Need a Battery Jumper and Maintainer in one
I am in need of a Battery Jumper and Maintainer in one which works with 110V. It may or may not charge batteries but I dont want to use a standalone charger in my shop. Do you have any recommendations of a brand and model which I can jump my vehicles and then maintain battery voltage whilst doing diagnosis, etc.
Thank you.
Hi Mehmet, I have a NAPA brand charger I have used for 20+ years. It has 2A, 20A and 200A jumpstart settings. It is not a digital charger button type and I say much more reliable for that reason. I have had multiple failures with combination digital chargers. Beware of trying to use an all in one unit, they are usually disappointing over the long term. A battery maintainer should be a stand…
The wheeled manual charger,(rotary knobs, non digital ), sold by NAPA is part number 90-156. It's a rebranded Schumacher. So far, it has been great for the past 5 years we've used it.
Hi Nelson, That is probably the same model I have, but my labels and most of the paint is gone from age, weather and wear. I did have to replace the cooling fan in it a couple of years back. It was the same fan used in a Shumacher charger. I also bypassed the safety breaker because it was plastic and cracking. I consider those both minor issues. Basic manual switch and turn knob chargers are…
I just bought a NAPA 90-152 which has 4A/15A 60A/ 275A settings as well as a constant voltage setting for reprogramming. I haven't used it long enough to know what the durability is, but so far I'm satisfied with it's performance.
Jumping off a dead battery on a modern vehicle is something that you should be wary of. A very dead battery, combined with a 200A ‘blast’ may cause a fairly extreme current surge, and destroy the programming, or the modules themselves if one is not careful with the ‘Start’ setting.
SOLAR PL2320 Pro-Logix Battery Charger, 20-Amp amazon.ca/dp/B007ESQW08… I use this daily. Has a power supply mode to keep battery alive while working on the car. Best bang for the buck in my experience
Nowhere near enough power for any heavy testing. Also, not linear, so not usable for flashing, unless you want to risk bricking a module.
Hi Mehmet, If you are doing programming especially on Euro vehicles, you will need a dedicated constant voltage (constant Hz) maintainer, a regular battery charger will create issues and effect the reprogramming session. Are you doing programming?
Linear is what he'd want for flashing. And, to do either some of the Asians (Nissan comes to mind) or the Euros, you'd need a charger/maintainer that supplies over 80A (BMW is one that needs serious amps for testing and flashing).