# Should I trickle charge my battery? **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [September 15, 2014, 9:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193 "2014-09-15T21:55:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![defurr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6f9a4e/32.png) [@defurr](https://community.cartalk.com/u/defurr)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2014, 9:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/1 "2014-09-15T21:55:18Z")
I have a 2006 Acura TL with 130K miles that I no longer drive on a daily basis, but am keeping for practical reasons, since my newer car is small sports car. The Acura is not in a garage, but rather exposed to the Texas 95-degree heat. I always drive it at least once a week for errands. Within a month of its semi-retirement, its battery went dead. Repair shop said the charging system was fine and replaced the battery. However within six weeks of replacing the battery, the new one went dead. I assume they are going to scold me about not driving the car enough. When they replace battery, should I just keep the new one on a steady, constant 2 amp trickle charge? Honestly, I would probably only drive it once a month (bad weather days, hauling big stuff) if I weren’t trying to keep its battery alive. But if a handful of errands once a week isn’t going to get it done, then maybe I should just use it in case of emergencies. But will constant trickle charging be good for the battery? ---
**Author:** ![ken\_green](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/ken_green/32/816_2.png) [@ken\_green](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ken_green)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2014, 10:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/2 "2014-09-15T22:02:26Z")
I use a solar trickle charger that plugs into the lighter socket. Unles I neglect the truck for a year , it is generally ready to go every three months or so for the Home Depot run. — But ---- With a vehicle parked outside, you should consider covering the tires. At the same O’Reilly’s that sold me the solar charger, I got RV tire covers for my 79. They’re sold in pairs for single axle boat trailers and such , so you buy two sets for cars and trucks. Tape measure the outside diameter of your tires. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2014, 10:04pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/3 "2014-09-15T22:04:59Z")
Not a trickle (constant amp) charger - use a ‘battery tender’ (I got mine on Amazon). A trickle charger will overcharge a battery eventually. But driving it once a week (for at least a half hour) should keep the battery charged. I wonder what is draining your battery? Any aftermarket accessories? Alarms? Amplifiers? ---
**Author:** ![knfenimore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9fc348/32.png) [@knfenimore](https://community.cartalk.com/u/knfenimore)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2014, 10:24pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/4 "2014-09-15T22:24:32Z")
Battery Tender is the way to go. Also, most cars the cigarette lighter is not powered when the car is off. That means you can not back feed it with a charger. ---
**Author:** ![circuitsmith](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/circuitsmith/32/40376_2.png) [@circuitsmith](https://community.cartalk.com/u/circuitsmith)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2014, 10:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/5 "2014-09-15T22:53:48Z")
A cheap trickle charger plus a household timer set to charge an hour or two per day would do the job. Draining a new battery in 6 weeks is too soon. You should get a parasitic drain test. This problem might have been around for a long time, but not show up when driving every day. ---
**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:** [September 15, 2014, 11:25pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/6 "2014-09-15T23:25:38Z")
I learned the usual hard way that a constant 2 amp trickle charger can boil a battery dry in about 30 days. Please heed the advise of the current (pun intended) posters. ---
**Author:** ![keith](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/keith/32/5518_2.png) [@keith](https://community.cartalk.com/u/keith)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2014, 11:42pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/7 "2014-09-15T23:42:28Z")
Use a float charger instead of a trickle charger. They are available from .5 amp up to 4 amps and generally cost about 2x as much as a trickle charger, which isn’t that much to begin with. The float charger will shut off when the battery is fully charged and them monitor the battery. When it goes down a preset amount, it will come back on and recharge again. Battery Tender is a brand of trickle and float chargers. ---
**Author:** ![irlandes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b5e925/32.png) [@irlandes](https://community.cartalk.com/u/irlandes)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 12:24am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/8 "2014-09-16T00:24:39Z")
And, those tenders have also been available at the local China Outlet store. (i.e. Walmart). ---
**Author:** ![Caddyman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/caddyman/32/23_2.png) [@Caddyman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Caddyman)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 1:52am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/should-i-trickle-charge-my-battery/87193/9 "2014-09-16T01:52:01Z")
Harbor Freight too…Another option, just disconnect the battery…Some may argue that will confuse the computer but I have never had any problems…Your new dead battery should be able to be charged…A new battery will survive this once or twice. It will need 5 amps for 10 or 12 hours. Don’t expect the cars alternator to do it…It may hurt itself trying…