Trickle Charging
 

Okay,

It's stupid question time !!!.....Here we go.............

I have just managed to get electricity plumbed to my garage. Also I am away from home with work and the weather is crap. Therefore my 999 is sitting in the garage all tucked up for the winter.

I have asked the wife to plug in my trickle charger and leave it on.

Now for the silly question. Is it okay to leave the bike on maintenance charge indefinetly? or is it better for the bike and the charger to switch it off from time to time???? I may be away for a month or so. Is it okay to leave the bike in maintenance charge for this long???????????????????

Thanks

Brian

I go away for periods of a few weeks / months and have always left my bikes plugged in to an optimate. They have always started ok when I get back, and it hasn't shortened the life of the battery, as far as I can tell.

I'd leave it plugged in - it should be fine.

Cheers mate.

Plugged in it is then !!!! - Take care

Brian

I've heard lots of the opposite, especially with the new gel batteries.

Maybe best IMO to leave off, one week in 4 give it the charge it needs to keep it from being totally flat

Bradders is correct about a concern with charging the gel batteries. However, lead-acid batteries can be connected indefinitely to most chargers. Check with the charger manufacturer if in doubt. This link explains:

http://www.batterystuff.com/kb/artic...y-charger.html

As above - if gel exercise caution, but with standard, and assuming charger is one of the more modern 'intelligent' chargers - Optimate, Ctek etc - then connect and leave, they're designed for exactly that.

Hi,

Yep it's an Optimate 4 - which, apparently, can be connected to the mains indefinitely with Gel batteries....But I may be wrong.

To be on the safe side I'll probably just switch it off for a week every now and then.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

Brian