Gel Battery charge?

[andy gee]

I tried a search but strangely to no avail?//?
Is it possible to charge a gel battery in the same way as a normal battery?
I haven't used the bike for a couple of weeks and now flat as a witches tit? Something obviously 'draining' it I will disconnect everything form it once/if I get it charged.Thanks for any help

 

[MattW]

Yep - you can charge it with a normal bike battery charger (although a clever one like ctek or optimate are better).

However, once you've flattened a battery (especially if it's left flat for any length of time), it's effectively toast. It's capacity will be substantially reduced and no amount of fancy chargers will restore the lost capacity. You may get away with over the summer but I'm afraid you've got a new battery in your future ...

 

[andy gee]

Thanks Matt,
Appreciate the quick reply
Damn! Its an Odyssey too...Oh well get it charged and look to replace! My fault obviously I've got something wired up wrong
Thanks again

 

[MattW]

Thanks Matt,
Appreciate the quick reply
Damn! Its an Odyssey too...Oh well get it charged and look to replace! My fault obviously I've got something wired up wrong
Thanks again

No worries
However - if it's an odyssey they need specific chargers - apparently the newer ctek or optimates are fine but they shouldn't be charged on a standard wet cell charger (or so I read - I'm not an odyssey user - I've just got a standard OEM gel).

 

[andy gee]

Double Damn!!!!
Sounds like a better plan is to just replace and re-figure my wiring genius!!
She will be pleased.......Once more thank you for your time

 

[AberdeenAngus]

Specific charger ?

 

[Stewart H]

Odysseys seem to need a good kicking to get them started, I hit mine with about 6 Amps from an old fashioned car charger for a few hours then switch to my Oximiser.

 

[cookie]

i've charged odysseys with various chargers, with no ill effects that i can detect.

don't forget they get no fancy treatment when wired into your bike's charging system.

 

[Dragon Master]

I got an Odyssey about three years ago from Motorworks, with a C-Tek 'recommended' charger. I managed to flatten it trying to start the old GS; injectors weren't firing, and battery got down to the machine gun stage.

But the C-Tek charged it up OK, tried several times to start the bike, but gave up eventually. Battery has stood on the living room floor until about four weeks back, when I put it on the new 1100. Works perfectly, not even ABS problems when starting of a morning with headlight and heated grips on...

Maybe try to get a C-Tek charger before you bin the battery..?

 

[MattW]

As I said, I'm not an Odyssey user but there's all sorts of twaddle talked about them on here amongst which is that standard wet cell chargers aren't suitable

But then again, you'd think they're made of special magic from what some people say - perhaps you just have to align them to north and sacrifice a chicken?...

 

[cookie]

perhaps you just have to align them to north and sacrifice a chicken?...

well, obviously i did that. i wasn't totally blasé about it

 

[Dragon Master]

As I said, I'm not an Odyssey user but there's all sorts of twaddle talked about them on here amongst which is that standard wet cell chargers aren't suitable

But then again, you'd think they're made of special magic from what some people say - perhaps you just have to align them to north and sacrifice a chicken?...

Even though I'm a 'user', I agree, there's a lot of twaddle talked about them. I just relayed my experience. Each to his own..

By the way, no Chickens, would a Rabbit do?

 

[MattW]

well, obviously i did that. i wasn't totally blasé about it

Ah, but what sort of chicken is best

 

[motobiker]

No worries
However - if it's an odyssey they need specific chargers - apparently the newer ctek or optimates are fine but they shouldn't be charged on a standard wet cell charger (or so I read - I'm not an odyssey user - I've just got a standard OEM gel).

Fella down the road from me has a GSA with an Oddity battery installed. He used to have a Datatool that drained the battery completely.

my now.. antique Optimate successfully rescued the battery and its still going strong a year later. I know this because he told me a week ago.

The Datatool was ripped out and binned.

I know Oddity owners like to think their batteries are really special.. but they're not. they're just overpriced AGM batteries with the wrong connectors. (making them even more special)

I'm not sure where this 'specific charger' nonsense has come from.. but its bollox.

More likely than not promulgated by Oddity themselves to sell more product and repeated so often its 'become true'.

It says quite clearly in the instructions that came with my old optimate - suitable for AGM.

 

[cookie]

Ah, but what sort of chicken is best

a battery chicken of course

 

[MattW]

a battery chicken of course

...

 

[Stewart H]

My oddity battery is special and its a lovely orange colour

 

[AberdeenAngus]

What's the best sort of electricity to use?
My preference is power from a wind turbine, on a heather clad Scottish mountain, at dawn.

 

[Phil Robinson]

Odsessy and other batteries

...

Hi thought I would add my tuppence worth !!

Just binned BMW Exide Gel battery !! Even a run and\or charging the thing wont crank the bike more than 3 times !! Had a problem in Spain one morning in October and the thing only just fired on the 3 crank!!

Got the Odsessy thingy now and will crank the bike several times before any problems- just turn ignition off wait a few seconds and hey presto it will crank it again and again !! Paid about £80 for it whilst BMW quoted £125 for another gel battery. Bit of a pain to fit as I have the Adventure tank so not much clearance. I am going to lengthen the negative lead so that I can take the "terminal posts" off and connect cables direct to battery. But bottom line it got the bike started yesterday after it had stood for a year !!

As to chargers I think the issue with Optimates is that they use a charge of 20v to desulphate the battery which can overheat the battery whereas the CTEK uses a max of 14.4v.

As to batteries generally , I have a ZZR 600 which despite the Optimate charger being used went through one battery every couple of years. However current battery is 8 years plus in age and no problems at all !!

 

[warmshed]

I have the Optimate 3 and it does not like Odyssey battery when they are run down, just goes into red led and does not charge. (measured with a meter. It is fine to keep it topped up and I believe this has been cure with the Pptimate4. Unlike gel batteries that tend to sulphate up very quickly if left discharged for any length of time, I have found the Odyssey battery recovers fine. I use an old ordinary 6amp battery charger to get the charge going.

As mentioned they should not have chargers that give over 14.7volts due to pressure build up that enable the gas to leak from the valves