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Batteries are 2015, so 4 years old. After 4-5 day sitting, truck won't start, it turns around 2-3 seconds and battery is dead. Amps are way down (as per my old charger). I know I drove 4 miles at a time 99% of the time, but I did use a Battery Tender Plus one or twice a month. Question is, should I replace both batteries or just the passenger side that (I believe) does the starting. It does start after I charged the battery about 10 minute with a 10A/Hr setting.
They BOTH are needed for starting! Ten minutes of charging at 10 amps are not even close to what is needed. You need about 24 hours to get them up fully, even though they taper off in acceptance.
The best practice is to replace both at the same time. If you want to improve the batteries in a better balance, although it's not mandatory, some inexpensive cable upgrades would help.
Get one of these chargers - they work great. If you don’t drive much so the batteries don’t get charged up much, but your batteries are otherwise good, the charger may be worth the cost to you.
ToManyToys, Can you translate for a bolt and nuts guy what exactly you did in that video? Can I add a cable between the two positive's and run it over the radiator? Where do I buy one and what cable does it need to be? If work needs to be done with the two grounds, can it be done without digging in and pulling parts out? I was waiting for this kind of instructions the entire video, and you cut it abruptly leaving us with a well defined electrical problem but no electro-mechanical solution.
Seville009, charger is nice but also $250, 80% of the cost of my 2 batteries, or 3.2 years worth of batteries if I only count 4 years life for them. I can charge the batteries overnight or do a 24 hour every weekend with the chargers I already have. Plus, I just got laid-off and I have to scale down on toys.
Two batteries wired in parallel electrically become 2 cells that make up a single, larger battery, even though in different locations. It's similar to the way 6 individual cells make up a single 12 volt battery. For some reason not everyone groks that. If the batteries in your 2D flashlight were bad, nobody would replace just one of them if they could help it, and the light would flicker, cells start to leak, etc. In the case here the worse battery will drag down the better one and excessive outgassing will occur. Both "cells" need to be on the same page and that takes some serious juice to do that.
About 20 amperes would be a good "slow" charge for this kind of arrangement. A 0.75 amp BatteryTender isn't going to be even close. It would take weeks and would boil off a lot of the water.
Replace both batteries before you damage your injectors, FICM, and other valuable components. Buy yourself a good battery charger-not a unit that tops off an already charged battery. I connect both batteries at least twice a year to a CTEK battery charger for over 24 hours. Search the forums for a decent battery charger to find out what other guys are using. If you go outside of the FTE forum, you will find reviews that are nothing more than links for profits.
I use the CTEK 25000 because it has an AGM setting as I have 4 AGM batteries-2 house for camping and 2 for the vehicle. I like the CTEK units because I can keep it in my vehicle as it's small. Your situation is probably different.
Guys like TooManyToys and Y2K know what chargers are best for 2 battery systems. You need to hit both batteries with as many amps possible. My batteries are Odyssey AGM and I went with the battery charger recommended by them and their top engineer.
Get one of these chargers - they work great. If you don’t drive much so the batteries don’t get charged up much, but your batteries are otherwise good, the charger may be worth the cost to you.
Go to Amazon and read through reviews. Battery chargers are becoming like alternators-higher failure rates. This battery charger has both good and bad reviews. Read as many of the bad reviews as possible.
Thank you Coolfeet and everybody else. I am sold on the charger, read yesterday reviews, ask questions...not easy to decide; I am trying to find one made in USA. If I get to it today I will buy 2 batteries; in the meantime I am driving my wife's car. I had my old 10A charger in the truck since yesterday noon but considering the age of my batteries and the fact that I'll be in the woods in Michigan for a week, it's safer to replace them. I also add the wiring improvement to my ToDo list.
If you plan to buy thin plate pure lead (TPPL) style AGM batteries, give your battery manufacturer of choice a call and see if they have tested the NOCO Genius 26000 charger.
In previous NOCO products, the charging algorithm, even in their AGM setting, did not satisfy the requirements that Enersys had established for the charging of their TPPL AGM batteries. Since the chief science and technology officer left Enersys and started his own company called Northstar, that produces similar TPPL batteries to the Odyssey line that Enersys produces, I would infer that the NOCO charging algorithm, as tested by Enersys, is likely not optimal for the Northstar manufactured batteries either.
Since the NOCO 26000 model of charger that you are considering is a relatively newer product, having come out subsequent to the time when I contacted Enersys regarding their internal testing, then to be fair to the NOCO product, the question deserves to be asked again, in the event that NOCO may have redesigned the parameters that govern the sequence of their charging rates and voltages based on temperature and voltage feedback from the battery.
So on one hand, worth the call because previously NOCO was specifically disavowed by Enersys, and on the other hand worth the call because the NOCO you are considering is a newer model than those on the market at the time of the previous disapproval.
If you plan on just getting wet cell lead acid batteries, none of the foregoing matters.
I would infer that the NOCO charging algorithm, as tested by Enersys, is likely not optimal for the Northstar manufactured batteries either.
I had a Northstar AGM battery in my plow truck drain last summer due to a short in my trailer plug. Fixed the short and charged up/reconditioned the Northstar AGM with my Noco G26000. Battery worked perfect all last winter; no issues.
Replace both batteries with Costco ones.
Swap those out faithfully every 24 months.
I've been doing that for the past 10 years after having all kinds of problems the first 6 years.
Replace both batteries with Costco ones.
Swap those out faithfully every 24 months.
I've been doing that for the past 10 years after having all kinds of problems the first 6 years.
I swap mine out every 2 years too, whenever the voltage starts dropping when firing up in the cold. The old batteries have years of life in any other vehicle/tractor/electric fence.
Replace both batteries with Costco ones.
Swap those out faithfully every 24 months.
I've been doing that for the past 10 years after having all kinds of problems the first 6 years.
Are you saying that you only bought one pair of batteries from Costco 10 years ago, and in that period of time, have received 8 batteries for free?
In other words, has each round of replacements every 24 months involved a no money exchange with the batteries they previously gave to you 2 years prior, based on a purchase made up to 10 years prior?
Or are you repurchasing new batteries every two years?
