And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
I live in cold country, but I rarely leave the compound. So when it's winter I have to break out the charger and jump start my 2001 Blazer with an old Century plug-in-the-wall battery charger. You know what the problems with those Tacklife things is? They sit idle in your ride and then don't work when you most need em. I've had the $50 ones and the $400 ones and they all fail, when not used regularly and when it's cold. Wanna see my receipts.
Last month I bought 2 Battery Tenders ( https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tender-021-0128-Maintain-Damaging/dp/B00068XCQU/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=battery+tender&qid=1608735072&s=automotive&sr=1-5 ), one for my wifes ride and one for mine, waterproof cord couplers, and 2 50' construction grade extension cords. So far it's been great, though visually unappealing.
I zip tied the Battery Tender unit into an area under the hood that would not cause problems and zip tied the connecting wires the same way. The plug hangs out from under the hood next to the right headlight and it is about 8" long.
I'm SOOOOO tired of dead vehicle batteries in the winter so hopefully this year will be different, so far so good.
First off, ghostsniper is exactly right about those batteries failing in cold weather (capacity goes down). In my corner of the country they fail from being left in hot cars all day while you're at work. I can't say I have receipts because I only did that once.
Second: the same fix for the car battery works for the jump starter, too. Once a month or so, discharge and recharge it. Unfortunately, I don't know of a Battery Minder or Tender that works with these.
Third, I have one of those Tacklife chargers. Got it back in July - I dropped and broke its predecessor. Being a retired engineer, radio ham, and general techno-geek, I have a computerized battery analyzer that does repeatable discharges and presents the data. The Tacklife I have says it's 18 Amp*Hours (well, it says 18,000 MilliAmp*hours). There is no test that I've been able to do that gets remotely close to that. I get 3.7 or 3.8 AH, remarkably consistent with the battery cells I believe they're made from.
It's not that they're not good for jump starting, just don't expect to power anything around the house for 18 Amp*Hours after the quake, eruption, storm or whatever.
I have a 20000 mAH version, a few years old. Came with a little compressor too. I've used it enough to pay for itself, no power out at the barn. Airing up tractor and trailer tires, even jumping the truck V-10 once or twice. I left it in the truck last summer and the plastic case got all distorted, but it still holds a charge and works. Has a light and red/blue flasher beacons too. I think they're worth the money the first time you use it. After that, it's just the dividends.
I live in cold country, but I rarely leave the compound. So when it's winter I have to break out the charger and jump start my 2001 Blazer with an old Century plug-in-the-wall battery charger. You know what the problems with those Tacklife things is? They sit idle in your ride and then don't work when you most need em. I've had the $50 ones and the $400 ones and they all fail, when not used regularly and when it's cold. Wanna see my receipts.
ReplyDeleteLast month I bought 2 Battery Tenders ( https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tender-021-0128-Maintain-Damaging/dp/B00068XCQU/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=battery+tender&qid=1608735072&s=automotive&sr=1-5 ), one for my wifes ride and one for mine, waterproof cord couplers, and 2 50' construction grade extension cords. So far it's been great, though visually unappealing.
I zip tied the Battery Tender unit into an area under the hood that would not cause problems and zip tied the connecting wires the same way. The plug hangs out from under the hood next to the right headlight and it is about 8" long.
I'm SOOOOO tired of dead vehicle batteries in the winter so hopefully this year will be different, so far so good.
When I lived in Minnesota one car had a battery warmer blanket as well as block heater.
DeleteFirst off, ghostsniper is exactly right about those batteries failing in cold weather (capacity goes down). In my corner of the country they fail from being left in hot cars all day while you're at work. I can't say I have receipts because I only did that once.
ReplyDeleteSecond: the same fix for the car battery works for the jump starter, too. Once a month or so, discharge and recharge it. Unfortunately, I don't know of a Battery Minder or Tender that works with these.
Third, I have one of those Tacklife chargers. Got it back in July - I dropped and broke its predecessor. Being a retired engineer, radio ham, and general techno-geek, I have a computerized battery analyzer that does repeatable discharges and presents the data. The Tacklife I have says it's 18 Amp*Hours (well, it says 18,000 MilliAmp*hours). There is no test that I've been able to do that gets remotely close to that. I get 3.7 or 3.8 AH, remarkably consistent with the battery cells I believe they're made from.
Battery analyzer
It's not that they're not good for jump starting, just don't expect to power anything around the house for 18 Amp*Hours after the quake, eruption, storm or whatever.
At the ad they claim to have an on/off switch that will keep it from running itself down.
ReplyDeleteI have a 20000 mAH version, a few years old. Came with a little compressor too. I've used it enough to pay for itself, no power out at the barn. Airing up tractor and trailer tires, even jumping the truck V-10 once or twice. I left it in the truck last summer and the plastic case got all distorted, but it still holds a charge and works. Has a light and red/blue flasher beacons too. I think they're worth the money the first time you use it. After that, it's just the dividends.
ReplyDelete