Last winter, our batery died and according to the nice AA man, it was due to short journeys with all the kit running, heater, llights, heated seats etc.

This year I thought I be ready with a rechargeable jump starter kept in the boot, in case SWMBO gets caught out somewhere on her own.

I've seen one that looks decent enough on half price (allegedly) sale:

https://www.towsure....Starter_300_Amp

What are your opinions if you own one of these or does anyone else have a recommendation for under £50?

I've also seen this type which means you don't have to get out of the car, but you do have to wait 10-15 minutes wile it charges your battery.

Edited 8 December, 201213 yr by davehutch

I've seen one that looks decent enough on half price (allegedly) sale:

https://www.towsure....Starter_300_Amp

I've seen some of this type around. I doubt if a 300W version would be enough for a 2.0 oil burner. Maplin have a 400W version that does not get very good reviews.

As for the other link, I get page not found.

As above, 300amp might work just once on a completely flat battery, then would probably need recharging.

If the other one is a thing that plugs into the cigarette socket, don't bother!

High power demand, low vehicle usage - you could consider one of these?

http://www.ctekcharg...tek-mxs-3.6.php

I have one permanently fixed in my garage, if I'm going to be away or not using either car for a while, I can hook them up, the battery is charged and conditioned.

I bought mine to deal with a previous Golf, whose battery would slowly discharge - eventually traced to a fault in the factory radio circuitry. Still a handy reasonably priced bit of kit to have available

High power demand, low vehicle usage - you could consider one of these?

http://www.ctekcharg...tek-mxs-3.6.php

I have one permanently fixed in my garage, if I'm going to be away or not using either car for a while, I can hook them up, the battery is charged and conditioned.

I bought mine to deal with a previous Golf, whose battery would slowly discharge - eventually traced to a fault in the factory radio circuitry. Still a handy reasonably priced bit of kit to have available

May be worth one of these combined with a spare battery. A regular trickle charge and slight discharge would keep the spare in good condition as well.

Edited 8 December, 201213 yr by Hairball

As above, 300amp might work just once on a completely flat battery, then would probably need recharging.

If the other one is a thing that plugs into the cigarette socket, don't bother!

Depends what you consider a "flat" battery. I think mine measured at about 11.5 volts and needed a top-up before it would do anything more than click! when I turned the key.

So, the ones that charge your battery for 15 minutes and then allow you to start it aren't up to much?

High power demand, low vehicle usage - you could consider one of these?

http://www.ctekcharg...tek-mxs-3.6.php

I have one permanently fixed in my garage, if I'm going to be away or not using either car for a while, I can hook them up, the battery is charged and conditioned.

I bought mine to deal with a previous Golf, whose battery would slowly discharge - eventually traced to a fault in the factory radio circuitry. Still a handy reasonably priced bit of kit to have available

I did think about one of these a while back, but I'm more concerned that it won't start when my wife is stuck out on her own somewhere

I've seen some of this type around. I doubt if a 300W version would be enough for a 2.0 oil burner. Maplin have a 400W version that does not get very good reviews.

As for the other link, I get page not found.

Hopefully this link will be ok

http://www.qvcuk.com/Porta-Jump-Emergency-Car-12V-Rechargeable-Compact-Design-Jumps.product.557909.html?sc=557909-SRCH&cm_sp=VIEWPOSITION-_-1-_-557909

The Ctek chargers/conditioners are very good but Lidl and Aldi sell a similar one for less than £20.00. I've been using one for keeping my caravan battery up to scratch for 3 years and a classic car battery before that. BUT, it's unlikely that your battery will fail unless the car has a problem that doesn't show until it's too late.

Fred

The Ctek chargers/conditioners are very good but Lidl and Aldi sell a similar one for less than £20.00. I've been using one for keeping my caravan battery up to scratch for 3 years and a classic car battery before that.

Fred

I agree - the Lidl or Aldi battery conditioners are both excellent.

I've been using the Aldi one on my (stored) 2nd car for 3 years now. It appears to be a Chinese copy of the CTEK one.

According to the instructions, it has the ability to charge a virtually flat battery by pulse charge, it will also act as a normal charger, and when it detects that your battery is fully charged, it becomes a trickle charger that can be left permanently connected without risk of damage to the battery.

So far it has done exactly that, though I don't leave it permanently connected, preferring to give the battery a boost every month or so (only 'cos it saves electricity you know!).

Last time Aldi had it for sale, it was £13.99, and they do seem to do another run of them 2 or 3 times a year. From my experience, I'd recommend one to anyone, particularly at that price.

Another fan of the Aldi one, it is used on our Mk1 Escort, which is in storage, about twice a year to charge up the battery so we can move it around. Excellent bit of kit. I'll bang it on the Rover as she's been up in the air a nearly two months and the old girls clock etc slowly drains her down. She always spins like a top when started after the slow pulse chargers been on.