Ctek chargers - alternatives?

[leighz]

Just had my second ctek xs 0.8 die on me. Took it apart before i realised it had a 5 year warranty. Couldn't see anything obviously wrong and I'm no electrics expert to repair it

Any favoured alternatives out there?

[JaseB]

I use a couple of Optimate 1 duos on my bikes, seem reliable over the last 5 years

[boyse7en]

I've had no trouble with my CTEK charger, which has been happily doing its thing for about 5 years now, so they don't seem to be particularly prone to failure.
I've also got a Noco charger, which also seems to work perfectly well. Not had it very long so can't vouch for its reliability, but they seem to be a popular choice in the States, and have good reviews.

[GSA_fattie]

optimate

[Soloman Dodd]

I used an Optimate till it died on me, and now use Ctek.

That's modern electronics for you, work fine then die unexpectedly.

[the cueball]

I've got 4 CTEK's on the go.. I didn't realise there was a viable alternative out there to be honest for motorcycle battery tenders..

I have a couple of bikes connected all the time (alarms), and cycle the others on and off.

Wish they done a 'group' version or something to lug more than 1 bike in, got bloody wires all over the place!

[RazerSauber]

My mum has used 2 Oxford Oximiser units. First one only failed due to the influence of gravity and the 2nd one seems to have been fine for a good number of years now, well over 5.

[Krikkit]

I have a Noco jump starter and been impressed by the quality, so I'd be going there for a trickle charger... But my Ctek has been good as gold, at this point it's been fine for 6 years, if it dies I'd just buy another.

[Phud]

Noco for me

Use both trickle charge and boost pack on cars and bikes

[pcn1]

2 Cteks died on me, one under warranty, then the replacement died just outside of warranty.

My first Optimate managed over10 years and my second is still going strong at almost 10 years.

My Lidl charger is still working at over 5 years.

No more Cteks for me.......

[trickywoo]

I had an optimate which appeared to be working correctly but it either let the battery die or actually killed it.

I’d buy a different brand next time.

[RemaL]

Ive had a few Optimate's and they have been great. Lasted well but did die. tried a Ctek and really like them and never looked back. Had mine for 5 or 6 years and still going strong. I found these 2 are the best makes that seem to last and do what they need to. plenty of cheaper alternatives but I find they don't feel great and break quickly.

[98elise]

Another one with an Optimate. Had it for 10 years + with no issues.

[IanA2]

Tried them all, settled on NOCO, definitely the best.

[KTMsm]

If you just want a trickle charger there are many cheaper alternatives

If you want something to recover batteries there is nothing better than the CTEK 5 amp

I've tried all the others - including noco - which is rubbish both in operation and longevity

I currently have 4 CTEK MXS 5 and reluctantly one noco as it will do lithium

[Biker 1]

I have a BS10 by BS Chargers.
This was advertised as an official charger on Kawasaki website. I think it's totally automatic & will do most battery types. Well made & has worked fine for a couple of years.
https://bs-battery.com/charger-booster-tester-acce...

www.kawasaki.co.uk/en/accessories/In_the_Garage/To..._Equipment/Smart_battery_charger_maintainer_6V_12V__1A___Lead-Acid_Lithium_?UidCat=0202XEYNBkU9Iw&UidSubCat=0624WlhZXFhaWllYWF1cXVxcW15aWFpeWUYNBkU9Iw&Uid=0818XAldXF0LUVoKWAxRXFlbXVFRDFBRXV4OCl1aXFENWV8

[Bob_Defly]

I have Noco everything, never had any issues.

[NITO]

IanA2 said:

Tried them all, settled on NOCO, definitely the best.

I've had a couple of Noco's die on me, not had my original optimate die on me yet and Ctek was also good on my car although my Father has been through a few of them. Probably the best three out there, Noco's look like the best made and the most rugged with great connectors. I have quite a few bikes on charge and have settled predominantly on Noco's. I have wondered about Victron which ought to be the best and is used heavily in the marine world, but for the minute I am using a few of these Twin Noco chargers, also available from Halfords which is handy;

https://www.halfords.com/motoring/battery-maintena...

[KTMsm]

Bob_Defly said:

I have Noco everything, never had any issues.

I had a noco genius 5 die on me - it just flashed all the lights - quite common apparently

You can't set them to recondition a battery until they have first charged the battery - so if you put it on at night, you have to wait until the morning to set it to recondition. Where's with the ctek you set it at the start, in the morning, it's done

It also takes a genius to work out how to set the noco to recondition - it isn't in the manual

The noco also refuses to attempt to recharge some batteries that the ctek will successfully charge

[NITO]

KTMsm said:

I had a noco genius 5 die on me - it just flashed all the lights - quite common apparently

You can't set them to recondition a battery until they have first charged the battery - so if you put it on at night, you have to wait until the morning to set it to recondition. Where's with the ctek you set it at the start, in the morning, it's done

It also takes a genius to work out how to set the noco to recondition - it isn't in the manual

The noco also refuses to attempt to recharge some batteries that the ctek will successfully charge

Yes, I have experienced the above with the Noco's and also had a Genius 5 die, which is annoying as that is the dearer one with the recondition mode. I haven't owned a Ctek bike charger, Ctek always worked well on my car, I suspect they may have a better algorithm. I think when it comes to lithium, these chargers probably have an easier life, I'm gradually changing all my batteries to lithium.