Car Battery- buying new battery, charger, cables

[Sick Puppy]

Hi everyone, I hadn't been driving my car for a few months and the battery has been playing up- I've had to have it jump started a few times. I put some battery conditioner from Super Cheap in the battery, and as it happens I've been using the car more recently too, which has helped... but it's not holding charge very well (still stutters on starting when cold, as well as after long trips), so I figure it is on its way out.

Brendons in Wellington checked the alternator at my last service and said it appears to be working fine. This means two things for me; first, I'll need a new battery at some point soon, and secondly, I'll need bits and bobs to keep it charged or startable on a regular basis- I'm moving into town, so I might be using it even less!

Can I please have some suggestions on:
*A good battery make to buy (and any to avoid!);
*Where to buy from in Wellington area (I imagine decent auto electrical places, AA etc.)
*What battery equipment to buy and where from- I'm figuring I'll need a battery charger so I can recharge it once a month or so, a trickle charger if I'm going away on holiday, possibly a car starter and/or jumper cables, to jump start my car? Any/some/all of above?

I know Repco and K-mart sell Projecta chargers- are there any other makes on the market I should be considering?

Oh, and my car is a Manual ZS Curren with an aftermarket alarm and head unit (no amp or subs though), although I'm considering buying a certain German make with six cylinders in the future... any help on this would be appreciated, thanks everyone!

[Infinite]

dude just drive it..... buy a decent battery... wtf

[Stealer Of Souls]

Any of the big name brand batteries will do the job nicely. Actually ANY battery will do the job, but I don't like the look of the less known brands.
Consider a one of those non-maintenance batteries so you don't have to remember to check the water (not a huge issue, but if you drive very infrequently it can sneak up on ya).
Chargers are a bit more tricky. I would say that if it is a "fully automatic" battery charger you'd be fine. They should switch to trickle charge when the battery is "fully" charged.
Jumper cables are cheap and portable, but of course you'll need another car/battery nearby. The jump packs are pretty cheap though, sometimes as little as 50% more than cables, and you obviously don't need another vehicle/battery.
The other thing to think about is where the car is being stored. If it's outside you can't really leave it on a charger, but could possibly try one of those solar panel trickle charge thingies. If it's in a garage you could leave it on a trickle charger, or just disconnect the battery when not being used.

[Dell'Orto]

Be patient next time you post a thread!! No need to keep clicking submit

[GTCRSHR]

i have never had a problem with the batteries at supercheap, bosch ones

repco ones i have had trouble with, only lasting a year then crapping out

as for chargers - i bought one of the calibre ones from supercheap

those portable chargers are a life saver around the $60-90 mark supercheap again just remember to keep it charged up if you dont use it for a while,

if you drive your car your battery shouldnt go flat, unless there is something that is high draining, if you only go on short trips,

the sokar panel things are good if you go away on holiday, but it is just as easy to put the battery on to charge the night when you get back if it is flat

[Infinite]

geez u guys sound like old motor home's coming in wanting 3 house battery's solar panel's, extra alternator's.............. ive had cars sit for 6 weeks with old batterys and go out n start them first pop.... celica's crx's holden's geez..... replace your battery... most cheap battery jump starters don't last that long. ive been puting repco brand batteries in for over 7 years have had on max 3 fail. other than when some idiot decides to rewire there charger and frys 90% of the vehicles electrics. or puts a new charger in and charges it reversed

[bbq1988]

ive had cars sit for 6 weeks with old batterys and go out n start them first pop....

Also depends on what draw is happning bro, i havent left my car for longer then about 3 days but i would say it wouldnt like it after 6 weeks with the alarm drawing current all the time

[Boosted_162]

We have a pro power 'jump and go' portable jump starter. Its the best thing since sliced bread! We bought it when we still owned a farm, and used it to start diggers, tractors and trucks etc and has never let us down. Its about 5 years old now. Altho this is a more expensive one, and has a good battery in it. Takes about 8-10 hours to charge but lasts ages.

[Cakky]

The place next to SuperCheap on Hutt Road in Lower Hutt sells a good range of batterys and they will fit it and check the voltage and everything for you for free as well, good service and nice knowledgeable guys there too

[Sick Puppy]

Dell'Orto- I'm assuming there were multiple copies of this thread? Sorry, for some reason the forum just froze when I tried to submit the thread- tried a few times over about half an hour and nothing happened (I did check the tech section a couple of times though to see if it had been submitted), even after shutting down the PC and starting again... I logged on today to resubmit it as I assumed it hadn't gone through... sorry 'bout that!

Infinite- I will be living in the CBD, won't be driving to work, and it will take me longer to walk for my morning coffee than to get to work. I'll be using it once or twice a week for short trips only, and that's if I'm lucky- between work and sport I've rarely had time lately... Yeah, it's a tiny Jap import battery (how it lasted four years I'll never know) and I'll be buying a decent battery as soon as I move, but I'm wasting my time and money when that one craps out too...

(BTW, those monsoon visors arrived today- cheers for that, and awesome job on the packaging!)

Stealer of Souls, GTCRSHR, Boosted_162- thanks for your replies! Cakky, cheers, will have a look next time I'm in Lower Hutt.

[Stealer Of Souls]

the sokar panel things are good if you go away on holiday, but it is just as easy to put the battery on to charge the night when you get back if it is flat

Hmm.. good point. Although have a battery on float is supposed to be better for it, longevity wise, than cycling.
I've never tried the little solar panels, always miss the specials. But they should work to help extend the length of time the battery will last till flat. There is one issue, and that's if your alarm has a current sensing trigger. I'm 75% sure you'll need to disable that as it'll detect the changes in voltage at the terminals as some for of activity.

[GTCRSHR]

I've never tried the little solar panels, always miss the specials. But they should work to help extend the length of time the battery will last till flat. There is one issue, and that's if your alarm has a current sensing trigger. I'm 75% sure you'll need to disable that as it'll detect the changes in voltage at the terminals as some for of activity.

how many times do you go away on holiday and leave your car for over a month at a time ?

[Dell'Orto]

Dell'Orto- I'm assuming there were multiple copies of this thread?

Yeah like 5 or 6 As long as you hit enter, it usually goes through...doesnt show up straight away though.

[Stealer Of Souls]

I've never tried the little solar panels, always miss the specials. But they should work to help extend the length of time the battery will last till flat. There is one issue, and that's if your alarm has a current sensing trigger. I'm 75% sure you'll need to disable that as it'll detect the changes in voltage at the terminals as some for of activity.

how many times do you go away on holiday and leave your car for over a month at a time ?

Acutally I don't even go on holiday and my car can regularly sit there for over a month untouched. And YES it IS my daily. I just don't need to drive often since I don't take it to work, and most of the other times someone else is nearby who picks me up when the whole group of friends is "heading out". In fact, despite that I only own one car, it's has been off the road for the last 8-10 months.

We're not all married to driving our cars. Some people do in fact not need to drive all the time.

[Mr.Phreak]

http://www.ctek.com

[Sick Puppy]

http://www.ctek.com

Looks good, but any suppliers in Wellie? Going window shopping this weekend, buying next weekend (payday ftw! lol)...

figured my drainage problem might be something to do with the rear lights warning light that's lit up on my dashboard at the mo... getting it checked ASAP too...

[NZVengeance]

also note when you buy the battery ask if it is a calcium battery as these are becoming more and more common. they started getting them in when i worked at repco last year.

with a calcium battery conventional chargers will only charge then to 85% you'll need to get a special charger for it to charge to 100%

[Sick Puppy]

Thanks NZVengeance, will bear that in mind!

Had another look at the CTEK website and realised I had gone into the wrong bit- wil have a look re: prices this week.

Would have looked yesterday, but got laid out with a stomach bug

[Sick Puppy]

http://www.ctek.com

Grrr! Just checked the internet- TWL had an offer on these! $200 units going for $120 + GST!! Missed it, and now selling for $150 if you ask nicely... oh well, I can wait!

Which reminds me- Cakky, I went to that place you mentioned and grabbed a battery- the guy I spoke to there provided better info than anywhere else I rang up about it... cheers!

[BigDon]

I brought a solar panel charger (DSE) to keep my race car topped up but found not enough light got into the garage. Plus it was the smaller one.

So I brought a switchable charger from Ripco, does the full charge then switches to trickle. Been using it for 6 months or so on a normal lead acid battery and its brilliant.

I have a big yellow top optima in my street car which until recently hasn’t had much use as I’m in the cbd too. As long as I drove the car once a week for a short trip to the super market it was fine anything longer than 10 days without use and it got a bit unhappy. But I put that down to my alarm, they do seem to create a noticeable drain overtime esp if you have a few add on sensors.