# battery and charger question



## Thejudge 69GTO (Mar 22, 2012)

Last year I bought a optima redtop for the gto then picked up a craftsman 2amp float charger for the winter,well a few days ago the charger was flashing and the batt toast.

I took it back to sams club to Exchange the batt and was told they didn't carry the optima brand anymore and was given a Duracell 78dt agm instead. 

1. Has anyone used or have knowledge of the Duracell? I felt like it was a down grade. The redtop was $45 more and the Duracell has slightly less cca amps. But both are agm.

2. What's a good float charger I can use the winter that won't tear up the batt?

Scott


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

As far as a battery charger, Battery Tender is extremely popular.......


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## Josh.AZ.GTO (Jul 11, 2009)

Battery Minders are also good and have "pulse" technology which claims to prevent sulfation. I have both Deltran and Battery Minder products which work great. As a manager of battery store we use a 10 bank Deltran tender to float our batteries after charging with a standard charger. We charge to about 12.2 volts and float it up to 13. 


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## Thejudge 69GTO (Mar 22, 2012)

I'll pick up one of those deltran batt tenders today,thx for the advice.

Would the Jr. Model be ok for me?


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## Josh.AZ.GTO (Jul 11, 2009)

I usually recommend the Deltran 12v 1.25 for full size car batteries (my preference). The Jr. will work though, just takes longer to reach "float". Also, they are load bearing so they must be connected to a battery to take a voltage reading, if you are ever trying to test the tender. Also, if the battery is too low in voltage they will not recognize they are connected to a battery and thus not charge/float your battery.


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## Josh.AZ.GTO (Jul 11, 2009)

Thejudge 69GTO said:


> Last year I bought a optima redtop for the gto then picked up a craftsman 2amp float charger for the winter,well a few days ago the charger was flashing and the batt toast.
> 
> I took it back to sams club to Exchange the batt and was told they didn't carry the optima brand anymore and was given a Duracell 78dt agm instead.
> 
> ...


Most places like Sam's Club and Costco quit selling Optimas, but you should be able to get them warrantied through Optima corporate if you insist on another Optima. The Durcacell batteries are most likely a relabel of another brand. One day at my store I had a guy come in and pull the Exide labels and replace them with Rayovac. Just like that we sell Rayovac now. We get ours from East Penn. Still the same manufacturer though, just new label. Roughly around 2009 Optima moved manufacturing (changed ownership) to Mexico and had quality issues for some time. Since then they have come back around in terms of quality but the warranty has drastically been reduced to only a 3 year free replacement and no more proration period. 

I have a similar battery to your Duracell in our store which is also an AGM, typically they seem to last just as long as the Optimas. I would just make sure that the warranties line up or that you get your 3 years of your original purchase warranty. 

Also as a note to others, you might want to check your warranty information and verify what is able to be warrantied. Through the company I work for, we (through corporate) refund the purchase of a new battery if you have to purchase a battery and our company was not open, able, or near where your battery has died, like in an emergency case situation.


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## HP11 (Apr 11, 2009)

Josh.AZ.GTO said:


> Most places like Sam's Club and Costco quit selling Optimas, but you should be able to get them warrantied through Optima corporate if you insist on another Optima.


You would think that would be the case but I seem to recall sparring with 'Optima Jim' a couple of years ago about that here. I've owned a couple of those highly overated (IMO) Optima batteries in the past. Both of the ones that I had troulbe with came from Costco. I tried to get a warranty exchange thorugh Optima on the last one since Costco no longer sold them at that point and they told me I'd have to take it back to where I purchased it.


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## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

Another thing to keep in mind is to never charge any battery with gel technology with more than a trickle charger. If you overcharge, you can cause gas bubbles in the gel that stay there, like swiss cheese, leaving the plates exposed. I always go with 2 amps and a long time....


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## GTO67 (Jan 27, 2012)

*Optima battery*

I also have the Optima Redtop battery. Optima now sells a charger for their batteries. Check out this link:

OPTIMA Chargers Digital 1200 Battery Charger - 12V Performance Charger and Battery Maintainer


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## Josh.AZ.GTO (Jul 11, 2009)

geeteeohguy said:


> Another thing to keep in mind is to never charge any battery with gel technology with more than a trickle charger. If you overcharge, you can cause gas bubbles in the gel that stay there, like swiss cheese, leaving the plates exposed. I always go with 2 amps and a long time....


:agree I have seen this many times. I have warrantied many Optimas over the years that make fizzing sounds (one that lasted for almost 2 days) usually due to over charging at high amps such as 10. 

My opinion is anything under 5 volts to use a 10 amp* for 30 minutes to an hour at most and then 2 amps the rest of the way. Being in the battery business I can vouch that slow but surely like 2 amps on an automatic charger turns out the best results.

(*The only reason I use 10 amps is attempt to charge the battery quickly up to 12 volts for warranty purposes.) 

All of my personal batteries I charge @ 2 amps till near full then onto the float charger till it is completely topped off.


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## ppurfield001 (Jan 21, 2008)

Thejudge 69GTO said:


> Last year I bought a optima redtop for the gto then picked up a craftsman 2amp float charger for the winter,well a few days ago the charger was flashing and the batt toast.
> 
> I took it back to sams club to Exchange the batt and was told they didn't carry the optima brand anymore and was given a Duracell 78dt agm instead.
> 
> ...



My solution is to hook-up a master shutoff switch. Car always starts, even after long periods of inactivity. Good luck.


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## Cavtrp (May 29, 2012)

Duracell make a good battery. I have always run into problems with Optima batteries when charging them. They never seem to hold a charge. So when we get them in the shop, we junk them.

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