Charge battery in idle

[Motorsport3]

I plan to keep SORN a bike over the winter, but don't have electricity in the garage that i keep it. So my intention is to start the engine every 2-3 weeks and leave it idle for a few minutes. Would that keep the battery live because it is a bit of PITA to try to take it out ?

[TwoStrokeNut]

No, you'd need to run the engine for much longer than that, or at least up the revs.

[underwhelmist]

I've also been told that running the engine infrequently without it getting up to temperature will encourage condensation to form leading to corrosion etc. Just take the battery off and keep it somewhere warmish perhaps?

[mckeann]

You will drain more out of the battery from starting it than you will put back in

[mckeann]

If you have a trickle charger but no electricity, remove battery and put it in the house to charge it and leave it there all winter.

Alternatively, just disconnect the battery and leave it in the bike.

Edited by mckeann on Tuesday 25th July 17:43

[2Btoo]

Take the bike for a good run before putting it away and disconnect the battery when you leave it.

It'll keep the charge fine and shouldn't deteriorate. Re-connect it next spring and all will be well.

[bimsb6]

TwoStrokeNut said:

No, you'd need to run the engine for much longer than that, or at least up the revs.

Modern stuff will charge at tickover .

[dc2rr07]

underwhelmist said:

I've also been told that running the engine infrequently without it getting up to temperature will encourage condensation to form leading to corrosion etc. Just take the battery off and keep it somewhere warmish perhaps?

This would be my answer as well.

[TwoStrokeNut]

bimsb6 said:

TwoStrokeNut said:

No, you'd need to run the engine for much longer than that, or at least up the revs.

Modern stuff will charge at tickover .

Yes, but not enough to charge it sufficiently in a couple of minutes, after being left standing and then drained starting up.

[trickywoo]

2Btoo said:

Take the bike for a good run before putting it away and disconnect the battery when you leave it.

It'll keep the charge fine and shouldn't deteriorate. Re-connect it next spring and all will be well.

This sounds optimistic but might be ok if your batter is good and you have zero drain. Last winter I put my battery on trickle charge every 3 weeks or so but was surprised that on a lot of occasions it either indicated no charge was needed more or less immediately or just charged for a few minutes before confirming ok.

[Birky_41]

I'd just disconnect it and if you can't be bothered to remove and charge in house leave it in the bike until you are ready to ride again. Connect back up and should be fine

[bitwrx]

Can you easily remove the 'main' fuse?

There was one on my old bike that isolated the whole machine.

[sjg]

A battery in decent shape will probably last the winter if there's not an alarm slowly draining it.

If the battery is a pain to get to, I'd be inclined to run some leads from the terminals to a waterproof connector that you can tuck away - like the leads you get with an Optimate charger or similar. Then have some similar ones for connecting to a battery booster in case you need it.

I used a cheapy one like this for the few years I had a garage without power and it was very handy to power 12v stuff out there, top up tyres or get the bike started if I'd let the battery get too far gone.

[RizzoTheRat]

Disconnecting or removing the battery if it's easy to get at is probably the best option, however a solar battery charger connected up occasionally might be worth looking at

http://www.screwfix.com/p/ring-rsp240-2-4w-solar-m...

As above, if the battery's awkward to get at fit some leads so you can charge it via a plug stashed under the seat somewhere. The commercial trickle chargers such as Optimate use the same connectors as Tamyia RC car batteries, Maplins sell the connectors for not a lot.

[Wait Here Until Green Light Shows]

Just buy a generic cheap 5w solar panel from eBay and stick it on the roof facing south at 45 degrees incline - they keep the battery charged up a treat.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-5W-18V-Solar-Panel-Mod...

[Motorsport3]

Thank you very much for your replies. I particularly like the idea of a booster. My battery already has leads so while I can't easily remove it I should be able to charge with a portable one. I just dont want to mess about trying to unscrew panels and disconnect leads etc..