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battery health

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to v or not to v
World Chat Champion



Joined: 24 Nov 2020
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PostPosted: 07:20 - 09 Jul 2022    Post subject: battery health Reply with quote
is there any way to check the batteries health?
mine is loosing a fair bit of charge over the course of a week.
takes about a half hour top up from the trickle charger after i come back off a ride too.
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Islander
World Chat Champion



Joined: 05 Aug 2012
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PostPosted: 09:52 - 09 Jul 2022    Post subject: Re: battery health Reply with quote
to v or not to v wrote:
is there any way to check the batteries health?
mine is loosing a fair bit of charge over the course of a week.
takes about a half hour top up from the trickle charger after i come back off a ride too.


You'd need a proper tester that puts the battery under load and measures the discharge rate.

I'd begin by testing the charging circuit on the bike to verify that it's working properly and then measuring the current draw when the ignition is off.
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F18
Renault 5 Driver



Joined: 04 Mar 2019
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PostPosted: 22:20 - 11 Jul 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote
When you've done that, and found all okay then look at the battery/diary/guestimate the age of said battery and go, ah yes a consumable.
Go to shop/PC, enter your credit card number; job's a good 'un.
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Bhud
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Joined: 11 Oct 2018
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PostPosted: 23:24 - 11 Jul 2022    Post subject: Re: battery health Reply with quote
to v or not to v wrote:
is there any way to check the batteries health?
mine is loosing a fair bit of charge over the course of a week.


A week left alone is too short - it should still start up easily, even with all the lights and everything on while it turns over the engine. Check for parasitic battery drain. Here's a neat little trick:

https://www.wikihow.com/Find-a-Parasitic-Battery-Drain

Plus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrNvkJ2EtvE

Quote:
takes about a half hour top up from the trickle charger after i come back off a ride too.


How long are these rides? Just going down to the shops might not be enough to fully charge the battery.
Trickle chargers are supposed to be slow. Half and hour to completely top up suggests the battery might not need completely topping up in this way after your rides.
The voltage across the terminals won't tell you very much but it is related to the current the battery is able to deliver. Check the voltage across the terminals in case you're in doubt, because voltage is related to current.

If the bike can be left completely alone for a week and then start up as per normal, then I wouldn't worry about it.
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jeffyjeff
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Joined: 02 May 2020
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PostPosted: 07:38 - 12 Jul 2022    Post subject: Re: battery health Reply with quote
Bhud wrote:
Check the voltage across the terminals in case you're in doubt, because voltage is related to current.

Respectfully, Bhud, I have to disagree with you.

The voltage across the terminals has little to do with current. What is the difference between the 5A battery in my 125 and a Group 31 battery in a heavy duty lorry? Both have 6 cells and produce 12 volts. It is the size of cell plate area that affects current discharge. The 5A battery is good for 80 cold cranking amps, the Group 31 is good for 1250 CCA.

Voltage across the terminals is an indicator of the state of charge, but not an indicator of the serviceability of the battery. That's why a load test is necessary.
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blurredman
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Joined: 18 Sep 2010
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PostPosted: 11:46 - 12 Jul 2022    Post subject: Re: battery health Reply with quote
jeffyjeff wrote:


Voltage across the terminals is an indicator of the state of charge, but not an indicator of the serviceability of the battery. That's why a load test is necessary.




Agreed.
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CBT: 12/06/10, Theory: 22/09/10, Module 1: 09/11/10, Module 2: 19/01/11
Past: 1991 Honda CG125BR-J, 1992 (1980) Honda XL125S, 1996 Kawasaki GPZ500S, 1979 MZ TS150.
Current: 1973 MZ ES250/2 - 18k, 1979 Suzuki TS185ER - 10k, 1981 Honda CX500B - 91k, 1987 MZ ETZ250 (295cc) - 40k, 1989 MZ ETZ251 - 51k.
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Bhud
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Joined: 11 Oct 2018
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PostPosted: 12:11 - 12 Jul 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote
That's fair enough - listen to the above guys.

Gotta admit, a lot of the time, as a simple enthusiast and not an engineer, my attitude about bikes tends to be a bit casual as long as it works.
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to v or not to v
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Joined: 24 Nov 2020
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PostPosted: 12:19 - 14 Jul 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote
my rides are usually between 1 and 3 hours, with lights on.

i just thought the battery would be getting charged up when i rode so would be fully topped up when i got back?.

if i leave the bike for a week without charging the battery it takes a bit more effort to start.
ive no idea how old the battery is, should probably just get a new one i guess.
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True Blue
World Chat Champion



Joined: 09 Feb 2003
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PostPosted: 10:34 - 19 Jul 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote
In the absence of a proper tester...if you take a measure of the voltage on crank, that will give you a good indication of whether the battery capacity is good or not.
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MCN
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Joined: 22 Jul 2015
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PostPosted: 12:15 - 19 Jul 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote
to v or not to v wrote:
my rides are usually between 1 and 3 hours, with lights on.

i just thought the battery would be getting charged up when i rode so would be fully topped up when i got back?.

if i leave the bike for a week without charging the battery it takes a bit more effort to start.
ive no idea how old the battery is, should probably just get a new one i guess.


Stop phuqueing about and buy a new battery.

https://www.tayna.co.uk/motorcycle-batteries/

And then buy a C-Tek charger.

https://www.tayna.co.uk/battery-chargers/ctek/

And a multimeter.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134049220994

After complying with the above, you'll be able to post with the confidence of the big boys. Cool
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xX-Alex-Xx
World Chat Champion



Joined: 12 Sep 2019
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PostPosted: 12:27 - 19 Jul 2022    Post subject: Re: battery health Reply with quote
jeffyjeff wrote:

Voltage across the terminals is an indicator of the state of charge, but not an indicator of the serviceability of the battery. That's why a load test is necessary.


Exactly this. It's worth monitoring the battery voltage while you crank the starter (ie you're putting load on it). Easiest way to check it without an external battery tester, but you'll need to be quick taking a reading before the bike starts (assuming you can only crank the starter with the killswitch set to run).
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WD Forte
World Chat Champion



Joined: 17 Jun 2010
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PostPosted: 14:01 - 19 Jul 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote
I always fit a voltmeter to my bikes
They're cheap and easy to fit and a good indicator* of
how the charging system is doing and can give an early warning
of failure

* indicator not guarantee
As above, even if a battery seem to be getting a good charge
its no guarantee that it will hold a charge or dump 100+ amps
into the starter at a moments notice.
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