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Battery tenders

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69RavenConv:

--- Quote from: Bob Gaines on December 27, 2017, 12:53:26 PM ---Keep in mind that there is only one trademark Battery Tender.
--- End quote ---

I've used Battery Tenders® for several winters on my motorcycle, '69 convertible, '04 Cobra, and lawn tractor without any issues.

KevinK:
The unit that blew up my battery was a “Battery Tender Jr.” brand name. Upon close inspection, I found the unit melted. I sent it to the manufacter for them to review. They said ok, it’s bad, that happens. It’s out of warranty. We can sell you a replacement for $28 plus shipping. End of discussion. A new one was cheaper on eBay if I wanted that.  I have since seen them at SEMA and tried not to be rude but to offer a solution. I suggested they design to cover to contain the the battery and acid in case of explosion. I guess they see it as not their problem if the battery blows up.

$10,000 in damage verses a new $150 battery? You do the math on which one is cheaper for your show car.

RoyceP:
I agree. Even if your collector cars are not "show cars" the battery tenders are not as good as they are portrayed, in fact they are cheap and when they fail there is no recourse. Better plan is to use a high quality "automatic" battery charger. It can be connected to the battery once every 60 days and maintain a full charge on vehicles stored in temperature controlled environments. I prefer to leave the hood open and the battery in the car. Of course it is better to remove the battery, but with 6 collector cars it isn't reasonable for me. I drive at least one of the cars every weekend, the others have their batteries charged.


--- Quote from: KevinK on January 11, 2018, 12:51:26 PM ---The unit that blew up my battery was a “Battery Tender Jr.” brand name. Upon close inspection, I found the unit melted. I sent it to the manufacter for them to review. They said ok, it’s bad, that happens. It’s out of warranty. We can sell you a replacement for $28 plus shipping. End of discussion. A new one was cheaper on eBay if I wanted that.  I have since seen them at SEMA and tried not to be rude but to offer a solution. I suggested they design to cover to contain the the battery and acid in case of explosion. I guess they see it as not their problem if the battery blows up.

$10,000 in damage verses a new $150 battery? You do the math on which one is cheaper for your show car.

--- End quote ---

Bob Gaines:
 I used a different brands for a couple years back 15 years ago or so that were not the battery tender brand and had mixed results. I switched to the BT brand and have been satisfied. I know that there are more involved advanced float chargers but they are typically a lot more expensive and given the number I needed to have in use at the same time the battery tender was the economical/reliable alternative for me. I have used dozens at the same time for more then a decade in and out of the cars. Most of my cars are not driven. I am starting to sell cars off so I have extras now.Future Christmas presents maybe  ;) . I can tell older from modern by the style of the plugs. My experience has been only positive with the BT brand but that is just me. I do think it is safest to take the battery out .

KevinK:
I also have a C-Tec brand charger as well. Yes, I did have an issue with this one about a month before the Battery Tender Junior blew up my battery in a different car.

The C-Tec was on my part time daily driver 89 Mustang and used in the driveway. Yes, the battery was probably old as it came with the car. In this case, it was found after a couple of days, seeing a puddle etching into the concrete. A quick wash down, remove the hood pad and a new battery, it was good to go. After the second incident, I gave it some more consideration. The C-Tec charger was still functional. I sent C-Tec an email and they responded immediately saying this should never happen and wanting more details. I never followed as I was busy trying to see what Battery Tender was going to do about the two show cars.

C-Tec is an option on many cars, tractors and motorcycles.  I also like the feature to recondition the battery during charging.

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