I work >1 mile from work. Yes, I drive there in the winter it can get -45f I read one place the batts wont charge fully with short driving/warm up time. What do you think of a float charger for my situation?


P.S. To my understanding, float chargers turn off when fully charged, that's why I chose it

 

i use solar panel chargers like this one: 1.5 Watt Solar Battery Charger

they keep the battery topped off.

 

You just plug it into the outlet and let it sit? is there worry of overcharge?

 

plug it into the cigarette lighter and forget about it.
a 60 watt light bulb will produce enough light to produce 12 volts, so even if you park in a garage the light coming in through a window is enough.
and they will produce power with 4-5 inches of snow on the windows/vehicle.

at 1.5 watts, there is no need to worry about overcharging, that is equal to a little over what the radio and computer memory uses.
and it has a back-flow preventer so it will not back-flow power to the solar cells and drain the battery when there is no light

 

Thank you much

 

A battery tender or any of the modern intelligent battery chargers is a decent idea for overnights at home. Very few chargers are built without overcharge circuitry anymore.
I had a car that had a parasitic draw if left for more than 48 hours in the winter. I hooked up a battery tender and just plugged it in whenever I parked it.
I assume you also have a block heater? I think that should be standard in your area, but I have heard that aren't in all parts of the USofA, so I thought I'd check. Helps a lot with the cold starts.

Around here CAA (our version of AAA) sells battery tenders for pretty cheap, so something to check out if you are a member.

 

Yes, I have a block heater and plan to use it. I was thinking about the short trips will drain the batts over a week or two in time due to the alternator not having enough time to charge and cold starting weather.

 

When I was in school they always said it takes at least 8 miles of driving to recharge the battery to it's prior status charge. That was a long time ago and I am sure things have changed some....LOL


Bob C

 

You could actually check it and see, but the outrush is so brief, you could like make up a small daily loss with a routine weekend drive. If the truck just sits constantly it would be a different story.

 

A battery charger is a handy thing to have. If it was me, I would probably only run it if I knew very cold weather was coming.

 

If you go with a charger and do not have one, the models that are fully automatic and capable of producing an equalizing charge are a good investment.

 

There is always a weekend long drive here or there. I am leaning on giving it a try with nothing but the block heater, and just picking up a new auto-off charger for when obnoxiously cold weather is on the way.