winter and batteries

[GlamperGirl]

We now have the A-liner trailer which has worked great all summer and it is time to put it away in the garage for the winter.
Is it okay for the battery to remain in the trailer or should I be taking it out and keeping it inside the house for the winter?
We are in Ontario Canada - temps can go to -20C (zero F)
If it can stay in the trailer, do I have to keep it charged up or is it okay for it to go dead and then I can charge it up in the spring again ... thanks!

[48Rob]

Hi,

It is best to either keep it in a warm place, fully charged, or keep it on a smart charger.
If you store it in sub freezing temps with just a little, or no charge, the battery will freeze and be ruined.
As long as you have a smart charger connected to maintain a full charge, it can be kept in the cold temps.

In general, it is good practice to never let your battery drop below 50% charge.
Allowing it to go completely dead on a regular basis before recharging will ruin it quickly.

Rob

[albion2]

We now have the A-liner trailer which has worked great all summer and it is time to put it away in the garage for the winter.
Is it okay for the battery to remain in the trailer or should I be taking it out and keeping it inside the house for the winter?
We are in Ontario Canada - temps can go to -20C (zero F)
If it can stay in the trailer, do I have to keep it charged up or is it okay for it to go dead and then I can charge it up in the spring again ... thanks!

I have a H/F solar panel connected to my boat battery all winter here in Northern Ohio.I paid about $35 for the panel.Even with snow on it ,it still keeps the battery charged.Although I do clear the snow off when I think about it.I will be buying another one for my new 19ft Puma trailer as I have a power cord plugged into it at the moment.

[afreegreek]

I found this link for you.. it's got most of the information you're looking for..

http://blog.rv.net/2009/10/winter-batte ... intenance/

[Dale M.]

More than you ever wanted to know about battery construction, use, charging, storage....

http://www.batteryfaq.org/

Dale

[Juneaudave]

You might take a peek at your owners manual. I think A-liners typically come with a three stage charger with a float mode for storage. If that is the case, you can just leave it plugged in if you want.

[glenpinpat]

we bring all our outdoor batteries in for the winter. We lay them on a piece of plywood not on concrete. We hook a smart charger to all of them (you can buy them cheap at Canadian Tire). I have done this every year and have never had a problem. If they are not sealed batteries then make sure you check fluid levels from time to time. Patrick

[Shadow Catcher]

The care feeding and maintenance of deep cycle batteries is complex and there are some myths around, including storing a battery on concrete. Best source of data I have found is http://www.batteryfaq.org
Conventional led acid batteries self discharge and with out being trickle charged could get down to a point where cold weather will harm them (one reason I went with an AGM). I have a couple of conventional lead acid battery's in the garage one for the Saab Sonett and one for the lawn mower and when I am in there I will put a charger on them.

[jstrubberg]

I always bring ours in for the winter, and also put them on a wood block of some sort, never on concrete.

Is the concrete thing a temperature transference thing? I've always followed that advice, but I don't have a real reason for doing so.

[Moho]

The concrete myth is from when batteries were made of wood boxes, not made of plastic, like they are now. It used to be true that storing a battery on concrete would drain it, the current would leak through the wood case. That hasn't been the case since the early 1900's.

Storing batteries on concrete is fine now.

[deceiver]

I just let the charging cord (charge built into my little guy) hang out and I use an extension cord to plug it in once or twice during the winter. As long as you keep a reasonable charge on it it will be okay. A charged battery doesn't freeze. Like in your car.

[vwbeamer]

I agree it's largely a myth, funny how these rules get passed on from generation to generation when the reason for the rule ended over a 100 years ago.

The concrete myth is from when batteries were made of wood boxes, not made of plastic, like they are now. It used to be true that storing a battery on concrete would drain it, the current would leak through the wood case. That hasn't been the case since the early 1900's.

Storing batteries on concrete is fine now.

[GuitarPhotog]

But it's funny how those things are accepted even by technically well educated people. An electrical engineer friend (from So. America) stopped by while I was wiring my teardrop, and spotted the new battery sitting on the concrete garage floor.

"Don't leave it there" he cautioned, opining that it would self-discharge. When I asked him to show me the engineering behind such a statement, he said simply "I believe it's true..."

To get back on topic, I just leave my teardrop plugged in when I'm not using it. It doesn't get cold enough here in the SF Bay Area to worry about anything freezing.

<Chas>

[afreegreek]

I don't believe it was ever true.. I don't care what the battery case is made of, it just makes no sense.. I do know from experience that a cool battery that is low on charge may not start your car but if you take it indoors and warm it up it may have just enough to crank it over.. I think this is the root of the myth as temperature has an effect on batteries.. concrete and stone in the shade is often 5 -10 degrees cooler than the air around it..