flying wasp
Bicycle
Michigan = COLD!! Is it better to leave the battery in bike out in the garage with a smart charger? Or bring it in and store in the basement and charge it several times through the winter? Of course this is an 08 C-14.
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winter battery care
- Thread starter flying wasp
- Start date
I'm in NY and it's also pretty cold in the winter. I use battery tenders on my bikes. I just hook the pig tails on the bikes. Then when they're going to sit in the barn for a while, I plug the bike in. I rarely have battery trouble on my bikes. My Mean Streak is a 2003. I just replaced the original battery this spring.
I also make sure the bike is winterized before I put her away. A full tank with fuel stabilizer, fresh oil's and filter, lube and cleaning before I cover them up. And of course I plug in the trickle charger on the bike.
I also make sure the bike is winterized before I put her away. A full tank with fuel stabilizer, fresh oil's and filter, lube and cleaning before I cover them up. And of course I plug in the trickle charger on the bike.
bagger
Moped
I must have 8 battery tenders of some nature hooked up year 'round.
All my bikes have them. When I get ready to ride, I unplug the "pig tail" from the battery .... mine are trailer connections ... and when I get back, I hook them back up.
Been doing this for a decade with good results. Batteries last at least 4 years.
EZ to hook up the pig tails, too. Even I can do so. And, I'm about as mechanical as an umbrella.
I have 8 from Sears. Schumacher I think is the brand. Cost is relatively small. Like $22.95 or so. Just make sure they come with the pig tail inside. Some do, some don't. These China made deals have worked for me for many years and are much less expensive than the Battery Tender brand. Choose what you like. But, hook up some sort of battery tender year 'round.
All my bikes have them. When I get ready to ride, I unplug the "pig tail" from the battery .... mine are trailer connections ... and when I get back, I hook them back up.
Been doing this for a decade with good results. Batteries last at least 4 years.
EZ to hook up the pig tails, too. Even I can do so. And, I'm about as mechanical as an umbrella.
I have 8 from Sears. Schumacher I think is the brand. Cost is relatively small. Like $22.95 or so. Just make sure they come with the pig tail inside. Some do, some don't. These China made deals have worked for me for many years and are much less expensive than the Battery Tender brand. Choose what you like. But, hook up some sort of battery tender year 'round.
Cold generally won't hurt the battery as long as it doesn't freeze solid. The electrolyte in a fully charged battery will not freeze until about -65 degrees F. The self discharge rate on batteries actually goes down with temperature. So as long as the vehicle doesn't have a parasitic drain, it should be fine. You might want to put it on an automatic charger, which will keep it topped off and also will help warm it a bit.
However, removing the battery from the vehicle gives you a chance to clean the terminals and eliminates any parasitic drain, so there is something to be said for doing that. If you bring it in the house in a warm environment, then you'll definitely need to charge it up every few weeks, as it will self discharge at a higher rate.
Most folks don't realize it, but batteries are actually damaged more by heat than they are cold, since the self discharge rate goes up dramatically with temperature.
However, removing the battery from the vehicle gives you a chance to clean the terminals and eliminates any parasitic drain, so there is something to be said for doing that. If you bring it in the house in a warm environment, then you'll definitely need to charge it up every few weeks, as it will self discharge at a higher rate.
Most folks don't realize it, but batteries are actually damaged more by heat than they are cold, since the self discharge rate goes up dramatically with temperature.
These days I use a Battery Tender Plus which goes into float mode and keeps the battery in good condition over long, very cold winters here in western Maryland.
In the old days, when I was at West Point and kept my (first) H1 and then H2 and then Z1 in my girlfriend's parents' barn, my battery tender was my girlfriend. She would go out every couple days, take the blankets off them, kick start them (pre-electric), and ride them one by one around the farm on the semi-paved roads.
I got to see her a couple times, as I was getting rides to the farm on weekend leave, riding alongside the fields wearing ski clothes and a big knit hat I referred to as a head-sock. In the summer, she and I went for rides, me on the H2, her on the H1, and we had great fun and not a few adventures.
Sigh.... someone once told me you get 1 or at most 2 chances to marry the perfect woman. I'll be damned if I didn't manage to lose her when she moved to California a year before I graduated. Never met a woman like that again since.
And I sold the H1, and 20 years later sold the H2, and I wish I never sold either.
In the old days, when I was at West Point and kept my (first) H1 and then H2 and then Z1 in my girlfriend's parents' barn, my battery tender was my girlfriend. She would go out every couple days, take the blankets off them, kick start them (pre-electric), and ride them one by one around the farm on the semi-paved roads.
I got to see her a couple times, as I was getting rides to the farm on weekend leave, riding alongside the fields wearing ski clothes and a big knit hat I referred to as a head-sock. In the summer, she and I went for rides, me on the H2, her on the H1, and we had great fun and not a few adventures.
Sigh.... someone once told me you get 1 or at most 2 chances to marry the perfect woman. I'll be damned if I didn't manage to lose her when she moved to California a year before I graduated. Never met a woman like that again since.
And I sold the H1, and 20 years later sold the H2, and I wish I never sold either.
ChipDoc said:
or bundle up and ride every non-snow day!
But I do have a couple battery tenders and a sears tender that I throw on the bikes if I see an extended period without riding. I have never bothered to take the battery inside, though for logistics around the garage, I pull it out of the dirtbike and track bike which spends some of the winter in the trailer.. never a problem with mine. I generally don't pull the battery on my connie or superduke R because I ride the C14 whenever there is no precipitation, and try to get the SDR out at least once a week..
^^ Privateer, That is a great synopsis for a wonderful feature film. . . you'd have every gearhead in the audience tearing up. A love story for the mechanically inclined, who will actually score points when dragging the gals to the theater. :beerchug:
Jdmitchell
Road Bike
Privateer, you need to unhook your battery tender and leave for California..................................NOW! Go find that woman and put ring on her finger. ;D
