Which BatteryMinder?

[Gebo]

I have done 30 minutes of Googling and decided the BatteryMinder seems to be the best "maintainer" I can get to use on my '05 LS430 which stays in my garage most of the time. Should I get the 1500 or 1510? It looks like the only difference is the warranty. Or can you educate me?

 

[cricket whisperer]

They look the same, the 1510 seems to have an additional certification, that plus the longer warranty might mean high quality components. I had two of the original model, 1.5A, wall wart design. Lost them both, not to failure, but friends/family! I just purchased two CTEK models, the .8 A and the 4.3 A. I like the CTEK connector better, I put the pigtail connectors on all three cars and my generator. makes it easy to disconnect. The CTEK is not a wall wart design, it has a line cord and a battery cord.

 

[Nukeman7]

Gebo, the 1510 model includes the pigtail accessory in addition to the alligator clips that comes with both models. I'd suggest getting the 1510 so that the quick connect pigtail (with ring terminals that go on the car's battery posts) can be left installed on the car. That way, you would not have to rely on the alligator clips from coming off the posts. The pigtail can also be purchased as an accessory for ~$10. I bought my BatteryMinder from Northern Tools and installed the quick disconnect pigtail on my motorcycle.

 

[Donald]

I am a big fan of BatteryMinder products and have several. The 2012 has temp compensation for both hot and cold temps. It will do a better job in the dead of winter and heat of summer. The one you mentioned is good for a battery in the basement like a boat battery.

 

[Errtt]

Originally Posted By: dschultz

They look the same, the 1510 seems to have an additional certification, that plus the longer warranty might mean high quality components. I had two of the original model, 1.5A, wall wart design. Lost them both, not to failure, but friends/family! I just purchased two CTEK models, the .8 A and the 4.3 A. I like the CTEK connector better, I put the pigtail connectors on all three cars and my generator. makes it easy to disconnect. The CTEK is not a wall wart design, it has a line cord and a battery cord.

I also have both of those CTEK models (.8a for the motorcycle - 4.3 for other needs) and never an issue. I had a BatteryMinder before (think it was a 12248) and would have it on an AGM battery. But every time we had a power outage or a power sag I'd find afterwards on the Gel setting. Seems it didn't have the memory to come back on from last setting, or I had a faulty unit.

 

[vintageant]

Have had one Battery Tender Jr. for about 15 yrs that is in use 3-4 days a week. Has never faltered. Hope this post doesn't jinx!

 

[Langanobob]

I have a very old BatteryMinder wall wart charger., plus two of the larger models. Not sure what the cost difference is but I highly reccommend the larger models over the wall wart. Much more versatile, they have settings for various battery types and will also charge batteries. They are excellent chargers/maintainers but I can’t vouch for the claimed de-sulfating capability. Downside is, like seemingly all of these devices, they are made in China.

 

[Donald]

The whole battery sulfation story is good in theory, but hard to really tell. However keeping it maintained is much better than needing to desulfate it. I do not discount it. Just not 100% convinced. Wish I had a battery with a clear case so I could watch.

 

[Pelican]

Originally Posted By: Gebo

I have done 30 minutes of Googling and decided the BatteryMinder seems to be the best "maintainer" I can get to use on my '05 LS430 which stays in my garage most of the time. Should I get the 1500 or 1510? It looks like the only difference is the warranty. Or can you educate me?

As others have said go with CTEK these are smart tenders that will not overheat the battery, though not as critical as with an AGM or late model battery it'll keep the battery in much healthier state than a regular old-style tender. I have CTEK and love it, much better built that the competition.

 

[Gebo]

So am I correct in understanding many of you think the CTEK is better than the BatterMinder? What makes it better?

 

[Smokescreen]

CTEK is what I use...on vehicles that sit for a month in sub zero temps. I bought CTEK because they are trusted in industry with very expensive sports cars and other high performance machines that may sit for periods of time in between uses. Never had an issue, works flawlessly.

 

[y_p_w]

Originally Posted By: Langanobob

Downside is, like seemingly all of these devices, they are made in China.

Schumacher has a basic 0.75A maintainer that's assembled in Mexico. Nothing fancy but it does the job. http://www.batterychargers.com/sc1/ I bought one for less than $10 at Walmart. I don't see any in stock near me though.

 

[red7404]

i found a Schumacher SEM-1562A. this is a VERY sophisticated charger. it does 6 V or 12 V auto changes. the circuits are very well made. it auto tapers the charge rate. i use it on lead acid 6 V lantern battery. i find that i dont have to worry about un hooking it when it is fully charged. i can leave hooked of as long as i need to

 

[Duffyjr]

+ 1 on the Ctek 4.3. If you were to go with this I would get the rubber protector they make for it, keeps it from sliding around. https://www.amazon.com/CTEK-56-915-Black...customerReviews

 

[Trav]

Look at Optimate also.

 

[atikovi]

Originally Posted By: Gebo

So am I correct in understanding many of you think the CTEK is better than the BatterMinder? What makes it better?

I have half a dozen of 1510's and had their older models before that. They are a good product and company and the 10 year warranty is icing on the cake. $40 on sale at https://www.batterymart.com/p-batteryminder-1510-12-volt-1_5-amp-charger.html

 

[Jett Rink]

I have a CTEK 4.3 and recommend it to anyone looking for a 12 volt battery charger/maintainer. The lights indicating what charging stage it is in is a nice feature. I think it cost around $45 when I bought it on Amazon a few months ago. All my 12 volt batteries read 12.6 volts after the CTEK displays a green light. I have generally just replaced batteries in the past when they were 3 years old, even if they were still working. But now I plan on regularly charging all my vehicles with the CTEK just to see how long they will last from here on out. I realized I had about $500 invested in batteries for 3 vehicles and a riding lawn mower. About time to see if I can get a better return on that investment.

 

[y_p_w]

Originally Posted By: red7404

i found a Schumacher SEM-1562A. this is a VERY sophisticated charger. it does 6 V or 12 V auto changes. the circuits are very well made. it auto tapers the charge rate. i use it on lead acid 6 V lantern battery. i find that i dont have to worry about un hooking it when it is fully charged. i can leave hooked of as long as i need to

I had one. Or at least the SEM-1562A-CA. Have no idea where it is now. I thought that maybe I left it with my parents while they were on vacation and I think they just removed it and put it somewhere in their garage where I can't find it. If it's the "CA" version that says "microprocessor controlled" on the front, then it is a more sophisticated device with auto-voltage select, desulfation, and reverse detection. However, there are a few things about it that requiring understanding to use. It's one of the devices that needs to see a minimum voltage from the battery before it starts charging, so it's not going to charge up a deeply depleted battery. You would need a manual charger or an older maintainer that just doesn't care to at least get the voltage up before using it. It also uses a switching power supply rather than older-style coil transformers. I think once it finds it's fully charged up waits a set time before starting another charge cycle to reduce top offs. I remember I lent mine to a coworker once when her car wouldn't keep a charge. I lent a jump starter, which worked but they weren't driving it enough and found that it wouldn't start the next morning. So I said they should at least charge it up overnight even with a 1.5A maintainer. It's also not designed to fully charge up a car battery. I think it times out after 12 hours if it's not full charged. It can charge up something like a riding mower battery. https://www.amazon.com/Schumacher-SEM-1562A-CA-Charge-Battery-Maintainer/dp/B0009IBJAS I've got the older version (SEM-1562A) too. That thing is much heavier and doesn't have a buzzing sound. It's got a manual 6V/12V switch. The other thing is that it doesn't seem to have any kind of digital timing mechanism. I can do stuff like open the door (turning on the light) and it goes from green (charged) to yellow (charging) and once I close the door it's back to green in a few seconds. That thing does it the old-fashioned way with analog circuits. I think it's also not too great if the clamps are shorted or if it's reversed by mistake. I just keep it around for if I need it.

 

[Tdbo]

Originally Posted By: Jett Rink

I have a CTEK 4.3 and recommend it to anyone looking for a 12 volt battery charger/maintainer. The lights indicating what charging stage it is in is a nice feature. I think it cost around $45 when I bought it on Amazon a few months ago. All my 12 volt batteries read 12.6 volts after the CTEK displays a green light. I have generally just replaced batteries in the past when they were 3 years old, even if they were still working. But now I plan on regularly charging all my vehicles with the CTEK just to see how long they will last from here on out. I realized I had about $500 invested in batteries for 3 vehicles and a riding lawn mower. About time to see if I can get a better return on that investment.

I'll add to the recommendation for the CTEK. I have had the 4.3 for seven years now. I purchased it after the original Motorcraft in the Mustang died after 4 years. The Mustang is stored during the winter. Replaced the MC with an AAP Gold that will now be going on 7 years. I'll have it tested when I get the car out in the spring. If the battery still tests good, I will credit its longevity to the CTEK, as demonstrated by the low amount of miles on the car. Simple to use with quality construction at a reasonable price. What's not to like?

 

[raytseng]

i vote also for ctek 4.3 over batteryminder. my batteryminder 12117 failed and either fried or drained a costco interstate battery that was only 3months old. It was attached for a few weeks so i dont know when it fried ir. I think its charge strategy is fine but dont trust it as a long term trickle. so disconnect once it hits maintenance mode. The Ctek end state strategy of pulse charging where it charges only when voltage drops down versus other brands trickle charging seems safer.