Battery Trickle Charger

[tekoontz]

Do I need a special battery charger and/or trickle charger for my 2025 BS Heritage ?

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[Dude]

Do I need a special battery charger and/or trickle charger for my 2025 BS Heritage ?

It’s mostly dependent on your driving pattern - if you drive at least 20-30 minutes at 30mph or faster for 3 or more times a week that will keep the battery sufficiently charged

Some people drive their vehicle not that often and can benefit from using a battery maintainer

Either method should keep the AGM Battery in good shape until it finally degrades from age and exposure to non ideal temperature / vibrations

You are in New Mexico from your profile so if anything like phoenix extreme temperatures, I replace my battery every 2 years like a maintenance item rather than getting more battery lifetime but risk a battery failure

 

[tekoontz]

you misunderstood my question.
does an agm battery need a special charger ?

 

[Dude]

you misunderstood my question.
does an agm battery need a special charger ?

If the charger supports multiple battery types such as flooded lead acid, AGM, etc. which almost all (at least reasonably newer chargers) then you won’t need anything special for AGM

Do you have a charger now? If so what model is it? I just bought a battery maintainer / battery tender / charger at Costco and it supports several battery types including AGM:
“Compatible With AGM, GEL, Lithium (Lifepo4), And Standard (Sealed Or Flooded Lead-Acid) Batteries”

 

[wireman]

My Schumacher charger will let you pick the type of battery you have, lead acid, gel, AGM.

 

[tekoontz]

If the charger supports multiple battery types such as flooded lead acid, AGM, etc. which almost all (at least reasonably newer chargers) then you won’t need anything special for AGM

Do you have a charger now? If so what model is it? I just bought a battery maintainer / battery tender / charger at Costco and it supports several battery types including AGM:
“Compatible With AGM, GEL, Lithium (Lifepo4), And Standard (Sealed Or Flooded Lead-Acid) Batteries”

no

 

[RSH]

I also have a Schumacher battery charger as well, you can choose between lead acid or AGM battery charging. I've never needed to use it on my 2021 Badlands, it has a AGM battery, have not had any low charge issue's with it.

 

[tekoontz]

I also have a Schumacher battery charger as well, you can choose between lead acid or AGM battery charging. I've never needed to use it on my 2021 Badlands, it has a AGM battery, have not had any low charge issue's with it.

My BS sat for a week because I was sick.
When I checked it with the Ford app, it was in deep sleep mode.
That’s why I thoght it would be a good idea to have a charger.

 

[Dude]

This is $45 at Costco

 

[sajohnson]

My BS sat for a week because I was sick.
When I checked it with the Ford app, it was in deep sleep mode.
That’s why I thoght it would be a good idea to have a charger.

That is good reason. Most older cars could sit for quite a while without significantly discharging the battery, but many newer vehicles like the BS will drain the battery quickly. "Deep sleep mode" is designed to maintain enough of a charge to start the engine, but ideally a battery will be kept close to 100% SOC.

Needless to say, a slight discharge is fine, but I like to keep our AGM above 12.6V. If it gets to that point or below I connect a Battery Tender.

The good news is that the AGM that replaced the OE battery seems to be holding a charge much better. The voltage is generally 12.67V or higher. I haven't had to use the BT as often. The only time I've seen it below 12.6V is when we were using it to tow a trailer around the property and it was started several times and not run for very long.

BT and Battery Maintainer are good brands. FYI, Noco plays the "Ya want a steering wheel with that?" game. They make customers buy items that are included with BT and they charge a premium for all accessories. In addition, they use a proprietary connector. BT and Battery Maintainer use a standard 12V connector.

The BT Dude linked to is good. $45 is a decent price.

 

[RSH]

When I had a motor home I used a solar trickle charger to maintain the battery, I would set the panel on the dash, it came with various connection options I used the cigarette lighter connection, it was decent and could be used anywhere. Harbour Freight has solar charger that has good reviews, you could check it out, they also have regular chargers as well.

 

[Escape2Bronco]

I’ve been using BT Jr’s for 20 plus years. Works fine on my BS when it sits for most of the summer.

 

[Glamdring70]

+1 for Schumacher. A lot of brands have sold their name and slapped it on some garbage products. IDK who actually holds the name, but the Schumacher equipment is good. I have one like this. It works as both a charger and tender on both LA and AGM batteries and the output is high enough to handle anything from a jetski to a large size truck battery. Its a good tool to have in the garage for most conceivable vehicles going forward.

And don't ask me why, but this particular one seems to be on sale right now at Home Depot for the disgusting low price of under $40. It usually runs in the $70-$80 range.

 

[Brent@ANParts]

Yup any newer Battery Tender device should do the trick. I haven't needed one for a while here in AZ but winter is indeed coming...

 

[Chiefthepup]

I’ve had great experience with noco genius 2d

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