Battery life

[D'Animal]

What can I do to extend the battery life of my Yellow Top and Red Top Optimas?

I use 2 of them to start my Cummins Diesel powered trucks as well run the 8274 winches on the trucks. Winches do not get used alot.

New 00 cables were installed along with the batteries and the grounds are good, alternators are in factory working order, etc.

 

[Tapage]

Old thread Mr. Dan .. but as far as I know batt have a specific amount of cycles ( charge and discharge ) so more we use .. less cycles left ..

Better to preserve batts well carged but that does not going to extend the life span .. just keep 'em usable until their last cycle ..

 

[D'Animal]

I have a Pile of Optimas (7) that have not lasted more than a few years. I have Red top and Yellow tops.

I want to make sure I am not causing the problem.

 

[Tapage]

IMOP bad V regulator can destroy any batt .. ( not saying it your case ) overcharging or under charging can cause the damage ..

But honestly I'm not a huge fan of optimas .. bought a few ones .. ones are nice and good batterys and others are just crap after few months ..

AC Delco it's the best batt that I ever try down here ..

 

[OptimaJim]

Hi D’Animal,

Always maintaining voltage in your batteries of at least 12.4 volts is a great place to start. Batteries spend their entire existence either charging or discharging. Even when batteries are not in use or connected to any draws, they will still have a small discharge rate. When batteries are allowed to discharge below 12.4 volts, sulfation begins to diminish capacity and lifespan. If you have batteries in vehicles that only see occasional use, a battery tender or maintainer is a great investment, which will help extend the life of your battery, regardless of brand.

When you are running dual batteries in a parallel configuration, they need to be the same size, type and age. If dissimilar batteries are installed in a parallel configuration, it will reduce their useful lifespan. Good cables and solid grounds are also important, especially on one-wire alternators and in off-road applications, where connections can easily be loosened by rough terrain.

RedTops offer plenty of cranking amps for starting applications, but they are not designed or intended for deep-cycle applications, so you should avoid winching with them. As for the seven batteries you have, I would recommend charging them on a bench. Fully-charged RedTops should read approximately 12.6-12.8 volts and YellowTops should read about 13.0-13.2 volts. If you can fully-charge a battery and it can maintain close to it’s full voltage level for a period of 12-24 hours, without being connected to a vehicle or other current draw, it should be ok. If it holds voltage on the bench, but loses it when connected to a vehicle, there is probably a current draw in the vehicle that is discharging the battery.

Some chargers will not recognize or charge any battery that has been discharged below 10.5 volts. In those situations, the parallel charging technique described in this video may be able to recharge those batteries- YouTube - Tech Tips 3: Recovering a Deeply Discharged Battery

If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.facebook.com/optimabatteries