John
I have had the same problem in the UK - I have had three batteries so
far in my TR4 since 1993. However I think I found the solution - First
I found a company which gave a lifetime guarantee on the battery as long
as I owned the car. OK so I don't want the hassle of swapping it, so I
rigged up a charger that was connected to the battery and controlled by
a timer. The timer switches the charger on twice a day for 15 minutes
each time, and this seems to have worked. My other part of the theory
that I have not tried is to connect a small bulb permanently to the
battery thus discharging it in a 'normal' way. This of course may mean a
longer period of charge.
--
Cheers
Brian Johnson (UK)
1963 TR4 AFP 503A (UK) / IZS 733(USA) - CT27216-L (now not L but O )
1954 TR2 46 BHX TS554-O UK Car in pieces
1989 Vauxhall Cavalier 2.0 GLI - Eurobox but it goes !
Internet b.johnson@lycosmail.com
New website http://websites.diamond.co.uk/~b.johnson/index.htm
John Cowan wrote:
>
> This seems to have been the year to learn about automobile batteries.
> Because we often don't run our cars for months at a time, their batteries
> tend to deteriorate faster than they would if they were continuously kept
> fully charged. I lost two idle batteries this year to "sulphating" and
> revived another with rejuvenator fluid I got at the friendly neighborhood
> car store.
> Can anyone recommend a brand of battery with longer shelf life in the
> car, one that might not be so susceptible to deterioration. Or what can we
> do to prolong the life of an irregularly used battery?
> Thanks.
> John Cowan
>
> BTW The voltage regulator on my son's car went bad and he completely
> drained a brand new battery. It's now unrechargeable - deader than a
> doornail.
>
> Visit - In Their Own Words Website - an on-line non-commercial publishing
> experiment, plus movie reviews, articles and Left/Progressive links at:
> http://home.earthlink.net/~jfcowan
|