Trickle charger

seanmooney

RMS Regular
seanmooney
Messages
3,656
Location
Armagh
I’m looking to get a trickle charger to put on the car over winter .

I have a big sealey one that revives dead batteries but don’t fancy leaving it on all the time

I see a lot of mixed reviews about ctek chargers and there not the cheapest.

Any suggestions ?
 

richie_mck

RMS Regular
richie_mck
Messages
5,597
I’ve 2 ctek’s running (3.8 & 0.8) and never had any issues with either and I’ve had them at least 5 years.
I did order a noco genius 1 last week as the Westfield had that fitting already wired and I needed another, they seem to get very good reviews.

NOCO GENIUS1UK, 1-Amp Fully-Automatic Smart Charger, 6V and 12V Battery Charger, Battery Maintainer, and Battery Desulfator with Temperature Compensation Amazon product ASIN B0828HMG3N
 

mcmurray

RMS Regular
mcmurray
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3,927
Drives
M3
I’ve the CTEK MXS 5.0 on mine at the minute and can’t fault it.

First time using one and the reviews for it were good.

Simple to use and seems to be doing its job. Started the car up for the first time in a month there at the weekend and fired up no bother.
 

cormac81

RMS Regular
cormac81
Messages
7,945
Location
Lurgan/ish
Drives
GTI, VRS, Superb
I have gone through 2 cteks, one was 2nd hand and lasted a few weeks. The next one was bought new and the selection button jammed in after the warranty had elapsed.

Bought a sealey one as a replacement, its a bit bulkier but displays the voltage and touch wood a lot more reliable.
 

Enda

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Enda
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1,252
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M4
Ctek or Noco seem to be the most recommended. Amazon have the mxs 5.0 for £57 as a Black Friday deal. I personally would go for the noco 5 at £65 as it does lithium too and will future proof you a bit. Might be worth watching it on Amazon too as it’s been on offer before.

I got the 7200 which I think has been replaced by the 10 last year on prime day for around £60 I think.
 

gcon45

RMS Regular
gcon45
Messages
9,889
Location
South Derry
Drives
and rides
Can’t go wrong with NOCO or C-Tek.
If you have a stop/start battery (AGM/EFB) make sure you get a model that’s compatible though.
 

Eager

RMS Regular
E
Messages
19,660
Location
fields
Drives
broooooom
I’ve 2 Halfords brand ones. They work perfect. Not sure why people spend much more.
Certainly out lasted a ctek I had before, not sure it made the winter.
 

Martyn

RMS Regular
Martyn
Messages
4,398
I’ve the car connected to a CTEK CT5. Seems like a great piece of kit. Bought new on eBay for £47.00 with free p&p.

That’s a very good price.
 

AC

RMS Regular
AC
Messages
3,003
Another vote for CTEK MXS 5.0 here, had one for about 6 years for various cars and the bike over the winter months. Never had an issue.

Pretty sure someone on here had a bad fire one year due to a battery conditioner but I’m not sure of the circumstances.

I have it plugged into a decent surge protector to err on the side of caution.
 

Burt2000

RMS Regular
Burt2000
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11,267
Drives
Type RA Ltd
I must buy one for the impreza as I usually fire it up with jump leads this time of year but the battery would be drained again the next week.
 

brendy

RMS Regular
brendy
Messages
30,009
Location
bayyngorr in the S4 Avant
Bought this fella yesterday, arrived today but not had a chance to rest it. If it does what it says in the tin I'll be overjoyed.
IMG-20201124-WA0026.jpeg
 

Coog

Admin
Coog
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47,627
Drives
GTI
AC said:
Another vote for CTEK MXS 5.0 here, had one for about 6 years for various cars and the bike over the winter months. Never had an issue.

Pretty sure someone on here had a bad fire one year due to a battery conditioner but I’m not sure of the circumstances.

I have it plugged into a decent surge protector to err on the side of caution.
Click to expand...

Yeah it was Nicky with a Lidl one. Burned the garage to the ground.

That's the main reason I stuck with the ctek and haven't stuck cheapies in. I've 5 cars sitting in storage at the minute and would love to save a few quid and use cheap chargers for the 2 that currently don't have them, but I wouldn't be able to relax if I put them in. I just leave the batteries disconnected on the older cars and rotate the 3 chargers every so often.
 

Eager

RMS Regular
E
Messages
19,660
Location
fields
Drives
broooooom
I never left them on all the time either just in case. Once every few days for a day, still seems to keep things in good shape.

also have 2 smoke alarms just in case I’m in the area and something starts to go wrong in the garage
 

Paddy_R

RMS Regular
Paddy_R
Messages
5,268
Burt2000 said:
I must buy one for the impreza as I usually fire it up with jump leads this time of year but the battery would be drained again the next week.
Click to expand...

My Scooby is the exact same. Would get 1 week.... maybe 2 at a push. I now take the battery out this time of year as the cars not being driven and I have a big Sealey trickle charger I fire it onto once a week to keep it topped up incase I decide i'm going to take it a run.
 

Crow555

RMS Regular
Crow555
Messages
5,805
Location
Ballyclare
Drives
Integra DC5R
We've used CTEK MXS 5.0s for a while now, usually when in storage over the winter. Haven't had a problem with them. The Integra would be dead in about 3 weeks if not started so it helps keep the battery in good health.
 

Burt2000

RMS Regular
Burt2000
Messages
11,267
Drives
Type RA Ltd
Same here, I still like to take mine a drive round the street to keep things moving but it won’t be on the main roads now the cold weather is here and the dreaded salt! It’s handy to have the battery charged too just for moving it to clean it etc. Not sure on these ctek ones with mixed reviews the sealer sounds a better job.
 

kharma45

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kharma45
Messages
2,620
Location
Belfast
Drives
981 S / 530d
afaik CTEK are the ones Porsche sell but just stick their own brand on it. Well regarded bits of kit from what I've read.
 

Coog

Admin
Coog
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47,627
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GTI
kharma45 said:
afaik CTEK are the ones Porsche sell but just stick their own brand on it. Well regarded bits of kit from what I've read.
Click to expand...

Yeah same ones. Porsche add their badge and an extra zero to the price tag.

I have a NOCO jump starter and it's a quality bit of kit so no doubt the trickle chargers would be good too.
 
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