Extend the life of car batteries with Solar . . .

[leehljp]

This is another HF post and has worked for me. Your milage may vary.

This past weekend, my son in law and I went to HF and I bought a few things. Among them was a solar panel HF # 44768, here.

I got this one for my lawn tractor. Back in the spring I had to boost the battery off and last week I had to do it again. I tried to crank it yesterday and it turned over twice and quit. Then I hooked the solar panel up to the battery and within an hour it cranked immediately. I think I will leave it on through the winter.

I bought a '95 Ranger in 2000. IN the summer of 2001, I returned to Japan. When I came back to the States for a month in the summer of 2002, the battery was dead. I went to Walmart and got their HD battery. The next summer (2003) when I returned for a month, it was dead. Walmart replaced it. Spring of 2004 when I returned for a month, the latest battery was dead. Walmart replaced it. (Yes, I know that a vehicle that is not cranked on occasion will kill a battery.)

BUT, this time, I went to HF, bought a cheap approx 2" by 12" solar panel and plugged it into the cigarette lighter and put the panel on the dash. This was 2004. Today is December of 2011 and the same battery is going strong.

This prompted me to get the second solar panel charger and try it on the lawn tractor with 12 volt battery. I don't know about other's success with HF's solar chargers, but it sure is nice that the batteries stay charged and work longer for me. Oh yes, this lawn tractor battery was purchased in 2005, so it is about time for it to be getting weak. I had to add water to it a couple of years ago.

Is 6 to 7 years normal for a 12V auto battery under normal conditions?

[LCHIEN]

just a quick note on lead acid battery failures - in automotive type applications
failures take one of two forms:
Internal opens or shorts
and
gradual loss of capacity and increasing internal resistance to the point where it won't turn over a motor

Lifetime to one or the other type failure is affected by
1. time and excursions at temperature extremes - both cold and hot take a toll on batteries which have to endure under hood temperatures of 160°F and -40°F.
2. depth of discharges
3. charge-discharge cycles

I'd say under Texas conditions where its very hot and gets to 20F an automotive battery has a lifetime of anywhere from 18 mos to 7 years in my 36 years of Texas car-owning experience, 3 years probably being most typical.

Cars have drain on the battery even when off, to power clocks and electrical stuff that's on. If you are going to leave it parked for a long time (more than a month) it might be wise to unhook the battery to prevent it from being discharged all they way down which is not all that good for it. Keeping it topped off with a solar panel is also a good way to prevent it from being totally discharged, even through self-discharge.

[Stytooner]

I get 3 years normally. 4 years when lucky and 5 years, I replace it before a long trip. Most of my batteries have lasted between 3 and 4 years without showing signs of weakness. Vehicles and lawn tractors.

The solar panels sound like a great idea. When the mowers have had issues in the past, it was generally when coming back into use after a few months parked for winter. I'm sure the mild cold played a role, but lack of use was likely just a much a player.

In the Army, I took care of about 50 different sized generators in Germany for almost three years. The battery life there was about the same as what I see here. Germany has a much colder climate.

7 years? Wow, don't think I have ever had one last that long. That is having the stars align for you.

[Cochese]

They use these at dealerships as well. Got one when we leased a Jetta.

[jking]

In the past, I have gotten about 5 years out of the batteries in my cars.

[sweensdv]

Thanks for the informative post Hank. I just may have to get one of those for my lawn tractor.

[Lonnie in Orlando]

Looks like solar cells on the roof of a golf cart could extend the range (?) I'm not a golfer so, what do I know!

[lago]

I have gotten 4 to 5 yrs on a car battery if I go the vehicle within 3-6 months after assembly. I bought a van a number of years ago after it sat on the lot for 9 months. My daughter bought a car that sat on the lot for the same amount of time. Both batteries died after 2 years.

Living in the heat in Texas, 5 years is pushing it.

Lago

[JimD]

It gets pretty hot here in SC and my Suzuki SUV is a 2006 with it's original battery. Still going strong. I carry jumper cables but so far they have only been used to help others.

I don't think I've ever gotten 3 years on a mower battery, however. My cars may sit for several days between uses, in the garage, but my rider doesn't get used for months. I think I know what the problem is but haven't done anything about it, yet. I like the new self propelled Toro walk behing so the rider can just sit.

My son needs a rider for his lawn, however, maybe he needs one of these solar chargers for Christmas.

Jim