Cold batteries

Hello Phil

There is nothing running in the background or visibly switched ON

Batteries in parallel but with solenoid separator.

May have run auxilliary battery low and then left Parallel switch ON a couple of days ago. Combined with the cold weather.............

Thems the breaks...lol


Cheers

Brad

I would not want to experience the cold any more than the present. Have made a resolution to disappear from here by May next year and not return until September

Maybe I should throw that old electric blanket over the engine. The alternative is just to wait until the day warms up.....lol


Cheers

Willem
Just heat the garage, the least you could do for the old Patrol ;-)))

Mallee Marching Girls = Jumbucks = Woolly Nags?????....lol

Nope, They're the Mallee Roots LOL

Is that the local netball team??? lol

Yep, that was done when I bought the vehicle

nup - that's a myth. What the battery sits on is not the issue. The issue is the temperature and humidity it is stored at.

I have a piece of carpet underfelt under and around my battery as an insulating blanket. Still, I had to replace it the other week as it bleep itself. Probably a combination of sitting around in the cold and not being used for a couple of months. Pretty cold here recently (-2.7 yesterday morning at 07:15) but the new battery copes well now.

Thanks Serg

I think that the battery was disharged as I had both batteries running in parallel while using the inverter off the auxilliary battery.

After charging up all day the engine kicked over no worries and it was still 4 degrees outside...lol

I will however make sure that all battery connections are in good repair as you suggest.


Cheers

Hi Willem

I'll second what Serg said. Lowest I remembering starting was -18 (not here obviously!). 2.4 diesel with one battery, with no problems. Had a previous 4x4 though I had massive problems starting in winter. Always turning just a tad too slow. Proved to be a faulty isolation switch, ended up ditching it and never had a problem afterwards (direct connection battery to starter). So a weak contact can have dramatic consequences when it's cold.

Cheers
Ted

Ted,

-18 degrees obviously can not be getting in Cairns! Just a matter of curiosity – where it was?

Cheers
Serg

Hi Willem, you actually answered your own question.

As Serg posted, the temperature here in Australia does not get low enough to cause problems with batteries not being able to start a vehicle BUT this is as long as the battery(s) are charged in the first place.

The one thing a cold battery will do is require a higher charging voltage or they will take much longer to recharge.

In your case, as you posted, you have only been doing short trips. The short trips combined with cold batteries means you are just not replacing the power used to start your vehicle and over a period of time, you are progressively flattening the batteries.

If you intend to keep doing short drives then it will pay you to put the batteries on a charger on a regular basis and this should solve your problem, no matter what the temperature is.