Battery Tender

[V7Goose]

I did not get the chance to try it this afternoon...instead winterized my tractor and did a 30 minute ride.

 

Anyway...what if I put the ignition on accessory and then plug in the battery conditioner...what is your take on this?

Technically that would work, but you will need to make sure the charger you use has enough current to both handle the needs of the accessories AND charge the battery a little. I don't know how much that is, but I'd suggest at least two amps output. I did not measure the full current draw on ACC when I was messing with the bike the other day, but it seemed to be over 1 amp.

 

It would be a lot easier if you just added a new power plug to the plastic plate behind the seat on the left side. There is already a plug there the correct size that you can just pop out, and a power jack at any auto parts store is about $10. Just wire it straight to the battery and fuse it at 10 amps and you can even use that to run an electric air compressor.

Goose

[N3FOL]

That sounds good. Yes, my Battery conditioner from SEARS puts out at least 2A on 12V trickle charge...good news at this point. Weather for the next 5 days is not conducive for riding, so I may plug in my conditioner by the end of this week and see the results.

[Dave3]

When I bought my '93 Virago 18 years ago in NJ, I bought a cheap charger and cooked my battery. So I figured if Yamaha wants to put Yuasa in all their bikes, I should get the Yuasa trickle charger. It has not let me down yet, I'm still using the same unit today on the Virago and my '07 RSV.

[N3FOL]

That cheap charger you had in '93 was probably not an Automatic type and continously charge the battery until it boils to death...been there ...done that....

[Sideoftheroad]

You have a 12 volt battery....

 

Guess I don't understand. I have a 12 volt battery in my car and a 12 volt battery charger. Kinda hard to mess up, putting red to positive and black to ground or negative.

 

W/out looking at the box in the garage, I believe this is the one I have

 

http://store.schumachermart.com/se-520ma.html

[slick97spirit]

I've bought 2 battery tenders from Walmart for around $20.00 and have used them on my Virago and my 1st gen without any problems for several years. When I bought my '99 Venture the guy I bought it from gave me the Battery Tender brand. He already had the connectors hooked to the battery and come out from the side cover so I just park it and plug it in. In Montana it will sit for a few months before it gets ridden again.

 

Norm

 

 

Same here. I had the battery tender brand which went south on me very quickly. I went to Wally World and bought their 20 bucker and they seem to work great. I set it on 12 volt and forget it.

[N3FOL]

I just verified this afternoon that I can actually trickle charge my Venture from the 12V Accessory plug. My Battery Conditioner is set at 12V/2A trickle charge and it worked well. As mentioned previously, the 12V plug is Power Off with the Key Off. I simply put the ignition into accessory and the charger does its job in keeping the battery 'topped off'.

 

Hooking up another wiring harness together with my Gerbing harness on the battery is not an option at this time. I didn't want to crowd the terminals and I am glad that the Venture has its 12V plug built in.

[BARKEEP1956]

Hey Rodburner.....be careful about using the aligator clips for a jump on the bike. The one that I bought at Wally World had those, but they are made to go one the Charger. If you put them on the end that is on your bike. the polarity is crossed!!!! I learned the hardway and needed a new battery. Just wanted to let you know.