Hi all,
I am going to travel out of town for about a week and a half, so during this time the bike will be idling in the carport space. I remember last time when it idles for 3 weeks the battery run out to the point that I cannot start the bike up. I am just wondering if anyone have suggestions on where I should keep the battery? Should I disconnect the battery and put in inside my apartment? Or just leave it inside teh bike and it should be fine?
Thanks in advance!
Simon
Quote from: simonyau on February 23, 2006, 11:14:00 AM
Hi all,
I am going to travel out of town for about a week and a half, so during this time the bike will be idling in the carport space. I remember last time when it idles for 3 weeks the battery run out to the point that I cannot start the bike up. I am just wondering if anyone have suggestions on where I should keep the battery? Should I disconnect the battery and put in inside my apartment? Or just leave it inside teh bike and it should be fine?
Thanks in advance!
Simon
I think it should be fine inside the bike, but keeping it on a trickle charger never hurt.
I like to remove my batteries when I won't be using the bike for a while...but I actually seldom get around to it. If it's a good battery and the bike's in good shape then it should be fine.
At least detach the negative. When you come back make sure the fluids are topped up (distilled water).
Thanks for the replies. Then I probably will disconnect the negative and see how it goes. Thanks!
Simon
When in doubt, take it out, and store it in a safe area (no kids / pets / ignition source dangers). Even when sitting, your battery is giving off hydrogen gas as it slowly discharges (among other things), which is highly explosive under the right circumstances (think: Hindenberg disaster / "Oh the humanity!"). The area should be well-ventilated to prevent any buildup of gases, and away from any type of ignition source, so don't put it near a gas-fired water-heater, a (gas-fired) clothes dryer, a space heater... you get the idea.
There are countless old-wives tales about not storing batteries on concrete, in the belief that it discharges them, but feel free to ignore that nonsense. I've ALWAYS stored my batteries on concrete, with no ill effects EVER. The ONLY reason a properly stored battery ever discharges is TIME; the longer the battery sits unused, the weaker it will become. As long as you remember to fully trickle-charge the battery before you reinstall it (I prefer to trickle-charge them overnight), you shouldn't have ANY problems with it once you put it back in the motorcycle.
3 weeks wont flatten a healthy and fully charged battery but If your concerned take it out of the bike and store it in a warm place till you need it again, particularly if its going to be exposed to really low temps.
The fact that your battery did not last 3 weeks before indicates to me that your battery is getting marginal. A good lead acid battery will not self discharge in 3 weeks to the point of not being usable. An older/marginal battery will often self discharge in a short period of time. You may want to start using a "Battery Tender" to keep it charged up.
I will take the advice and store the battery in a warm place during my travel. When I'm back, I'll see if it still have enough charge to start the bike up. I will research a bit on battery tenders and I may get one when I'm back. Thanks very much!
Simon
Having enough power to start the engine really isn't enough; you should recharge an older/weaker battery before putting it back into service. I got the impression from your original post that you don't (yet) own a motorcycle-specific battery charger / battery tender, and that is something that will pay for itself the very first time you use it. In general, motorcycle charging systems are NOT sufficient to bring the battery back to a full charge once it falls below a certain level (some charging systems are worse than others); using a weak battery simply means you'll be closer to having the motorcycle break down, probably on a dark night, with rain clouds on the horizon (does it ever happen at any other time?). There are those who are willing to throw money into replacement parts (which is probably good for the local economy), and those who prefer to keep what they have in top condition. The choice is yours, but I've seen enough new / replacement batteries installed that were marginal straight from the dealership that I trickle-charge every battery I remove when I work on a motorcycle for any reason.
Most people who buy a new battery don't want to wait a few hours for it to be fully charged; many dealerships claim that the battery can be ready to go in an hour, which means they are most likely over-charging the battery (charging it at too high a rate) in order to get the guy out the door. I've seen new batteries with nearly half the electrolyte boiled away from overcharging out of sight of the customer, just to keep the customer from complaining about the time he's wasting waiting for his new battery. The dealers aren't too concerned if something goes wrong four months down the road; the battery is under warranty for a year, and if the guy breaks down and has to pay for a flat-bed to tow the bike back to the dealership, that is his problem. They'll replace the battery under warranty (probably overcharging the replacement battery in the process, which sets up a vicious cycle of frequent battery failure and replacement), and the customer is the one who was inconvenienced from breaking down and having to pay the towing charge. That is an expensive way to buy batteries, but the dealers know that the guy will probably buy more stuff (not just replace the dead battery under warranty) the next time he comes in, so they do nothing to educate the customer. They have to keep the doors open, and walk-in sales help generate a good portion of their yearly income...
A healthy battery is critical to a healthy motorcycle; if the motorcycle won't start, or, if the marginal battery can't provide enough juice to make a healthy spark with the engine under load, bad things can happen quickly in traffic, or when you're deep in the middle of nowhere. I can't count the number of times simply charging a battery and cleaning the corrosion off the connectors has solved problems others blamed on coils, carbs, or ignition system gremlins; if you're happy paying others to keep your motorcycle working, more power to you, but I prefer to rely on my own efforts, rather than to throw money at others to fix problems I can easily avoid with a little time and effort.
Good luck; I hope you'll let us know how this turns out when you re-install the battery. If there's any chance you might have to delay your return, then I hope you'll buy a battery tender and let it charge your battery while you're away. That way, the battery will be ready to go when you need it, though I would remind you to double-check the electrolyte level, and top it off if need be, before you use the battery again. Have a safe trip...
Thanks for the insightful reply. You are correct that I do not have a battery tender yet. Last time when the battery does not have enough charge, I took out the battery and recharge it in a local motorcycle store. Afterwards, the bike runs smoothly, so I assume that the battery is in a good condition. After reading your post, I am convinced that I should get a battery tender, certainly when I am back from the trip (if not sooner). Any recommendation of which brand of battery tender I should get?
BTW, I will keep everyone updated when I reinstall the battery. :)
Simon
The link to Deltran Europe sells the version you can (presumably) use anywhere in the world, regardless of voltage...
http://www.batterytender.com/
http://www.batterytender.com/default.php?cPath=11_3
http://batterytender.com/deltran_europe.php
That should get you pointed in the right direction...
Hi all,
Just want to report that my bike starts up great when I'm back. I did took out the battery during my travel. My next step will be researching more on battery chargers and I may have more questions at that point. Thanks everyone for the opinions.
Simon