Battery Question

[ardvark1]

Been off the road since 2009 and need a new battery.
Bearing in mind I'll only be doing a few thousand miles a year.
Is it a false economy to get a cheap and nasty battery?
Or
Would a Motobatt be a better route to go?

[Bonz]

My thought is go a more inexpensive route like Walmart that you don't need to process a warranty through Amazon or ebay.

How's everything else with the bike? 11 years of carbs not being used, brake fluid sitting, final drive fluid sitting, middle drive fluid sitting, tires need to be replaced that type of thing.

[jetmechmarty]

I get 7 to nine years out of American made AGM batteries. I rarely charge them. I've been using Deka, but I think they dropped our application. My next will be Yuasa. Cheap isn't always cheaper.

[JeffH]

Of course batteries are fickle and everybody has a different experience with them.
If not used much any battery can be problematic.


So you talking about say: £85 for a Motobatt and £40 for the more inexpensive Chinese battery? So 2 failures = 1 Motobatt

+1 on what Bonz said. Given that the bike has been sitting for a very long time at this point the less expensive battery might be best. See if the bike starts so you can then begin the safety checks and troubleshooting on the things Bonz mentioned.

Hate to spend a bunch of £'s for a battery to find out other things need attention. So it somewhat depends on your overall 'restore' the bike budget.

Keep us posted as you get battery and get bike cranked up.

Jeff

[ardvark1]

All the oils and fluids have been changed. Carbs cleaned and I have a spare car battery to keep the engine turning over and lubricated.
Next will be petrol in the tank to get it started then the electrics will be next.
That's why I asked about the battery.
I want a bike battery on the bike when it runs. Don't want the car battery to mess things up when the engine runs.

[ardvark1]

Another question has just sprung to mind.
If I get a Motobatt battery will my Optimate 4 work as well on a sealed battery as it did on the acid battery before it died?

[cajun31]

I am not familiar

with the battery or the charger you are referencing. My only comment would be that all lead acid battery chargers that I have run across work fine with AGM batteries. One twist on battery chargers however. For years I used Battery Tender brand battery chargers thinking they would maintain my batteries and keep them healthy. They did do a great job of keeping my batteries charged, however over time my experience was that the batteries slowly but surely degraded. Even having them hooked up full time all year round. I started researching other options and started finding chargers that both charged and desulfated. Once the battery is fully charged the charger goes into a maintain mode and basically hits the battery with high frequencies which eliminate the sulfation on the plates of the battery extending the life of the battery. I have switched from Battery Tender .. .which by my research does not desulfate to a device called a Battery Minder. It is sold through Amazon.

[cajun31]

did some research

on your optimate and found that is does the desulphation recovery. Your all set.

[mn2346]

with the battery or the charger you are referencing. My only comment would be that all lead acid battery chargers that I have run across work fine with AGM batteries. One twist on battery chargers however. For years I used Battery Tender brand battery chargers thinking they would maintain my batteries and keep them healthy. They did do a great job of keeping my batteries charged, however over time my experience was that the batteries slowly but surely degraded. Even having them hooked up full time all year round. I started researching other options and started finding chargers that both charged and desulfated. Once the battery is fully charged the charger goes into a maintain mode and basically hits the battery with high frequencies which eliminate the sulfation on the plates of the battery extending the life of the battery. I have switched from Battery Tender .. .which by my research does not desulfate to a device called a Battery Minder. It is sold through Amazon.

In Finland we have this thing called Winter (and very brief summer, last year it was on thursday ).

Anyways...to reduce the damage to battery I used to set a timer to the charger and set a minimum time daily to charge the battery. In a mechanical timer it usually was about 15minutes. This allowed the battery to be fully charger AND not overcharged at the same time.

Used the same method for my convertible and never had problems with this.
Cheap and effective...

[Jerry]

For me the choice came down to convenience. My take is not so much on cost or longevity.

Short rides or not much mileage a year, go with a cheap battery. You will have time and a place to do the required maintenance, and you will need to top off the battery fluid from time to time. I checked mine with every oil change.

For long distance rides a sealed battery is the way to go. No boiled-out batteries when crossing the desert south-west or in the middle of North Dakota. Been there, done that, which is why I switched to an AGM sealed unit.

And, to repeat a common theme of mine, replace the battery cables. Internal resistance on the old cables will cause starting problems due to voltage drops. If OEM cables are no longer available, try a small engine repair shop or make your own. A cable staking jig is cheap and you can buy cable and ends as you need them.

[thebottle]

I just picked up a Duralast Gold AGM (ETX18L) from AutoZone this year. $100 after the core deposit. I've had good luck with batteries from parts stores and bad luck with them from online at places like Amazon.

[Bonz]

Good deal! Now you know you have a place that will back it if there are problems. It's really nice in this electronic age to be able to deal across the counter face to face and work stuff out with people.

[oldyam80sg]

On my Kawasaki I bought a battery and the guy at the auto parts store gave me one which had the terminals reversed. It would not work on my Kawasaki as the cables are not that long to play with. Bought it back and got the right one but was not ready to ride as advertised so after having Napa load test it, it showed 50% charged and I just charged it 2 hours earlier. They gave me a newer one from the shelf and that one worked. It was a Duralast Gold battery EXT 14. Batteries at auto parts stores sit on shelves for months. They are not like milk and get discarded, once they sit so long.

[thebottle]

It's not a bad idea to check them. I checked mine with a multimeter and it was 80% charged in the box.

[Bonz]

On my Kawasaki I bought a battery and the guy at the auto parts store gave me one which had the terminals reversed. It would not work on my Kawasaki as the cables are not that long to play with. Bought it back and got the right one but was not ready to ride as advertised so after having Napa load test it, it showed 50% charged and I just charged it 2 hours earlier. They gave me a newer one from the shelf and that one worked. It was a Duralast Gold battery EXT 14. Batteries at auto parts stores sit on shelves for months. They are not like milk and get discarded, once they sit so long.

Yes you went through a lot with that battery for your ZRX!