Are Jump Starters any good?

[martyi]

A lady I know owns an old 1971 V8 Firebird. She hardly ever drives it as it is a second car. It has been restored so she keeps it under cover most of the time. Every so often when she tries to start it it won't turn over and she ends up getting a jump from someone. I guess this engine takes a lot to get it going, especially during winters in DC. She usually drives it during the summer.

I was going to suggest a portable jump starter as she keeps the car in an outside carport and has no access to an electrical outlet out there. I went to Amazon.com and found a whole bunch of them (Vector, Schumacher, Cambell Hausfeld, etc.) but I'm not sure if these things are any good, ie, powerful enough for her to start the car after a couple of months of inactivity. They also come in all price ranges and I have to assume the more you spend the more powerful it is. Problem is I don't know how much power she needs.

Does anyone have recommendations? I know she does not need a built in light, charger, air compressor or other things some models have built in. What should I be looking for?

 

[The_Jeff]

If it's a second car why doesn't she boost it from her primary driver? Can she handle boosting or does she need an "idiot proof" device?

The best benefit of those little jumpers is they can be stored inside where the warmth gives the battery its full output power.

Make sure they don't hoodwink you with "peak amps" or "amps at 70'F". Car batteries are sold by cold cranking amps and you should compare boosters similarly.

It could be her regular car battery is in less than perfect shape; get it tested. Perhaps she should disconnect the negative terminal before storing it in case there's parasitic drag. Or get her one of those master switches you put on the terminal.

 

[brianl703]

She could also get one of those solar battery maintainers. They work pretty well, if she can figure out how to get it into the sun.

 

[Bamaro]

If I d*nt use mine f*r awhile, I just put a recharger *n the battery f*r an h*ur *r tw* bef*re even trying t* start it. That way, when it starts, I am n*t stressing my 35 year *ld alternat*r.

 

[sifan]

I have read s*mewhere that a s*lar battery maintainer is n*t rec*mmended f*r an *ptima battery. S*mething has t* d* with the v*ltage that a s*lar battery maintainer pr*duces being n*t suitable f*r a n*n-lead-acid battery.

 

[Matt_S]

We have a 450 Amp Vect*r jump starter here at w*rk. I manage a small devel*pment lab f*r *nStar with 6 - 9 vehicles and the engineers are c*nstantly draining batteries, s* the jump starter gets used quite frequently. It has pef*rmed perfectly every time, even *n the full size trucks. I'd highly rec*mmend it. Y*u n*rmally keep it inside plugged int* the wall and the unit includes a w*rk light, 12 v*lt p*wer tap (cigarette lighter-style) and tire inflat*r. I really like it.

 

[sifan]

Why am I seeing '*' instead the 'letter after n' in the messages?

 

[Matt_S]

I think the bad word censor is freaking out.

Edit: they've apparently fixed it.

 

[brianl703]

(1)It depends on the size of the solar battery maintainer. Harbor Freight sells 1.5W ones for about $10 and these will not put out enough voltage to damage a car battery.

(2)Optima batteries are still lead-acid batteries.

 

[1sttruck]

Waiting to do anything with the battery until it needs to be jumped seems like a ticket for short(er) battery life. Why not trickle charge once in awhile ?

 

[kgb007stb]

From my experience all of the wound cell type of batteries do a better job than a regular battery. My exide orbital would start my vehicle after 3 months of no activity without a problem, than included the minor draw for the radio memory and clock. I am comparing a voltage drop over some time with a regular flooded battery, both batteries were taken off the same trickle charger on Nov1. 2005 and the flooded lead acid had an OCV of 12.62, meanwhile exide orbital has an OCV of 12.76V.

 

[glennc]

That last one seems like a good idea.

Another thought is that this might be a good application for an Optima battery. They are supposed to keep their charge much longer than a regular battery when sitting, and aren't harmed as quickly by repeated partial discharge cycles, as when the car is infrequently used.

The cost would be not much more than one of the devices you're asking about, she might need a new battery anyway, and she wouldn't have to worry about lugging around/maintiaining what is really just a second battery anyway.

- Glenn

 

[JonS]

I have one i was planning on using in the cold weather here. I have not used it for myself, but my brother needed a jump start for his boat a few times and it worked great for that. It was a 4 cyl. Otherwise keep em charged and the work great. They say to charge them every 3 -6 months. Mine was $39.00 and has 900 peak amps. No compressor ect.