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Need to disconnect 12v battery to charge?

2K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  Garrydhu 
#1 ·
With me working from home, I have hardly been driving my 2011 Insight. I have a batter charger and was wondering if it is necessary to fully remove the battery in order to charge it. I haven't with other vehicles but I don't want to mess up any of the hybrid stuff. Thanks.
 
#2 ·
Charge at a low rate as normal. No need to remove the battery.
A "batter" charger? Does that make the dough rise?
 
#4 ·
My 12V battery went dead a month ago.
It had a bad cell. I could charge it with an OptiMate 4 desulphating trickle charger and it would light up green after a day.
Then if I turn on the lights and music without the engine running it would drop below 10 Volts in minutes.
The bad cell was still empty, but the 5 good cells prevented it from getting charged.

I was planning to have it replaced, but gave it one last try with an old HP inkjet printer power adapter I had kept. It provides both 32 and 16 Volt. The latter was very useful, only it shuts itself down when the current goes above 3.5 Ampere so I had to shunt it.

Anyway, after a couple of days I have charged my 12V battery with more than 35 Ah, deliberately but gently overcharging the 5 full cells in the process, but that cannot be helped - and they were in better condition than the bad cell anyway.
So finally the battery shows 14.20 Volt right off the charger, and 12.72 Volt after a nights rest and some very light use. Moreover, after 14 days of not driving at all it still is above 12.60 Volt, where before it would be anywhere in the 11s.

I believe I have fixed my dead battery...
 
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#6 ·
It is still holding out well. It reads 12 Volt when I get in the car after days of not using it, and that's just after the drain of the central locking system and the start of the drain caused by all electrical systems.
When driving the voltage alternates between periods of 13.80 Volt and 12.70 Volt or thereabouts, as the IMA system feeds or just trickle charges the 12V system. The latter is more frequent now unless I run the low beams, and consequently IMA recharging while driving at constant speed (which suppresses FE for a couple of kilometers at a time) happens less too.

Nowhere near record economy though because my Insight is sometimes sitting for weeks between use and is slightly overdue for its next service. I have taken it in ahead of schedule previously and want to compensate a bit. Then conditions have been very mild on average for the last year (global warming!) and of course I do drive very moderately indeed so I figure the wear and tear should be low. The revs are as low as can be for 99% of the times (either at idling pace or with the CVT maxed out at highest gearing)...

All in all the conditioning forced overcharge balancing and the help of the little solar panel seem to have averted the demise of the battery.
 
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