EOC = No battery charging. Is this ever an issue?

[i90east]

Thanks to advice from this forum I've been saving a lot of gas by only running the engine during acceleration. However my battery doesn't get charged much and on a cool night recently my battery voltage dropped below 11 while sitting at a light. This is a new battery. I often turn off the brake lights (using e-brake instead) and headlights (unless I'm at the front of the line) at red lights to keep the voltage up. Plus I bump start as much as possible to mimimize starter usage. I have not had a problem starting tbe car yet but I'm concerned of what might happen next winter.

Has anyone who drives like this had their battery drain to the point of being unable to start the engine from a stop? I have a portable battery charger but I'd rather not have to use it while blocking traffic. I'm also wondering if a solar panel charger would significantly help keep the battery juiced.

[Daox]

Yes, its been a problem for a few people here. Your best bet is to plug in once every few days to recharge your battery fully.

Solar is an option, but not the best one for an automotive application.

[NoD~]

I found myself having this issue, even with a full charge, when doing 50+ mile highway runs on one of my old batteries. I replaced the battery and haven't had the issue since. However, I have replaced my sunroof with a custom solar charging system to further help keep a good charge and reduce alternator strain.

[dirtydave]

I had the same issue for a while. Got a deep cycle battery and upgraded the wires from the starter. Can key start after sitting a good 10 minutes with marker lights and turn signal on.

[dirtydave]

I charge it daily and I have a POS solar panel too

[Gasoline Fumes]

My deep-cycle battery is usually pretty dead after a long night drive. EOC and running the alternator in the low-output mode (a Honda thing) will do that. I've converted most lights to LEDs. And I have a solar panel. But I still have to charge the battery at home.

[oldtamiyaphile]

I used to have this problem and I went and fitted a 100W solar panel.

When I removed it to tidy up the mounting/ wiring job, I altered my technique so that whenever I need to stop/ slow and I'm EOC'ing, I bump start and DFCO, this spins up the alternator and seems to be enough to keep my battery happy. It always sits at 12.8v in the morning.

I also do my best to minimise loads while the engine is off. I'm still debating on whether the solar panel is going back on.

[JRMichler]

The alternator will not fully charge the battery if you do a lot of EOC. The voltage may be correct, the amps may be flowing into the battery, but the battery only accepts charge at a certain rate.

I replaced my battery a year or two ago because it failed young. I now trickle charge overnight twice a week.

[dirtydave]

should we charge our battery's at 2 amp or 10 amp ?

available charge time is 6 hours daily.

I have a group 24 in the trunk with a "smart charger"

[dirtydave]

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