Battery life etc.

Blue One

Blue One

Vendor
Joined
Mar 19, 2008
Messages
1,076
Age
69
Location
Canada (Edmonton Alberta) - Texas
Bike
04 ABS ST1300
When i picked up my latest 04 last summer in Texas, the battery was done. As I expected as it had been sitting without being charged.

So I bought a new one at the Honda shop in Austin.

Brought it home and when the season ended had it sitting in the garage all winter and totally forgot about the battery :(

So here it is a year later and I'm the proud owner of a new Yuasa battery :eek:: Again.

I also have a dual Deltran battery tender that my son bought us for Christmas so I have come to the conclusion that the bikes need to be hooked up any time the bikes are sitting more than a week.

What do you guys think of the battery tender. The guy who sold me the battery here at Battery World said they were junk ??:confused:

I think he's wrong.

Larry.
 
Let me get this straight.. the guy, that sold you the battery... let's call him 'The Battery Salesman'... told you they are junk... hmmmmm...:mw1:
 
i have an 04 also with original battery. Call it luck or good maintanance i dont know. I live in ne pennsylvania and the bike sits for months sometimes in winter, on charge (battery tender jr.) Also when its riding season, i come home,helmet comes off,keys come out,battery tender gets plugged in.
 
Mellow said:
Let me get this straight.. the guy, that sold you the battery... let's call him 'The Battery Salesman'... told you they are junk... hmmmmm...:mw1:
Click to expand...

That's what I was thinking Joe :)

Another question for you guys. I just bought the little Slime compact power sports compressor.

Since the battery tender lead is connected to the battery already, will it be OK to just modify one of the little compressors leads to plug into the battery tender lead to power the compressor ?

I know the BT lead has a 7.5 amp fuse not sure if the compressor draws more ?

Larry.
 
I only use a battery tender during the long, cold winter months - typically from December until March. The rest of the year, except for unseasonable cold snaps, my bike sits in an unheated garage or shed.

Although this bike generally gets treated better than my last bike I managed to get 9 years out of the last battery I bought treating it in this manner:bow1:
 
Blue One said:
That's what I was thinking Joe :)

Another question for you guys. I just bought the little Slime compact power sports compressor.

Since the battery tender lead is connected to the battery already, will it be OK to just modify one of the little compressors leads to plug into the battery tender lead to power the compressor ?

I know the BT lead has a 7.5 amp fuse not sure if the compressor draws more ?

Larry.
Click to expand...

Sure, I've done that before with a couple compressors and never had any issues.
 
I run my "Tender" on the lawn tractor in the winter, 2 moto's, and a deep cycle ermergency battery. I just alternate around and put it on the machine that has had the least use. I have also used it to charge 12 volt gel cells. All without a problem. Just check your liquid levels if you have that style of battery.

Just thinking here... I bet that I have had my Battery Tender for at least 13 or 14 years.

And find a new battery salesman!

Jerry.
 
I use the Battery Tender all the time. Done with the ride, the tender get's put on. I am still using the battery my 04 came with and not a hint of any problems. On my last bike, I used a tender all the time. Got 8 years out of that Battery. Junk?? I don't think so.
 
The battery guy is cuckoo!

Battery Tenders will add at least 25% to your battery life. Many things affect battery life but the two that are most predominate are in warm weather climates batteries do not last as long as they do in cold weather climates.

A Battery Tender is a good idea.
 
Bet he also told you it's a good idea to completely drain it every once in a while to get rid of the memory effect:rolleyes:
+1 Bat Tender.
 
I've had a bettery Tender for about 6 years....never replaced a battery

I use the pigtail to run my slime compressor, power my Top Box (inverter/chargers, etc..)

I've had a bike sit for 6 months on the Tender and it fired right up when I came home...:headbang:
 
Well, Since I have the dual battery tender it will be hooked up to my ST and Jan's BMW from now on. And the little Slime compressor will also be modified to run off the battery tender plug.

Should be handy having that under the seat. Along with the plug kit and tools. One of those kind of things that you hope to never have to use.

When the battery sales guy told me that I though he was crazy. But he did have a much better price on the ST battery than the dealer so I can ignore his mis-guided opinion.

Larry
 
My 04 has been connected to an Optimate charger/maintainer since it was new. I always connect it when the bike is parked. I'm still running the original battery. .......Now that I've jinks myself I'm sure I'll be buying a new battery soon. :rolleyes:
 
I plug '04 ST1300 into a battery tender at the end of every ride and leave it plugged in until I'm ready to go on my next ride (I have a Powerlet connection on the RH fairing panel). Having said that, I am still on my ORIGINAL Yuasa battery...going on 5+ years now. The only maintenance it takes (or needs, evidently) is every winter, when I peel off the fairing to clean the bikes innards, I wipe down the batter and re-apply a very light coat of Vaseline to the terminals. I don't disconnect the battery because I know that the connections are currently solid and good.

Lesson to be learned? Battery Tenders more than pay for themselves (and the battery they are hooked up to, as well).
 
Yea ,Mellow that had to be the battery sales man alright! go with the battery tender ,cant be beat. If you get one with the batt hook up that you can leave on ,you can drop the plug in at the bottom front of batt box And plug in when needed !:slv13: Robert-07-ST
 
Sure wish I had kept my Battery Tender Jr. I gave it to my eldest son to help keep his CB550Four running like a dream.:doh1:.. my Battery Crapped out last Friday..Probably going to buy a Yuasa OEM and a new C-Tek or Battery Tender brand charger to keep the new and expensive battery in peak condition

Rgds todd
 
Blue One said:
What do you guys think of the battery tender. The guy who sold me the battery here at Battery World said they were junk ??:confused:

I think he's wrong.
Click to expand...
I only use AGM batteries, so a 'self discharge' even over the winter isn't much of an issue. I've not had much experience with battery tenders, but I can share this - The '97 ST that I just bought from the original owner got its first new battery just last year. He's always kept it garaged and on a battery tender and the factory battery lasted him 11 years

I guess I can see why your 'battery salesman' isn't too fond of them

Don
 
pigeon said:
i have an 04 also with original battery. Call it luck or good maintanance i dont know. I live in ne pennsylvania and the bike sits for months sometimes in winter, on charge (battery tender jr.) Also when its riding season, i come home,helmet comes off,keys come out,battery tender gets plugged in.
Click to expand...

I'm on my original battery in my '04 too. However, it must be the battery not me. I have never put it on a tender and have run the battery down a few times. I think it is on it's last leg though 'cause if I turn the ignition on and not crank it immediately it turns over slowly, sometimes without cranking, even after a long run of 250+ miles of interstate.
BTW, I bought mine in March of '04 and have about 60k.

Edit: I have to buy a new battery now 1/19/2010. The old one will hold a charge for only a couple of days.
 
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