Summershandy Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 I almost feel like a doofus asking this but, can I hook up my trickle charger to the battery while it's still connected positive to starter and ground to engine? I have a smart 6 volt Genius charger. I somehow remember doing this last year and when I came out the charger had turned itself off. It's a real pain too because I have a cover that holds the battery and it needs to be removed to access the battery terminals. Could I hook the charger to the OTHER ends of the battery cables? At the starter and engine block? Thanks for any info on this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bhigdog Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 The electrons won,t mind traveling a few feet farther......bob 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted June 17, 2019 Share Posted June 17, 2019 Yes 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfa Posted June 17, 2019 Share Posted June 17, 2019 You certainly can charge whilst the battery is connected (ignition off) and you can definitely connect the positive charger lead to the other end of the main lead where it connects to the starter. The earth lead can connect to any good ground (eg a cylinder head bolt). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Summershandy Posted June 17, 2019 Author Share Posted June 17, 2019 Actually, I found my charger came with ring terminal connectors still in the box. I'm going to attach them and leave them outside the battery cover. I can plug the charger in any time now without the hassle of removing anything. The forum doesn't just answer questions but sometimes makes one think a little harder to get a solution that is long over due! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACK M Posted June 17, 2019 Share Posted June 17, 2019 I hook the charger at the alternator on one of my cars because of a hidden battery. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank DuVal Posted June 17, 2019 Share Posted June 17, 2019 Hooking the charger away from the battery terminals has the advantage of eliminating corrosion issues that sometimes arise at the battery terminals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodneybeauchamp Posted July 29, 2019 Share Posted July 29, 2019 On 6/18/2019 at 4:14 AM, Frank DuVal said: Hooking the charger away from the battery terminals has the advantage of eliminating corrosion issues that sometimes arise at the battery terminals. Interesting comment. Can you explain more on this, why etc. Is this for one or both leads from the charge source ( in my case, solar panel on one Buick 12V and a smart charger on the 6V Buick) curious, Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank DuVal Posted July 29, 2019 Share Posted July 29, 2019 With the acid that is around some battery terminals, I have had the Croodille / Alligator Clips corrode when connected to batteries for a long time. Not all the time, just sometimes. If the terminals are very clean, there should be no corrosion issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 On many modern cars, the battery is under the back seat or under the floorboard. To charge the battery, there are terminals under the hood. As Bob said earlier, the electrons don't car about a couple more feet of travel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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