Voltage query

Possibly, athough I've never used an Optimate. But why would you want
to put a battery on charge just after a run?

 

Sort run and use of a self-starter to begin with, maybe?

 

You need to get out on the bike more often.

 

Thus spake Kim Bolton () unto the assembled multitudes:

Just habit. I don't use my bike a great deal, and my habit is just to
hook it up to the charger immediately (or 15 minutes later) so as to keep
it topped up until I next use it, which could be several weeks at this time
of year.

 

A modern (200+W?) alternator should cope with that, if it is set to
the right voltage, about 14.4V or so. Any lower and it might take the
battery a little while to recover. However, Andy said that he might
not ride the bike again for some weeks, so the Optimate makes sense.
Be interesting if anyone else has noticed the reluctance to go into
'charge' mode just after a run.

 

Kim Bolton typed:

Yup. I put the XT away for Christmas week, as I needed the car a lot at
work, and I put it straight in the garage after a run and onto the Optimate.
It reported a shagged battery, then 'desulphating', then shagged. Red and
orange lights everywhere. I switched it off and left it overnight. Next
day - no probs. Two greens within ten minutes, and it stayed that way for a
week.

--
Rich B

1971 S2a
1995 XT600E
2003 ST1300 Pan European
Oh, and a Ford

Take out the obvious to email me.

 

Up to 2.2V per cell for most LA wet cell batteries.

 

Interesting....this might be useful way of estimating how much
surface-charge there is, by seeing how long it takes for an Optimate
to report such a battery as 'normal'. Andy has circa 15 minutes, and
yours appears to be somewhat longer than that. Shorter surface-charge
discharge times (IYSWIM) might be a very early warning of battery
deterioration.

The other thing, if you want to hook your Optimate to the battery, is
to leave your headlight on while putting the bike away. This should
remove the surface charge, and enable the Optimate to function
immediately.