charging AGM & wet cell tog ether?
Submitted: Friday, Apr 07, 2006 at 22:11
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Member - Tony W (VIC)
to all electronic gurus i have a wet cell deep cycle as my crank bat and have 2 orbital exide agm bat as my aux s ,1 under bonnet ,1 in camper parrelled .Want to know the best way to charge them up on my up coming trip around oz, if propped in the same spot for a while, was thinking about a ctek 7 or14 amp charger?
and do i have to charge them up separately ( different bat types)or can i charge them all together, your help would be greatly appreciated
p.s please keep answers short and direct as I am not the sharpest tool in the shed ,especially on this subject and my brain hurts if answer become to techincal and long winded.
...but i can lift heavy things !!
Reply By: Derek from Affordable Batteries & Radiators - Friday, Apr 07, 2006 at 22:40
Friday, Apr 07, 2006 at 22:40
Go for the 14amp.
Charge them separate if possible as the charger will diagnose the battery it is connected to.
You can bring them up to charge together but when ever possible charge them on there own.
Regards Derek.
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165699
Follow Up By: Member - Tony W (VIC) - Saturday, Apr 08, 2006 at 05:45
Saturday, Apr 08, 2006 at 05:45
thanks derek
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420628
Follow Up By: Bob Y. - Qld - Saturday, Apr 08, 2006 at 08:56
Saturday, Apr 08, 2006 at 08:56
Tony,
I'd go for the 14 amp unit too. Have a 7 amp one here, and while it does a good job, can take all night or longer, to bring a battery(N70T) up to float.
7amp are $299, how much are 14 amp?
Hooroo...
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420645
Follow Up By: Member - Roachie (SA) - Saturday, Apr 08, 2006 at 09:06
Saturday, Apr 08, 2006 at 09:06
You can get a 15amp 3 stage charger for under $300- these days. I've got 2 of them (one permanently mounted for the 120a/h Fullriver in the Patrol; the other mounted in the camper for the 2 Supercharge Gold SLA batteries in there).
One querie though; you say you have a Deep Cycle for your cranker? Is this a typing error? Mostly a Deep Cycle will not cut the ice as a cranker for very long.
Cheers
Roachie
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420648
Follow Up By: Member - Tony W (VIC) - Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 05:55
Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 05:55
no typing errror i, ve just bought the 2 agm s and have moved my aux bat to be my crank and dispensed with my crank ,so ican run the agm s parrell to run fridge & lights etc.... (1 in camper 1 under the bonnet )on advice from a guy at pirana in bayswater ,have i been led up the garden path? your thoughts please you ve got me nervous now ,roachie
thanks mate.
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420802
Follow Up By: Lorne - Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 06:31
Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 06:31
On the ctek site I can't find the 14A charger, they go to 7A then jump up to 25A. Does anybody have a link to the one in the middle
Lorne...........
FollowupID:
420803
Follow Up By: Derek from Affordable Batteries & Radiators - Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 09:04
Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 09:04
14 Amp
Due in June 2006
Regards Derek.
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Follow Up By: Member - Roachie (SA) - Monday, Apr 10, 2006 at 11:27
Monday, Apr 10, 2006 at 11:27
G'day Tony,
Sorry mate, not trying to worry you, but everything I have ever read about Deep Cycle batteries is that they should not be used as a cranking battery. Obviously if you were out in the boonies and your main battery dies and left you with only a DC battery still functioning, then you wouldn't want to die waiting to be rescued just cos ........"Roachie said I shouldn't use a DC battery to start my vehicle"..........
I'm no expert, but I do read a LOT of stuff on this site. The construction of a DC battery is such that there are fewer plates, but they are much thicker than a starter battery. The result is that the DC battery likes to have a constant draw of relatively low amperage (like radios, lights, fridges etc), rather than be subjected to a "big hit" every now and then (as is the case with a starter battery being used to crank a cold motor etc).
My understanding of it, is that the DC battery will die a LOT sooner than it ought to if it is asked to do the job of a starter battery for very long.
Others will know more about it than me, so seek advice from more important people.......
Cheers
Roachie
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Follow Up By: tonysmc - Monday, Apr 10, 2006 at 12:19
Monday, Apr 10, 2006 at 12:19
I have also heard all the experts say not to use a deep cycle as a starter, however I happened put one in as a starter as said above "out in the boonies" with the intention of changing it back at
home. 4 years later it finally died and it was about 1 year old when it went into my car as the starter. I have always thought after that I will get a deep cycle as a starter battery all the time, but never do, so I don't know if its was just a uncanny battery or if what we are being told is not quite right.
Tony
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Reply By: Member - Mike DID - Saturday, Apr 08, 2006 at 10:03
Saturday, Apr 08, 2006 at 10:03
KMart have just started advertising an MVP 3-stage 15 amp charger for $99.00.
Jaycar have a 12 amp 3-stage for $99.00 but currently have no stock.
Building a 3 stage switchmode charger isn't rocket science, there's no reason it should cost more than $99.
The CTek chargers use more advanced algorithms which will protect a deeply discharged battery (below 11 volts) and will charge a battery a bit more fully (pilse charging). It's a question of how much more you want to pay for frills.
Mike
AnswerID:
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Follow Up By: Mad Dog (Australia) - Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 09:14
Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 09:14
interesting, thanks for that info.
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Follow Up By: Member - Mike DID - Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 19:32
Sunday, Apr 09, 2006 at 19:32
Had a look at the 6 amp version at KMart (they don't have the 15 amp version yet) and the current is adjustable so you can use it with smaller batteries.
It says it will work with Wetcell, AGM and Gel batteries, although you can't change the voltages.
It even uses Pulse charging when in float mode to maximise charge.
Mike
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