....The "Battery Tender" is a low amperage battery charger, with a built in monitoring circuit which is designed to keep any battery at maximum "health" and will therefore extend the life of the battery, often by several years.
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Yamaha FZ1
Battery Tender Installation and Use
....The "Battery Tender"
WWW.BATTERY TENDER.COM is a low
amperage battery charger, with a built in monitoring circuit which is
designed to keep any battery at maximum "health" and will
therefore extend the life of the battery, often by several years.
Where I used to change a battery every two years, I am generally running
4 years, and sometimes five. Into the 2001 season, my Magna
battery will be on its 6th season and the Vmax battery on its 3rd. I am famous for being dropped in the
boonies by a bad battery. Cycle batteries are small and take a lot
of vibration/dehydration abuse. I generally buy the best
battery available. The Battery Tender is the one of the best, if
not the best battery monitor on the market. I use them on all my
batteries, including auto and boat.
....The battery tender comes with
a "lead" that will connect to the battery , and can be
run out one of the sides of the cycle so the lead off the tender can easily be
connected during storage.
...Battery Tenders can be found in
many larger cycle shops, and there are a number of other types of
substitutes on the market, but pay the little extra for the Tender and
get the best. You will not be sorry, and the extended life and
health of your batteries will more than pay for the cost of the Tender,
which generally runs from $45-55, however if you watch in some of the
cycle magazines there will show up for $38-44. Most mail order
businesses carry Tenders: Dennis
Kirk tends to be one of the highest while Competition
Accessories one of the lowest, but check out the sales in the
magazines.
....I keep my tender on 100%
of the time. It is important to check you water level consistently
if you do not have a MF battery (maintenance free), as a low battery is a sick battery, and a sick battery
will die faster and leave you stranded (with me, it is likely to be in the middle of some
northern forest, miles/hours/days, from being on the road again).
It cannot be overstated how important a healthy battery is for riding
reliability. Use a Tender and check your water level. Use
distilled water in batteries. Remember the Vmax has a little
window, where water level can be viewed by looking back under the seat
from the front, without the Yamaha pox of going down from the
top. The Magna is not much better as the battery has to be removed
through the right side cover to view each cell. Both need and will
hopefully get sealed or gel batteries on the next go round. They were
not available at the time of the last purchases. The FZ continues to be
refreshing, MF battery that can be reached by turning the key and taking the
seat off.
....Whenever one comes in from a ride and connects the battery tender up to
the cycle, it is always noted that the tender will charge the battery for at
least a moderate amount of time, indicating that as predicted the load/drain
on a small cycle battery is never totally kept up with by the cycle's charging
system. The cycle battery is always trying to catch up and never totally
"healthy" without a tender "looking over it".
....My old battery tenders are not the new "plus" version.
With the plus tender the green light will start flashing when the battery is
80% capacity of charge. Just taking a bike out for a 20-100 mile ride,
the normal spin of the day, it will generally take 10+ minutes for the battery
to recharge to the 80% level, and another 10-30 minutes for the battery to
reach capacity. Point is, a cycle charging system never keeps up with
the drain from starting and use, nor the drain caused by high heat around the
battery. If one does not use a tender then the battery
"health" is always sub par with the life span cut significantly and
more importantly the road reliability always in question.
....After coming off a three day, 1050 miles trip to Road America at Elkhart
Lake, Wisconsin, the FZ battery recharged back up to 80% and 100% in about the
same short interval as after a local ride. This probably is an
indication that the FZ charging system was doing a fair job of keeping up with
total battery drain and the battery remained in good health during long hours
on the road and after many stops/starts.
WHAT KIND OF BATTERY CHARGERS ARE AVAILABLE?
....A trickle charger is the most common. They
charge at a fixed rate, and do not "know" when the battery
reaches full charge, will keep running and can boil the battery dry and
destroy it. Watch them carefully, but since they are rather slow,
that should not be a major problem unless you forget and leave it on for
days.
....Taper chargers decrease the amount of current moving
into the battery as the voltage of the battery goes up. But they
still have to be watched carefully to prevent drying out, overheating,
etc. They are not a lot faster than trickle charges and have
basically the same drawbacks.
....The pulse charger like the Battery Tender has a
circuit which can monitor the charge throughout the charging
process. The pulse charger decreases output to the battery as it
becomes fully charged, then switches to a monitoring mode. As the
battery self discharges, and the voltage level drops below a preset
point, the charger swings into action to bring the battery back up to
full charge. This is ideal for keeping the batteries chemistry in
"good health" and especially for cycle batteries which are
small and sit around a great deal of the time.
INSTALLING THE BATTERY TENDER
LEAD TO TO THE FZ1 BATTERY
Installation of the Tender Lead on the
FZ1 is a very easy process.
Remove the Seat to Expose the Battery
....Under the left side of the
seat is the seat/helmet lock.
....Insert the key and turn clockwise, while gently lifting up on the back of
the seat.
....The seat is very easy to remove on the FZ1.
Remove the Left Side Cover to Allow Routing the Tender Lead Cable to the Outside of the FZ1
.....Only a Phillips screwdriver
is needed to remove the side panels.
....Remove the Philips screw, and place in a small parts container so items
are not lost and handy for replacement.
....DO NOT tug/pull on the side panel until you understand how it comes out of
the rubber keepers, as show in the next pics.
....The top fastening point is a rubber gourmet,
and should be removed before the bottom pin.
....By carefully pulling outward the top of the side panel will slide out of
the gourmet and pull away just enough to life the bottom pin out of its
keeper.
....With the seat removed and side panel off, the installation of the Tender lead is simple.
Connect the Tender Leads to the Battery Terminals
....Using a Phillips screwdriver
(10mm driver or a Phillips head socket that fits) completely remove the negative and positive battery terminal bolts.
NOTE: the VibeRaider, posted, "I tried
the screwdriver, but the bolts would easily get rounded if they were too
tight. So I just used a 10mm bolt remover instead. I got a better
fit." He is correct, my Phillips started slipping and I got sloppy,
just bearing down harder and breaking the bolt loose. THE 10MM NUT
DRIVER IS THE BEST TOOL TO USE. This is a good time to mention, you need
to purchase a good set of nut drivers, plus Allen, Phillip and screwdriver
sockets to use with you ratchets and breaker bars. These sockets do not
come with the normal assortment.
....Place the correct Tender leads on top of the battery cables and re-install
the battery bolts. BE SURE to place the red Tender lead on the
red/positive battery terminal.
....Next route the wire to the outside.
Routing the Lead Cable from the Battery to the
Outside of the FZ1
....Select any route to the
outside that you like. I like to have the outside plug on the side of
the bike as it is more convenient to use.
....Be careful to select a position for the plug where it will not be melted,
or where it will not get caught in the chain or other equipment.
Closing Up
....Carefully slip the bottom pin
of the side panel in place, push the top into the rubber gourmet, and replace
the back screw.
....Replace the seat and test connect the bike and Tender leads.
Connecting to Power
Automatic Monitoring
.The Battery Tender Plus is completely automatic and my be left on whenever
input power is made available to the charger.
.The charger output depends on the condition of the battery it is charging.
.When the battery is fully charged, the indicating light will turn green
and the charger will switch itself to a storage charge mode and will
automatically monitor and maintain the battery at full charge.
Use
.Always connect or disconnect the Battery Tender leads before plugging or
unplugging the outlet cord into AC power.
Advice
.If the charger is left connected to a battery for long periods of time on
refillable batteries, check water levels periodically and consistently so the
battery fluid level does not become low. On maintenance free batteries,
of course DO NOT attempt to remove the caps to check water.
Features
.The Battery Tender Plus has a spark free circuitry. The clips will not
spark when touched together.
.The Tender will not produce voltage or turn on until it senses three volts
from the battery it is connected too. It must be connected to a battery to
start working/charging.
.The Tenders clips or ring terminals must be clipped/bolted to a battery in the correct polarity to initiate output voltage. Thus if the A.C. cord is plugged into power the output clips will not spark when touched together since the tender must be hooked up correctly to function or to spark.
.A flashing red indicator light means that a charge has not been initiated, and the clips must be connected to the proper polarity to start the charger.
Charging Times/Rates
.The Tender charges at a rate of about one amp per hour. Thus a fully
discharged 15 amp-hour battery will take about 15 hours to fully charge. Big
automotive batteries may take several days to fully charge. Remember the green
light will go on when the battery is fully charges.
....FZ1 Battery type is GT14B-4, 12V, 12 amp-hrs
Indicator Lights
.No light means the Tender is not properly connected into an AC power
source.
.Red Light flashing indicates the Tender has AC power available and the
Tenders microprocessor is functioning properly but charging is not
occurring because of a lead connection problem or the battery is completely
dead and the Tender will have to be "tricked" to start charging.
Hint
.A totally dead battery will probably be below three volts and thus not
trigger the battery tenders safety circuit to start charging. However, by
hooking the dead battery up with jumper cables to a live battery (leave engine
off) the Tender can be tricked to start charging. Disconnect the live battery
as soon as the red indicator light of the Tender stops flashing. The red
indicator will stay solid, thus the showing the tender is in charge mode.
.Steady Red Light shows the battery is connected properly and the battery
is charging. The solid red light will remain on as long as the battery is in
the charging stage.
..Green Light flashing (the solid red light will also be on) shows the
battery has greater than 80% of its capacity available for use. At this stage
of charge, the battery can be returned to service if absolutely necessary.
.Green Light on steady shows that charging is complete and the battery is
ready for use, or in storage monitoring mode.
Troubleshooting
.No indicator lights turning on probably means the charger is not connected
properly to AC power.
.If the green light goes on when it is known that the battery is in a
discharged or recently used condition, the battery may be defective with an
open cell or heavily sulfated (plates highly coated). A battery dealer can
test the battery for you.
.The red light shows charging for an extended length of time, with the
green light never going on, may mean the battery is defective or there is
excessive current being drawn from the battery, so remove the battery from the
bike/auto/boat to see if it will fully charge. If the battery does fully
charge when disconnected, trace down the excessive equipment draw.
.If the red light comes on when long term storage charging, then the
battery may have become defective, or there is an excessive current draw while
installed in the vehicle. Remove the battery form the equipment as see if a
full charge occurs.
WHY AVOID
TOTALLY DRAINING A BATTERY?
It is guaranteed that totally draining a
battery 2-4 times will drastically shorten the life of the battery and
as importantly, its capacity to deliver current is drastically
impaired. You have just ruined your battery. DO NOT
completely drain a car/cycle battery. Sitting around over the
winter or for prolonged time will do it, excessive grinding and load
will do it, a slow draining load will do it.
Well, of course the answer is to always use a Battery Tender, always keep the battery fluid at the correct level, always treat the battery with tender loving care. Aways keep you bike in good running order so it starts easily, and along those lines start and take your bike on a lot of 15-30 mile trips.
Another good idea is buy the best battery possible. I think that is Yuasa.
Motorcycle
News Battery Article (a must read)
Yuasa
Battery page
The typical cycle battery is made up of a case, positive plates, negative plates, plate separators, cell connectors, filler caps, and a sulfuric acid/water electrolyte. It is divided into six individual cells, which are connected together. Each cell is composed of a stack of lead plates separated by an insulator such as fiberglass or treated paper.
The lead plates carry a charge and are connected to each other, positive to positive and negative to negative in the stack. The positive plates are made of lead peroxide (PbO2), and the negative plates are formed of lead which is made with a surface that is very irregular or spongy looking, because a battery's capacity to deliver electrons or current pressure is dependent on the surface area of plates exposed the electrolyte.
Each cell is connected to the next cell in series, positive to negative. Each cell produces about 2 volts of direct current, for a total of about 12 volts for a healthy fully charged battery.
The total output of electrons for a battery, thus the total "power" it can produce at anyone time is related to the number of lead plates in each cell, their size, their "health."
The plates are bathed in a bath of sulfuric acid and
water mixture, and there is a slow chemical reaction between the
sulfuric acid and lead in the plates which produces lead sulfate
and causes the constant release of electrons which create
the charge at the surface of the plates and thus the movement/flow of
electrons, which gather in numbers and force as they flow through the
system of plates when a demand, or load is put on the circuit, such as
hitting the switch for the starter motor. An analogy would be
turning on a faucet to pump water down a pipe to do work at the
other end.
A cycle battery has a "chemical life," but it can be extended by proper care. When a battery is not in the discharge phase or producing electron flow, there will be a chemical recharging phase, where some of the lead from PbSO4 will move back to the lead plate surface and some of the SO4, will re-bond with the free hydrogen to reform Sulfuric acid molecules. That is where the charging system of an auto/cycle comes into play, to introduce some free electrons into the system and create enough chemical "power" to "pull" the SO4 away from the Pb.
Thus the sulfuric acid and lead if not "used"
up, but it moves back and forth in a series of chemical reactions with
release electrons to be used for powering the cycles electrical system,
but a series of chemical reactions that to run in reverse and replenish
"itself" must have "recharge" help. That is
where a Battery Tender is a must. It "tends" to the
business of keeping the correct electron flow to keep the lead in
"its place" and the sulfuric acid in "its place."
Never use anything but distilled water. Never add sulfuric acid after the initial charging.
Minimize physical "bouncing" of the battery as much as possible.
Keep the terminals very clean. A dap of dielectric grease can help reduce problems. Corrosion will drop you at an inopportune time.
Buy a good brand of battery.
Do not constantly/severely discharge a battery.
Check the water level consistently. Keep the water level up!
ALWAYS give a new battery a good charging before
installation.
SO WHAT HAPPENS
TO THE LEAD, SULFURIC ACID, WATER?
As described above, the lead and acid are not used
up, they just change forms. However, during the chemical reaction
going on in the battery, water vapor, free hydrogen gas, and free oxygen
are lost by "evaporation" out the vent tube. That is
where the water in the battery goes. So that is why you MUST
monitor the liquid level of the battery. Low liquid in the batter
is like low liquid in you, not healthy to the system and leads to early
collapse of the system if the problem continues, and even permanent
damage if collected during the problem. Check the water level
often.
The lead is not used up, but there are still problems
with what is called sulfacation of the plates. Lead sulfate is a
whitish crystal that adheres to the plate surface. If allowed to
build up the crystal layer will stop the chemical reactions necessary
for electron flow or current to be produced. Excessive sulfacation
occurs when a battery is excessively and/or frequently discharged
without being properly and consistently charged. Again, this is
where the Battery Tender comes into play. Your battery is always
kept at the right charge level, so excessive crystallization of the
plate surface is delayed by a couple of years in most cases. The
life of my cycle batteries has increased a minimum of double and close
to triple in most cases. From 1-2 years per battery to 4-6 years!!
WHAT
HAPPENS WHEN A BATTERY "SITS"?
An idle battery will lose about a third of its
charge within a month of sitting around. The poor chemical
"health" of a partially discharged battery will drastically
decrease the life expectancy.
Hydrogen gas is very, very explosive and the explosion is very powerful. Hydrogen gas burns/exploded readily. Remember the blimp, the Hindenberg!! Your battery can be a little Hindenberg. It has hydrogen and oxygen gas being produced in it. A spark can set off the hydrogen gas. Keep sparks away from batteries. Keep them in ventilated areas. Hook up the charger clips before plugging into the electrical outlet.
Wear safety goggles when working around
batteries. If acid should get into the eyes, it is imperative to
flush with water as fast as possible and keep flushing for a long time,
then get to a doctor quickly to see if the cornea has been
damaged, but not before extensive flushing with water.
Be careful about using an excessively high or fast
first charge. Charge at a rate below 2amps, and closer to 1amp if
possible. Again, use a Battery Tender for at least 6 hours.
A
site that discusses starting system problems.
Yuasa
Battery page
Motorcycle
News Battery Article (a must read)
BatteryTender.com
Electrex USA, charts and parts
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