Hotrodron

Regular
You're 5
Nov 4, 2018
229
458
Boston
VetteCoins
2,827
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2004 Z06
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USA
Looking to upgrade my aging A.C. Delco battery this spring, anyone have any ideas on a new one?The car has stock electronics.Thanks.......
 
Delco is a good long lasting battery , a new one is in my 93 Rosie that I just bought . In my 82 2 years ago I put a Optima Red Top AGM. What I like about it is that it will not leak, can sit in any position. As with any battery, good to keep a trickle charger on it to always keep it fully charged and the battery will last much longer.
 
Thanks for the reply’s guys,been doing a lot of research & I think I’m gonna go with the optima red top.My AC Delco is hooked up to a battery tender now, but if I open the car door the light on it goes from green to red & then takes 12 hours to get back to green.The battery is about 6 years old & it did die on me once this past summer.
 
Don, lets face it as sad as it is your car is on its last legs. I will send a flatbed around this afternoon to pick it up for you, the least I could do.

Full disclosure I worked for them but look for a DEKA or East Penn Manufacturing battery. IMHO the best you can buy and American made to boot.

Just a heads up but if the battery in your car is that low do not leave it in the car. Batteries can and do freeze and the case can split. If it takes 12 hours or so, even on the Battery Tender to recharge you do not want freezing to happen. The problem is of course what is right below the battery, why yes it is the electronics.

Should have also mentioned that cold weather and cold electrolyte can trick the charger into believe it is fully charged when it is not.
 
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Ended up going with the Optima Red Top,just finished installing it.Thanks Guy's...............

These red tops are a preferred battery for the H1 hummers. They seem to take the abuse of winching these bohemiths and all the lighting draws well. But don’t last forever either. I actually went with a really high end AC Delco set last time. The batteries were about $500 each but the dealership said they were the answer for my truck. Almost 2 years now and no problems. I get them load tested every time the truck is in for some service work and so far 100%.
For your Vette the Red Top will likely last for a very long time. 👍
 
She’s on a trickle charge now for the long New England winter.5 months more, than its spring here,a little longer for you Northerners,sorry brothers.......

We can could some years get away with 5 months Hotrod but the layer of sand and gravel chips that they spread up here in winter, is seldom swept up by then. My first real outing is usually the second week of May here in AB.
 
Curious :Shrug2:
Is the term "trickle charger" being loosely used here?
I always knew a "trickle charger" as being a device that applies a constant charge
to the battery including when it is fully charged. This may be for cheaper & our
hand-me-down gizmos only though (?) as I have not shopped a new one.
I have learned to know that a "battery maintainer" is the preferred device to use in
storage as it will apply charge to the battery only when it senses a drop in voltage.

Please know that I am not intending to be persnickety about the "term" but rather
maybe helping the novice to understand this stuff as they look for one of their own ... ???
I can just imagine the part-time school kid at Canadian Tire (or where-ever) helping
our novice Corvette Colleague out as they buy one and the store help not even knowing
the difference themselves. I will admit I don't know everything about this stuff but I
do have devices known as "maintainers" ...
 
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Interesting point Spence. I always assumed (I know what happens LoL) that it was deemed a trickle charger because of the very low DC output. It is supposed to keep the battery on a "float" charge that simulates being in use in the car with the alternator functioning correctly.

Most automotive battery are not designed to be deep discharged, that starts their downward trend in performance so the trickle charge just keeps them activated around being fully charged.
 
"and connect it to a battery maintainer/tender, not a trickle charger"

I'm just too green to this as I see much of the above comment written everywhere.
Reverbed by 2 of 4 people when asked at a dealership ... the other 2 claiming it's the same thing ...
(Wednesday Thursday Friday - folks ???)

I have a "hand-me-down" trickle charger but won't use it ...
one claimed a trickle charger just keeps the charge where it is and won't bring
a battery back up to life where the maintainer will (unless it warns of a faulty battery)
... so this is the "bone" I'm gnawing on ...
 
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I am also no expert on this however the maintainer or “smart charger” is what I use on the corvette as it senses voltage and adds charge as needed and stops when the battery is fully charged; rather than just a continuous trickle charge. The trickle charger I remember was a rusty grey metal box with on switch and a gauge on it that my Dad would hook up the combine a week before harvest. 😂
There are many variables available with the new smart chargers/maintainers. The reason I prefer the Genius chargers for the Hummer is they will condition the batteries as well as keep them charged. The price of the batteries for the truck make the expensive maintainer well worth it.
These sophisticated chargers are available in all sizes and eventually I will have one on the Corvette as well. They also have units that will maintain multiple vehicles simultaneously. This is my preferred brand of charger. There are many others that are just as good I expect.
So these type of chargers have features and functionality the simple battery maintainer does not thus the price being higher.

So for me when somebody says “trickle” charger in 2018 I assume they mean “maintainer”. However there are still many of us dinos around that remember using actual trickle chargers.
 
Trickle , maintainer, tender, charger , holy 12 Volt !! I have found that the companies making them use different names to describe the charger, and they all charge the battery , just in different amps and some are regulated and others just charge untill timed out or manually shut off.
I have all kinds of them from big old one on wheels that you set with a timer to the modern day auto maintainer or is it tender ???
Some of the older small ones were just a charger like the 6amp Allanson shown, it never stopped untill you unplugged it, so chance of overcharging a battery was possible.
The old Forney was a cadillac having 6, 8, 12 volts, yes I said 8 volts which most of you probably never heard of in the auto world , I added a pic of a 8 volt car battery count the fill caps (4). If you can see the toggle switch at right bottom it has high and trickle settings. So trickle meant it just gave low amps thus a slow charge time no auto shut off timer.
The modern Eliminator is a 2 amp intellegent battery charger as said on the box but also it says it is a trickle charger. It senses a low battery and charges untill full and shuts down and won't charge untill the battery is low again thus maintaining the battery at 12+ volts.
Maybe confusing but they all charge , just some are regulated and some are not, so call them what you want.

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Trickle , maintainer, tender, charger , holy 12 Volt !! I have found that the companies making them use different names to describe the charger, and they all charge the battery , just in different amps and some are regulated and others just charge untill timed out or manually shut off.
I have all kinds of them from big old one on wheels that you set with a timer to the modern day auto maintainer or is it tender ???
Some of the older small ones were just a charger like the 6amp Allanson shown, it never stopped untill you unplugged it, so chance of overcharging a battery was possible.
The old Forney was a cadillac having 6, 8, 12 volts, yes I said 8 volts which most of you probably never heard of in the auto world , I added a pic of a 8 volt car battery count the fill caps (4). If you can see the toggle switch at right bottom it has high and trickle settings. So trickle meant it just gave low amps thus a slow charge time no auto shut off timer.
The modern Eliminator is a 2 amp intellegent battery charger as said on the box but also it says it is a trickle charger. It senses a low battery and charges untill full and shuts down and won't charge untill the battery is low again thus maintaining the battery at 12+ volts.
Maybe confusing but they all charge , just some are regulated and some are not, so call them what you want.

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Cool pictures. 8 volt is admittedly before my time I think.
Yes they are all chargers but some are very sophisticated and do more than just maintaining a charge. There is a difference between smart chargers and maintainers. Maintainers will actually work the plates to remove or prevent sulfation.
It’s explained in good common language below.
This is a fun thread.

Battery Maintainers vs. Smart Chargers | Battery Systems
 
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