That 12v battery (again!)

[Graham47]

CTEK’s are Battery chargers which of course are and can be used on a regular basis.

I don’t know of anyone on here who has suggested or used Battery booster pack to recover their completely flat Battery.

Of course, we also don’t even know for sure that booster packs are ‘bad’ for the battery, just that someone ‘isn’t keen ‘ on using them.

[Roy124]

Ah, Battery packs. After a recent bout of Covid I allowed the Battery to rest.  I monitored the voltage drop which declined slowly for a few days before a drop large enough not to enter Ready mode.  I think that was about 8v.  

I put the Battery pack on as a test.  I could have just recharged the battery.  I waited only a few minutes, I then switched on and it went to Ready mode.  I suspect it would have gone to Ready immediately. 

I also think had I waited longer it would have tried to balance the voltage between batteries. 

[Derek.w]

I was using a CTEK 3 some 4 times a week & it was starting with 2 leds on softstart mode.

If the solar works nearly as good in winter as it is now it be a lot safer than taking 240 volts across the public pavment to the car.

[Derek.w]

On 7/6/2022 at 11:00 AM, russd1971 said:

Did you just attach the CTEK comfort adaptor to a solar panel? Would be interested to see pictures. No I fitted a fuse at the battery then 3 wires from fuse to CTEK plug, Solar panel, & Battery monitor so 3 live feeds via. one fuse. Nutral wires attached to battery ground 2 at chassie one higher up. You can just see a black plug at the right its the one going to the solar panel.

Hope this helps.

[Roy124]

2 hours ago, Derek.w said:

I was using a CTEK 3 some 4 times a week & it was starting with 2 leds on softstart mode.

If the solar works nearly as good in winter as it is now it be a lot safer than taking 240 volts across the public pavment to the car.

Like driving styles, everyone's situation is different.  My car is garaged so a solar  charger is not an option or useable.  On holiday, with valet parking, I would be dependent on the driver setting up a solar charger. 

We were away for 16 days in March.  The parkers did not mention any problem, but perhaps they have more experience than many and treat it as normal. 

[Derek.w]

12 hours ago, Graham47 said:

CTEK’s are battery chargers which of course are and can be used on a regular basis.

I don’t know of anyone on here who has suggested or used battery booster pack to recover their completely flat battery.

Of course, we also don’t even know for sure that booster packs are ‘bad’ for the battery, just that someone ‘isn’t keen ‘ on using them.

A high charge current to any Battery over the long term shortens its life.

Thats why some (smart) chargers start with a pulse mode then softstart modes to prolong Battery life.

Using a booster Battery just one or two times gets you away quickly and you wont notice a shorter battery life but if you can a slower charge is always best practice.

[Graham47]

This is just going round in circles !
i repeat my reply to no-one on here has said they have or will or recommend using a Battery booster pack on a “regular basis”.

Clearly, anyone who was suffering repeated flat Battery problems would be better looking at finding a long term solution.

[RickyC]

13 hours ago, Derek.w said:

A high charge current to any battery over the long term shortens its life.

Thats why some (smart) chargers start with a pulse mode then softstart modes to prolong battery life.

Using a booster battery just one or two times gets you away quickly and you wont notice a shorter battery life but if you can a slower charge is always best practice.

The booster must be used just to help the car to go in Ready mode, not to charge the Battery.  Booster must be removed immediately ater car switches in Ready mode.  The charge must be done using a smart charger ( like CTEK ) or the internal DC/DC charger

[HughA]

Just back from a 16 night cruise when my 2016 Yaris Hybrid sat unused for the duration.  It has the original 12 volt Battery which I have never charged or touched in any way.  After all the tales of woe on here I was expecting a problem when I came to use the car today.  But no problem at all, into Ready Mode straight away!  What am I doing right and what are other people doing wrong?

[AlJ]

26 minutes ago, HughA said:

Just back from a 16 night cruise when my 2016 Yaris Hybrid sat unused for the duration.  It has the original 12 volt battery which I have never charged or touched in any way.  After all the tales of woe on here I was expecting a problem when I came to use the car today.  But no problem at all, into Ready Mode straight away!  What am I doing right and what are other people doing wrong?

That's great! Hope you enjoyed your holiday too. I do think some people fixate a little on this issue. Yes, it's annoying if and when it happens but it's not a common occurrence. My original post that started this thread was written at the end of March, after the car hadn't been used and I needed to use my NOCO booster. In fact, I even mention that the second time I used it was in a snow flurry. 
I'd be quite surprised if it happened in warmer weather, even after a layoff from driving the car. That said, it's nice to know I have the booster in the car, should I ever need it again, which so far, I haven't. 

[Derek.w]

4 hours ago, HughA said:

Just back from a 16 night cruise when my 2016 Yaris Hybrid sat unused for the duration.  It has the original 12 volt battery which I have never charged or touched in any way.  After all the tales of woe on here I was expecting a problem when I came to use the car today.  But no problem at all, into Ready Mode straight away!  What am I doing right and what are other people doing wrong?

My best gess it has a gel type Battery rather than a calcium one.

The other big problem is I dont do a lot of miles but I do a lot of short journeys.

[Cyker]

5 hours ago, HughA said:

Just back from a 16 night cruise when my 2016 Yaris Hybrid sat unused for the duration.  It has the original 12 volt battery which I have never charged or touched in any way.  After all the tales of woe on here I was expecting a problem when I came to use the car today.  But no problem at all, into Ready Mode straight away!  What am I doing right and what are other people doing wrong?

I'm guessing you actually drive the car regularly and for longer than 5 minutes at a time  

[flash22]

THE Battery IS AGM, Google is your friend

Agm are a deep cycle type Battery, they need a low <4a and slow charge - a dead Battery may take 48 hours to fully charge off the car

Jump or boost packs are just that, they are used to get you out of trouble, 10a at 12v will put the car in ready mode once in ready mode the car will run until you turn it off - I have had the scenario with a 62 plate Yaris this afternoon

The outcome is it needs a battery, end of, nearly 10 years and 65k miles is good going

 

[preperationlaunch]

On 7/7/2022 at 3:48 PM, Derek.w said:

I was using a CTEK 3 some 4 times a week & it was starting with 2 leds on softstart mode.

If the solar works nearly as good in winter as it is now it be a lot safer than taking 240 volts across the public pavment to the car.

A CTEK always starts on soft-start mode, it's in the design. It's testing whether the Battery will accept a charge. Depending on how deeply discharged the Battery is, that can take seconds to up to 8 hours.

[Derek.w]

I dont expect it to be discharged to this level in one day it was taking around 60 to 90 minutes to move on and over a hour to reach 80%.

[kernowjim]

I have a 2022 Yaris Hybrid and I'd like to connect a CTEK MXS 5.0 to the 12 volt Battery - can this done under the bonnet or do I have to wire a fly lead directly to the Battery under the rear seat?  Help is much appreciated

[Roy124]

If it is a similar layout to the Cross my preference is the hard wire to the Battery.  This gives me easy access just opening the door.  For an under bonnet connection it requires the fuse cover to be removed, the positive blade exposed and clamps fitted. 

You might be able to hard wire under the bonnet but I find the Battery wire much easier. 

[kernowjim]

36 minutes ago, Roy124 said:

If it is a similar layout to the Cross my preference is the hard wire to the battery.  This gives me easy access just opening the door.  For an under bonnet connection it requires the fuse cover to be removed, the positive blade exposed and clamps fitted. 

You might be able to hard wire under the bonnet but I find the battery wire much easier. 

thanks Roy - I'll go the under seat route - I may run the fly lead to the boot then run the cable from the garage to the back of the car rather than having it trailing along the side of the car and into the door

[flash22]

It's best to come directly off the Battery, that way you are not running through any systems or fuses and have very little voltage drop

I would also run the cable in some split loom aka convoluted tube to protect it under the seat and where the seat folds

[anchorman]

It’s a lot of faffing about when they’ve put a special connector under the bonnet.  It takes 60 seconds to connect it and you can run it past the headlight and close the bonnet.  This flat Battery saga rumbles on but it really isn’t a problem unless it’s left for days on end.  There is no benefit whatsoever in connecting it directly to the Battery but if you’ve got plenty of time on your hands, crack on.   Speaking of which, mind the plastic in this cold weather.  

[kernowjim]

15 hours ago, anchorman said:

It’s a lot of faffing about when they’ve put a special connector under the bonnet.  It takes 60 seconds to connect it and you can run it past the headlight and close the bonnet.  This flat battery saga rumbles on but it really isn’t a problem unless it’s left for days on end.  There is no benefit whatsoever in connecting it directly to the battery but if you’ve got plenty of time on your hands, crack on.   Speaking of which, mind the plastic in this cold weather.  

Where is the special connector under the bonnet?  The only one I know of is the jump starter blade - do you mean that one?

[anchorman]

8 hours ago, kernowjim said:

Where is the special connector under the bonnet?  The only one I know of is the jump starter blade - do you mean that one?

Yes, it’s connected directly to the Battery.   

[kernowjim]

3 hours ago, anchorman said:

Yes, it’s connected directly to the battery.   

Thanks I'll look to see if I can get the ringlet connector of the CTEK fly lead on there

[Roy124]

24 minutes ago, kernowjim said:

Thanks I'll look to see if I can get the ringlet connector of the CTEK fly lead on there

Jim, if the positive connection is the same as my old Corolla you may not be able to connect to the Battery clamp but another bolt near it. 

The negative bolt was fine. 

A solution offered by others is to change the CTEK M8 ring connector for M10 or better an M10 Spade, have a look first before you start

[anchorman]

I’ve not studied in detail because I’m not that fussed about a permanent connection but I don’t think it would be easy.  I don’t think it’s necessary actually but if it makes you feel better……