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popotla

Active Member
I posted a question on here about the matter of not havingused my LR Defender and having flat batteries because of having started the engine several times and then not subsequently going for a drive to get them charged. Since I received answers to thatquestion, which I acknowledged and thanked for at the time, I won’t ask the questionagain.
Tomorrow I’m going to sort out the battery/batteries. Thiswill involve removal, taking the battery/batteries to a garage for recharge,and reinstalling it/them.
I have two batteries, the main one, obviously, and another,linked to it and provided with an in-out cut-out switch, which I use for thefridge and other things.
Now I come to my question. Will it be enough to remove themain battery only (and have it on slow charge) or should I take out bothbatteries for charging? I am wondering whether I can rely on the main batteryto charge the second battery (from flat and after long non-use) while I’mdriving the vehicle, or whether this way of charging will not be suitable. Inother words, is it advisable to take both batteries for charging, or willcharging just the main one suffice?
 
Remove both and charge both. Charging one and then connecting to a flat battery will cause major inrush current through your charging relay. Depending how good it is, it might overload it, worst case catch fire.
 
If its really flat, I'd say to put it on charge also. Although, make sure your charger has a battery recovery function. I bought one from sainsburys which is brilliant because of this function. It cost about 12 quid at the time, and is much better than my two previous (much much more expensive chargers) which refuse to charge a very flat battery.

On your landy though, the main battery really won't "charge" your flat second battery on its own. The engine would need to be running. You might get away with it with a nice long drive. Hopefully the long period of non use hasn't fecked it.

On a different note, its a good idea to put a rough location in your profile in case anyone local can help you. It might save you spending money at a local garage.
 
popotla said:
Thiswill involve removal, taking the battery/batteries to a garage for recharge,and reinstalling it/them.[/COLOR][/SIZE]
Click to expand...

why TAKING them to have them recharged, can you not get a charger, the as long as you disconnect them you can charge them in situ
 
Thank you for these replies. In response to timtheenchanteruk: because my vehicle is parked in a street at least 15 km from my home, but 150 meters away here's a garage that will do it for me (not for free, of course). I'm quite money-conscious; if there was a better (which doesn't, though, always mean cheaper) way, I'd certainly go for it.
 
popotla said:
Thank you for these replies. In response to timtheenchanteruk: because my vehicle is parked in a street at least 15 km from my home, but 150 meters away here's a garage that will do it for me (not for free, of course). I'm quite money-conscious; if there was a better (which doesn't, though, always mean cheaper) way, I'd certainly go for it.
Click to expand...

fairynuff, long way to walk to yer vehicle in a morning :D
 
Ok so Berlin is quite away away for most of us to stop by and give you a hand. I you're miles away from home, just get a jump start and drive home. As long a your alternator is is good shape, you should be fine once it's started to get you home ok. And hopefully it will charge your main battery along the way.

If it were me, I probobaly would chance connecting switching your batteries together (as long as your switch is up to it, I would like to know more about your setup there). 15km should give you a fairly good charge.

Then invest in a battery charger, and some jump leads if you don't already own some. I've just had a look, my charger is made by ring automotive. It's probably the cheapest charger I've bought, and so far has proven to be the best.

Do post on here at some point about what your dual battery setup is. If its not a split charge, an investment in a 100amp relay would serve you well. And wire as per the diagram on x-eng website.
 
With regard to my original post, thanks for answers. My vehicle is a Td5 110 CSW and the batteries are Land Rover originals, fully-sealed "no maintenance" type (12v 110 A hr.; RC 195 MINS; 800 AMpS (BCI) YGD100860. There is a round plastic "window" on top of a battery. The handbook tells me that if this shows yellow, "do not attempt to recharge" but if black, OK, can be charged. Both were black. To cut a long story short, the batteries are now on trickle charge at a filling station and will have been charged, when I collect them tomorrow evening, for 30 hours. I was assured that this would be slow enough, so hope this is in fact the case.
The handbook also tells me that if tilted more than 45 degrees, "damage will occur" (or "damage can occur" - I'm not sure which). Unfortunately, one battery fell (inside the vehicle) from the seat frame to the foot-well, a height of a few inches, and lay on its side for about three minutes until I discovered what had happened. So I'm hoping no damage has occurred. (Any opinion on that, please?)
 
I wouldn't worry about it. I think you're over thinking all this battery stuff. I'm sure that in theory if the plates are exposed to air and are not submerged in the acidic solution (I.e. when the battery is tilted, it probably can cause some corrosion or something. Equally, it's probably not advisable to have the acid leak out of the battery. But if they were that sensitive to not being kept upright, there is likely to have been massive warranty issues long before now. It is a landy after all, one of the most rugged and abused vehicles ever invented.

Hope your long charge gets you up and running tomorrow. Seriously though, invest in a battery charger, jump leads and a high current relay to make a proper split charge system.

I personally don't trust the little window on the top of the battery btw.
 
Not good news. After replacing both batteries, after 30 hours of slow charge, the engine would not start. At the first attempt, the battery seemed strong (“normal”) but by the third or fourth try, the engine was being turned over only slowly. Someone living in the street showed interest and concern and helped me, using his vehicle and jump cables. But we couldn’t get it started. It seems there are other problems. Has something happened to the engine? Is fuel getting through? What a fool I was to leave it in the street with dead batteries for 4-5 months of European winter. I’m going to have to get it towed for repair and renovation. Am getting help tomorrow morning.
 
I had a similar problem where my battery sounded very tired when I was turning over the engine. At first I thought it was the battery but it turned out to be the starter solenoid.

I removed the starter and bench tested the solenoid - it was reading a dead short between the + and - terminals. A fault like this will kill your battery(ies) very quickly.
 
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