Dead Optima

[bensredyj]

We left a red top optima in a ZJ LOCKED for 5 months, now the battery is drained. Can these sealed batteries be brought back to life on a trickle charger, or are the just scrap now and time for a NEW battery? Thanks.

[brokenxj]

I have had 2 red tops, both went south on me. Once they discharged, they would never take another charge. I have read that they need a 1-2 amp trickle charge to recharge, YMMV.

[87B2XLT]

The red top that was in ol' Brown (the Chevy) wouldn't hold a charge, either. If it wasn't driven every 2-3 days, it wouldn't start without being jumped. My uncle put it on a trickle charge for 20-30 hours and still nothing. It sat dead until I went and bought a non-Optima for it. The Optimas (Red, Yellow, Blue top) I've had dealings with were junk (then again, most battery chargers we had were not able to be set for such a small trickle charge that I recall?). I don't plan on wasting the money on one anytime soon... *shrug*

Dave G

[A "CJ"]

Jun 1, 2010 12:15:25 GMT -5 bensredyj said:

We left a red top optima in a ZJ LOCKED for 5 months, now the battery is drained. Can these sealed batteries be brought back to life on a trickle charger, or are the just scrap now and time for a NEW battery? Thanks.

I have had this happen several times over the years. A slow trickle charge 1 - 2 amps max and 2 days minimum have brought the yellow or red tops back to life without issue. Have had the yellow top for 7 years now and the red top around 6. Both are still going strong,. Before wheeling trips I do put it on charge for a day to make sure it is ready to go, The CJ sits a lot between wheelin trips, but I have started to disconnect the battery too !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

tim

[jeeepxj]

Try paralleling another known good battery with the dead Optima and trickle charge both of them.
I believe the Optima website suggests this method. It saved one of mine..

[ScramblerPat]

Tech Tips – Powered by OPTIMA Batteries®
Tech Tip #3 – Don't Throw Away Your "Dead" AGM Battery: Three Tips on Resuscitating a Deeply Discharged AGM Battery
Like a ghost story, sometimes the seemingly dead really aren't dead at all. The same may be true for your over-discharged AGM battery.

In time, AGM batteries, including OPTIMA batteries, may fail. Failures are typically caused when a starting battery is used in a cycling application, in which a deep cycle battery is the better choice.

Okay, so now you have a seemingly bad AGM battery, you attach it to your charger and…CLICK. The charger won't even charge it! "It must be a bad battery!" you exclaim. Or is it? In many cases, OPTIMA batteries that are assumed to be bad may actually be perfectly fine, just deeply discharged.

The great thing about AGM batteries, including OPTIMA Red Top® and Yellow Top® batteries, is that they have incredibly low internal resistance. This allows very high amperage output and for the battery to accept a charge very quickly.

An AGM battery, with its low internal resistance, may stump car guys because sometimes it doesn't work like a traditional flooded lead acid battery.

Here's the problem: most battery chargers have built-in safety features. A traditional battery that's at 10.5 volts or less is seen as defective, having either a short, a bad cell or some other defect. The charger "knows better" than to charge a defective battery because the results could be unsafe. But the fact is the AGM battery is just fine; it has simply slipped below the minimum voltage threshold of the charger and the charger doesn't know what to do with the battery.

Here are three options for bringing that fine AGM battery back to life. So grab your jumper cables and charger and…CLEAR!

Recovery Option #1: The Best Solution – AGM-Specific Chargers

The best method for recharging a deeply discharged AGM battery is to purchase a modern charger that has kept up with battery technology. Many chargers now have AGM-specific settings and de-sulfation steps that help recondition and recover deeply discharged AGM batteries. These are becoming more common, and they work well for all lead acid batteries. They have the additional capability of doubling as a battery "maintainer" for vehicle storage. Some come with additional wiring to permanently attach leads from your battery to an accessible spot on your vehicle. This makes it easy to hook up when you store your car, truck, boat or RV.

OPTIMA Batteries does not officially endorse specific chargers—we simply don't have the time to test all of the excellent chargers on the market. There are a few that our customers and staff have tried and liked. You can contact OPTIMA Batteries Customer Service at 888-8-OPTIMA (888-867-8462) or via email at [e-mail] for charger recommendations based on different applications.

Recovery Option #2: The DIY Solution

This is a recovery method for the do-it-yourselfer using the equipment you've got in the garage. With this option, you're going to trick your charger into charging the deeply discharged AGM battery.

Here's what you need:

Battery charger
Jumper cables
A good battery, preferably above 12.2 volts (It can be an AGM or flooded battery, it doesn't matter.)
The seemingly dead, deeply discharged AGM battery
A watch or timer
Now, here's what you do:

Hook up the good battery and deeply discharged AGM battery in parallel—positive to positive and negative to negative. Do not have the charger connected to the battery or turned on at this stage.
Now, hook up the good battery to the charger. Turn on the charger. The charger will "see" the voltage of the good battery, and start providing a charge.
After the batteries have been hooked up for about an hour, check to see if the AGM battery is slightly warm or hot to the touch. Batteries naturally become warm during charging, but excessive heat may be an indication that there really is something wrong with the battery. Also discontinue the process if you hear the battery "gassing"—a hissing sound coming from the safety valves. If it's hot or gassing, STOP CHARGING IMMEDIATELY!
Check back every hour to see if the AGM battery has charged to 10.5 volts or above. If it has, disconnect the charger from the wall outlet and remove the good battery from the charger. Now, connect only the deeply discharged AGM battery to the charger. Turn on the charger and continue until the AGM battery reaches a full charge, or until the automatic charger completes the charge process. In most cases, the AGM battery will be recovered.
Recovery Option #3: Enlist the Professionals

If you don't own a battery charger, you don't want to make the investment, or you're not the do-it-yourself kind of guy, this is the option for you.

Take the battery to a professional battery specialist who knows AGM technology. Most specialists are willing to provide "charge and check" procedures free or for a small fee. Auto parts stores are typically not capable of accurately determining an AGM battery's condition, and many use conductance testers that don't provide correct readings. Battery specialists like Interstate Batteries and other independent battery distributors are experts who can help determine if your battery is recoverable or not.

[A "CJ"]

Thank you Pat, excellent information. I see what Craig was talking about as well to parallel the batteries.

tim

[ScramblerPat]

This info is from www.batteriesareus.com I have used it to recover a yellow top thought to be dead..


Charging an Optima or AGM Battery
After handling the Optima product for 15+ years we would like to share the following:

See our NEW line of OPTIMA recommended Chargers (Battery Accessories)
Facts:
- Batteries are designed to store electricity.
- Batteries do not make electricity.
- Batteries must be charged before any testing is accurate or effective.
- Alternators ARE NOT battery chargers!
- Seldom to batteries discharge / re-charge on their own.
- Deep Cycle batteries will take much longer to charge.
- Battery chargers need to be tested and amperage and the voltage checked manually.
- Sitting a battery on concrete does NOT discharge it!


Battery charging instructions:

* Voltage at the battery terminals when vehicle is running should Be from a minimum of 12.8 volts to < 15.0 volts
* Battery chargers should charge 13.8 ? 15.50 volts,

Never charge a battery at > than 15.6 volts.

We recommend the following charging procedure for a fully discharged 34, 34/78, 75/35, and 6v:

1) Charge the battery A MINIMUM OF 100 amps for 15 mins ( @ 14.5+ volts)
a) Let battery and charger cool for 15 mins
2) Repeat step one at least four times - after letting battery cool 15 mins after each charge
3) Charge at 2-10 amps (trickle / automatic) for 24 hours minimum
4) Test the battery
5) D31 batteries: repeat each step again

--> WE ALWAYS RECOMMEND CHARGING TWO BATTERIES AT A TIME- CONNECT THEM POSTIVE POST TO POSITIVE POST ? negative post to negative post) AND PUT THE CHARGER NEGATIVE CABLE ON ONE BATTERY AND THE POSITIVE ON THE OTHER BATTERY! (and DOUBLE CHARGING TIMES)

ALL Optima's need Charged up if they have been discharged, before testing!


We compare charging an Optima to waking a teenager up on Saturday morning, or filling an empty 55-gallon drum with water ? it?s going to take some work!

Charging 10 amps on a drained 31 series battery is like filling a 55 gallon drum with an eye dropper!
Charging 10 amps on a drained 34/78 sries battery is like filling a 55 gallon drum with a 10oz cup - it can be done; but why?

Your alternator will not (and should not be used to) charge an OPTIMA up - unless you have a 100 amp alternator and less than 100 amp draw, and charge it for A long period of time with the car running. (and this will only ruin your alternator)


Experience indicates most batteries thought to be defective may have been discharged, and just need woke up ? and recharged,

[bensredyj]

Thanks ya'll, breathed new life into the red top...

Any one have one layn around they want to off load?

[87B2XLT]

I'd say yes, but the one I had went in for core refund.

Going to backtrack here.... after some discussion on this with my uncle, I found out he had done several trickle charges, 24 hrs was the minimum, he even used a known good fully charged spare battery to do the parallel thing and it still didn't bounce back. Most of the folks he's worked with at auto parts stores will sell you an Optima if you want one, but they won't go out of their way to sell you one because of the number of returns they get on them in this area. When I got back to Texas from Japan, I even took the time to do the 100 amp blast cycle 4 times and then trickle charge for 24+ hours TWICE, and still nothing - it'd be dead in 3 days if it wasn't driven. I even went over everything I know of very thoroughly looking for an electrical system problem, nothing. Not knowing the age of said Optima, could be that it was just beyond service - I don't know of any battery that will last forever, not even with meticulous maintenance.

Dave G