Battery Charger Recommendations.

Oshbosh

Hi,

i was thinking of getting one of these as i have occasionally been stranded and left to the mercy of kind passers by for a jump start.

There are several different kinds on the market and i was wondering if anyone can help with the pros / cons and perhaps some recommendations.

I like the ones you just plug into your ciggy lighter but i suspect there's some catch.

I'd like something reliable i can just keep in the boot, i've seen some with air compressors built in which sounds like a good idea but i'm sure there's a good reason why it isn't as well so jump in with your tuppence worth and lets see !

cheers

Osh

ds20prefecture

I bought one of the ones with the air compressor for €130 from Halfords. 3 days later Aldi had a functionally identical one for €40, so I returned the Halfords one and got that instead. It works well, but it's a heavy thing to keep in your boot and it should really be plugged in once a week or so to keep charging the battery.

It works very well though. I occassionally neglect to drive my car for a week or so, and it sometimes needs a helping hand. These are much better than a hand crank!

mountain

if it has happened a few times that you have been stuck, maybe the problem is with your existing battery, or alternator.
Unless you leave your lights on, then the battery shouldnt be draining.

maidhc

Oshbosh wrote: »

I like the ones you just plug into your ciggy lighter but i suspect there's some catch.

I assume you mean something you would keep trickle charged from the cigarette lighter?

Would a better solutuion not be to fit a lights on buzzer or buy a new battery if needs be?

Oshbosh

Hi,

mm, not sure now, I thought they were chargers which plug into your cigarette lighter instead of attaching to the battery terminals.

So, just to be clear what i'm looking for is a portable charger / rechargeable battery pack which i can keep in the car or perhaps at home, i like the idea of the included air compressor.

I did leave a light on last week and finding it difficult to get a mate to give me a jump due to my location so figured one of these would be a good investment, battery is only a few months old.

cheers

Osh

deckie27

During the winter on older cars its a good idea to charge the battery fully every couple of months
As said the booster type need charging regularly
Any car charger will do.
I got one a couple of months ago in Aldi for 25 euro (as I needed 6v also)

Renotec

Normally you should not have to rely on a portable charger to stay on the road. If your electrics are up to scratch then you should be able to go without one and save some money. Its only going to stay in the boot until someone else would need a jump.
why not invest in a solar panel charging kit? They work well and trickle charge in the off season when your not using the car or even when your parked someplace?

Check out Maplin Ireland as they have some variations.

Oshbosh

cheers, my electrics are fine as far as i know, its kept in an underground car park so solar may work but not what i need. Will visit Maplin this afternoon, thanks everyone !

3ps

I bought a CTEK3600 online and it's great.

macplaxton

Those all-in-ones starter chargers are cheap as chips at €40 (25 quid was the cheapest I'd see in the UK at markets). I blagged a older Gunson one from work, but a new internal battery (it's like a gel motorcycle one) cost about €25 to get it working again.

If it's a trickle charger that you can leave plugged in all the time (to stop the clock/alarms zapping the battery on frequently unused cars, there was some cheap ones in Lidl the other week.