How do you Charge the Battery in your Edge?

[oskar27]

Recently the battery in my 2016 Edge Titanium went dead and had to install a new one. All went well but since I don’t drive a lot in the winter I was thinking to charge the battery to assure it’s always fully charged.

 

I have for years a trickle battery charger which I use to charge the 12V battery in my John Deere tractor during the winter months however this battery is removed from the tractor and stored in my workshop so the charging process is quite easy. I plan to use the same charger for the Edge.

 

The battery on the Edge is not located in an easy to access area and if I have to remove the battery cables it will be even harder.

 

So how do you charge the battery? Do you have to remove the battery cables and the battery?

 

Thanks

[lildisco]

Don't know what brand of battery charger you use, but most battery tender / trickle chargers give to leads to go to the posts of the battery & give you a quick disconnect point so you can easily connect/disconnect. That depends on which you have or if you buy a new one. Battery tender is pretty good & I have several that I use. 

https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tender-021-0123-Junior-Charger/dp/B000CITK8S

 

https://www.amazon.com/Deltran-Battery-Tender-Power-Plus/dp/B016S7NHWQ/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?c=ts&keywords=Battery+Chargers&qid=1640080781&refinements=p_89%3ABattery+Tender&s=automotive&sr=1-5&ts_id=15707061

[oskar27]

Mine is about 10 years old charger with alligator clips. I like what the links show especially the quick connect/disconnect and I may buy one. Notice they come in various Amps range, what is a good  Amp range to get?

Thanks

[lildisco]

If you're going with a trickle charger it doesn't really matter. The amps doesn't matter unless you're battery is close to being dead. It'll do a test to see how charged the battery is, then once it's charged it'll go down to like a floating charge & maintains the voltage for the battery. The bigger amperage one's will probably bring the battery up to proper voltage faster than a smaller amperage one, depending on how low it is. 

 

That's just one brand. Norco is another that's decent too. If you're uncertain, it doesn't hurt to go bigger than what you think that you need, just your wallet. I know that battery tender has been around for years & makes different styles of maintainers/tenders for numerous applications. You can see what best suits your needs. They have like a charging station if you have multiple batteries to charge, but it may be cheaper to buy 2 individual chargers/maintainers than 1 big charging station. The individual ones also come with their quick disconnects too so you shouldn't have to order anything extra. 

Edited December 21, 2021 by lildisco

[oskar27]

Thanks for the help, I’m new to this so I forgot to ask: do you disconnect the battery from the car and then you connect the charger or you can connect the charger to the battery on top of the car’s cables?

 

Also since the Edge sits inside the garage, how often would you use the charger? Once or twice per week or month?

 

Most likely I will go with 1 Amp because the battery is new and since I don’t drive the Edge much in the winter I just want to keep the battery charged.

 

I also noticed that Norco has some pretty decent ones so I’m looking and will decide which one to get. These chargers are much better than my old one because they are smaller and easier to attach/hold to the car when charging. The old one I have it’s a big and heavy/bulky charger only good I guess for my tractor. Thanks for the info and links.

[lildisco]

That's the great thing about the trickle chargers / maintainers, you simply hook it up to the battery without disconnecting anything (assuming that you have the quick connect/disconnect cables connected properly) & it automatically starts charging the battery to the point where it can maintain the charge. 

 

I would recommend plugging it in right after your last drive & it's going to sit awhile. You can also plug it after you're done driving for the day. I did that with my CX7 & the battery lasted ~8 years (had much less electronics than our Edge's). It comes down to which is more convenient for you. If you have remote start, it won't automatically start because the hood will be open. That may be an inconvenience for you, but shouldn't be a big deal 

Edited December 21, 2021 by lildisco

[oskar27]

Thank you mate for the excellent help, much appreciated.

 

I just bought from Amazon.ca (I’m in Canada) the Battery Tender Junior 800 12V, 800mA, CAD$54.95. Delivery is for Dec-28.

 

There is a huge variety of models and less expensive but reading the customers feedback most of them didn’t work. So I took your recommendation and went with Battery Tender.

 

Regarding how long batteries last I know what most people think but I have a different experience. I’m an old timer and had quite a few cars in my life and never had to replace any battery. There are 2 cars in particular I had each for about 12 years without changing the battery: one was a 1979 Ford Econoline van which I converted to a camper and 12 year later when I sold her she was like brand new. The other one was a 2001.5 Passat GLX made in Germany and again after 11 years I had her she was like brand new. But I take very good care of my cars because it’s like a hobby.

 

My current 2016 Edge I’m very surprised the battery went dead but my thinking is something beyond my control happened to her. About 2 weeks before the battery went dead I had gone to the dealer for oil change etc. and after this appointment I hardly drove the car to give a chance to the battery to charge because among other reasons we has two snow storms. In addition it just happened that I decided to wash/wax the car and when I do the wash I leave all doors open so she dries well. The interior lights went out after about 6 minutes and the next day I did the wax. Then the following day trying to start the battery was dead.

 

When I removed the dead battery it was not marked anywhere with the Ford logo. I found that strange because all parts in the car regardless how small are marked with the Ford logo. Perhaps my dealer switched the battery? Who knows. Another reason is that today everything is made in dubious quality to reduce the cost so my battery had reached its working life and that’s why it went dead.

 

When I get the new charger I will post back to tell you my experience

[lildisco]

You're comparing apples to oranges when it comes to battery load. A '79 Econoline with barely any electronics & a 2001 Passat. Newer vehicles have way more tech than both of those previous vehicles combined. Even when the Edge is turned off, there's still plenty of things in the background running, like perimeter sensors for the passive alarm & keyless entry. The edge will eventually go into a deep sleep state, but there's almost always some electronics still on the vehicle at all times.

[oskar27]

You are right! I forgot about the new electronics so my comparison is not correct!

[akirby]

It’s easy to remove the battery.  Remove the bracket in the bottom front and the battery slides forward to allow access to the terminals.

 

And factory components don’t usually have labels.

[oskar27]

Where it’s better to connect the NEG wire from the charger, to the battery’s NEG post or somewhere around the engine block?

 

For the Edge definitely the best will be around the engine block since the battery’s NEG is almost inaccessible if you don’t slide the battery out.

 

Looks like most prefer around the engine block but never understood why.

[oskar27]

Had to cancel my Amazon order because I found another charger at a local well known automotive store. I connected the unit as per instructions and it sensed my 12V battery and the charge indicator lit at 50% indicating the status of my battery. It stayed there for about 5 minutes and then it went to 75% blinking and it has been there for about 1 hour now still blinking. Hopefully eventually it will go to 100%. Very easy to use, the unit looks solid and stays cool and I’m happy with it. Many thanks for the tip.

[lildisco]

They will do that to test how charged the battery is. I would use the ring connectors with the quick disconnect so that it'd make your life easier connecting & disconnecting. Our 2016 SEL Fwd 2.0 will say 75% on the Norco charger for a few hours, then go to trickle mode. 

[oskar27]

I was planning to use the ring connectors but I’m missing one 1/4" fine thread nut plus the bolt holding the POS battery cable is not long enough to add the ring connector there. I will do the change soon as I have the needed parts.

 

It took about 2.5 hours to go from 75% to 100% and now the 100% is blinking.

 

BTW do you know if having the hood open drains the battery?

[lildisco]

Our 2016 has a threaded part that goes around the terminal on the positive battery cable & should be plenty to thread the tiny ring connectors on. 

 

I've had 2 different types of chargers / tenders & usually leave the hood open when I have them hooked up & it's never been an issue.

 

I just hooked up our 2016 & it took ~4 hours to get to the trickle charge point. It got to 75% within 45 minutes. I just hooked up our 2020 to see if it'll get to the trickle charge point before I go to bed. 

[oskar27]

Thanks for the help lildisco, appreciated

 

Not used to these chargers yet so before I go to bed tonight I will disconnect it and close the hood, not comfortable otherwise. But it finally went to 100% not blinking (fully charged) and took a total about 4 hours. The charger box was totally cold.

 

My POS battery terminal only has about 2-3 threads left so it’s not enough to thread any nut on it. It’s not a big deal to install a new longer bolt.

 

It’s funny that I don’t like leaving the hood open overnight but eventually I will get used to it, LOL…

[lildisco]

Or leave the doors open all night ?

 

Our 2020 wasn't in trickle mode when I went to bed, it somewhere between 75% to 100% after a couple of hours. I haven't checked it this morning, but I'm certain that it's in trickle mode. 

[oskar27]

Good idea, including the garage doors ?

[WWWPerfA_ZN0W]

if you are ok with no puddle lights or entry lights, you can turn Dark Mode on using Forscan for Windows/extended license if applicable to your MY.

[oskar27]

Thanks for the tip, although puddle lights and entry lights are nice to have they are not a necessity for me. I don’t know very much about Forscan and I will investigate next year if I have a need for it.

[enigma-2]

On 12/23/2021 at 10:42 AM, oskar27 said:

Where it’s better to connect the NEG wire from the charger, to the battery’s NEG post or somewhere around the engine block?

 

For the Edge definitely the best will be around the engine block since the battery’s NEG is almost inaccessible if you don’t slide the battery out.

 

Looks like most prefer around the engine block but never understood why.

You normally connect the negative lead to engine ground, instead of battety ground, because the battery discharges hydrogen gas.

 

When making a connection, it's common for less expensive chargers to spark, possibly igniting the flammable gas. (It's more critical when jumping from another car, but still a possibility from a charger).

[enigma-2]

A very good charger are the chargers from CTEC. They can bring a battety back when others can't. Start with a desulfate phase, and walk the battey through 8 stages. 

 

Fully rain and snow proof, it also has a cold weather mode that raises the charge voltage up to 14.5 volts. Shortens charging times).

 

One additional feature for cars that are charged frequently, you can attach an optional, semi-permanent assembly to your battery, then just plug the charger into this harness. (Can charge with hood closed).

 

This is the one I have, now replaced with a newer model. I've had excellent results in recovering old batteries it 

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006G14FK8/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_GES7J8RTDJ871KBCQR8E?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

[oskar27]

Thanks enigma-2, now I understand the reson. The CTEC looks quite a good unit