Battery maintenance is vital when storing any car, new or old. At the CarCrowd we are advocates of the battery trickle charger. Below we'll tell how this small investment can save you plenty of headaches and not to mention some potentially hefty battery repair costs further down the line...
With winter now upon us and many beloved cars now tucked away until the Summer it's important to keep your battery in tip-top shape. Trickle chargers offer a relatively budget-friendly way to ensure your car is ready to go when it comes out of hibernation...
What is a 'trickle charger'?
Trickle chargers are designed to be left on vehicles for extended periods of time (ideal for winter storage) and slowly adds charge to the battery to prevent the normal depletion over time that commonly occurs. Trickle chargers are safe to use as they charger at a slower rate than normal car battery chargers. Charging the battery too fast runs, especially over longer periods of time runs the risk of over-charging which leads to shorter battery life and sulfation which is the main reason batteries 'go bad'.
The CTEK XS 0.8 - Leading the charge
With all our investment cars as well as the cars we store for our clients we only use one charger, the CTEK XS. Why? well first off we store a larger number of cars at any one time (typically at least 40 cars from classics to modern supercars) and with each one requiring a charger we need something that is reliable but cost-effective.
Cost - The CTEK XS cost around £50 here in the UK which won't break the bank and packs one hell of a punch. You can also purchase extra accessories such as these comfort adapters, essentially positive and negative adapters which stay fixed to your battery and you simply plug your charger into the connector for quick and easy charging.
Performance - the CTEK XS uses pulse maintenance to only charge the battery when it depletes due to alarms and natural drainage. The beauty of the XS is that can be connected for months at a time and eliminates the danger of overcharging. Meaning your battery is not only safe but will be in tip-top shape when you come back to it in 4-6 months.
Pros VS Cons
Pros -
Easy to use: The XS 0.8 is a simple plug and play setup you simply connect and forget and you can rest assured your battery will be at its best.
Plenty of accessories: There are quite a few additions you can buy for the charger such as quick disconnect adapters and easy install rings we mentioned earlier which you can use to customise your charger to suit your needs.
Budget friendly - at around £50 in the UK (slightly more if you get it with the accessory bundles) its definitely worth the price when you compare it to the repair bills you could face from not using one.
Cons -
No supply or reconditioning modes: Reconditioning mode is handy to recover deeply discharged batteries, this means if you car battery is completely dead the XS wont be able to recover it and you'd need to use a bigger charger to restore the battery before connecting the XS.
Long charging times, the XS 0.8 as the name suggests, delivers 0.8 amps of current meaning it takes a long time to fully charge a battery, this is OK if you car is in long term storage but if your after a quick charge in a pinch this might not work for you. We'd recommend looking at the XS 5.0 instead.
Conclusion - Get switched ON
We've been using the same CTEK charger for years now and its been a faithful companion to us and our clients. If you putting your car away for long term storage and aren't using a charger then we'd highly recommend the CTEK XS 0.8 for the reasons we gave in our pros vs cons list. Whatever charger you choose make sure the it's safe for long terms charging and is suitable for car battery maintenance.
If your also looking for storage in the East Midlands area, check out our fully insulated and temperature controlled unit or Contact Us for a quote on winter car storage
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