Fitting a higher capacity battery

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Fitting a higher capacity battery

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Treacodactyl
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
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Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 11:17 am Post subject: Fitting a higher capacity battery

I might need a new car battery. I know it has to physically fit in the car but if I can get one with a higher Ah rating and higher CCA will this cause any problems?

I can only think the alternator might have more work to do with charging it, but I can't see that to be a problem as surely it would only need to top up what has been taken out?

The reason for upsizing is the car often does short trips and is getting to an age where I suspect the odd bit of current leaks out. On the other hand it starts well and I don't charge gadgets.

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45676
Location: Essex

Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 11:22 am Post subject:
I've done that to our farm pickup truck with no issues, but no expert.

Slim

Joined: 05 Mar 2006
Posts: 6614
Location: New England (In the US of A)

Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 11:31 am Post subject: Re: Fitting a higher capacity battery

Treacodactyl wrote:

On the other hand it starts well and I don't charge gadgets.

If you're only replacing the battery because of age, I would just replace with the correctly sized battery. If it always starts up, then why would you need a bigger battery?

A bigger slowly draining battery will only take a little longer to die on you. If that's actually the reason why you're taking out the old batter (won't hold a charge well anymore) then I would just pop the post connection off when you're leaving it for a while (and prevent from arcing). May also want to make sure post connections have been on tight. I fixed a few "dead alternator" issues by tightening a loose (-) connection

The reason for more CCA is when you can't get the engine to turn over....

Treacodactyl
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Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 11:39 am Post subject: Re: Fitting a higher capacity battery

Slim wrote:

Treacodactyl wrote:

On the other hand it starts well and I don't charge gadgets.

If you're only replacing the battery because of age, I would just replace with the correctly sized battery. If it always starts up, then why would you need a bigger battery?

Why not? But as I said, the cars getting older and the electrics tend to age and leak a bit. The current battery went flat for some reason and I don't know why. I'm also doing less long trips.

If the cost is only slightly higher it seems worth while getting a battery with 30-50% more Ah, just in case.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46249
Location: yes

Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 11:44 am Post subject:

what slim says with the caveat that if the vehicle battery has to provide power for lights, equipment etc between journeys to recharge it more ah capacity is good(but not as good as a proper secondary dedicated system for such things)

ie if you have a lamp rack for hunting or some such secondary use get a bigger battery.

if you do a lot of short journeys (especially with all the lights on) between a few long journeys a bigger battery is also a good idea ,a short journey may not fully replace the energy used in starting .iirc the maths of this can be worked out but as a general rule it takes a few miles to recharge the starting drain.( so a mile there,stop/start and return is a net loss of charge.)

a good way to improve battery life is to use a smart charger every month or so

Hairyloon

Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 15425
Location: Today I are mostly being in Yorkshire.

Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 12:13 pm Post subject: Re: Fitting a higher capacity battery

Treacodactyl wrote:

The current battery went flat for some reason and I don't know why...

I'd suggest you deal with that. It may just be the battery is old and tired, or it may be a problem that won't go away with a new battery.

Might even just be that you left a light on.

Treacodactyl
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Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 6:17 pm Post subject:

When I say I don't know why you can safely assume I've checked the obvious.

Anyway, I'm getting a replacement. Looking at what it had and what it's got it seems I've already got up one, it's had a 068 size, now a 075 size and Halfords recommend a 096 (which is a very tight fit so I need to trace out the base before buying).

So, back to the original question, any reason not to fit a higher capacity batt?

Tavascarow

Joined: 06 Aug 2006
Posts: 8407
Location: South Cornwall

Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 6:30 pm Post subject:
If your battery went flat for no reason then chances are there's a short somewhere or a bulb that isn't going out. I remember my dad replacing a battery & paying to have the wiring checked & all it was was the switch on the boot had broken & the boot lamp was on 24/7. �5.00 switch & it was sorted. Check where wires are moving like doors etc & see if any are bare through wear.

Treacodactyl
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Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 6:34 pm Post subject:

Treacodactyl wrote:

So, back to the original question, any reason not to fit a higher capacity batt?

RichardW

Joined: 24 Aug 2006
Posts: 8443
Location: Llyn Peninsular North Wales

Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 6:38 pm Post subject:
The alternator wont have to work harder just because its a bigger bat. It only has to replace what has been used. Bat size does not alter that. What I would do is go for a better make / type of bat rather than bigger. Better & longer warrant that way. Or just buy the cheapest one you can find if your not going to fix any fault.

Treacodactyl
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
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Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 6:46 pm Post subject:
Thanks Richard, that confirms my thoughts. I went for a cheap (but 4yr warranty) batt last time and it seems to have failed in a similar fashion to the old one after.... 4 years. Any faults I find will be fixed obviously, if found.

onemanband

Joined: 26 Dec 2010
Posts: 1473
Location: NCA90

Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 7:15 pm Post subject:
I've found batteries fail after warranty period + a week or so. Apart from one that failed a week before the warranty expired - it got replaced without any fuss

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46249
Location: yes

Posted: Wed Feb 03, 16 7:16 pm Post subject:

Treacodactyl wrote:

no if it will fit on the platform.

Treacodactyl
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Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 8:47 am Post subject:

RichardW wrote:

What I would do is go for a better make / type of bat rather than bigger. Better & longer warrant that way.

Any particular recommendations? I've not heard of many of the companies and on the other hand some well known names have appeared but are they any good at making car batteries?

Treacodactyl
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
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Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 8:54 am Post subject:

Treacodactyl wrote:

Looking at what it had and what it's got it seems I've already got up one, it's had a 068 size, now a 075 size and Halfords recommend a 096 (which is a very tight fit so I need to trace out the base before buying).

Daft of me to assume there's logic in UK battery numbering. It would appear a larger number doesn't mean a higher capacity. The original battery seems to be an unusual size (UK 068) and most companies recommend a battery that will not actually fit in my car.

(UK 096). The replacement was a UK 075 which I now notice is a lower capacity than an 068.

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