Flat battery

[benrolo]

I know this sounds stupid, but I bought a wagon a few months ago and with the dark nights I have managed to run down the battery, so when I tried it yesterday it was flat. How do I get it recharged, can I attach jump leads from a car or does it have to be another wagon or can I remove the battery to recharge it and do I need a different battery charger from the one I have for the car?

 

[dieseldog]

You can use the one you would for a car, it wil just take longer to recharge as the battery is bigger. You can jump start them but you need something pretty powerful, mine won't go of my car but will my sisters discovery. If you have got a 24v system (2 batteries) you will need two vehicles - one for each battery. Mines only got 1 battery so it's easier to deal with, but if you've got 2 you might have to disconnect the batteries and charge them seperatly - not sure.

Get an isolater switch fitted - no more flat batteries!

 

[YorksG]

We can start our waggon from the Suzuki Jumny, but only if we keep it revving and let it charge for a while, also it doesn't always make good contact from the Jump leads( it took ages yesterday in foul weather). The waggon is a four litre deisel and the car only a 1300cc. Hope that helps.

 

[spooks]

i started my bedford tk from my ford mondeo, just got my dad to rev the car while i started the lorry.

 

[benrolo]

Thanks, we have a 3 litre Nissan Terrano so we'll give it a go and thanks also for the tip about the isolator!

 

[Marnie]

I always start mine from my Peuogot 306 with no problems. I have to be abit careful though, because even with an isolator, my radio is still live, and if I don't remove the fuse, will run the battery down!

Good luck!

 

[tazet]

hi i have an HGV lorry with 2 batteries to make it 24v and i can jump strat that from a small portable unit so anything is possible i would certainly recomend an isolator switch to the battrey but also check the tacho as if you have one it will be permanently running i have a switch on mine so when the lorry is not in use it will not drain any power. also short runs are not good for it especially in the winter. i would recomend you get a new battery if it is still not holding a charge the altermator could be up the creek.
good luck.

 

[Rambo]

I managed to flatten my battery at the weekend trying to start the wagon (it used to start first time everytime, until I sent it away for a service, and now it's a pain

). Anyway, I have a portable generator which has a 12v output on it which can be used to put some juice back into the battery. About 15 minutes running on that and it went straight away

 

[foraday]

Just get a set of HEAVY DUTY jump leads and if your lorry has one battery on that means its 12v and can be easily started on a normal car battery with the jump leads. Its dead easy red to red (positive or + sign) and black to black (negative or - sign)

Rev up the car for around 5 mins and then this will help the battery on the lorry.

If you are using your lorry weekly or starting it weekly it should hold the charge.

If you have a 24v system (2 batteries) you can start it from a car quite easily! You put the red lead on one battery on the red or positive (on one battery) and then check your leads and which lead connects to what and then the black lead on the black or negative (on the other battery)

You can buy a charge and start for around 100 from www.screwfix.com

But it does sound like one of your battery cells may have died in which case a new battery is required.

Maybe call out your breakdown recovery to confirm it is the battery that is dead and not the alternator!

 

[Sags_Deer]

get an isolater switch fitted mine kept doing that a lot, works a treat

 

[MDJO]

as well as getting an isolator switch, you may also need to take the fuse out that runs the tacho. Mine kept ticking away (despite putting the tacho to 'sleep') and my battery was flat as a pancake... keep the fuse on the dash board and just pop it back in before you start up

 

[PeterNatt]

Firstly you need to determine if your vehicle is a 12 Volt or 24 Volt. If it is 24 Volt then you need to find another 24 Volt truck. Heavy duty leads are essential - which you can get from an agricultural tractor dealership or commercial vehicle parts distributor. Something must be draining the battery. Is the tachograph on or are there other items in the living using it up? May be worthwhile considering a new good quality battery.