Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[DESERTBEAR54]

I just put a new battery in BLUU my 2010 SEUC. I have noticed that my start issues have gone away and the bike starts good every time now. The issue that I am noticing is when I ride for a day and I come home and plug the battery in on my battery tender it takes almost 5 hrs for the charging to complete before the light turns solid green. Yesterday I thought it might be my battery tender so I swapped out the one on my wife's bike and it does the same thing. Could it be my battery tender harness is bad or did my dealer sell me a crappy battery? Normally it takes less than a hour for the battery to go solid green? Oh on Sat I took BLUU into the dealer and had them check out my electrical system and they said everything is working as advertised and no problems. Is it good that it takes awhile to charge on the Battery Tendor?

[grc]

I just put a new battery in BLUU my 2010 SEUC. I have noticed that my start issues have gone away and the bike starts good every time now. The issue that I am noticing is when I ride for a day and I come home and plug the battery in on my battery tender it takes almost 5 hrs for the charging to complete before the light turns solid green. Yesterday I thought it might be my battery tender so I swapped out the one on my wife's bike and it does the same thing. Could it be my battery tender harness is bad or did my dealer sell me a crappy battery? Normally it takes less than a hour for the battery to go solid green? Oh on Sat I took BLUU into the dealer and had them check out my electrical system and they said everything is working as advertised and no problems. Is it good that it takes awhile to charge on the Battery Tendor?

It's easy to check the battery tender harness if you have a multimeter.  There should be no voltage drop when you measure from the actual battery terminals to the terminals that connect to your battery tender.  High resistance in that circuit can throw off the battery tender sensing.  btw, there is a 7 amp fuse in that harness, make sure it isn't corroded or causing high resistance as well.

I've found that even with nice clean and tight connections my tender also takes a relatively long time to go full green even after a 100 mile ride. 


Jerry

[dayne66]

Not actual 'Battery Tenders'...but my Ultra takes 3-4 hrs...and the Wife's Sporty under 2 hrs......both after riding for 5 or 6 hrs.

[DESERTBEAR54]

Jerry Thanks!! With the old battery that I replaced it would go green within 30 mins and now that it takes 5 hrs I thought the dealer slipped me another nightmare. When I get home tonight I am going to check that fuse and also ring out that harness.

[DESERTBEAR54]

I was also wondering if the heat breaks down the harnesses? I was thinking about re-locating it because they have it running down just aft of my rear cylinder and I'm tired of burning my hand trying to plug it in.

[skreminegul07]

I'd check the charging system.  Maybe its not the tender cable but the alternator /regulator isn't doing its job.  Check for 14.2 VDC at the battery while running and bump the throttle a few times and see if it increases from 14.2. 

[DESERTBEAR54]

Charging System checked and working as avertised.

[Skillet]

I just put a new battery in BLUU my 2010 SEUC. I have noticed that my start issues have gone away and the bike starts good every time now. The issue that I am noticing is when I ride for a day and I come home and plug the battery in on my battery tender it takes almost 5 hrs for the charging to complete before the light turns solid green. Yesterday I thought it might be my battery tender so I swapped out the one on my wife's bike and it does the same thing. Could it be my battery tender harness is bad or did my dealer sell me a crappy battery? Normally it takes less than a hour for the battery to go solid green? Oh on Sat I took BLUU into the dealer and had them check out my electrical system and they said everything is working as advertised and no problems. Is it good that it takes awhile to charge on the Battery Tendor?

That wasn't very good battery life. You should have gotten a lot more out of that battery.

[DESERTBEAR54]

Thats what happens when the dealer slips you a 12 yr old battery in the midst of all the engine changes.

[phato1]

Maybe off track, but, My '11 CUSE had a intermittent fault in the power locks for the saddle bag causing a draw and draining the battery even when on  the tender. finally found it when I put the multimeter in the circuit with the battery and saw the draw. Static draw on the battery should be less than 2mA if it's more you have something sucking the life out of the battery ---- sloooowly

[Indenial]

It still confuses me----if the alternator is constantly throwing out 14 volts to charge the battery while riding, why does it take 2-4 hrs to charge it up when you plug in the tender right away when you get home?  Shouldn't it be fully charged after a ride?

[Sledge]

It still confuses me----if the alternator is constantly throwing out 14 volts to charge the battery while riding, why does it take 2-4 hrs to charge it up when you plug in the tender right away when you get home?  Shouldn't it be fully charged after a ride?

I was just about to ask the same question.  Batt should be fully charged after a few hours of riding, at least that's what I always thought, or else after so long the bike would die on you.  Is there really any advantage to plugging the tender in after every ride?

My stepdad burned his garage down when the trickle charger he was using on his car caught fire in the middle of the night so I'll never just plug it in and leave it.

Sledge

[dartman]

It still confuses me----if the alternator is constantly throwing out 14 volts to charge the battery while riding, why does it take 2-4 hrs to charge it up when you plug in the tender right away when you get home?  Shouldn't it be fully charged after a ride?

Yes, Ive been using the Deltran Tenders  for years, after a ride of any length the Green light starts flashing within seconds indicating a 90 percent charge and within a short period of time goes steady green, ive never had one go bad but I do replace them every few years I rode my 02 for 7 yrs with the original battery and it still started properly, Usually I swap bikes more often but I havent replaced a battery in a long time the Tenders seem to be very effective.

[grc]

The "smart" chargers like the Battery Tender have three operating stages (bulk charge, absorption charge, float) and even if you just rode several hours and the battery is fully charged, the tender still goes through its programmed routine when you hook it up.  So it initially charges at the full 1.25 amps (solid red light) until the battery voltage reaches 14.4 volts, then it monitors the the charging current (flashing green and red) until it drops to 0.1 amp.  When the charging current reaches that level it goes into float mode (green) and the voltage drops to around 13 volts.

Depending on the current draw of the always on accessories, and any excessive resistance in the wiring or the battery, it may take longer for some to reach the float stage than others.  And some might never get there, so the tender has a time limit as well.  If it hasn't gone into float mode through monitoring of the charging current, it will do so anyway after about 6 to 8 hours.

When you check for high resistance connections at the battery, don't forget to also check the connection from the Battery Tender to the bike harness.  I found it necessary on mine several years ago to clean and then "tighten" the female half of the connector terminals.  I also started using dielectric grease in the connectors to ward off corrosion.

This is just my off the cuff memory of how this thing works.  If you want the real scoop, you might want to contact Deltran since my memory is suspect at best.


Jerry


btw, it isn't necessary or even adviseable to hook up the charger after every ride.  I hook mine up only if the bike is going to sit for at least a couple weeks or more.  If you find you need to hook yours up after every ride to make it easier to start the next day, you need to check out the condition of your charging system and battery and look for abnormal current draws with everything off.

[MadCVORG]

GRC is on it--what matters more is amperage, not voltage. If your acessories are pulling near to the output amp rating of your charging system, the actual power available to charge your battery may be minimal. May be best to have your tech measure static charging amps, then recheck with your accessories operating and measure the current draw.