Battery Charger Questions

[Jesda]

Right now I'm using a 12v 10amp Carquest automatic charger ($60). I let it charge last night for 13 hours. I went out to remove the charger and start the car, and it was still low on power and had a hard time starting (interior lights were dim, etc). It will start with the charger attached and turned on, however.

Just now I removed the battery terminals and charged it directly; I'm assuming maybe something like the clock (?) is slowly removing the same power that is being charged to the battery.

Is there a higher-capacity charger I should be using instead?

The battery is an Everstart 750ca DT-3N, which is about a week old. Is it possible the battery was drained so much because of the bad alternator that it now cannot be fully recharged? The behavior is like that of a bad battery -- it takes a few tries and it barely cranks but it finally does start.

[And of course the alternator is bad, thus the purchase of a charger to get by until repairs are done.]

Thank you!

-Jesda

[louiegz]

Can’t you go to a Autozone or Sears and have the charging system checked out. I guess they can tell you if the battery is dead or not. I have to question the logic of buying this charger. I've read in your other post that your short on cash and you've had this problem for a while. You got this charger to avoid paying for the alternator and at the end of the day you'll wind up spending more money. I don't know how much it is to replace the alternator but get it fixed from the get go and you would have saved the $60 of the charger and maybe a battery that has lost its charge to the point of no return. In fact, I’m surprised the place that installed the battery didn’t do a check of the electrical system. Everything would have been checked to see if the new battery wouldn’t get ruined by a faulty charging system. Hey Jesda, if your battery did get trashed, maybe you should spend the extra bucks and get an Optima battery. I’ve never used one, but I heard they’re very good. When I’m due for my next one, I might get one. I’ve gone through 3 or 4 batteries and this last one has lasted surprisingly long. I think I’ve had it for 4 or 5 years and it still starts up strong.

[squeefoo]

What rate does it charge? (amps) I have had batts that were so discharged the would not take a charge unless left on the charger for 2 days. This may be the case, since new batteries generally are not charged completely. That is why the "sudden alternator death" warnings on rebuilt alts. (The battery may be so discharged by the bad alt. that the "new" alt. dies trying to charge it) There is quite a load on your batt. I know there is a CCA formula to figure the batt. load here somewhere (search). In short; you are trying to pull from the batt. that which is not there and it hasn't been charged enough to be there. Also charge the batt. thoroughly before you install your used alternator so the above doesn't happen, and be sure to disconnect the batt. before you even touch the alt. or you risk burning the diodes. Hope this helps.

PS: Upon rereading your post you could have a short in the alternator itself, and that is why your recharge rates suck added to the above!

[DAEDALUS]

All power draws add up to way less than 1 amp. A 10 amp charger should have no problem. If the battery is weak after overnight on the charger it's probably gone.

[Jesda]

Thanks for the info guys!

Whats funny is I put my old Champion battery back in [refilled with distilled water] after charging 5 minutes and it started up without problems.

Looks like the new Everstart is toast. But I saved my receipt! When I get a replacement I'll have Advance or Autozone charge it up right away.

The company vehicle isnt always available to me (since it belongs to the company and is often needed by others) so I need to sort of hobble along until the replacement alternator arrives so I can get to school. Maybe I can drive on one battery for a day and then switch off while the other one charges.

-Jesda