CLK 320 - Long stood - reviving a dead battery?

[Bobby Dazzler]

Would it be a good idea to recondition a 10 year old but still fully functioning battery rather than only charge it from time to time?
During winter time I have my car hooked up to a charger for 6 months, this is the only time I charge my battery.
I was thinking if I should recondition it at sometime if this is a good thing to do?

Occasional reconditioning is a good thing to do for a transitional lead acid battery, however it’s important that you must NOT recondition an AGM battery.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I did borrow a booster, albeit what looks like a power bank with a crocodile clip attachment. It brings up the dash and it has enough juice for one turn of the engine which unfortunately isn't enough to start the car. I guess if you had a low battery it would be useful, but for a dead one it's useless.

Before trying anything else, look closely for signs of swelling on all sides of the battery. If it looks like the sides are stretched or bowing even slightly then do not attempt to charge the battery as it could explode.

Before you give up on the booster, fully recharge the booster again, connect it to the car battery and let it transfer charge WITHOUT attempting to start the car until it has fully transferred the charge to the battery.

I’m not an expert on electrics and so seek advice or research for yourself before trying it, however when a battery is so flat that it cannot be recognised by a charger, then hook up a second good battery.

You could then connect the battery charger, which will recognise the good battery and start charging, effectively charging both batteries, including the flat one. This will be better than just attempting to start the car.

 

[noogieman]

Occasional reconditioning is a good thing to do for a transitional lead acid battery, however it’s important that you must NOT recondition an AGM battery.

Yes, it's a standard lead acid battery, these are large and very heavy.
95Ah battery for my W202.

Can I recondition battery while it's still connected to my car then goes to auto charging?
CTEK always warns for possible explosive gas build up when charging, don't know how dangerous this is when reconditioning a battery?

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Yes, it's a standard lead acid battery, these are large and very heavy.
95Ah battery for my W202.

Can I recondition battery while it's still connected to my car then goes to auto charging?
CTEK always warns for possible explosive gas build up when charging, don't know how dangerous this is when reconditioning a battery?

A CTEK is designed for charging and reconditioning the battery whilst it’s on the car - there’a. I need to remove it.

 

[noogieman]

A CTEK is designed for charging and reconditioning the battery whilst it’s on the car - there’a. I need to remove it.

The bold text, you mean there's no need to remove battery from the car whilst reconditioning?

I have a spare battery sitting at home which I check every three months or so with my 2nd CTEK charger.
Now it's been on charge for 9 days, tomorrow it's the final 10th day.
CTEK claims charging 80% of the battery is done within 24HRS and the rest 20% is charging during a slow 10 day period if I remember correct?
Next time in 3 or 4 months from now I was thinking that I might recondition my spare battery for the first time.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

The bold text, you mean there's no need to remove battery from the car whilst reconditioning?

I have a spare battery sitting at home which I check every three months or so with my 2nd CTEK charger.
Now it's been on charge for 9 days, tomorrow it's the final 10th day.
CTEK claims charging 80% of the battery is done within 24HRS and the rest 20% is charging during a slow 10 day period if I remember correct?
Next time in 3 or 4 months from now I was thinking that I might recondition my spare battery for the first time.

Yes, that final sentence should have said that there is no need to remove it from the car when using a CTEK.

 

[Will]

Out of interest how much are people paying for regular lead acid batteries?

Admittedly it was a few years ago now, but I bought two new ones (genuine MB from a commercial dealer, correct part numbers) and they were under £100 a piece.

Less than a tankful of fuel I should think in today’s prices

Good idea to keep batteries maintained though on vehicles used less frequently

 

[Will]

No affiliation:

Starter Battery - Sprinter/Vito - 12V/100Ah

A000982330826

intercounty.org.uk

I would compare that to passenger car dealer parts suppliers

 

[geoffus]

No affiliation:

Starter Battery - Sprinter/Vito - 12V/100Ah

A000982330826

intercounty.org.uk

I would compare that to passenger car dealer parts suppliers

Is that a stop start AGM battery as its for a commercial vehicle ?
Would there be much difference, mine was A000 982 221 08 ?

 

[Will]

Is that a stop start AGM battery as its for a commercial vehicle ?
Would there be much difference, mine was A000 982 221 08 ?

Not stop/start specific or AGM, just regular lead acid I think.