WIN A BC CHARGERS BATTERY CONTROLLER!
We’ve teamed up with BC Battery Controllers to offer you the chance to get your hands on a charger to keep your bike’s battery in tip top shape throughout the Winter. For FREE. All you’ve got to do to be in with a shot of winning is fill in the form below – or visit MoreBikes.co.uk and submit your details.
If you’ve not heard of BC Battery Controllers before – that’s because the Italian brand is fairly new to the UK. It produces a wide range of chargers and related accessories, designed to make charging batteries across a massive range of vehicle a doodle.
We’re giving away BC Battery Controllers’ BC Junior 900, which is the smallest battery charger in its range, developed primarily for battery care on motorcycles, scooters, ATVs, snowmobiles and jet skis.
The 12V charger employs a clever eight-step charging algorithm, which can recharge and maintain, as well as being capable of recovering deeply discharged and sulphated batteries (from as little as 1.25V). Additionally, it can actually be used for the slow charging and maintenance of larger batteries with a capacity up to 100Ah, like the ones that are usually mounted on cars. In short, it’s a capable little charger. And, it comes bundled with a waterproof battery cable with eyelets and a battery cable with insulated clamps.
From a safety perspective, it’s also worth noting that BC Battery Controllers do not produce sparks and are protected against short circuit, reverse polarity, overcharging and overheating – so you be confident when leaving them hooked up to your pride and joy for long periods of time.
Bike battery maintainence
An often neglected part of motorcycle maintenance, here’s a brief guide to keeping your motorcycle’s battery in tip top condition this winter.
A proper long-term battery care routine is vital to keep performance at its optimum throughout the cold months. As the temperature drops, the chemical reaction inside the battery slows down, reducing its capacity to accept a charge. Add to that the increased strain from increased use of headlights and auxiliary/fog lighting, heated grips and you’re heading for battery failure.
And, even if you don’t use your bike very often through the winter months, charge is still lost to alarms/immobilisers, clocks and on-board computers – and of course, through self-discharge, as the battery saps a little of its own energy every day to stay alive.
Regularly charging and maintaining your battery not only keeps it working to maximum capacity, it can also double its working life, as well as significantly reducing the likelihood of failure. Thankfully, most intelligent motorcycle battery chargers come with leads which can be permanently fixed to your battery, with the battery connector neatly hidden away in the bike – making charging just a matter of plugging the connector in to the charger.
Don’t forget
If your bike has an alarm or immobiliser fitted, a battery can reach a deeply discharged state within a matter of days.
Never use a car battery charger to charge a motorcycle battery – car chargers supply more current than a motorcycle battery can cope with and can damage the battery beyond repair.
Conventional and Yumicron type batteries need to have their electrolyte checked and topped up with distilled water at regular intervals. Maintenance free batteries use processes that quickly re-absorb the gas into the electrolyte and therefore never need topping up.
Weather and temperature can affect the rate of discharge and functionality of the battery. Hotter temperatures rapidly accelerate the self-discharging process – while a discharged battery is less resistant to the cold and may freeze at -1°C.
Inspect the battery cables, posts and fasteners. If necessary, clean the terminals with a stiff brush or battery cleaner spray. Make sure the cables and their housings are in good shape and the connectors are secured tightly to the battery.