# 1/2 amp trickle charger enough to keep today's cars over long New England winter? **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [August 29, 2014, 2:25am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1-2-amp-trickle-charger-enough-to-keep-todays-cars-over-long-new-england-winter/86870 "2014-08-29T02:25:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tester](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/tester/32/15976_2.png) [@Tester](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Tester)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 5:05am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1-2-amp-trickle-charger-enough-to-keep-todays-cars-over-long-new-england-winter/86870/21 "2014-08-31T05:05:06Z")
I use a battery back-up that plugs into the cigarette lighter when the battery needs to be disconnected. I started using it years ago because customers would get upset when the radio presets were lost when the battery was disconnected. When I’m welding on a vehicle, I connect this to the battery. > **[OTC 3386 Anti Zap Auto Surge Protector | Circuit Testers, Short Finders](http://www.denlorstools.com/home/dt1/page_44309/otc_3386_anti_zap_auto_surge_protector.html)** > > Connects to battery, and becomes part of vehicle's electrical circuit. If a voltage spike is detected, the Antizap automatically clips it to a safe level to prevent damage to... Tester ---
**Author:** ![sgtrock21](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/sgtrock21/32/246_2.png) [@sgtrock21](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sgtrock21)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 5:18am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1-2-amp-trickle-charger-enough-to-keep-todays-cars-over-long-new-england-winter/86870/22 "2014-08-31T05:18:27Z")
A trickle charger will boil your battery dry in a month or so. I learned the hard way. [Previous page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1-2-amp-trickle-charger-enough-to-keep-todays-cars-over-long-new-england-winter/86870.md?page=1)