Quote:
Originally Posted by Manic!
How much light does the garage have? Maybe you could use a solar powered trickle charger.
|
I've thought about that. It's a small condo building, and it's relatively dim down there so I don't know if I'd get enough light to do it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bcrdukes
What options do you have for charging your vehicle? I know some vehicles have the ability to charge through the cigarette lighter port. If you have that capability, you can use something like a Jackery in there or one of those smaller portable battery/jumper packs. Check to see if your 12v port actually supports battery charging before you make a decision.
There are several risks to this approach and some food for thought:
1. Weather - How cold is it where you are and how will it impact the battery pack you end up using? If it's very cold in your garage, the drudgery is having to recharge your battery pack regularly, or at least it translates to more routine visits to your car to check on the battery pack.
2. This is unlikely, but will the battery pack explode in your car or invite thieves? The risk is relatively low but your insurance company (I presume ICBC) may not like it.
3. This might not apply to you based on the age of your vehicle, but how far are you away from your vehicle?
When I was in a condo, my battery would die pretty quickly because I found out that the security algorithm used in my Boxster would keep searching for the key for 2-way communication and the cold weather accelerated the battery's death being so far away from the car. My car was in P4 which was as far as it goes. I'd have to have a battery pack on standby to jump start the car when I took it out of storage for spring maintenance or at least a set of jumper cables to get the car going and it was pretty annoying sometimes.
Ever since I moved into a townhome with a garage, the battery hasn't died without doing anything and it's currently in storage and I'm still able to fire the car up. I've since connected it to a Noco battery charger/maintainer, so I don't have the same problem anymore. I don't think you need a massive battery pack to achieve what you're looking to do but it's perhaps a question of how often do you want to invest in checking up on your battery, or if you prefer a "set it and forget it" solution.
Hope this helps.
|
Thank you. I am 4 floors up from my car so I don't think it's communicating with the fob through all that wood and concrete. As far as charging options, my 12V outlet is always live. So I could plug in my phone charger and it'll charge it even when the power is off. I have used a Noco Genius to charge it via this 12V port back when it was garaged, and it would always charge up no sweat.
My plan was, every few days, to go down to the parking garage, plug the Noco charger to the cigarette lighter port, then plug the outlet end to the battery pack, leave said battery pack on the passenger seat, and come back in a few hours when the battery is fully topped up, repeat 1x weekly or 1x bi-weekly, and wouldn't that keep the battery charged indefinitely?
The garage is about 15 degrees according to my car's readout. It doesn't feel very cold down there.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JDMDreams
I have a portable jump starter, battery charger tender, and a volt meter. It really depends on the car, but I've noticed that if you store the car in a underground garage the temp actually doesn't drop much and stays pretty stable. Vs I've had the battery drain on a car in a about a week in winter weather kept outside. But usually the car should be able to last at least a month before voltage starts to drop in the battery. I will just start it up drive it around a few times to bring it back up, or plug into the tender. Luckily for the last few cars I've stored, battery held up for the 3 4 months I've stored them for winter. You can always unplug the battery terminal also but I do agree it's a bitch depending on the car and how much drain it has, you most likely will have to reset everything and loose memory functions.
|
I was surprised to see mine fire up down there after 3 weeks idle. It's decently warm though compared to outside.
You had a car start after sitting for 3-4 months?