14 & 15 RT's and the battery tender (battery maintainer)

[JayBros]

My dealer, Honda of Winston-Salem, threw in a battery tender as part of the excellent yellow tag package deal and it's wired just like Joe described. Jan-Feb weather and my volunteer commitments make winter riding iffy so I'd rather be better safe than sorry. JMHO.

 

[Vossr]

Cool Down time

Thanks for the info. I'll definitely pick up a tender and get it set up.

Best to test and prove, than to find a nice cool sunny day (Let's RIDE!!!) & a dead battery (oh dern!).

 

[Bob Denman]

Bob, how large of an alternator or how big of a charging system has nothing to do with battery discharge while sitting over an extended period of time.

Parasitic draw plays the biggest part. Much of the reason it seems like the RT machines have more of a concern vs an older RS/GS due to the amount of electronics.
That is why I questioned the size of the battery, as larger capacity batteries tend to be able to handle this better...much like a car battery.

:agree: But when the bike IS shut down; the battery stands a much better chance, of having a full boatload of juice in it... :thumbup:
Roger said it about the best...
The 998's charging system is adequate...
The 1330's charging system is superior!

 

[Gray Ghost]

:agree: But when the bike IS shut down; the battery stands a much better chance, of having a full boatload of juice in it... :thumbup:
Roger said it about the best...
The 998's charging system is adequate...
The 1330's charging system is superior!

OK, the 1330 charging system puts out more power. Whether it is an alternator or stator is not important, just that it puts out more power. All the Spyders have parasitic draw on the battery, the amount of the draw and the condition of the battery is what is important. If the battery was not properly prepped by the dealer before delivering to the customer it is not going to be as healthy as other batteries and thus will not last as long without a tender. If there is something about the particular bike that causes more parasitic draw than other bikes, it will not last as long.

Granted, I have a 998, but even if I had the 1330 I would have it on a tender if I might not be able to ride regularly.

 

[DrewNJ]

:agree: But when the bike IS shut down; the battery stands a much better chance, of having a full boatload of juice in it... [emoji106]
Roger said it about the best...
The 998's charging system is adequate...
The 1330's charging system is superior!

Ummm...no. But at least you are getting the opportunity to increase your post count...[emoji57]

And when did the topic change to discussing the machines charging system and ability to charge a battery?

The OP asked about a battery sitting for a period of time.

Again, for the $20 to purchase a tender and the short amount of time to install it, its still a good idea to use a tender on ANY machine that will see periods of downtime REGARDLESS of the type of charging system. Doesn't matter if its a car, motorcycle, spyder or even a lawn mower.

 

[Bob Denman]

"The OP asked about a battery sitting for a period of time."

...And if the charginng system for the bike isn't discussed as well... :dontknow:
Would you agree, that if the battery is kept fully-charged from the operation of the bike; it'll be less-inclined to suffer from NOT being hooked-up to a maintainer?

 

[Gray Ghost]

"The OP asked about a battery sitting for a period of time."

...And if the charginng system for the bike isn't discussed as well... :dontknow:
Would you agree, that if the battery is kept fully-charged from the operation of the bike; it'll be less-inclined to suffer from NOT being hooked-up to a maintainer?

The charging systems on both the 998 and the 1330 were designed to fully charge the battery while riding. Once the battery is charged, the charging system shunts its output whether you are talking alternator or stator. The problem some had with the 998 system was they were drawing too much power for accessories while riding.

So if I am not using accessories, my perfectly adequate 998 charging system is keeping my battery fully charged while riding. If I am following the logic here, then you would say I don't need a tender.

Our systems, both the 998 and 1330 have parasitic draw, some more than others. That and the health of the battery determine how long before the battery goes below the level needed to start the bike, not the charging system.

 

[DrewNJ]

"The OP asked about a battery sitting for a period of time."

...And if the charginng system for the bike isn't discussed as well... :dontknow:
Would you agree, that if the battery is kept fully-charged from the operation of the bike; it'll be less-inclined to suffer from NOT being hooked-up to a maintainer?

Holy cow. He isn't talking about the charging operation of the bike!
It doesn't matter what kind of charging system is on the bike. They ALL FULLY charge batteries while riding. The battery has no idea what is feeding it the voltage.

The batteries are the same. If parasitic draw is the same from machine to machine the discharge rate from machine to machine over a given extended period of time is the same.

The only ways to extend down time on a battery to reduce the potential for a dead battery when not in use (assuming a good battery to begin with) is to reduce or eliminate parasitic drain or install multiple/larger capacity batteries. No, the charging system on the 14' does not guarantee or suggest longer battery life because of output , design or anything else. It doesn't charge the battery any more or increase the batteries capacity in any way.

The charging system on the 14' is just different. That's it. Don't confuse different for better though...another discussion..

I haven't looked at the output specs but assuming the 14' alternator puts out more voltage only makes operation of additional electronics easier on the charging system DURING operation. So you 14' owners can likely bolt on and wire up more lighting and gizzmos.

 

[BikerDoc]

I like the fact that for years now, our dealer has automatically installed the battery tender plug in lead on all product as it assembled.. Makes it easy for us if we want to use tender...

 

[DrewNJ]

If anyone is truly looking for more capacity and extended down times without using a tender or worrying about a dead battery, then you all should look into shoehorning a larger battery in the stock location, or consider doing a second battery....but you can do that with any of them regardless of the charging system.

 

[ottawa-rider]

My rule of thumb is: " If it's been 3-4 days since I last used the Spyder and I expect that it will be another 3-4 days before I do, I plug in the tender." any time of the year.

 

[RBS66]

That's how I did my 2013 RT last year; works great .

 

[cognaccruiser]

Firm Believer in Battery Tenders

When we bought our 14 RTS, I had the dealer install pigtails for mine and my wife's heated vests. They ran them from the battery to beneath the seat and sit nicely coiled under the seat until needed. The other and equally important reason for having a pigtail readily available is so that I can plug the Battery Tender into the pigtail quickly at any time.

We don't/can't ride year round and there are also times when we may not ride for a few weeks at a time even during our riding season. I started using a Battery Tender on our 05 Yamaha Venture shortly after new and kept it for 8 years. When I sold the bike it had 88k km on it (55k miles) and the original battery which was holding charge and pretty much as strong as new. I had got into the habit of plugging it into the Battery Tender after every ride regardless of time of year. I believe that it was because of the use of the Tender that we got such long life from our original battery and plan on doing the same with the Spyder. It seems that all vehicles these days have so much electronic demand on them that there is more lose due to parasitic draw while parked. Keeping the battery at full power at all times should help to make it last much longer. At least that is my opinion. Yours may differ.

Gary

 

[Bob Denman]

I'm also a believer in the "Deltran System"...
And that is what I am basing my beliefs upon.
Personal Observation:
With my 998; A couple of days of short trips or rides, and it'd take a couple of hours for the indicator lights to roll over from Yellow, to Green...
With my 1330 The type of riding, and the light would be back to Green within a matter of ten or fifteen minutes...
The larger charging capability of the alternator, coupled with it's ability to deliver that charge at much lower rpms; tells me that your battery is better-off with the new system stuffing it back full of power.

 

[bronzeflex42]

agree

I used my battery tender with an 03 Honda Shadow 750, i used to own before my Spyder. I had that bike about 4 and half years with the same battery. I kept mine plugged in the battery tender when i wan't ridding it even during ridding season. I'm going to start doing my Spyder like that..opcorn:

 

[bluestratos]

While a tender is not required, I use a high quality battery trickle, conditioner charger anytime the bike is not ridden for a few days. Standard batteries do not like to be left in a discharged state for long and it shortens the overall life of the battery. This is why they make deep cycle batteries to extend the life when a battery is discharged and not maintained by the alternator while in use (trolling motor). We have parasitic loss via the ECM, over a week or so it is not much but it does drop the static voltage. I was told by Diehard manufacture that keeping any vehicle that is not used daily on a maintenance charger will lengthen the life of the battery but not to use cheap trickle charges as they can actually overcharge and cause damage.

 

[Cruzr Joe]

I'm also a believer in the "Deltran System"...
And that is what I am basing my beliefs upon.
Personal Observation:
With my 998; A couple of days of short trips or rides, and it'd take a couple of hours for the indicator lights to roll over from Yellow, to Green...
With my 1330 The type of riding, and the light would be back to Green within a matter of ten or fifteen minutes...
The larger charging capability of the alternator, coupled with it's ability to deliver that charge at much lower rpms; tells me that your battery is better-off with the new system stuffing it back full of power.

This is exactly what happens on my 14 Spyder. :agree: :agree: :agree: :agree: and i agree with Bob.

Cruzr Joe

 

[Bob Denman]

:shocked: You mean; I got one RIGHT?!?

 

[DrewNJ]

No, you just got a buddy to stick up for you....but if it makes you feel better its good to know that your new spyder and battery last longer off the tender vs your 4 year old spyder and battery....[emoji23] Hey, whatever works for you.

 

[Bob Denman]

Thanks!
And you're right about one thing; my bike, my procedure, and it works for me. :thumbup: