How To Charge Car Battery While Parked. Find out the best way to charge your car battery while parked. It can be a serious inconvenience to have a dead battery and recharging it may require very little in terms of tools or mechanical experience.

How To Charge Car Battery While Parked

Batteries in vehicles stay charged by harnessing the extra power of the car’s engine, and some batteries can go for at least five years without needing to be charged or replaced. However, some batteries can lose their charge prematurely when you leave your lights on too long. The best way to charge your battery is to charge it when it’s parked

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How to Charge Car Battery While Parked

How do you keep a car battery charged when not in use? Leaving it on will only drain the battery faster. To avoid the battery from draining faster, you need to park outside with the alarm turned on, and drive the vehicle for at least 30 minutes a week to keep the battery charged.

Preparing to Charge the Battery

Put on safety gear. Safety is necessary any time you are working on your vehicle. Begin by putting on protective eyeglasses to protect you from any falling material under the hood of the car, sparks, or battery fluid in the event the battery becomes compromised.

You can also put on gloves. Also, ensure the area you are working in is well-ventilated and you can see what you’re working on clearly.

Determine what kind of Car Battery you have

For you to charge your car properly, you must first identify the type of battery you have. You can check it on the battery, or you may need to check the manufacturer’s website if the label is too worn to read or missing.

However, you also need to find out the voltage of the battery by looking at the battery’s label or by checking in your vehicle owner’s manual.

Types of batteries are as follows:

Wet cell batteries may be serviceable. With this battery, there are things you can do to help improve the charge and the life of your battery.

VRLA Batteries (Valve Regulated Lead-Acid Battery) are completely sealed and need no maintenance. These batteries come as Gel Cell or Absorbed Glass Mat batteries. And they’re less common in cars unless purchased as an after-market modification.

Get a Car Battery Charger

Get a charger that is appropriate for your battery and purposes. However, some chargers work for all types of batteries except Gel Cell batteries. Also, there are fast chargers that can charge your battery faster, as well as “trickle” chargers that offer a slow but longer-lasting charge.

However, lots of newer chargers come with a microprocessor to monitor how much the battery has charged. These digital chargers will then stop the process automatically when the battery is charged completely.

Further, older, simpler chargers must be stopped manually to stop dangerous overcharging and should not be left alone for extended periods of time while connected.

Go through the charger’s manual to make sure you are using your particular unit correctly.

Disconnect And Remove The Battery From your Vehicle If Necessary

It’s important to disconnect the battery before you conduct any form of repairs or maintenance on your car. However, some of the time you will be able to charge the battery without taking it out of the car. But if reaching the battery or fitting the charging cables in the engine bay or trunk where the battery is difficult, remove the battery from the car completely while you charge it.

Also, if you aren’t sure of where your battery is located, check the owner’s manual for your vehicle. Remember to disconnect the negative terminal first, then the positive when removing a battery.

Clean the Battery Terminals

Any dirt or grime on the battery terminals can stop the charging cables from establishing a strong connection to the battery, so it’s necessary to clean the terminals thoroughly. Use baking soda and a wet cloth or a sandpaper pad to wipe out any grime or rust. Also, ensure the terminals are bare metal before proceeding to the next step in order to ensure a strong charge.

However, sometimes you may find the battery has a solid charge, but dirty terminals were preventing the electricity from flowing.

Note; Do not touch the terminals with your bare hands or skin, especially if there is any white powder on them. This powder is mostly dried sulfuric acid, and it can burn your skin if you come in contact with

How Long Does It Take to Charge a Car Battery while Parked?

Normally, at idle you can probably get 80 amps out of your alternator. You can charge a flat battery to 80 percent full in about 2 hours, as far as your alternator can manage to produce around 14 volts at the battery terminals this whole time.

How Long Should I Idle My Car to Charge the Battery?

If you find any of these cars start easily, battery status is likely to be good, and a short drive or idling for 10 to 15 minutes may be good enough to keep the battery full if done once every two weeks. But, if its slower cranking is noted, a half-hour drive once a week should do the trick.

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