Extending battery charger leads

[ColinM50]

Fitting a Ctek charger to my kit car one of those that you leave plugged in all the time.

http://www.ctekchargers.co.uk/

To make life easier I'm planning to mount the remote socket connector just behind the front number plate. No-one will see it there, it won't get in the way of the cover that I put over the car when it's parked in the garage, and it'll be out of the weather too so won't get wet.I'll just be able to put the cover on the car, plug the charger in and the job's done.

So I need to extend the leads from the battery to the front bumber, about 8 feet of cable I guess. Will this be OK or will I get too much in the way of volt drop and the charger become ineffective?

[Pigeon]

There is no such thing as a "bumber". Extending the leads to reach the front bumper will be fine.

[anonymous-user]

It'll be fine, the Cetek chargers are "top up" chargers and their maximum amperage output is low (from memeory max 2-3A). So you don't need particularly large diameter wires to carry this efficiently. Just use the same diameter wire that is already used on the charging leads.

You might want to consider using a different kind of plug that the std non-waterproof connect on those chargers. Even with the conenctor tucked up behind the plate you can find that strange aerodynamics push water and dirt into the connector, which will make it unreliable after a short time. There are plenty of water proof plugs to use, and if you buy a spare mating half, fit this with blanking seals, you can leave this plugged in to keep the car side connector water tight and clean.