Hello Kip, it seems anymore when you buy an ATV or motorcycle battery they come in a box with a container of fluid that needs to be put in the battery. I was wondering how long do you need to charge the battery after putting what i believe is electrolyte in it? Some people have told me its ready to go after putting the electrolyte in the battery. The instructions leave a lot to be desired if you ask me.

Pouring Electrolyte into battery

Bestbatterytips.com

Mark, you ask a good question that a lot of people don’t seem to fully grasp. We’ll start with answering the question in reference to the fluid inside the container. You are correct in assuming its electrolyte (acid) inside the container. Once the electrolyte is poured into the cells of the battery, it starts a reaction inside the battery. You will get some gassing  due  to  the  release  of  carbon  dioxide  that  is  a product of the drying process of the hydrogen sulfide produced by the presence of free sulfur. Therefore, the filling  operations  should  be  in  a  well-ventilated  area. These gases and odors are normal and are no cause for alarm. The battery is approximately 80% charged after adding the electrolyte to the battery. The battery 9 times out of 10 will have enough CCA at that point to start the ATV or motorcycle. Now with that being said, you should put the battery on a battery maintainer overnight to bring the battery to 100%. Never use a auto car charger to charge a motorcycle or atv battery. These types of chargers are often to big for motorcycle and ATV batteries and will boil the electrolyte inside the battery. Now if your going to ride your ATV or motorcycle for 2 to 3 hours with no interruptions it will be fully charged on its own. Remember Mark, always wear safety goggles and rubber gloves when working with batteries. You do not want a battery to explode in your face or get sulfuric acid on your skin.

Motorcycle Battery

Motorcycle and ATV batteries are to many times cut short on life expectancy due to lack of understanding how to maintain these small batteries. We here at bestbatterytips.com are going to try and help you get more out of your motorcycle battery and ATV battery.

Motorcycle batteries and ATV batteries were not designed to be charged by automotive chargers. They can not handle the 6-10 amp charging rate that is common with automotive chargers. Never use more than a 2 amp charger and it would behove you to use a trickle charger. Chargers like the ones made by Battery Tender, are a excellent fit for small batteries. Battery Tender chargers will bring the battery back up slowly, and without overheating the battery. To many times using a automotive charger, the battery will get hot and boil. Never allow the electrolyte in the battery to reach 115 degrees while charging. Anytime that happens you can kiss that battery goodbye.

Battery Tender

Motorcycle and ATV Batteries need to be topped off every 2 weeks if they are not in use. Disconnect the battery from the machines anytime for extended park times. Just because the ignition is off doesn’t mean there is still not a drain on the battery. Motorcycle and ATV batteries discharge at 1% a day, so don’t expect to walk out into your garage 3 months later and fire it right up. Don’t just figure you will charge it back up again, because the damage to the battery will have already been done. Once a battery gets sulfation on the plates, its ability to move electrons as efficiently is lost. The battery will then not have the cranking ability it was designed to have. The manufacturers say the number 1 reason for short lifespans on smaller batteries is the seasons that the machines are not being used the consumers are not keeping the batteries charged. That’s why I would recommend purchasing a Battery Tender as well. The Battery Tender can be hooked up to your machine in the off months, and will turn off and on as needed to keep your battery at 100 percent charge. You know what that means don’t you? That’s money in the bank for you when spring rolls around.

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Motorcycle Battery

Mark from Idaho

Hello, I’m writing you in regards to battery storage. I have a motorcycle that I store in my garage in the winter months. Every year it seems that I’m always shoveling out 100 bucks  for one of those expensive batteries. I was wondering if you had any tips for winter battery storage, as I am tired of always buying a battery.

Bestbatterytips.com

Mark, you are a victim of sulfation. When storing batteries for winter or any other season, there are a few things you must consider first. Never store a battery in a discharge state, always be sure the battery is 100 percent charged. You can check the state of charge of a battery with a digital voltmeter. I will tell you that this is the least accurate way to check the state of charge of a battery, but we are not after exact science for this process. However if you feel the urge to be exact check the battery with a hydrometer. Checkout our article on Hydrometer(Specific Gravity) for info. Please don’t forget to wear safety goggles while you work through this process. Be sure to disconnect the positive and negative cables.  Also keep in mind that you don’t want to read surface charge of a battery, so if the battery was previously on a charger or the motorcycle was just running you need to wait 6 to 12 hours before taking a reading. You will want to measure DC voltage across the main positive and negative terminals of the battery.

Below is a batteries state of charge when hooking a volt-meter to the battery.

• 12.75 & Above      100% Charged
• 12.60 to 12.74      85 to 100% charged
• 12.40 to 12.59      75 to 85% Charged
• 12.20 to12.39        50 to75% Charged
• 12.00 to12.19        25 to 50% Charged
• 12.00 & Below       Fully Discharged

Once you have determined the battery is ready for storage, we need to consider the conditions the battery will be stored in. Batteries do not like hot temperatures, so a storage area at 30 degrees Celsius or 86 degrees Fahrenheit is no place for batteries. Once you have figured out a proper location for storage, you need to make sure the battery is removed from the machine. A lot of the time motorcycles, Atv’s, snowmobiles, and automobiles have some system that requires power from the battery even if the ignition is off. A example of one of those items that requires power from the battery at all times is a clock. I mentioned to you at the beginning of this response that you were a victim of sulfation. This happens when the battery voltage drops below 12.4 volts. The more discharged a battery is, the worse sulfation happens. In short, deposits build on the lead plates inside the battery and the surface that the deposits occupy is less surface area electrons have to produce power. Results are a battery that can not produce the power in which it was designed to do.

Battery Tender Junior 12 Volt

To prevent this from happening, I would strongly recommend a float charger. Battery Tender makes a excellent product for this application. A Battery Tender 12 volt or 6 volt Jr. can be hooked up to your battery and left unattended all winter long. The advantage is that it will keep your battery at 100 percent charged, and prevent any sulfation. The Battery Tender Jr. will turn on and off all on its own to maintain your battery. Money well spent, and will pay you back many times over in the long run. Battery Tender Jr. will run you any where from 29.95 to 39.95, and they can be purchased almost anywhere batteries are sold.

All product names, logos, brands, and other trademarks featured or referred to within BestBatteryTips .com website are the property of their respective trademark holders.