Battery Life With Optimate

[V8 Disco]

Hi - I've just had to replace the battery on my 916. It was a good brand (Yuasa) and two or three years old. It had been on a battery tender (Optimate) for every moment that the bike was not being ridden. The electrolyte was regularly checked and topped with distilled water as necessary. The Optimate did not show any fault in the battery.

What do you think is a reasonable life for a battery of this sort, maintained correctly?

[catso]

My 916 battery lives on an optimate when not being ridden and is 6 years old, I only changed the original because I broke it in a crash. What's your regulator and related wiring (especially the connectors on the two wires from alternator to regulator) like?

[V8 Disco]

Er, embarassingly (as I've known about this for years) I have never checked.. p'raps I should check!

Cheers for the suggestion.

[Kevp]

I have had both the wife's & my bike on charge over the winter. I swaped the charger every couple of weeks.

When I tried to start the bikes (fireblade & millie) they only just turned over, and I ended up boosting one of them with a car charger.
After using the bikes for a couple of weeks now they are fine. I am wondering if the charger (mine is a datatool) is running at a high enough voltage.

I have a battery tester & multimeter but have not checked it.

[dern]

The blade's battery is 7 years old and counting. It occasionally been let go flat, the bike is used all year round and had bar heaters on this winter and mostly left on an optimate when not being used.

[y2blade]

the battery on the blade is now 8 years old now and kept plugged into an optimate 3 sp every time it's put back in the garage..it still holds a charge no problem though when left off the optimate for over a week and upto 10 days when on the isle of man