Battery Tender issue....

[PhillyTurboSix]

Well I went to my garage the other week and smelled acid in the air! I started checking the cars and it was coming from the TTA. I popped the hood and it seems the battery tender I was using on the car went into over charge or something and was smoking the battery! So I unplugged the battery tender and called them up. I sent it in for repair. They charged me $15.95 to fix it. They come with a 10 year warranty so I guess that's for shipping back.

I went today to move the car and the battery is just about totally dead. I keep the ECM unplugged near the battery there but yet when I turned the key the car would not crank. Weird part is the fans came on. They stayed on till I disconnected the dead battery. I guess the tender killed it. The battery was an AC Delco and about 4 years old so I'm sure it was near the end of it's life as it is but I thought it was strange the fans came on. I just picked up a new AC Delco for the car so I'll see tomorrow if any other damage happened but having that thing over charge the battery.

I just wanted to let you guys know if your using these battery tenders like the one pictured below check in on it from time to time! I know a guy who has 3 cars he only see's about 10 times a year and they are at a remote location on a battery tender. I'm going to try and see what went wrong with the tender and see if they will pay for the new battery!

 

[Turbota6]

I used to use a trickle charger that Kirban sold which was made by I think Schneider Electric. A little more compact than the one you pictured and hard wired for only the ring type terminals. I'm not sure if I lost it or something happened to it but I replaced it with a near identical unit sold from Sears. Never remember having a problem with either one. I primarily used them to keep things charged up during the winter especially with the Thrasher chip using anti-theft. If the voltage dropped below 10 volts when you were cranking the chip would default to anti-theft. Easier to keep things charged up rather than have to change chips just to start the car.

 

[WS6]

I have given up on winter storage tips and tricks. I used to go through all the rig-a-ma-roll of putting it up in the air, maintainer chargers, sta-bil, fogging the cylinders, covering it up, blah,blah,blah. Only to have all the same problems I have always had.
Now I drive it into position and take the keys out and walk away...once in awhile when I can vent the shop I start everything up and bring them up to temperature and shut 'em down again.

I too had a tender charger burn up and it's just not worth the risk of a catastophic loss to gain maybe another years life on a 5 year battery.

just my 2 pennies worth...

 

[ttanewyork]

I have the same charger as in the pic above and have not had any problems. But I only use it in the summer as I do not drive the car that often. In the winter I use stabil, clean and armorall everything, cover it, park it on my lift, and take out the battery. When I disconect the battery the fans come on for like half a secound as I am removing the negative.

 

[PhillyTurboSix]

Yea that's what it seems for sure. I run tenders all year long on the cars. My garage is carpeted and stays around 60 all winter long as it is. Sometimes hits low 70's in there over the winter months. The cars get stored better then me! But I do the same. Pull the car in and turn it off and walk away other then the tender. I just didn't want to get caught with a dead battery at a show or something.

 

[TC Turbo]

I used to use a battery tender on my Sunbird. Last February we had the carbon monoxide detectors in the house go off around 1 AM. Opened all the windows, opened the garage, etc to vent it out and after an hour or so all was well so we shut it all up and went back to bed. Around 4 AM the detectors went off again so this time we called the fire department to play it safe. Long story short their meter zeroed in on the battery in the Sunbird and that tender so I got a sermon from the Fire Dept and a lot of jokes from my neighbors. Funny thing is it didn't smell like rotten eggs and the case wasn't even hot. No more Tenders for me though a friend of mine has had one for 10 years or so and swears by it. Go figure. DontKnow:

 

[auto_cran]

Interesting Jim.

I also use the Battery Tender Plus from Deltran. I've got 4 of them. So far, I have had no issues or problems, but to be honest, I have only been using them for about a year - after going through many cheaper battery maintainers and being disappointed.

Did you notice what light was on when you detected the problem? I think a blinking red is a fault/error. I know when I check all the cars, I make sure their Battery Tender is a solid green light (battery fully charged).

Everyone told me these are the best. I'll keep an extra eye on them.

BTW - your garage must look like mine -carpeted and all. Makes it SO easy when working on the cars!


Chris
----------
1989 Pontiac Turbo Trans Am #760 (1940 miles)
1988 Chevrolet Corvette 35th Anniversary #1941/2050
1986 Pontiac Fiero GT V6/5-speed
1983 Delorean DMC-12
1986 Toyota Supra MKII
1985 Kawasaki Eliminator ZL900

 

[PhillyTurboSix]

Hey Chris! There was no lights on the tender when it was over charging the battery. I just got it back from Deltran today. They basically just sent me a brand new one in the box. I hooked it up and headed to work so hopefully it's not killing my new AC Delco battery I just got today!

And yes carpeted garage floor is the only way to work on cars!

 

[WS6]

And yes carpeted garage floor is the only way to work on cars!

I am soooo jealous!...but I don't know if it's because of the carpeted garage or the wife who would allow a carpeted garage!:cold:

 

[Ringo]

Jim, how long have you had the carpet on the floor? Would you do it again? I've been thinking about going with racedeck flooring, but may have to consider carpet.

Thanks,

 

[Duratys]

And yes carpeted garage floor is the only way to work on cars!

Id take my heated floor over a carpeted one.....allthough Id rather take a climate that required no heat at all :cold:

 

[PhillyTurboSix]

well my garages are attached or under neath the house. It's a duplex I rent. The nice part is all the heating pipes for both units run thru the garage so it stays mid to high 60's in there all winter long. I looked into painting the floor but this is old concrete with major oil spots all over the place from leaky cars of past owners. I found if the concrete is not new or super clean the paints won't work and come up in time. So then I was going to tile the floor or get those snap tiles. Too much money to park a car on and I'd be scared of messing them up. I was getting carpet for my house and I asked the guy what a piece would cost the size of my garage area. He said about 175 bucks. I never ever get water in my garage so I figured I'd try it. It's been a year now and I've been careful on it and even changed the oil several times on the cars and it still looks new. I like it a lot. I was over there the other day working on the car and almost took a nap while I was laying on the floor I have some old comforters and sheets I toss down when I'm working there. It's also nice to kick off your shoes and get comfy while working on the cars

 

[auto_cran]

Just to chime in about the carpet in the garage...

I've had mine in about 3 years now with no problems. I picked it out at Home Depot and chose the office style carpet - real short knit and tight.

Like Jim, I considered painting the floor, even the tiles, but gave carpet a try. So glad I did! The only thing I have to watch for is to not to turn the wheels of the car while they are on the carpet. It's straight in / straight out.

Attached is a pic I took a while back as I try to measure where to place the tire mat.


Chris
----------
1989 Pontiac Turbo Trans Am #760 (1940 miles)
1988 Chevrolet Corvette 35th Anniversary #1941/2050
1986 Pontiac Fiero GT V6/5-speed
1983 Delorean DMC-12
1986 Toyota Supra MKII
1985 Kawasaki Eliminator ZL900

 

[mr.turbota]

When I live out in the Los Angeles area, I had carpet as well.
Now that I'm out here in Northern Arizona, it gets real windy, with blowing dust, so I get lots of dirt/dust.
I have two different garage doors, so I need to get them both replaced someday, before I go back to carpet.
As for the battery tender, issue, I had one go out, and ruin my car battery.
But I had used it for about 5 years during the winter.
I still have a few in the box, unopened, so I may just use them again, but not as long.

:beach:

 

[ttanewyork]

The carpet sounds like it might be a good idea. We are building a house this year and I'm gonna finaly get my attached heated garage.:clap: I was thinking of useing that race deck but$$$$$$$. So maybe I'll start with the carpet.