Ctek Battery Chargers.

[DefenderSte]

I hope that this is in the correct section...:)


I was just wondering if anybody on here has used or got one if so what do you think of it...?

Im currently looking at the MXS 7.0

Im wondering if im correct in thinking that i can leave it on my car battery all the time as a top up and secondly will it charge my defender battery....??

Having asked the shop assistant in my local Repco he didnt fill me with a whole lot of confidence as his knowledge was very limited to say the least.......;)


Cheers.

Stevie....:D:D

[Mick_Marsh]

Ah, yes. My local Repco adolescents are very knowledgable. They can tell me the price down to two decimal points.

The C-Tek chargers are very good. They don't recover a battery from dead flat though. The one you are describing is good for a battery up to 150Ah.
What size is your battery? I'd consider looking at a larger charger.
Mine is quite large and does 12V and 24V (because I need it).

[Eevo]

i have the ctek 5amp changer.
great piece of gear.

depending on what your using it for, you may be better off with the 5amp or the 10 amp.

[DefenderSte]

Most of the time its for the battery on my scoob that spends more time than id like in the garage,but on the off chance that id need it for the Defender then i want it to charge that one too.

My Defender is my daily drive so if im honest im not to worried about it too much...:D

[Eevo]

5amp would be plenty then. bit cheaper too.

i only recommend 7 or 10amp if you need to charge an empty battery overnight. ie, second battery and your setup with mains power.

[spudboy]

I've got a CTEK MSX 7. Been a good unit. Charges all size batteries, from my motorbike up to my truck batteries (one at a time, obviously it's not 24v).

If you only have one charger - this is a good size to get.

[incisor]

whilst i currently own a xms 15amp ctek and i consider it a good charger

i have had a couple 7 amp ctek units over the years that have lost the plot and cooked batteries...

i only bought the xms 15 ctek this time as it was on special for just under $200 at the time and i had heard they didnt have the same issue as the 7 amp units. the xms 15 unit has a temp sensor on the battery clamp to assist in working out how to charge the battery in situ.

it has done a great job and not suffered the problems the 7 amp units did.

don't know enough technically to be able to say what goes wrong but i have been on the receiving end twice ...

tim also mentioned them to me in passing one day as well but i can not remember what he said was an issue.

[spudboy]

I've also got the same 15A as you, and a baby Ctek XS 0.8. Haven't had any issues with any of them, but will keep an eye on the MSX 7 after hearing your cautions.

How did you know they had "cooked" a battery, or is is very obvious when it happens?

[tonyf]

i have four MXS 5.0 units - one for my yacht (3 AGM batteries, about 200AH), one for my camper trailer (one Optima AGM battery) one for my TD5 (dual Optima batteries) and one for my Heritage (standard battery). I am overseas for a couple of months and all batteries stay on trickle charge while I am away. I have never had any problems with the Ctek units but a larger unit will of course charge more quickly a heavily discharged battery.

[incisor]

How did you know they had "cooked" a battery, or is is very obvious when it happens?

they were deemed cooked and had it by an auto electrician in caboolture who i held in high regard.

they both worked fine for a year or so and then out of the blue they overcharged the battery. both times they were 100ah marine agm batteries i had in my camper trailer at the time. no other power source was used on them so it could only have been the chargers

was an expensive lesson and when it happened the second time i swore i would never buy a ctek again.

but alas i eventually did but i took some convincing...

[whlump]

I have 5 amp one, use it for camper and boat batteries and have had no problems so far, it has also brought a flat battery back to with the recondition mode although it took a couple of tries, very happy with it

Sent from my SM-T310 using AULRO mobile app

[DefenderSte]

Well I went out a purchased the MSX 7.0 its charged my scoob battery up from flat and even if i only put it on once every couple of weeks I'm happy as i don't have to mess about jump starting it.

Its also got a 5yr warranty with it but how much use that is only time will tell but for the tie being I'm happy......:D:D

Thanks one and all for you advice and input much appreciated.......:D

[LandyAndy]

If a battery is too flat for the charger to start up try charging 2 batteries in parallel with jumper leads(ie still 12V) Once its charging disconnect the second battery;);););)

MAKE SURE YOU USE SAFETY GEAR AS A SPARK CAN CAUSE AN EXPLOSION.

Andrew