replacement (pro rated warranty's are worthless) warranty you can afford and you will end up with a quality battery if you do indeed need one. Good luck with it.

 

[Chas]

Battery's will self discharge with nothing hooked up to them, and obviously discharge quicker if attached to a circuit. When the battery voltage gets low enough sulfation will occur internally and damage it, and if left discharged long enough eventually destroy the battery. Keeping a battery fully charged by driving it often or with a battery tender will significantly extend the battery's life cycle. I would have your battery properly load tested before replacing it as it may still be good and just not fully charged. Buying a battery with the longest FREE replacement (pro rated warranty's are worthless) warranty you can afford and you will end up with a quality battery if you do indeed need one. Good luck with it.

Many Thanks for your input here.....