[Idmason60]

I have a complaint about how our basic car battery chargers today are built. We all have them and many of us have a new one and 3 old ones that failed stacked in the corner.

Why can't they simply build a simple charger that last?One that has a few safety features that protects the charger? How about a fuse like my old Sears charger had, I bet I changed that thing 4 or 5 times over the 15 years or so I had it.
How about a switch to turn it on and off and also more protective plastic
on the clips to protect against contact against other metal parts and also make one lead shorter so when your dangling them while dragging it out to he car on a extension cord you don't screw it up by getting the leads together.

The list goes on. It seems to me they want to solve many issues with electronics rather then common,user sense.

This is my two cents. So how about the rest of you. How many times have you killed your battery charger by shorting it out?

Larry
S. Fl

 

[jeffsw6]

My battery charger has short protection. It cost about $70 at Wal-Mart. I use it every 2 to 4 weeks to charge up a trailer accessory battery that isn't wired to charge from the truck. It is made by Schumacher Electric.

I normally would never buy a tool at Wal-Mart, but I didn't realize I needed one for that trailer battery until 10pm once and they were the only place still open that late.

 

[DangerMouse]

I have 2 of them, One old one with 2 toggles for on/off and 12/6 and a new one that is digital. The digital one says half the batteries are beyond charging, (F-02) but when I hook up the old one, it charges them up just fine. Go figure?

DM

 

[joecaption]

I also own Two differant ones and have had them for many years.

I use them 6 or 7 times a year and never once had any issues, the oldest one is at least 10 years old and still works fine.
The new one looks like this one.
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q...D564AEA7DEF1038FC58AF26685D7&selectedIndex=32

If you connect the negative clamp to the cord and just work on getting the positive connected first then connect the negative to any metal to complete the circut instead of the negitive termial on the battery like your suppost to your less likly to cause a short.
The whole idea is to not make a spark near the battey where it could cause an explosion.

 

[paintdrying]

You are not supposed to hook a battery charger to a late model car if it is still connected. I was at the return counter at wal mart with my portable battery boost box. Had it for a few weeks and when I ended up needing it the lights all worked saying it was charging and what not, but nothing came out of the charger. The guy behind me was returning another one that was similar. His just never came to life. Also when you buy those portable jumpers they need 18 hours to fully charge, so just buy the standard chargers if you need one in a hurry.

 

[rusty baker]

I have one that I gave about $20 for at least 10 years ago. I use it 2 or 3 times a week, at least in the winter because I work on a number of cars. Never had a problem with it. How you hook it up makes all the difference. Don't plug it in until after it is connected to the battery. Then there can be no short.

 

[wrongdave]

My first charger lasted over 25 years. Finally crapped out on me a couple of years ago.
Replaced it with a fairly basic one form Sears (needed one that day). It's already been a little glitchy (sometimes I have to unplug and plug it back in to get it to charge), so I'm doubting I will get 25 years out of it, but we'll see.

 

[DexterII]

I have a Schumacher that is over 30 years old, and another one that was my dad's, which I think is a Schumacher as well, and probably about 40 years old. Neither is fancy, but they're both 6/12 volt, and both still work fine. Like Rusty, I have always connected them to the battery, then plugged them in, and, when they're done, unplugged them, then disconnected them from the battery.

 

[A Squared]

I bought my charger used about 20 years ago. It was rusty and beat up even then. Don't know what kind it is, but it's a basic economy model. One 6v/12v switch and an ammeter. Never had a bit of trouble with it, and it's charged a lot of batteries. I've managed to strike sparkS with it a few times, but I always blamed my own carelessness rather than lack of saftey features. It's a pretty simple matter to keep the clamps from being energised and in contact at the same time. Just requires thinking about what you're doing.

 

[747]

I bought one at kmart like 8 years ago still works. Paid like 40 dollars for it. It has 6 volt 12 volt and engine start only. I like it. Once battery get fully charged it cycles on and off. I don't think they make it anymore