Routine Battery Care
The best way to avoid the cost of a new battery is to look after the one you already have. For most, a vehicle’s battery is a fit and forget product that is only thought about once it has failed. However, just like a brake pad or windscreen wiper, it is a consumable item. Taking care of it is key to getting the maximum service life and avoiding the distress of a vehicle not starting. This can be as simple as:
Ensure frequent journeys to help maintain a high level of charge
Batteries fitted to vehicles used for infrequent or short journeys fail at a much higher rate than those fitted to vehicles in regular use. This is because vehicle batteries are designed to provide enough power to start your car before it is then replaced through regular driving. If a vehicle is used infrequently, or for repeated short journeys, the battery may not receive sufficient charge to deliver reliable starting power. Kind of like using your phone every day but not charging it regularly.
For most people who use their car to commute, or whose journeys regularly include at least five or six miles of continuous driving, the battery should receive sufficient charge to replace what’s used to start the car.
However, for those who use their car less frequently, or for shorter journeys, GS Yuasa recommend at journey of at least 30 minutes every so often. Depending on the state of charge, this is often enough to sufficiently recharge the battery in order to supply dependable starting power. Although there is no hard and fast rule as to how long or how far a vehicle needs to be driven to recharge the battery.
Get your vehicle battery checked as winter draws in
At Shield Batteries we offer a free battery check service, completed onsite, whilst you wait. This battery health check provides an insight into its state of health and can identify a battery likely to fail before it actually lets you down.
We can then advise if whether maybe changing the route you take for the school drop-off, journey to work might help or you could need to use a smart charger.
Consider using a Smart battery charger
If you were to use a battery charger on a regular basis, you would undoubtably prolong the life of your battery, thus reducing the risk of battery failure.
Using a smart charger is as simple as connecting it to the battery and selecting the correct mode; we have a selection of chargers available and can advise the correct one to suit you and your vehicle.
At Shield Batteries, our friendly Battery Experts are here to help!
Not only do we supply Batteries & Inverters, but we also stock Battery Chargers to keep you Fully Charged. We can also supply Jump Packs & Jump Leads too & a huge selection of batteries to suit every vehicle or application. You can find us at the following locations….
- Bishops Stortford, Herts - 01279 652067
- North West - 01942 644222
- Leicester - 0116 284 8082
- Yeovil - 01935 848858
- Poole - 01202 667728
- Lincon Batteries, Southend (Classic Car Batteries) - 01702 525374
Shield Batteries ……. Powering the future since 1910
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