Could a battery connected to a trickle charger continuously over the winter be potentially harmful to the battery?
1-in-3 odds says YES
Per a Deltran technician
Battery tenders left attached and plugged in on a typically sized motorcycle battery will over a period of time get "confused" and show a false "fully charged" light. That period of time is a crap-shoot and dependent on several variables. Why does this happen? They don't know. How is it avoided?
A simple plug-in timer
Disconnect now and then
Don't buy multiple tenders and rotate one tender between bikes
Interesting..however I would suspect that scenario happening with the cheaper chargers. The better class (Schumacher) and others that have smart technology built in senses the peak voltage shuts off and turns back on at predetermined drop in voltage thereby eliminating complete discharge.If the micro processor is in working condition all should be fine. Of course anything can fail and so the timer idea is a better option , but then if the timer fails in the on position..back to square one. It all falls back on the quality and integrity of the apparatus in play.. Its all about luck, but its better to get the good stuff whatever that is ??
I can get to the scooters and keep the battery for the boat in the cellar. Sometime around the first and fifteenth of the month, I put the Optimate 3 on each in turn. Usually it takes three or four hours each, but then all are topped up and happy.
On my scoot, getting there is WAY more than half the fun!
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Lithium batteries for portable devices are supposed to last longer is not fully charged/dis-charged but charged between %10-90 (more charge cycles for maximum power) < they do loose charge capacity over time. Can't remember the article/graph thing.
If so, then that may be why charges that keep batteries near their max charge for too long is not the best thing.
That said, cost of battery vs any shortening of life, is it worth worrying about (feel a youyou moment coming on)
My bike sat unused and unstarted for almost four months this winter and started first press of the button.
No charging, nothing, just sat there under the cover.
Battery tenders is baloney.
Four decades on two wheels has taught me nothing, all advice given is guaranteed to be wrong
I run my Battery Tender in Spring to perk up my bikes or scooters if the weather has not allowed me to use them much (or at all) during Winter.
The way this Winter has been I haven't been able to use my motorcycles at all and the scoots rarely. It's either too snowy, rainy, windy, followed by repeated salt applications on the roads, or just plain too cold or any combination thereof. I usually pride myself on riding year 'round but can't do that this year. More snow coming soon. . .the sky is already grey and the wind is increasing. Can't wait.
