Running on empty
I mentioned before that the car has a tempremantal battery.
It meant that any time I wanted to go somewhere [and on occasions when I wanted to return] I had to get out the defibrillator and jump start it.
I think that is now fixed. Having eliminated just about everything else, I replaced the battery charger with an industrial sized one. I charged the battery over the course of the day and the car has started every time since.
I got up this morning and found my battery was low. Jayzus but I was knackered – neither the body nor the brain functioned. I barely had the energy to make a mug of tea, let alone anything else. I was supposed to do a load of things today. I shelved the lot. For the first time in a very long time I am doing sweet fuck all for the entire day. I only just arrived in this here site a few minutes ago, after struggling for a while to remember where the on/off switch was.
Maybe I just should take a day or two off?
Or maybe I can recharge overnight?
Where do I attach the charger / defibrillator clamps?
Definitely avoid anywhere below waist level GD !
You could have a point there.
[maybe I should rephrase that?]
I can’t help with your personal problems – I feel like that myself from time to time. However vehicle electrics is something I do have a fair bit of experience with. I’ve no idea what sort of car you drive, but this time of year is famous for flat batteries. Pproblems with alternators and their drive belts will usually go unnoticed during summer, but now they have to work hard. You really need a decent voltmeter to check the battery voltage when it’s been standing overnight, then again once the engine is running. Switch on all the lights and turn the heater fan on maximum, then see if the voltage stays above 14, and if not how fast the engine needs to run before it does.
It’s a Ford and it’s your usual old person buggy; short journeys and not garaged.
Lights, radio, heater and serviced very infrequently, based on the premise if it ain’t bust, then why fix it.
“Keeper” has the mechanical sympathy of a pissed off porcupine.
http://headrambles.com/2014/02/24/high-tide-in-the-car/
Old Person Buggy? I suppose it is. It is actually serviced every year and is in great nick . I haven’t even had a high tide lately.
Oh, well, that explains it! I’ll bet his battery is never more than 50% charged, which is why it won’t turn the engine over. A jump start, followed by 10 minutes running will appear to sort things out. But unless it is fully recharged, the same thing will happen again…
Dear Mrs Grandad,
Here’s a link to the perfect Christmas gift for ‘himself’ : http://www.maplin.ie/p/solar-powered-12v-15w-battery-charger-n31cx Hope he has a fag lighter in the auld jalopy.
Regards,
Santa Green
.
Holy fuck! €74.95? And I might need ten of ’em? The charger I bought was under €50 and it’s a heavy duty one. So much for “green energy”!!
I was going to suggest something like this, however there’s no need for one quite so big. A 5 watt panel would do so long as it’s properly sighted and can see the sun for as long as possible during the day. But beware – on many cars the fag lighter socket is not permanently live. There’s absolutely no point plugging any charger into it if you have to (insert) and turn the key to connect it to the battery!
Even with one panel I’d still pay well over what I actually paid. Granted I have to pay for the juice to use the charger but that isn’t much.
I have one on my camper van/ motorhome and it keeps the thing juiced up during the winter months. Why do ya want ten chargers? Do you have a serious collection of motors in the basement or what?
My horticulture in the attic needs a lot of juice.The last charger was a low powered yoke so the car seems to need a bit of a kick.A couple of planks positioned to create a slope off the side of the bed, roll out and down after awakening should get you going 🙂
That’s not a bad idea. Just so long as the dog doesn’t take advantage and play slides on it all night.
You might want to head to whatever auto repair place you frequent and have them load test the battery and check for anything that may be draining your battery when the motor isn’t running just to say you did. It’s good to check every couple of years anyway.
I’m pretty much in the same boat as you are when it comes to infrequent use of our vehicles (and short trips when we do use them) but healthy car batteries in a healthy electrical system shouldn’t be losing their charge overnight or even over a week of non-use–even during the cold weather. I expect the engine to crank slower during the cold weather but it should crank and start. Even the best car batteries are only good for 5 years and all that.