Kinetik Dead, Need a new battery

[Justintoxicated 10+ year member]

I'm going to double check this when I get home but I believe I have the Kinetik 2000. It could be the 1800, but I'm pretty sure it's the 2000 in my Nissan titan. I already modified the battery area to fit the huge battery which is now about 4.5 years old. It seemed to be holding up really well until I stopped driving the truck as my daily driver. Now it loses charge if I let it sit for more than a day.

I'm pretty sure its the battery because I have no reason to believe it is the alternator.

Anyways I'm broke and I need to get my crappy rear axle sealed repair again as well so I'm on a budget.

I found the kinetik on sale

Audio Savings | NEW KINETIK KR2712 KHC2000 POWER CELL RACING BATTERY

I was wondering if there is something cheaper that will hold up as well as the kinetik did. I was looking at the Deka 9A31, but its specs are not as good (although some say the battery is better) according to this site Deka Intimidator 9A31 Battery | Absorbed Glass Mat Battery - Remy Battery But besides specs, the battery is an inch too tall, which is a bigger problem,

Click to read more...

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

If you have an AGM charger with a desulfation mode or a constant voltage power supply (set to 14.4 or so) you might be able to save it yet. What kills a battery is called sulphation and it starts happening as soon as the battery is taken off a charge. Happens with ALL lead acid batteries be it standard flooded or AGM because the chemicals contain sulfer that breaks away while the battery is not energized. When this happens the battery is sluggish to recharge because it takes a while to get the sulfer mixed back in as it charges. Bad part about it though is if the sulfer crystalizes because it gets into the pores of the lead cracking it. People will try to confuse this with things like corrosion, "shrinking plates" or "memory". Its not corrosion in the typical sense it can break plates and the sulfer build up takes away capacity but its not a "memory". Go to a local air port and ask about how many batteries they go through a year.

I am also well well past 5 years with my 1400

 

[Justintoxicated 10+ year member]

If you have an AGM charger with a desulfation mode or a constant voltage power supply (set to 14.4 or so) you might be able to save it yet. What kills a battery is called sulphation and it starts happening as soon as the battery is taken off a charge. Happens with ALL lead acid batteries be it standard flooded or AGM because the chemicals contain sulfer that breaks away while the battery is not energized. When this happens the battery is sluggish to recharge because it takes a while to get the sulfer mixed back in as it charges. Bad part about it though is if the sulfer crystalizes because it gets into the pores of the lead cracking it. People will try to confuse this with things like corrosion, "shrinking plates" or "memory". Its not corrosion in the typical sense it can break plates and the sulfer build up takes away capacity but its not a "memory". Go to a local air port and ask about how many batteries they go through a year.I am also well well past 5 years with my 1400

I don't have either of these, is there some way I can rent them? AGM chargers seem to cost as much as a new battery. How can I be sure it is worth the investment? The battery has been showing signs of degredation for several months now, slow starts, trip odometer resetting on startup, guages needles juming up and down for about 5-6 seconds after starting the car. I'm certainly not arguing, and it does indeed sound like what could have happened as I have not been driving it as much due to fuel costs over the past year.

However for the last 2 months I was driving it daily because my car was broken, long trips too, like 30+ or 45+ mile trips (each direction) and it would still have the sluggish startup and other problems I described above. (the needles fluctuation, before, sort of, resetting and asuming their correct readings would happen every time I start the truck no matter how long I had been driving for.

Is there really hope for this battery and is it really worth the investment? I have a battery tender I use on my ATV's Odyysse battery but I think it is too small for the truck.

If I'm wrong about the chargers, can you recommend one that should get the job done? I have another vehicle to drive for now so I can order online and wait a while to try this out if the cost is reasonable.

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

The chargers are not hundreds of dollars (a few are under 50) and even if it doesn't "work" it should be had already and can work on all lead acid batteries. They all get harmed the SAME way and an alternator is not a battery charger persay as it is only a bulk charger it will leave 10-20% of the battery uncharged no matter what. That 80 to 90% eventually becomes the new hundred percent. You should also not just leave batteries in cars without maintaining them as the only difference between batteries left in these conditions might only be a couple of days difference in bringing them back. If you use a charger from time to time you can add months and years to the life of all your automotive batteries. Read some of the actual warranties on batteries when they say they last "years" and have x amount of years of warranty then read what it actually covers and more importantly what it does not.

 

[Justintoxicated 10+ year member]

The chargers are not hundreds of dollars (a few are under 50) and even if it doesn't "work" it should be had already and can work on all lead acid batteries. They all get harmed the SAME way and an alternator is not a battery charger persay as it is only a bulk charger it will leave 10-20% of the battery uncharged no matter what. That 80 to 90% eventually becomes the new hundred percent. You should also not just leave batteries in cars without maintaining them as the only difference between batteries left in these conditions might only be a couple of days difference in bringing them back. If you use a charger from time to time you can add months and years to the life of all your automotive batteries. Read some of the actual warranties on batteries when they say they last "years" and have x amount of years of warranty then read what it actually covers and more importantly what it does not.

Good points, but lately fixing and moving into my new house has taken priority to my cars and trucks, I have very little free time, maybe I'm even considered a workaholic but I do my best and try to keep up. I have always wanted a charger but it was its just low on my list of priorities. So for now only the bare essentials until I get caught up.

However if I can save my battery then it is something that I need, so what do you recommend as far as a decent charger, that can desulficate my battery?

I have this http://www.autogeek.net/btplus.html Battery tender Plus, will it work? I have been searching for a desulfator but most of them cost about as much as a new battery... I did come across this one http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=380226801886&rvr_id=&crlp=1_263602_263622&UA=WVS%3F&GUID=bf8343171200a043731579a5ffe70173&itemid=380226801886&ff4=263602_263622 Is that a decent charger / desulfator for the battery I have?

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

Good points, but lately fixing and moving into my new house has taken priority to my cars and trucks, I have very little free time, maybe I'm even considered a workaholic but I do my best and try to keep up. I have always wanted a charger but it was its just low on my list of priorities. So for now only the bare essentials until I get caught up.
However if I can save my battery then it is something that I need, so what do you recommend as far as a decent charger, that can desulficate my battery?

I have this Deltran Battery Tender Plus, battery tender plus, Battery tender Plus, will it work? I have been searching for a desulfator but most of them cost about as much as a new battery... I did come across this one NEW KINETIK KIBC12-35 POWER CAR BATTERY CELL CHARGER - eBay (item 380226801886 end time Jun-04-10 02:12:17 PDT) Is that a decent charger / desulfator for the battery I have?

You can try any of those or if you have a constant voltage power supply set to 13.9v to 14.7v.. If you use the power supply you MUST monitor the battery charging and if it gets hot or starts drawing alot unhook the powersupply.

A good charger is always needed and recommended as even if your battery has a multiple year warranty it does not mean it covers a dead battery at all, it covers manufaturer defects and not things like sulfation, undercharging, overcharging or parasitic drain. I have seen people not check their installs to make sure everything is working only to discover they killed there yellow batteries within 3 months. There is no reason to leave a battery resting at 12.4 volts, charge that puppy or if you wait to long you will end up needing new sooner rather than later.

 

[Justintoxicated 10+ year member]

You can try any of those or if you have a constant voltage power supply set to 13.9v to 14.7v.. If you use the power supply you MUST monitor the battery charging and if it gets hot or starts drawing alot unhook the powersupply.
A good charger is always needed and recommended as even if your battery has a multiple year warranty it does not mean it covers a dead battery at all, it covers manufaturer defects and not things like sulfation, undercharging, overcharging or parasitic drain. I have seen people not check their installs to make sure everything is working only to discover they killed there yellow batteries within 3 months. There is no reason to leave a battery resting at 12.4 volts, charge that puppy or if you wait to long you will end up needing new sooner rather than later.

I ordered the kinetik charger with the desulfator option. I found my Knu Koncepts battery terminal had worked very slightly loose over the last 4 years. I have the chrome battery terminals as I kept stripping the lead ones when tightening down all my connections. There was virtually no corrosion though //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

I jumped the truck and let it run for 3 hours so it would have some charge while I wait for the desulfator / charger. I'm thinking that I should remove the battery from the vehicle in case something happens (battery explodes or whatever), then run the chargers desulfate option until it completes. Then charge the battery back up at 20 amps. And I will try in the future to better maintain the trucks battery with my battery tender which can stay hooked up to the battery when not in use.

Sound right?

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

I ordered the kinetik charger with the desulfator option. I found my Knu Koncepts battery terminal had worked very slightly loose over the last 4 years. I have the chrome battery terminals as I kept stripping the lead ones when tightening down all my connections. There was virtually no corrosion though //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif
I jumped the truck and let it run for 3 hours so it would have some charge while I wait for the desulfator / charger. I'm thinking that I should remove the battery from the vehicle in case something happens (battery explodes or whatever), then run the chargers desulfate option until it completes. Then charge the battery back up at 20 amps. And I will try in the future to better maintain the trucks battery with my battery tender which can stay hooked up to the battery when not in use.

Sound right?

Yup Read the manual to the charger as well.

You want to be sure the float voltage on the maintainer stays above 13.6v.

If it still seems slugish get a carbon pile load tester set for about 300 amps (maybe a lil more) to work both sides of plates and recharge right after.

 

[Justintoxicated 10+ year member]

Battery is running the desulfate mode on the charger. I'm not sure what you meant about the voltage on the maintainer? The instructions do not really go into great detail, other than that I should charge the battery for 20 minutes before restoring the battery and some general guidelines. I'm not sure whether or not I can use this desulfate option for my ATV's battery which is an Odyysse PC310 (Pretty much the smallest one they make and it only drives the HID lights on it. THe carger says to only use the desulfate mode on larger batteries but the 310 probably needs it more than any other battery I own.

It sits for 6-8 months at a time then gets taken out a couple days a month. In fact this last year it was hardly used at all (maybe 3 times this year).

When I was charging the battery there are some numbers displayed but I don't believe the instructions even say what they mean maybe its volts or maybe it is amps.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

very informative thread. nice work.

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

Battery is running the desulfate mode on the charger. I'm not sure what you meant about the voltage on the maintainer? The instructions do not really go into great detail, other than that I should charge the battery for 20 minutes before restoring the battery and some general guidelines. I'm not sure whether or not I can use this desulfate option for my ATV's battery which is an Odyysse PC310 (Pretty much the smallest one they make and it only drives the HID lights on it. THe carger says to only use the desulfate mode on larger batteries but the 310 probably needs it more than any other battery I own.

It sits for 6-8 months at a time then gets taken out a couple days a month. In fact this last year it was hardly used at all (maybe 3 times this year).

When I was charging the battery there are some numbers displayed but I don't believe the instructions even say what they mean maybe its volts or maybe it is amps.

On a smaller battery CTEK US 800 Battery Charger [CTEK0800] - $46.99 : The ProRaceStore, Racing Parts for the Professional generally works well. It is ment for smaller batteries.

When people put batteries on a maintaining charger it is a STONGLY suggested to check the required float voltage for the battery. When you store a vehicle or a battery leaving it hooked up to a maintainer is better than just letting it sit. The maintainers and chargers have float voltages that should meet the required float voltage of the battery they are connected too. If it is too high or too low it can kill your battery when you are actually thinking you are taking care of the battery. If you just leave a vehicle sit with the battery connected you can have a parasitic drain kill the battery in as little as a few days, so at the minimum I suggest disconnecting the battery.

 

[Apollo220 10+ year member]

i have a kinetik 1400 if your interest for 150 plus ship

 

[aviator08 10+ year member]

hey if your charge wont go above 10.xx volts is it a dead cell for sure or something else?

 

[Justintoxicated 10+ year member]

On a smaller battery CTEK US 800 Battery Charger [CTEK0800] - $46.99 : The ProRaceStore, Racing Parts for the Professional generally works well. It is ment for smaller batteries.
When people put batteries on a maintaining charger it is a STONGLY suggested to check the required float voltage for the battery. When you store a vehicle or a battery leaving it hooked up to a maintainer is better than just letting it sit. The maintainers and chargers have float voltages that should meet the required float voltage of the battery they are connected too. If it is too high or too low it can kill your battery when you are actually thinking you are taking care of the battery. If you just leave a vehicle sit with the battery connected you can have a parasitic drain kill the battery in as little as a few days, so at the minimum I suggest disconnecting the battery.

It sounds like the Battery tender plus will not work well for the kinetik? The Battery Tender Plus has a float voltage of 13.2v and the kintetik suggests 13.5v-13.8v (Or is that close enough? better than letting it sit?)

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

hey if your charge wont go above 10.xx volts is it a dead cell for sure or something else?

can be sulfation, I have seen and worked with many different batteries resting as low as 4 volts and brought them back. Some do not come back at all. If you have a system that can pull more power than your alt puts out and you notice you have a low sitting battery chances are it is undercharged/sulfated. I don't have too great of luck with bringing back some batteries like spiral cells with the chargers but most others do eventually come back (may take a few cycles of charge discharge and recharge right after you ran it down some). You dont want to desulfate a charged battery and most chargers have to kick into it rather than being selectable. Charging up a dead or a low battery is also a form of desulphation as sulfation starts as soon as a battery is removed from a charge.. I use desulphation when the battery wont accept a charge. Look up the term you will see more hands on what it actually is and what causes it. It is one of the main reasons most all -if not all -battery companies do not cover undercharging situations as that is not a defect of the product but rather a deficiency of a proper charging system and or monitoring of the battery.