Battery Tender!!!!

[Scooternut7]

Hi fellow Scooters and Happy Holidays!!
I have a question about battery tenders if I could!! I had the o rings attched to my battery and was charging scoot for a wekk or so and went to ride and battery was DEAD Took battery for testing they told me it could use a bit more charge so I thought bad battery tender!! So I got new tender and hooked up clamps instead of rings and she started within an hour!! Was to late to ride at this point so got out today and she cranked right up!! So I decided to put o rings back on which i did and low and behold DEAD!! Wants to start but won't!!! Should the rings go in first then the actual posts or is this bike not able to use the o-rings! When seat stays up as you know light stays on! Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

[sissy mary]

When you say rings, do you mean the wire lead that attaches to the battery via the battery bolts, and then plugs into the tender cord? If so then maybe the tender wire should be placed right up against the battery post, and then put the bikes hot & negative wires on over the tender wires, and then bolt everything down real tight. One of the tender wires could be broken inside? This would explain why the clamps work and the wire leads don't. Sometimes when they assemble the wires, they don't sodder but only crimp down on the o ring connecting end, and the connection is not very good. Also the tender maintains the level where the battery is at. So make sure it is fully charged before turning on tender. Is your seat all the way down so light is not on? The tender works with clamps but not o connector, check out that connector first.

[Scooternut7]

Thanks Sissy mary for reply! Yes the O ring that is hooked on the battery tender is what I am referring to! I bought a new tender yesterday and I have not put new O ring on cause I didn't know if it should be in front or back! I see what you say so I am going to try that! The o rings are both still attched to the old plug but I thought the tender might be bad since the plug that goes into the wall is loose cause I dropped it on time and it has been real loose since so I thought I would try a new tender. I think the cold drained the battery so I am going on a good hard ride today to make sure battery is fully charged!!! Is that how you charge battery by running it ?

[Scooternut7]

As far as seat it will not go all way down cause the clamps are not allowing it or should clamps be on there sideways? That is the reason I wanted to use the o rings instead cause seat closes all the way that way!

[dalebor]

The first thing to check is the light on the tender when everything is hooked up and plugged in. It should be steady red or green (steady or flashing). If it is flashing red the battery leads are connected backwards or the battery voltage is less than 3V. If the battery leads are connected backwards the tender will not charge the battery.\

If you have a meter, measure the battery voltage. It should be somewhere above 14V with the tender connected and turned on although if the battery is really discharged the charging voltage could be quite low, perhaps as low as 13V. If that's the case, if the battery is not shot, the charging voltage will slowly rise (hours, not minutes) and eventually reach something around 14.5.

A fully charged battery will be around 12.6V with the tender disconnected.

Dale B

[JustWantToRide]

The bolt on leads (metal O rings) can be under or over the bikes leads on the battery terminals - but I would try to fit them battery terminal, then bike cables, then tender cables...  It is better to use them than the clamps - because unless they are broken they will give you a more reliable connection.

It is possible that the red and black collars on your leads are on the wrong lead - check that they come out to the same as the clamps when you have them plugged in.

It is also possible that one of the wires is broken inside from being crimped or something.

Don't leave your seat open.  Mount the leads to the battery and then route the connector to where it is out of sight - but reachable from under the sidecover.  I would recommend the side with the transmission so that you never ride home, park the bike, and connect a wire across a hot exhaust pipe.  Don't set the charger on the seat - because it can get hot - but do something to remind you that the charger is plugged in (lay the cable over the handgrip, lay a loop of red ribbon on the handgrip or the windscreen...).

It might help to know what battery tender you are using - this is the most common...

[roboscoot]

a battery tender will not restore a battery that is on its last legs.....especially if you have a bad cell that causes it to loose cranking capacity.....so first establish that you have a good battery.....i would also wire brush the battery terminals and the cable leed ends....make sure no acid build up.....i would also wire brush what you call the rings or pig tails..on mine i put the rings over the terminals and than tightly secure the battery cables on the posts... tighten everything up...as noted ...the pig tail leeds can sometimes break.and result in a poor connection.....if thats it you should be able to buy replacements.....

so it is a matter of isolating the battery, the rings/pig tails,  the cables going to the battery terminals and of course the tender itself.... the tender itself is a possibility but i would consider it a long shot...

[Scooternut7]

YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS SO MUCH!!!!!!! I was able to stop and start today no problem! I just got this so tomoorow I will work with the O-rings~! Where do I buy a voltmeter? I am leaving tender off tonight to see if it starts tommorow! I took battery in and Batteries Plus said that the battery was not fully charged but tested fine so I have tender on most of day with the clamps and as I said just got back and it seems to be running ok true test I guess is in AM to see if it cranks then to get the o-rings on there just right is the next venture!!! I will keep you all updated!!!

[Scooternut7]

Sorry the brand I had was Battery Tender the new one is Schumaluer

[dalebor]

Don't know what country you're in but in the USA you can get a cheap multimeter at radio shack. There are a ton on Amazon. Extech is a decent low cost brand. They're not great meters but for scooter work they're fine. You don't need a Fluke or Agilent to check your battery charging voltage.

DaleB

[Scooternut7]

Awesome I got one Thanks!!!