> My battery charger has a "safety feature" that wont allow it to put
> current out if it senses no voltage in the battery.
> there is prolly a good reason for this, but..
> It means it wont charge a "dead" battery.
> anyway to "fool" this ?
> I was thinking a "D" cell and some wire, but there must be a better
> way.
Take some jumper cables and jump the dead battery from your (charged)
car battery. Either
1) charge it for a few minutes, disconnect, and then move it to the
charger, or
2) simply hook the charger up while the jumpers are attached, start
charging, and remove the jumpers.
I'm a fan of the little trickle chargers one can buy at Harbor Freight
and the like. They put out scarcely over 12 volts, and charge at
perhaps a tenth of an amp. I used one of these to bring back a battery
in my Elan that had been dead for months (I left the ignition key on).
A few days later, it was tip-top, and it's still working great (I
resuscitated it over a year ago). These chargers can be left hooked up
indefinitely, and they cost about ten bucks.
To run twelve volt stuff, test starters, etc., get one of those
Charge-Packs that have a small internal battery and two-foot jumper
cables. It's also great for keeping the laptop charged during power
outages, using my 12V auto adapter.
- Bill Rabel
Wet Spot Garage
Anacortes, WA
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