Battery Charger Recommendation

[Dave C250]

I’m after a modern battery charger. I’ve been looking and it appears its a minefield of different ones. Any recommendations would be great so I can make my choice smaller.

Cheers

 

[LostKiwi]

Ctek are the go to brand. Nothing much better in my view.

 

[Chrishazle]

Is the OP looking for a conditioner (ie CTEK or similar) or a charger as he posted - of which there are hundreds to choose from! I've just had to order a replacement charger after Britannia Rescue told me mine was faulty and pulsing wildly, could damage my temperamental battery, so trawled Google, Screwfix, Halfords etc and ordered one from Toolstation which will arrive tomorrow as I forgot to pay for Saturday delivery.

First thing with a charger is what sort of output do you want - 4,6,8 amp or higher, do you want a boost start facility?
This is what I ordered :
85778 SIP Chargestar Smart 18 Battery Charger 1 49.82

 

[Kev555]

As the judge said above Ctek, have had one for about 10 years now and still going strong

 

[js190d]

Lidl had a nice looking charger for sale when they had all the motoring stuff in very recently.

 

[Dave C250]

Is the OP looking for a conditioner (ie CTEK or similar) or a charger as he posted - of which there are hundreds to choose from! I've just had to order a replacement charger after Britannia Rescue told me mine was faulty and pulsing wildly, could damage my temperamental battery, so trawled Google, Screwfix, Halfords etc and ordered one from Toolstation which will arrive tomorrow as I forgot to pay for Saturday delivery.

First thing with a charger is what sort of output do you want - 4,6,8 amp or higher, do you want a boost start facility?
This is what I ordered :
85778 SIP Chargestar Smart 18 Battery Charger 1 49.82

yes this is the type I’m thinking of. It’s just to charge the battery occasionally that powers my trailer winch.

 

[LostKiwi]

yes this is the type I’m thinking of. It’s just to charge the battery occasionally that powers my trailer winch.

In that case a Maypole 7423A at around £23 from Amazon would do the job.
I use two of these for the cars I have in storage. Can be left connected to maintain charge too. Also (unlike the Lidl and Aldi ones) it will resume charge if power is interrupted.

 

[Gazwould]

+1

 

[Dave C250]

Cheers all. That’s perfect

 

[Wighty]

+3 for Maypole

 

[DREAMER NO2]

The one i purchased last year as a fan built inside to keep it cool and last longer .Along with Auto sttings it switches on and off to keep it toped up .

 

[EmilysDad]

From time to time Aldi or Lidl sell a charger similar to the Maypole for around £15 .... plenty good enough for most of us

 

[LostKiwi]

From time to time Aldi or Lidl sell a charger similar to the Maypole for around £15 .... plenty good enough for most of us

As mentioned the only issue with them being they don't restart if there is a power cut. Not an issue for most but a big issue for cars in remote storage or infrequently checked.

 

[Chrishazle]

I recently bought one of them, plus a battery condition tester for IIRC less than £5 - which has been very useful recently! Quite pleased with the conditioner and am using it on the SLK in my garage ATM. Still have the old Airflow conditioner I've used for over 20 years, may occasionally have to use that on the S204 on the driveway if this replacement Yuasa battery looses charge.

 

[mattkh]

....... Britannia Rescue told me mine was faulty and pulsing wildly,

Any idea how he tested that, because I may need to use my really old 'Deltronic' charger.

 

[Chrishazle]

He didn't test it, the charger has an ammeter on the front, and when we connected it to the battery it was jumping around from 0 to 10 amps wildly instead of sitting at one reading. Also when we connected it to the emergency +ve under the bonnet (with the battery flat as a pancake) the car went mental - alarm went off, all sorts of clicking noises under the bonnet, all sorts of flashing lights on the dashboard - turned it off rather rapidly, although it had allowed us to open the boot and get at the battery.

Replacement charger from Toolstation will be here this afternoon via Parcelforce. However, Halfords yesterday changed the battery under warranty and I've managed to connect my Lidl battery condition tester - and put the boot tray and floor back in - so it's hanging visible near the rear OS window where I can see it, and it's still showing a fully charged battery.

 

[davemercedes]

Just had an email from TAYNA Batteries to remind us to check the car battery regularly and charge up as required while we're confined to home. Easily overlooked so SWMBO has put it in the diary for Friday mornings.

Hmmm... My S203 estate won't fit in the garage... bet you it rains every Friday morning over the next few weeks!

 

[Chrishazle]

If you can get an extension lead to the boot of the car, I've found that the tailgate of my S204 will close over the cable so I can have the battery on conditioner or charger, on the front driveway but locked and alarmed. Mind you, courtesy of our old home, I have a 200ft JoJo reel so no problem getting power to the front driveway!

 

[Rob76]

CTEK for me - had mine years and also has a power supply mode which has helped me out a few times