"micky" wrote in message
...
In alt.home.repair, on Thu, 28 Jan 2021 14:24:24 -0800, Bob F
wrote:

On 1/28/2021 1:47 PM, wrote:
On Wed, 27 Jan 2021 23:15:13 -0600, Jim Joyce
wrote:

On Wed, 27 Jan 2021 23:52:11 -0500, wrote:

On Wed, 27 Jan 2021 18:03:16 -0600, Jim Joyce
wrote:

On Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:56:57 -0500, wrote:

On Tue, 26 Jan 2021 20:36:10 -0500, Ed Pawlowski
wrote:

On 1/26/2021 2:44 PM, alan wrote:
My 40 year old steel case 6 amp automotive battery charger finally
died.
I only want to replace it (and I don't want a contraption that
jumps cars).

I just want a new 120VAC simple sturdy 12VDC automotive car
battery
charger.
And I don't get out to the stores much lately.

Mine had an analog meter, and a 6V/12V switch (which I never used
at 6V).
If they still come with an analog amperage needle, that would be
nice.

Any advice where to get a good simple sturdy 12VDC battery charger
online?

Chargers are good for dead batteries but battery tenders keep them
from
going dead. The new AGM betteries and all the electronics are more
touchy than ever.

Ger something like this
https://www.stingrayforums.com/threa...-charger.7036/

It is hard to beat a solar battery maintainer. I have one on my
boat,
one for my lawn tractor and one for the truck we seldom use. I am
going to get one for my wife's car now that she isn't driving much.

"solar battery maintainer" doesn't tell me much. Solar obviously
refers to
the less important aspect of how power comes into the charger, but
nothing
about the more critical aspect of how power is applied to the
battery. Not
only that, it sounds like it may not work well at night or in an
unlighted
garage. I guess I'll pass on that idea.

I agree in a garage, maybe not so much but the sun shines every day if
your vehicle is outside.
It is plenty to keep a battery up with the advantage that it works
without needing AC power where you are. No extension cords to screw
with when you drive away.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

7.5 watts? That doesn't sound good at all. That would be midday in
direct
sun, so even less before and after that. I'll stick with my Battery
Tender,
which has been working well for more than a decade now.

Whatever works for you but 7.5w (0.625a) 5 hours a day (How solar
collectors are rated) is plenty to replace the parasitic losses in a
battery that is just sitting there.


The losses are probably higher in any modern car with all the
electronics they have consuming power.

Well, my 2005 car has the clock in the car radio,
the fob receiver,
there must be some voltage applied to the engine computer since they
say it forgets what it learned if you take the battery out, but despite
that, I think the current used has to be very small, and
what amounts to a burglar alarm sentry, that monitors the doors if
they are opened by reaching in and unlatching one of them, without using
the key or the fob.

Do new cars have more electronics that run when the car is off?

Yep, some have lots of cameras that are used for all sorts
of things like lane keeping and collision avoidance etc and
use them when the car is parked as a dash cam so you have
a record of some scrote that trys to break into your car etc.

When I used a solar charger, I had numbers 1 and 3, plus I'd put in my
own 4, but no fob. IIRC I also had a crummy battery but it was fine in
the summer, so I used the charger, about 12" by 8" including a 3/4"
frame, during the winter, and it got me through 2 winters in good shape.
Bought it at a hamfest.