Battery conditioners

[yeti]

I park my car offsite in a rented garage, no power. Options are therefore limited regarding battery top up.

Will a decent quality solar panel on the garage roof feeding into the socket in the boot keep the battery topped up enough to get past the two-week-dead-battery line? Thinking winter, there isn't going to be two weeks where I don't drive it for the other 3 seasons!

Anyone found this solution to be viable or makes no to little difference?

[alscar]

I would have thought 2 weeks not driven would be fine but obviously not guaranteed.
I personally use 3 weeks for those cars not able to be easily on a ctek but this doesn’t include Aston.
It does include my dark horse which has a lot of electrical gubbins including updates being fed through and a tracker.
A solar panel on the roof “ must “ allow some power through so as a backup might be worthwhile though in case that 2 weeks not driven gets extended.

[Hoofy]

Options have been discussed in this section already, I think!

However, as to a "decent quality solar panel" rather than quality, it's about size, so it's not what you do with it but how big it is. A 40W panel would be handy but a 20W one mated to a charge controller should be just enough.

I have a Halfords one https://www.halfords.com/motoring/battery-maintena...

and one of these: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/351217380749

You can see the connectors are the same. SAE I think.

This is for use on my 911 and it just about keeps it going. If I left the car without anything, it would require jumpstarting after 3-4 days.

[bogie]

The battery on my V12V lasts about 5-6 weeks and still plenty in it left to start the car.

I would have thought solar into an optimate would be more than fine to keep it topped up. Optimate and CTEK both offer solar panel kits, but its expensive, im sure you can buy the separate components cheaper. If you already have a compatible CTEK or Optimate charger then maybe it could be easy just to buy their kit....

[Blitzuk]

I have to park on the road. I use a Ctek CS Free. An XT60 lead attached to my battery and a Jackery 1000w power station. I throw that in once every 2-3 weeks. If the battery is full it will trickle charge my Rapide for about a week.

[Hoofy]

Blitzuk said:

I have to park on the road. I use a Ctek CS Free. An XT60 lead attached to my battery and a Jackery 1000w power station. I throw that in once every 2-3 weeks. If the battery is full it will trickle charge my Rapide for about a week.

Cool. Always wondered about doing that.

[Blitzuk]

Hoofy said:

Cool. Always wondered about doing that.

It works for me. It's not ideal and it's a little bit expensive compared to just being able to straight trickle charge it. But it depends what you need and get out of it I suppose.

[Hoofy]

Blitzuk said:

Hoofy said:

Cool. Always wondered about doing that.

It works for me. It's not ideal and it's a little bit expensive compared to just being able to straight trickle charge it. But it depends what you need and get out of it I suppose.

Yeah, neither the CS nor the battery will be cheap. But it's straightforward, I guess! I suppose if money no object then you just buy two batteries and swap them out every few weeks.

[Blitzuk]

Hoofy said:

Yeah, neither the CS nor the battery will be cheap. But it's straightforward, I guess! I suppose if money no object then you just buy two batteries and swap them out every few weeks.

Actually buying a second battery or a deep cycle battery would have been cheaper. However I figured my wife would be less pleased with a huge car battery charging in the house. Also the little CS and the Jackery have other applications. Since the CS can revive a dead battery without it causing my modules needing a reset by pulling fuses, that helps greatly. Which it's revived my battery once and a neighbours. The Jackery can be useful in case of blackouts or camping etc etc.

It's what you get out of it and value I suppose. But you could just get a deep cycle battery.

[smokey mow]

Before I bought my vantage I had a pair of 20W optimate solar chargers that I used for keeping a couple of my other cars maintained.



When I bought the Aston I linked the panels together with a Y-splitter to give me 40W equivalent and so far these have proved to be more than adequate.

[Hoofy]

Blitzuk said:

Hoofy said:

Yeah, neither the CS nor the battery will be cheap. But it's straightforward, I guess! I suppose if money no object then you just buy two batteries and swap them out every few weeks.

Actually buying a second battery or a deep cycle battery would have been cheaper. However I figured my wife would be less pleased with a huge car battery charging in the house. Also the little CS and the Jackery have other applications. Since the CS can revive a dead battery without it causing my modules needing a reset by pulling fuses, that helps greatly. Which it's revived my battery once and a neighbours. The Jackery can be useful in case of blackouts or camping etc etc.

It's what you get out of it and value I suppose. But you could just get a deep cycle battery.

Thanks. I've actually just bought an Ecoflow Delta 3 Classic for the reasons you mentioned. My off-grid solar system will charge it up. The CS Free as you say is also very useful. As for the deep cycle battery that I currently have, I'll sell that as the Delta does everything better and more safely. Also, I think I can actually boost my PHEV if I need an emergency 3 miles and there's a powercut.

The CS Free was a lifesaver when my alternator packed up. Always good to have around.

[Hoofy]

smokey mow said:

Before I bought my vantage I had a pair of 20W optimate solar chargers that I used for keeping a couple of my other cars maintained.



When I bought the Aston I linked the panels together with a Y-splitter to give me 40W equivalent and so far these have proved to be more than adequate.

That reminds me! My 20W just about keeps my 911 going but I'm always a bit nervous in winter that I might leave it too long and the battery will need replacing. I've just (as in - after reading your post!) bought a second 20W panel from Argos (it's the same as the Halfords one but it's currently £34) and will get a splitter. Not an urgent thing given the weather forecast but will be useful again in winter.

[Blitzuk]

Hoofy said:

Thanks. I've actually just bought an Ecoflow Delta 3 Classic for the reasons you mentioned. My off-grid solar system will charge it up. The CS Free as you say is also very useful. As for the deep cycle battery that I currently have, I'll sell that as the Delta does everything better and more safely. Also, I think I can actually boost my PHEV if I need an emergency 3 miles and there's a powercut.

The CS Free was a lifesaver when my alternator packed up. Always good to have around.

Great to hear. They are both useful bits of kit. I hooked mine up directly to the battery for DC to DC charging. But it's even less fun getting to a rapide's battery.

[Hoofy]

Blitzuk said:

Great to hear. They are both useful bits of kit. I hooked mine up directly to the battery for DC to DC charging. But it's even less fun getting to a rapide's battery.

Yikes. I trust you managed to get something to extend outside that space so you didn't have to deconstruct your car everytime you wanted to charge it up!

[Simpo Two]

Blitzuk said:

That looks like a home-made ejector seat!

[Jon39]

Blitzuk said:

Great to hear. They are both useful bits of kit. I hooked mine up directly to the battery for DC to DC charging. But it's even less fun getting to a rapide's battery.

Cannot believe what (I think) I am seeing.
The battery fitted under a seat.
Thinking about how tall batteries are, that would require the seat to be set quite high.
I thought at first, I was looking at a front seat, but it must be a rear seat.

Positioned directly under the occupants knees.
Might there be any risk of sparks, for anyone with a metal knee implant?
Would provide seat heating though, if not standard.
[I know the metal is shielded by body tissue, but knowing that spoils the joke.]

Glad to read that a solution has now been found, for those without an available power supply.
Previously the comments about using just one panel, seemed to suggest they were insufficient during winter.

Edited by Jon39 on Sunday 14th June 12:06

[Blitzuk]

Hoofy said:

Yikes. I trust you managed to get something to extend outside that space so you didn't have to deconstruct your car everytime you wanted to charge it up!

I have an XT60 lead with eyelets running from the battery just outside that can be tucked away. This is what I use to connect my CS Free to.

Simpo Two said:

That looks like a home-made ejector seat!

How else do you stop children who keep asking if we're there yet?

Jon39 said:

Cannot believe what (I think) I am seeing.
The battery fitted under a seat.
Thinking about how tall batteries are, that would require the seat to be set quite high.
I thought at first, I was looking at a front seat, but it must be a rear seat.

Positioned directly under the occupants knees.
Might there be any risk of sparks, for anyone with a metal knee implant?
Would provide seat heating though, if not standard.
[I know the metal is shielded by body tissue, but knowing that spoils the joke.]

Glad to read that a solution has now been found, for those without an available power supply.
Previously the comments about using just one panel, seemed to suggest they were insufficient during winter.

Edited by Jon39 on Sunday 14th June 12:06

It is the rear seat behind the driver.
I doubt you'd get sparks from a metal knee implant. What I think is worse though, what bd would ask someone with a metal knee implant to sit in the back of a Rapide!
Luckily if the battery warms you up, you can always put the cooled seat on!

[Hoofy]

Blitzuk said:

Hoofy said:

Yikes. I trust you managed to get something to extend outside that space so you didn't have to deconstruct your car everytime you wanted to charge it up!

I have an XT60 lead with eyelets running from the battery just outside that can be tucked away. This is what I use to connect my CS Free to.

That's what I was thinking of! Useful into to know, actually.

[Jay_Davis]

Blitzuk said:

It is the rear seat behind the driver.
I doubt you'd get sparks from a metal knee implant. What I think is worse though, what bd would ask someone with a metal knee implant to sit in the back of a Rapide!
Luckily if the battery warms you up, you can always put the cooled seat on!

I wonder if people sitting in the back notice that their phone is charging?