CTEK - not for the van ??

Discussion in 'Mech Tech' started by Lasty, May 16, 2019.

  1. Thought i`d try out a CTEK 5A on mi flatish (7.5v) 90Ah leisure battery with a view to fitting it in the van ....

    Bit of an eye opener .

    Did everything it was supposed to do on startup and currently on the bulk charge but lordy it`s getting hot , i mean i can just about pick it up but i`m not leaving it plugged in if i venture out for a light ale or two ....

    Can`t be normal to generate that amount of heat surely ??

    :hattip:
     
    Dub and Dubber likes this.
  2. Think you might need a bigger CTEK, I use a 300 watt one, but it runs the 110 watt fridge plus lights, propex, TV etc when on hookup.
     
  3. Never noticed mine getting hot at all and I leave it charging in the garage all the time..
     
  4. Just to clarify , it`s not yet installed but just filling up the battery is creating enough heat to have me worried ...

    :hattip:
     
  5. The 5 amp one is a tiddler, isn't it?
     
  6. Mine gets warm, I would not want to leave it unattended. Just charging a flat battery. Didnt pay any attention once it was full if it cooled
     
    paul2590 likes this.
  7. Just been out to the garage to check the one I use on the Bug. The news is it's a 5 amp one, but the Bug's only got a small battery. It doubt it should be so hot you can't touch it, even charging a dead battery.
     
  8. That’s the same as mine and yes it gets slightly hot. I installed it under the R&R bed and prop the seat up to allow additional ventilation at times.




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  9. Duplicate post
     
  10. I think @theBusmonkey uses a 10 amp one on his leisure battery, 5 seems a bit under specced. Although bolting it to the bodywork will help dissipate the heat.
     
  11. 7.5 volt battery??
     
  12. snotty likes this.
  13. snotty likes this.
  14. They do get hot if putting out full current. Same as any transformer does. If its a genuine Ctek I would trust it. Never known one burn out.
     
  15. nicktuft

    nicktuft Supporter

    Last edited: May 16, 2019
    Lasty likes this.
  16. Dub and Dubber

    Dub and Dubber Supporter

    Hijack .....
    I've got this left over from my son's RC "buggy".
    Am I right in thinking I have to connect up on the front there if I want DC for a little anti-rust electrolysis test? :hattip:
     
  17. I would have thought a leisure battery showing 7.2 volt would indicate it’s shagged
     
    mgbman, Bulletooth, paul2590 and 5 others like this.
  18. mikedjames

    mikedjames Supporter

    The 7.5 amp charger at say 14.2 volts is putting out 106 watts into the battery. If its say 90 percent efficient, that means about 10 or 11 watts of heat is being produced by the charger. If that is in a small box then it will get hot if you starve it of airflow.

    I would expect the Ctek to simply back off if ot gets too hot, or shut down.

    The horror story on Pistonheads was probably a battery with a shorted cell that confused the charger into overcharging, not particularly a Ctek fault necessarily.

    My 10 amp charger has a cooling fan which runs up when the fridge comes on drawing 4 amps. And that is in a big aluminium box which it shares with a 600 watt inverter.
     

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  19. Gingerbus

    Gingerbus Supporter

    I would go along with this...

    I have a starter and leisure battery and sometimes I’d isolate before charging each with they’re own charger, other times I’d put a Ctek across both and charge together.
    That was until my leisure battery exploded spraying acid everywhere and leaving me a half-full of acid battery with the lid half missing to extract from the engine bay. That was fun. Ctek died too.
    I suspect charging two batteries of differing types and states in parallel confuses the charger as it just sees one cumulative load and it kept going despite one being knackered.
    Luckily I keep the bus in an airy poly tunnel type thing.

    So I now have two new batteries (same A/H) and a new charger and isolate them before charging.
    I also had to replace my voltage regulator and wonder if that was a victim of the shagged battery load on the alternator via the split charge relay.


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  20. The bigger ones have a heat sensor for the battery too.
     

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