Recommend me a battery optimiser.

[-Ralph-]

Looks like I have two bikes that are going to need to be kept on optimisers this winter. Both seem to have slightly weak batteries, but not weak enough to cause major problems and I don't think they are at a stage where they need replaced. They are fine if you ride both bikes at least once a week, but I don't. I do tend to ride at least once a week, but it's one bike or the other, and my sports bike will be SORN for winter.

So, I need a second battery optimiser. I have an Oxford Oximiser which cost me about 40 quid 5 or 6 years ago. You get them for 25 quid now, but I've not been particularly impressed with mine. It refused to recover a dead battery on the XT, but when I whacked an ancient and basic car charger on the battery overnight it came back to life and I've been using it in the bike ever since.

The Oximiser does work fine for battery maintenance on a healthy battery.

I don't particularly want to go and spend 45 quid on an Optimate either, I'm not regularly trying to recover completely dead batteries.

Do you own something different? Is it any good? How much are they? Thanks

[Owenski]

Would buying an additional battery connector not work Ralph? wire one up to each battery then you can just charge which ever you like the night before your intending on riding it?

Not sure if you can hook 2 up at the same time but neither can I see a reason why this wouldnt work...

[-Ralph-]

the night before your intending on riding it?

That would require a few bits of brain function, such as advance planning and memory. Mine does neither.

Not sure if you can hook 2 up at the same time but neither can I see a reason why this wouldnt work...

Don't THINK this would work, but interested on peoples views on it if they disagree with me though?

The Oximiser works by monitoring battery voltage, when it drops a bit, it kicks in to recharge. If you were to have two batteries wired together in parallel, it would treat both batteries as one, and so long as one was healthy and providing the right voltage read, the other could be dead and the charger wouldn't kick in ????? Or would one battery drag the the other's voltage down and result in the charger kicking in for both of them ?????

If you put both batteries in series, wouldn't they read 24v ?????

[Owenski]

I should warn you I know very little about electronics...

[AndyBrad]

you can get an acumen charger that has 2 outputs!

[-Ralph-]

you can get an acumen charger that has 2 outputs!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Acumen-Platinum-Duo-Charger-/150580868028

I don't particularly want to go and spend 45 quid

Ahem!

;)

[Biker Biggles]

Had my optimate twelve years now.
The odd extra tenner for it pales into insignificance

[Specialone]

Col, I bought a basic Oxford oximiser 600 for £25 and charged my completely flat DRZ battery and it's been fine since.

[-Ralph-]

Yeah, maybe another Oximiser, they are on evilbay for 23 quid including delivery. The problem with them is if a battery shows below 4.1 volts, they refuse to start charging, but I suppose so long as I have an old fashioned 'dumb' charger to use that doesn't matter. This is only for continual battery maintenance after all, discharge & recharge, just like riding the bike every day. The expensive microprocessor tech stuff is only needed to recover something that's been left to die.

I just know some people have bought chargers from Lidl or Aldi and been very happy with them, I was looking for some other budget Make/Model suggestions.

[Specialone]

Can't you just get another connector and do one at a time?

[timwilky]

I have bought 2 oximisers but have binned them as they are crap. I wished I had saved the money that buying an optimate first would have made

[-Ralph-]

Can't you just get another connector and do one at a time?

That would require a few bits of brain function, such as advance planning and memory. Mine does neither.

Could do, but I'm so disorganised with everything that isn't related to work, and the Daytona will be on SORN, that the XT would just never get plugged in and would be dead when I needed it. Easier just to leave the Daytona plugged in all winter, and plug and unplug the XT only when I ride it.

[Kilted Ginger]

lidl periodically do one for 4'99, basic but works fine, I may have a spare in the garage. Alternatively the do a smart one for about 12 i think.


Ok found the dearer one, on sale again from 17th 0ct http://www.lidl.co.uk/cps/rde/xchg/lidl_uk/hs.xsl/index_25043.htm
Slightly dearer this year £15, if you dont have a lidl near you i can pick one up here if you want.

[-Ralph-]

Thanks mate, I shall pick one of those up. Apparently it's a rebadged CTEK smart charger. :thumbsup:

[beabert]

Please remind me too :D i want one, ill forget.

[Owenski]

Reminder here +2 please. Only got one bike at the moment but at £15 it'll be worth it for the future.

[AndyBrad]

wont work on gel batteries will it?

[Kilted Ginger]

wont work on gel batteries will it?

Suitable for all 6V or 12V car and motorcycle lead-acid batteries with 1.2 - 120Ah capacity:smt109

[The Idle Biker]

lidl periodically do one for 4'99, basic but works fine, I may have a spare in the garage. Alternatively the do a smart one for about 12 i think.


Ok found the dearer one, on sale again from 17th 0ct http://www.lidl.co.uk/cps/rde/xchg/lidl_uk/hs.xsl/index_25043.htm
Slightly dearer this year £15, if you dont have a lidl near you i can pick one up here if you want.

Hope this isn't a daft question but isn't the Lidl one listed as a battery charger as opposed to an optimiser?

[stormingjoe]

I have found extended use of optimisers and chargers without running the bike can damage the reg/rec and kill the battery. Using the bike or remove battery and keep in the warmth in house, then top up now and again seems better.


Podgey on a motorbike ;0D

[-Ralph-]

I have found extended use of optimisers and chargers without running the bike can damage the reg/rec and kill the battery. Using the bike or remove battery and keep in the warmth in house, then top up now and again seems better.


Podgey on a motorbike ;0D

Can you explain why that is? An optimiser should charge and discharge the battery, just like riding the bike.

[-Ralph-]

Hope this isn't a daft question but isn't the Lidl one listed as a battery charger as opposed to an optimiser?

It is indeed listed by Lidl as a charger, but I believe it's an optimiser. I shall check the destructions before proceeding to the checkout.

[-Ralph-]

http://www.lidl.co.uk/cps/rde/xchg//SID-F2225949-91C614EA/lidl_uk/hs.xsl/index_17091.htm?offerdate=&idcheck=true&ar2=&id=1041&country=GB&zipcode=Kettering&city=Northamptonshire&district=NN16+8AL&street=Northfield+Avenue&ar=3&nf=True

Video from an old thread posted by Grinch. May answer the optimiser/charger question. I can't watch it just now as I'm on the train on 3G.

[stormingjoe]

No expert, just found this to be the case, has killed a new battery and reg/rec on my storm, originally the first time thought the alarm killed them, removed that and it happened again, stopped using optimate and not had the problem since, just make sure I use the storm once a fortnight at least.

[Specialone]

Must admit I'm not a fan of leaving batteries on 'charge' all the time.

If it's garaged, with no alarm fitted and the battery is in decent condition then there's no reason why you can't leave it for weeks.

I've leave my bikes for weeks without starting them, I left my DRZ once for 2 months and it started fine.

[Tomor]

My dad has used these Lidl and Aldi ones and he is chuffed to bits with them -just bought 2 more from Aldi! He keeps them on the battery when he is not using the bike, on the motorbike setting, and when he goes to start it, maybe weeks apart at a time, they start first time. At around £12 not to pricey either!

Tom

[SVGrandad]

That would require a few bits of brain function, such as advance planning and memory. Mine does neither.



Don't THINK this would work, but interested on peoples views on it if they disagree with me though?

The Oximiser works by monitoring battery voltage, when it drops a bit, it kicks in to recharge. If you were to have two batteries wired together in parallel, it would treat both batteries as one, and so long as one was healthy and providing the right voltage read, the other could be dead and the charger wouldn't kick in ????? Or would one battery drag the the other's voltage down and result in the charger kicking in for both of them ?????

If you put both batteries in series, wouldn't they read 24v ?????
No, dont put two batteries in parallel - one would pull the other down, and if the dead battery was dead because it had a short...............!!