JMOR-trickle vs. float?

Hi, JMOR. In another thread you said, "Too bad that folks are not careful to differentiate between the two very different charger types; the Trickle and the Float." I didn't want to hijack that thread, so I'll ask here: What does "float" vs. "trickle" mean? How can someone tell the difference? The info on the little chargers themselves sometimes is quite unclear. What should that info say? It seems all those chargers claim to keep a battery charged forever. Can you help unravel my uncertainty?

Trickle always has a 'trickle' of current going into the battery & will eventually overcharge it. Float is preset to a specific voltage (say 12.6) and will input current to the battery when below such voltage & stop at such voltage, until it once again falls below that. It will not overcharge the battery.

(quoted from post at 10:50:26 01/05/17) Trickle always has a 'trickle' of current going into the battery & will eventually overcharge it. Float is preset to a specific voltage (say 12.6) and will input current to the battery when below such voltage & stop at such voltage, until it once again falls below that. It will not overcharge the battery.

Click to expand...

Thanks for that info as I have been curious as well.

I do have a related question. I have heard from some of the guys here that the float chargers when they get the batt up to charge will go into a wait mode and never come out of that until the unit has been unplugged and then plugged back in.

Have you had that experience? Also would like to know which brand and model of chargers you use?

Thanks again

BJ

(quoted from post at 13:55:16 01/05/17)

(quoted from post at 10:50:26 01/05/17) Trickle always has a 'trickle' of current going into the battery & will eventually overcharge it. Float is preset to a specific voltage (say 12.6) and will input current to the battery when below such voltage & stop at such voltage, until it once again falls below that. It will not overcharge the battery.

Click to expand...

Thanks for that info as I have been curious as well.

I do have a related question. I have heard from some of the guys here that the float chargers when they get the batt up to charge will go into a wait mode and never come out of that until the unit has been unplugged and then plugged back in.

Have you had that experience? Also would like to know which brand and model of chargers you use?

Thanks again

BJ

Click to expand...

have not seen the "wait mode" thing. Even though there are higher priced chargers, my several Harbor Tool/Freight and Schumacher have server me well. The Schumacher cost almost 10X the HF, and I don't see the performance difference.

(quoted from post at 11:27:46 01/05/17)

(quoted from post at 13:55:16 01/05/17)

(quoted from post at 10:50:26 01/05/17) Trickle always has a 'trickle' of current going into the battery & will eventually overcharge it. Float is preset to a specific voltage (say 12.6) and will input current to the battery when below such voltage & stop at such voltage, until it once again falls below that. It will not overcharge the battery.

Click to expand...

Thanks for that info as I have been curious as well.

I do have a related question. I have heard from some of the guys here that the float chargers when they get the batt up to charge will go into a wait mode and never come out of that until the unit has been unplugged and then plugged back in.

Have you had that experience? Also would like to know which brand and model of chargers you use?

Thanks again

BJ

Click to expand...

have not seen the "wait mode" thing. Even though there are higher priced chargers, my several Harbor Tool/Freight and Schumacher have server me well. The Schumacher cost almost 10X the HF, and I don't see the performance difference.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the info

Back in the day, when you carried a shelf full of wet batteries, it was common practice to hook a trickle charger. The charger had up to probably ten sets of hookups so same charger was used on many batteries at the same time. Not in series like some old, old chargers were, all parallel circuits. they never over charged the battery. I find a lot of people calling a 4 or 6 amp charger a trickle charger and it IS NOT. Although you could leave a 6 amp charger on for several days to a good size tractor battery and never hurt the battery, it will over charge a small battery like lawn mower. That small battery cannot provide enough reverse electromotive force to reduce charging amperage. Remember, your normal charging voltage in your vehicle, tractor, truck or car, will run about 14.2 to 14.5, depending on temperature and you run that tractor for hours on end. You are really not putting over a amp or two into a fully charged battery, same as that slow charger will do when voltage reached that point.

I have a couple of battery maintainers on this winter and I do notice, they kick back on now and then, green light comes on. These are batteries from boat and lawn mowers. I don't know, should I post this or not, yaa, what the heck.

Total agreement. Jim

Jessie,
The same is true with old dewalt cordless chargers and the newer ones.
the old black fast Ni Cd chargers would never shut off completely, acted like
a trickle charger. So days later when you removed the battery, it was hot. If
left in a hot garage in summer, the heat would cook the battery.

The newer dewalt chargers will shut down and maintain an 18v battery at the
full charge voltage of 21.4v. So battery will never self discharge, it will
alwas be fully charged and never hot when you remove it from charger by being
over charged, or call it trickle charged.

So buy a good charger.
geo

Thanks for your comments, JMOR. Since you admit to using HF chargers, I'll confess, too. I have several that cost $5 each on sale and have always been a bit nervous using them, although I've never had a problem. I also have some Schumachers and a couple of Deltrans (Battery Tender), and haven't seen any difference among them. (But with any of these chargers, I set them on crushed rock or concrete so if/when they erupt in flames, they maybe won't take the whole shed with them .)

Wow this subject sure has been going round and round. Best of choice in MY OPINION. Now that has been said, you want a Schumacher maintainer / charger. Read that a couple of times! Wally world had these but changed them about a moth ago. You can still find them at other places. Wally world changes stuff all of the time. Now you want a 1.5 or 2 Amp charge 6/12 volt automatic select, maintainer and desulfate. Unit. Hook it to your battery, plug it in, and walk away. Takes care of everything. Between my place and the folks farm as of today I am up to over TEN Schumacher charger maintainer units. All of them are working great. Just check the water level in your battery and bring to level with distilled water. Might be a little low from hard summer use. Now look at the picture and read the boxes. The smaller box says charge AND maintainer. Read the box before you buy. A charger will slowly fry your battery if you leave it on too long. Over night is long enough. You want a maintainer. Floating chargers are baloney. Hope that covered it. Other picture is four batteries in the kitchen on maintainers. Give them a couple of weeks desulfating and then put them in the basement till spring.

jeffcat, I guess you didn't read your SC2 manual...........it is a "baloney float" charger once charging is complete and it goes into 'maintenance' mode, i.e., float. :roll: