[saturnsc2]

so i will post my findings here when i try this later...

 

[WFO-KZ]

I just ran that test on my Battery Tender and it passed. But here's the thing "compatible" might mean it won't harm the battery but the warning in my previous quote may apply. That warning was:

" Although under normal conditions most 12-volt automatic battery chargers will work on an AGM battery, the battery will only charge to about 80 percent of its full capacity"

So it would seem that without a physical AGM switch on the charger, you cannot get a full charge. I would expect the same applies to the charging system on our motorcycles.

 

[saturnsc2]

yes my tender passed the test also as the red-light flashes. they told me the charger is 4 stage & fully automatic & compatible with all lead acid batteries.

 

[saturnsc2]

has anybody tried one of these: EarthX ETX18B High-Performance Powersports Lithium Battery - Free Shipping | Battery Mart and one of these tenders: Battery Tender Junior 12 Volt, 800 mA Lead Acid & Lithium Charger | Battery Mart


sounds like a great idea but i'm leery of the newer technology with the old bike just how compatible it is...

 

[Kawasakian]

I don't like how the possibility of fire with Lithium batteries can be so easily set off. I've pulled some older small ones out of old Laptops, that I fully charged. Now, yes, this sounds, and is stupid, but I pierced it in the center with a couple of holes using an Ice Pick. Many that thing lit up. I had it outside on my hard pan driveway, but wow, and pouring water on it just made it worse.

So for now, Ill stay with the old tried and true batteries I cn see degrade. The Lithium one in my SSpine has been helping a Nerve Stimulator ease pain in my back for 8 years, and is still going strong. That unit costs $187,500 bucks, 8 years ago. They cost more now.

This has a very special inductive charger. Your bike, it's technology, I would keep all the technologies within the same period. On the other hand, if you have money to burn, and great interest, go for it. You live only once.

 

[saturnsc2]

alright an update to this condition. my battery in my 440 is stone cold dead
& won't even light any lights on the bike. it shows 13.5 volts at the terminals shough. i have another bike also with an agm battery & that one is dead too. both bikes batteries are on a tender at all times. the tenders are advertised to be compatible with agm batteries & i got a newer one & still have the box to it & the box states it's also for agm batteries. so i guess batteries can still go dead even on a tender. i searched this & others state their batteries also went dead on a tender. i don't think these tenders really work as advertised.

 

[Kawasakian]

I don't know about the AGM, but battery tenders cause the electrolyte solution to evaporate. It has to be checked and topped off, which then causes the battery needing to be charged again. Use distilled water.

 

[saturnsc2]

i'm thinking of going back to the flooded type maybe because it would be more compatible with my bike & tender. what sucks is i have to remove the air cleaner & battery hold down bracket just to check & add water. that's why i changed to the agm type because you don't have to worry about that. agm's are supposed to be superior to flooded types, but i still can't understand why they would run down while on a tender. has anybody else's bikes here run down on a tender?

 

[Kawasakian]

I don't run AGM type batteries. When I worked on aircraft, many used those kind of batteries, but they had very specialized chargers, and costs around $600 bucks a piece.

 

[WFO-KZ]

A lot depends on the brand of tender. I once bought a Motomaster tender that said it was automatic and would not overcharge yet over the winter it boiled my battery dry. I then spent a bit more and bought a Battery Tender brand and have used that for years without any issues including on AGM batteries.

 

[saturnsc2]

another thing is when i had the key on & the bike's lights on even though the battery was so low to crank the engine why does the green light on the tender still illuminate? shouldn't the red charging light come on when the batter is under some load? i think there's something wrong with these tenders. i wonder if i put a regular motorcycle battery charger on the battery if it would actually charge. i will try this...

 

[WFO-KZ]

...my battery in my 440 is stone cold dead
& won't even light any lights on the bike. it shows 13.5 volts at the terminals.

This is just more proof that voltage is NOT an indicator of battery health.

 

[WFO-KZ]

There may be something wrong with your tender but it also looks like your battery is toast.

 

[Kawasakian]

You can have 13.8 Volts, but it's only a surface charge. You need to check amperage. The best way with a liquid type battery is a Specific Gravity Tester. That will tell you the condition of each cell, it's amazing how many times I see a bike battery that's totally fine except for once cell. It will still start the bike, but you have one or two shots at it.

On AGM type batteries, you would have to get a meter that checks amps, usually these aren't cheap. Mine only goes up to 10 amps. Amps is the indicator of a batteries health. Batteries should be charged ideally at 1.8 amps. Lots of 2 amp chargers out there, but more 1.8 amp ones are appearing. Automatic battery chargers blast the battery with too much current and shorten the life of the battery.


Great article at Revzilla about batteries: How to test a motorcycle battery - RevZilla


Specific Gravity gauge:

 

[saturnsc2]

got questions regarding my 1983 Kawasaki KZ 440 ltd. a while back i was cranking my bike & i know the battery is weak. it cranked & then couldn't crank anymore, but the lights & other electrical accessories still worked. then i tried to crank the bike again & the same thing happened then the whole electrical system went dead. nothing works even the lights on the bike & it is still the same now. i ordered new fuses from Kawasaki. they are factory pieces. the fuses on the bike are not blown & are all short fuses. the ones i got in are short & long. i checked various wiring harnesses under the right-side panel & the ones that are usually live with the key off are now completely dead even though the battery shows 12.10 volts at the terminals. yes, the battery voltage is too weak to crank the bike but why is everything else dead completely? is there another fuse panel on the bike somewhere else or is there a fusible link that could be blown or a circuit breaker that breaks the circuit when the battery voltage is too low?

 

[WFO-KZ]

Are you getting that voltage with the key turned on and light switches turned on?
Try also to honk the horn and watch the battery voltage. Let us know what you get.

 

[Kawasakian]

It goes deaad when you try to crank because all the amperage is taken by the starter motor. You really need to start with a new battery to figure out any problems you may have.

 

[saturnsc2]

the voltage drops down to practically zero when i try to crank the engine. but there's still 12.10 voltage at the battery terminals when i stop trying to crank it but i was saying, the wiring harnesses under the side cover are dead when before i got voltage in them maybe weak voltage but still voltage but now absolutely nothing. that's what's weird.... i guess a new battery will solve all my problems...

 

[Kawasakian]

What you are measuring is a surface charge. There are no amps behind it.

 

[WFO-KZ]

saturnc2 said: "What's weird is I don't get any voltage at other live terminals but I do get voltage at the battery as if there's a broken circuit somewhere"

I think you will find a new battery will make this issue go away. If not, then we can begin troubleshooting for the cause.