On Thu, 25 Mar 2010 22:49:20 -0400, Existential Angst wrote:
"David Nebenzahl" wrote in message
s.com...
On 3/25/2010 5:00 PM hr(bob) spake thus:

On Mar 25, 6:07 pm, blueman wrote:

I need to clean the terminals and change out my car battery.
I would rather not lose the setttings on my radio.
But I also would rather not invest in a charger just for this
application.

I have several variable voltage DC power supplies (supplying about 1A).
Could I use such a supply set at say about 13-14V to supply temporary
power while the battery is removed?

Other than getting the voltage and polarity right, anything to be
worried about here or any chance of causing damage (to either car
electonics or to my power supply)?

Set the voltage at 14.0 +/- 0.25V and you should be fine. Like you
indicated, just keep the polarities correct.

Sounds like way overkill on the precision (and voltage) to me. Someone
else here said to just use a 9-volt battery plugged into the cigarette
lighter socket (does this car even have one of those???). 9 volts might be
a mite low, but I'd say just use a 12-volt supply and be done with it.
Remember, you're not charging the battery, only powering the radio's
NOVRAM stay-alive power.

Keep in mind that when you start a car, the voltage can dip to 8-10 V under
heavy load.
So a 9V battery proly could do the job, as long as there wasn't much current
drain on it.

I think lantern batteries are 6V (basically 4 D cells), so two of those in
series would work as well.
Mebbe even the battery packs from 12V drills, etc.

Better yet get the codes. You can get it from either a dealer (w/ a
copy of title or other proof), or radio manufacturer with a sales
receipt. If codes are unavailable, seriously consider dumping the unit
It is an accident waiting to happen.