CTEK Battery charger

[Captain Coochie]

This is supposed to be the smartest battery charger going that would flip onto a trickle charge once the battery is at full power .
I have just checked mine after having the battery on charge for a day and a half and it was still charging with the battery bubbling /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif
I turned it off at the mains and then back on and it showed the battery at full power rather than the half power it was showing before .
I was told i could just leave this on all the time and it would know what to do .
I hope it hasnt buggered my battery /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[MoodySabre]

Well I've got a Maypole charger which seems to be a Ctek clone and goes on to float charge and can be left connected.

Perhaps your battery doesn't hold its charge and is knacked.

 

[Laundryman]

I too have a ctek charger that i leave on continuous without problem. Just a thought, they do come in different amp rating. Is yours a good match for your battery?

 

[Captain Coochie]

Its rated a bit higher than the battery i have .
I was thinking the battery is getting a bit old ( four or five years ) But it holds its charge pretty well . Surely if there was a problem the charger should have stopped . It is supposed to be the smartest charger on the market .

 

[savageseadog]

[ QUOTE ]
Its rated a bit higher than the battery i have . ..............


[/ QUOTE ]???

 

[Captain Coochie]

14-120 AH My battery is 110 AH
14.7V My battery is 12 V
/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[savageseadog]

Charging a battery requires a higher voltage than the emf (voltage) of the battery itself. As it's charged the emf will increase so a typical charging voltage will be 13.8 volts or so. As the emf of the battery increases the current will decrease so will obviously charge at a slower rate so intelligent or accelerated charging will sense current and voltage and adjust accordingly. I don't think that's the type of charger you have. It probably senses the emf of the battery and shuts off at that value. I suggest you get the battery checked.
You shouldn't have a problem with that charger.

 

[Billjratt]

Don't be worried about it taking a long time to fully charge the battery. How many amps were flowing before you switched off? What was the voltage before you switched off?
Normally these chargers go at full blast (whatever they can deliver, maybe 20 -30 amps ) until the battery voltage rises to "alleged full" status (When a normal charger would balance out and current would drop). Then they keep going, forcing in more juice for a while longer, this is the bubble phase, then they go into trickle mode to maintain the charge until user loads cause a drop that demands the cycle retarts.
You probably should measure the voltage during discharge (connect a car headlamp bulb ) to see what happens to the battery.
Allow it to rest for a day after charging, measure the no-load voltage (13-ish), then connect the bulb while monitoring the voltage. If an almost instantaneous drop of 2 volts occurs (or multiple thereof) a cell(s) is dud - RIP battery.
If the voltage remains steady for a while (depending on capacity) then drops slowly it's healthy.
A vigourous bubbling cycle indicates a pretty high boost voltage requiring regular replenishment of the cells with pure water.
Were all the cells bubbling equally during charge?? Is their specific gravity more or less equal?

 

[halcyon]

What is it's top end voltage before it drops to float.

I ask this because back in 1984 when I designed our first multi stage charger we did some reserach, as one does. I would have liked to charge up to 14.5 volt above this voltage and voltage rises sharply so little extra charge is gained. But a old battery can struggle to reach 14.5 volt, so could be on full charge voltage, and not drop down to float. I decide that 14.4 should be a minmum save value, so adding a factor of safety said 14.3 volt. Then for production set the charger at 14.25 volt, which ment that it was as bomb proof as posibble.

So it could be that your charger is not quite reaching it's trip voltage, thus your problem.

Check voltage at battery terminals.

Brian